Tuesday May 14, 2019

Welcome to France

Ooh la la, we are going to France today. Spain has been nice but we are ready for the change. As I said, one reason is that the Spanish food was pretty similar everywhere. Lots of fried and paella with a few twists here and there. We will see what France brings to the culinary table. We have about an hour and twenty minute train ride to the town of Narbonne, France. We arrive just before 1130, get our bearings and head toward our room. We are staying in a room that has a shared living space of a living room and kitchen. The owner, Craig has agreed to meet us at noon so we can leave our bags there. Along the way, we pass the TI so we go in and get a map of the city. Time to learn some French so I ask how to say have a great day in French. It is “Bon d’journee”. From the TI it is just another 5 minutes to the room. We are about 10 minutes early so we ring the bell and a lady answers the door. She speaks English and lets us in. Karen is the cleaning lady and shows us where we can leave our bags. She asks if we know what room we are in as she has finished cleaning a couple, but we don’t. She goes up to finish her job and as we are getting stuff out of our packs for exploring, Craig the owner shows up. He also speaks English with an accent that is not French. He asks Karen if room two is ready but she has just started it.

Feeling French

He tells us to bring our bags up to the room which seems very nice. He gives us our keys to complete check in and then tells us some things to see. As we are walking out the door with him, I ask about places for lunch. He walks us out to the main walking street, tells us about a few very close, two are closed today, also his bar that he owns with mostly light snacks. We say we are looking for a nice sit down French lunch, so he points a few blocks away to what he calls a rugby bar and says it is very good, as well as a place inside the covered market, which we can see from here. He takes his time talking about places and their ambiance, making us feel very welcome. I ask if he is from England and he says no, Australia. How did he end up in this small French town? He played professional rugby and was hired on a team here. Now with those days behind, he has been here 17 years and loves it. He owns several bars and places to rent.

Narbonne Market Hall

We thank Craig and walk across the Robine Canal to check out the market. It is much nicer and less hectic than the ones we visited in Spain, and the food and desserts look really good. Besides places to sit and eat, there are also the usual, vegetable, fruit, meat, fish, and cheese stands.

Pate Anyone?

It is a beautiful day so we decide to try the rugby bar called La Mangerie and sit outside. It is pretty busy when we arrive and I realize that I do not know how to say table for two in Frinch. I just say dieux and Australian Craig sent us. We get a smile and a seat on the patio. Now to try to decipher the menu. They have a set menu for midday for 14 Euros with starter, main, and dessert, 12 Euros for starter and main or main and dessert, or 9 Euros for just a main. What do you think we choose? He tells us in not so bad English that the menu is no choice, starter is pate, main is pork, and dessert later. What the heck, let’s try pate right from the start. We order a beer, they bring a bottle of water, and bread without being asked. We like the water and bread part and hope this is the norm in France as many places we have been in Europe, it is not. The pate arrives with a little salad and of course we have the bread to spread it on. The taste is intriguing but I like it. Carol seems to like it to, until I tell her it probably has chicken lips and other things in it.

Pork and Potatoes

The next course is pork with a sauce and French mushrooms that taste very earthy to me. Carol likes them which surprises me. When dessert comes, it is a fresh yoghurt served with some sugar you can add to it. It is very good and refreshing. While we were eating, the apartment owner Craig came by to eat lunch. He says we should look around because they are all locals eating here so we should feel French. After our meal, we walk back to our room to freshen up before exploring this nice town. We picked this to start because it was not very far from Girona and just has a few sights. This should give us a chance to relax and change cultures. From our first few hours we are enjoying the feel and ambiance of the town.

Cemetery Under the Basilica

We wander over to the Saint Paul Basilica. It is one of the oldest Gothic churches in southern France and was built on the remains of a paleochristian burial site from the 3rd century. Although not particularly big, it has a nice main altar, and a side chapel to St. Paul Serge. We discover that you can walk down under the church and see the ancient burial site. There are sarcofogi, human bones, and ornate tomb covers. It is interesting that they built over the cemetery. As we leave the basilica, we notice that there is a carved frog in the font.

House of Three Wetnurses

Back outside, we take a few pictures of the exterior and walk towards the House of the Three Wet Nurses marked on our map. Apparently an example of Renaissance private architecture, it was built in 1558 and got its name from the buxom women framing one of its Windows. At first, I see old glass with three women on it and think that is all but Carol shows me the concrete sculptures surrounding a different window. Whoever lived here apparently liked them full figured women.

From 1872

Wandering around, we pass another building with a Boulangerie sign from 1872. It is no longer a business but once was. We cross back over the canal on the Bridge of the Merchants. When going to the basilica, we somehow missed it and crossed the canal in a different spot. Now we see why we missed it, as it doesn’t look like a bridge. It is a street that was built over the canal and then lined with shops. You would not even know that you were above the canal except for some of the back windows in the shops. This street used to be part of the Via Domitia which was the road built by the Romans linking this city to Rome.

Cathedral Of St Just

Our next stop is the Cathedral of Saint Just. It is also gothic with the choir built between 1272 and 1332. When inside we notice that the church feels out of proportion. That is because they were over ambitious and never finished the cathedral due to disease cutting the number of parishioners, funding, and the discovery of a Roman wall that the town, at the time, did not want to disturb. This makes the exterior more interesting than the interior. After exploring some more of the town, we stop at the market to get some cheese for tonight. Carols feet are bothering her so we relax the rest of the afternoon.

Evening Light

I do go out for a little evening stroll, enjoying the canal and evening light. Then some French cheese and wine finishes off our evening. We have a Fourme d’Ambert ( a kind of Roquefort) , a Tomme de Savoie ( a aged harder cheese), and a Saint Marcellin ( a softer Camembert type cheese). French bread which is so much better than the Spanish bread, is also enjoyed with our meal. We finish the evening with two very large slices of cake we bought from a local bakery and coffee. Time to dream in French.

Expenses
Train from Girona to Narbonne 42E
Les Chambres des Barques. 45E
Lunch at La Mangerie 34E
Wine and Cheese from Markets 15.24E
Cake from Delice Cake 10E Cash
Walked 5 Miles