Friday turned in to a wonderful catch-up day and we both felt all the more relaxed for it. We spent most of the day sitting outside under the awning reading our books. Eileen received a good wash down and she now looks a lot smarter without all the mud and grime all over her. All the washing of sheets, towels and clothes was completed and then hung on lines around us to dry in the gorgeous sunshine. Then at 5:30pm we caught the bus in to the centre of Aix-en-Provence and strolled the streets ……. as we do. I’m starting to think we are turning in to a couple of ‘streetwalkers’; we better find some countryside soon…..
We watched some street artists in the Place Richelme. One involved two people walking along a piece of paper, very, very, extremely slowly; so slowly that it was actually quite hard to see them move. We managed to find a spare seat outside a bar in the square to drink an aperitif and I think the girl may have moved one metre in the time we were there………it’s art.
We then spotted a Cambodian restaurant, ‘Des Temples d’ Angkor’, in Place des Cardeurs; the thought of some Asian food, after so long, drew us in. The waiter informed us that he wasn’t the chef, but that his wife was cooking and that “she is Cambodian origin”. The starters were delicious and the main courses were brilliant and these were followed by some fresh fruit. It was flavoursome, beautifully, stylishly presented and we both reckon it is one of the best Asian meals we have had, it’s certainly the best meal we have had in France this year, or last year. Before we left, I popped my head in to the kitchen to thank the chef and tell her that she cooked superb, exquisite meals and received a big smile in return.
On Saturday, keen to get going promptly, I got up early, washed my hair and then while Rodney was out on a chocolate croissant and baguette hunt, I managed to blow a fuse using my hairdryer. I turned all the power off and back on again, but no luck. When Rodney got back he moved the power cable to a different post outside and voilà, we had power again. The palaver didn’t slow us up too much and the 9:30am bus whisked us to the city centre where five markets were in full swing. We strolled around taking up every offer of tasting the goods; nougat, cheeses, macaroons, salamis, calissons, tomato tapenade and sea salt, all in a very random order swinging from sweet to savoury and back again. We bought a lovely cheese board made from the wood of an olive tree, some soft leather slippers, some ‘finishing’ salt, a big punnet of strawberries so sweet that they taste like jam and a Provence style tablecloth and we breathed in the smells of the freesias, lily-of-the-valley and peonies in the flower market. The bundles of jasmine and branches of eucalyptus transported me back to Sydney on a warm September day.
Aix-En-Provence is a wonderfully vibrant, stylish city full of ambience and life. It was so enjoyable after always feeling that France is closed, or about to shut. This place buzzed with attractive bars, which are all full of people and we really enjoyed being in amongst it all. There didn’t seem to be any signs of recession here! We decided to hang around longer and have our main meal of the day at lunchtime, so we picked the Café Leon Bistrot where I chose the tuna steak and Rodney indulged in a huge pot of moules marinierres with the statutory bowl of frites. Somehow, an hour later, we managed to also squeeze in a crème brulee ice cream, before we returned on the bus to the campsite and settled in to rest our sore feet and read our books outside, while the sun was still shining.
Sunday started very late with a darn good bacon and egg …..brunch, cooked by chef Rodney. We then faffed about, before catching a lunch time bus to the city for the last time. We strode down the wide boulevard of the Cours Mirabeau to catch the 2:15pm petit train for a guided tour. On completion, one hour later, we confirmed that we really had already covered the place, but now knew a bit more about the buildings and their history.
As the rain began falling again, we dashed to a café in Place des Precheurs for a warming hot chocolate before catching the bus back ‘home’, with sweet pastries in hand. For dinner tonight, we dined on fresh pasta purchased in the market the day before, and Rodney washed it down with a couple of glasses of Côtes du Rhône. Très delicious.
