Despite prolonged and escalating strikes in France, I made it to Carlotta's place in Aix-en-Provence unscathed and without delays. I sat next to a retired Frenchman, Philippe, on the plane and we shared a lovely sunset together over French wine and broken English. He was telling me about how he had been in Paris visiting his daughter and helping his son-in-law do work on the house. He even expressed his regret that his son's car didn't have an extra seat, for had it space, he would have been pleased to offer me a ride.
My first day in Aix I must say was my favorite, because it was Market Day! As I worked my way around the various squares in town I stumbled upon the flower market, the antique market, and one of the largest produce markets I've ever seen. At one stall I sampled the most marvelous goat cheese which Carlotta and I later shared for dinner. I'm sure you'd all love to know what it is, but I don't know myself, so I'll have to file that one under unsolved culinary mysteries.
While buying lavender (a Provincial specialty, of course), I was assisted by a cute French boy who barley spoke English. He kept looking at me with this blushing grin and he and his dad were gesturing and whispering about me. When I asked what they were saying, the young man replied that his dad thinks I have a pretty face. To add to it, as I was walking away from the stand, the young boy headed in the same direction as me, turned around with that shameless smile, waved and said "hello!" With a little less language barrier I think I could have had myself a very lovely afternoon with a local cutie. Sigh.
Aix is perhaps most famous for producing the pivotal post-impressionist painter Paul Cézanne. The town is inundated with references to him, between such named cinemas and restaurants to a series of placards on the ground tracing an "In the Steps of Cézanne" walking tour.
For lunch that first day I ate at this cute restaurant where I ordered what could only poorly be compared to an appetizer platter. In reality, it was a collection of small bowls including hummus, meatballs, quiche, octopus salad, potatoes with garlic aioli, cheese, bread, and then some! It was a perfect first meal because I got to sample such an array of tasty treasures. The wine didn't hurt either.
Here are some pictures of various spots around the city that I found particularly beautiful (or particular), including the cathedral, and further down, the large fountain inside the city's central roundabout.
(This one's for you, B)
After getting a beer with Carlotta, I decided I just had to find a street crepe. Here's a selection of two in a series of photos I like to call, "Yummmm."
Sunday was the only day Carlotta and I had together, as she was weighed down with class the rest of the time I was visiting. We ended up going to Marseilles (at the suggestion of the flirtatious tourist agent who lamented the fact that he was working and couldn't tour us around himself), which unfortunately had been hit relatively hard by the strikes in the form of trash not being picked up in over a week. Thus, the town was dirty and stinky, and didn't present itself in the most favorable light whilst I was there!
We met up with Carlotta's boyfriend, Oscar, on the way up to incredibile Basilica Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde, which is settled up on the highest hill, overlooking all of Marseille and the Old Port. It had magnificent views, including one of the Château d'If, famous for being the island prison setting in Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo. It's the smaller island on the left of this first picture:
The Basilica itself is very unique, mixing Neo-Byzantine mosaics with a local nautical theme. There were even framed photos of old ships and real life-savers hanging on the side walls. Also, note the ship models hanging from the ceiling.
Here's some other photos of Marseille, including my lunch crepe, another beautiful church, and proof of the trash situation.
Over the next couple days I ate some lovely meals in Aix. Among the wonders were pumpkin soup with bacon, potato au-gratin, rack of lamb, white fish with a Calissous sauce, and pisatachio creme brulee.One evening, Carlotta and I went to a marvelous restaurant in Aix where we ordered a fixed menu with multiple courses. They brought us out our main entrees, which consisted of some of the most delicious food and sauces I have ever tasted. While we're ooh-ing and awe-ing over our plates, suddenly the waiter materializes, grabs the plates up off the table, and exclaims, "This is definitely NOT your food!" He had mixed up orders and given us another couple's meal. While our actual orders were also optimum, and we were fortunate enough to eat one whole meal and a third, we would have given anything to get those original plates back! Here's some various restaurant/food photos:
One of my last days I braved my way to Avignon on my own. The main attraction is the Palace of the Popes, the largest gothic building in the world, and the Papal seat from 1309-1377, when the Popes decided they needed a break from the chaos and corruption of Rome.
During this time, there was a Pope Innocent VI who even has a bridge in the palace named after him. I felt oddly comfortable in this massive stone palace as soon as I saw my name on the wall.
The terrace atop the palace offered gorgeous views of Avignon, including the Pont Saint-Bénézet, better known as the Pont d'Avignon, made famous by the children's song "Sur le pont d'Avignon", as well as its curious appearance, as much of the bridge was wiped out by a catastrophic flood in 1668. I was lucky to survive my bridge visit, as it was terribly windy and I almost blew off the darn thing.
I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Carlotta and tasting my way through Provence. Plus, I was simply amazed at how nice everyone was. I tried my best to say my few French niceties and they seemed to appreciate it. I think those Parisians could learn a thing or two from the country folk (and the same goes for the Florentines!).
