At the Debards, Christmas is already being prepared in October. The preparations, the decoration, the organization… On the Marseille Christmas market, in his chalet decorated in red and white, Laken puts into practice what his father, Jean-Claude, taught him. Get up early, finish late. So, from 8 a.m., while the Canebière is still silent, the thirty-year-old is already at work. “I prepare my pasta on site in advance for chichis and crepes. For the churros, I make it as I go along“, explains the saleswoman.
At his side, one of his sisters, Mindy, supports him. The rest of the family performs the same tasks at the Aubagne Christmas market or in the Alps. “We are the fourth generation of fairgrounds, our recipe for chichis remains unchanged since it was developed by my great-grandfather. This is surely why we are so successful“, she smiles. With 6 to 8 kilos of chichi dough and forty kilos of flour for pancakes, used every day, her Marseille customers, accustomed to her cones for three years, do not deny.
Laken was just 8 years old when she accompanied her father to fairs and markets. Manosque, Oraison, Gap and the Ardèche villages during the summer. “When my father started, there were still carts. I knew the rolling bench with the gas cauldron and the churro arm which was in fact a sausage stuffer… You even had to empty the hot oil into a milk jug. Today everything is modern but we still have two hours of cleaning at closing…“, she laughs.
Hours but a lot of happiness. “Firstly because we work as a family and then because we convey joy. Working in the party is still nice“, notes Laken. Although she learned her trade from her parents, Jean-Claude and Joëlle, it has now been twenty years since she settled in Marseille. “I met a man from Marseillais… He has also been a fairground worker for three generations!“
Julien runs the rides near the Prado and Pointe-Rouge in the summer, and the Réformés during the Christmas period. Not easy for festive meals shared in long tables. “We all finished early on the 24th so we were able to get together at home. On the other hand, the 25th was quick: the children opened their presents and we all went back to our posts!“A pace of life that doesn’t necessarily make Laken’s three sons want to take up the torch.”The new generation is not ready to work as many hours. They come to help but for now, they are aiming for other professional paths“, notes the churros seller, with a bit of regret.
In any case, she closely followed the case brought by Renaud Le Mailloux, a Marseille jurist, who has been aiming for ten years to have the funfair recognized as a UNESCO heritage site. So, at the beginning of the month, when fairground culture finally became part of the intangible heritage of humanity, she showed a broad smile. “It’s a very good thing, a fair recognition. Troubadours are part of the furniture of France and Marseille. We are a bit part of each other’s childhood…“
