My son took a high school exchange in Nîmes and a college exchange in Paris. While Nîmes is in Languedoc and not Provence, i can tell you two things: First, things are a lot slower in the south. Second, you will also find that most of the higher education is delivered by Parisians who have moved south for work, and are frankly longing to go home. They are almost like foreigners in their provincial outlook because they miss Paris so much. It’s beautiful down there around Aix and North and the weather is nice from April-October/early November, but if you were wild about the cultural richness of Paris, you will be disappointed. If you’re there in the winter-early spring months, it’s apt to be rainy and windy at times and there is much less to do than in Paris.