Nice Day 4

 It’s taken a few weeks of work but I think my body has become accustomed to the continental habit of never drinking water. Water is something you ask for and pay for, you’ll never see the locals drinking it. The French of the South are less guilty of this than northerners but from how little you see in people’s glasses you’d think the stuff was regarded as poison. 

Brunch was traditional. Red wine, a mixed green salad, and pissaladiere. The last item is a local treat, pizza dough topped with onions roasted to the point that they may as well be a liquid. Maybe with some olives and anchovies. Delicious.

From there I hopped the bus one town over, years ago a Rothschild built a villa there and now it is a museaum. The baroness liked pink, a lot. The entirety of the house was a display of the finest Italian furnishings of her day and her favorite color. The wealth on display is insane, she outbid King Leopold II for the plot. The real attraction is the gardens which are immaculately cared for and provide clear views on both sides of the village’s peninsula. The village itself was uninteresting, it feels shut down for the slow season.

Not my style but I suppose I can settle

On the way back I made my most intelligent choice yet. I stopped at Monoprix, a French supermarket to pick up a dinner of snacks. Wow, the cheese section. We definitely stereotype that the French are addicted to cheese, the fromagerie in Monoprix proves it. The section is about twice the size of a typical fromagerie in the US. One section for prepackaged cheese and one for deli style service. The line was absurd.

After eating some cheese and having a nice cheese nap, it was time for a beer and some reading. The people watching was incredible. A Swede at the bar was trying to flirt with two Ukrainian girls and not doing a good job. He kept thinking they were Italian. They were unimpressed, quickly finished their pints, and left. My entertainment concluded, I did the same.