The birds are singing so beautifully in the morning here. I wake up with such happy thoughts hearing the birds singing outside as the dawn breaks. Beautiful. L'Octroi Saint Jacques has been a great B&B. Jocelyn and Salva are so hospitable and friendly. Great accommodations and a great breakfast is served each morning. I forgot to write about her crepes yesterday - yum, they were so good.
Tim got up at 7 and went running – 2 times around the city
and through the city where they are setting up the Wednesday market just
outside of the Hotel Dieu.
We got ready and went down for petit dejeuner.
M. Bianco always has a great spread for breakfast with coffee and
juice. Saban came in and greeted us as
insisted we have a sip of brandy as a digestif!
What a way to start the day. We
obliged him each day on this point! They
wanted to know what was next in “our book” and we explained that we were going
to Modene – and they had no idea where this was. He even got a large map and couldn’t find it
so I showed him where the next B&B is in our book – just northwest of
Avignon. He was satisfied with
that. But then he insisted that we take
a bottle of Chablis wine from his wine cellar.
We accepted this graciously with many thanks.
We enjoyed breakfast this morning with a young couple who
were from Metz in the north of France.
We left for the market about 9:30 after packing up the
car. We told Jocelyn and Saban that we’d
be back to get the freezer blocks for our cooler out of their freezer before
11.
We explored the market and I tasted some cheese at one fromagerie stand. The young man and I talked as he spoke
English having lived in Canada for 3 years.
At the market they had truffles
and all kinds of truffle oil, cheese, meats, soaps, linens, mustard and many
household items.
The Wednesday morning market in Beaune
We walked to the Parc de la Borzaise, recommended by Emilie. This morning while Tim was running there were
men on the street with shot guns shooting the crows in the park. He was surprised that this was happening
right in the city. Wonder what happens to
the bullets that zoom through the trees!
And right inside the city! They had
8-10 dead birds laying on the sidewalk! The park was small but well maintained and pretty.
The Parc de la Borzaise
City side of the Parc de las Borzaise
We walked past the rue d’Enfer (Hell) and the rue Paradis (Heaven) near the cathedral. The weather is mild with a few sprinkles. The rain off and on have helped me with my allergies from the pollen. Not as many particles in the air now.
We headed back to the pedestrian streets and I went into a boulangerie and got a baguette for 95 centimes. Tim says they are $3-4 at home! She wrapped it in a bag and I put it under my arm and headed for the charcuterie. There we decided on getting a large slice of terrine de lapin (rabbit terrine). They we headed back to the market and I got a large piece of cheese from the man I had talked to before. Lastly we got a stack of linen napkins to use on our picnics. All set for lunch now.
We headed back to L’Octroi Saint Jacques and got our freezer blocks for the cooler and put the cheese and terrine in the cooler and headed out. A last picture with Jocelyn and off we went.
Tim bidding Jocelyn goodbye from our B&B - L'Octroi Saint Jacques - in Beaune
Lots of trucks out on the road today but we have the highway mostly as we head south. The trip should take about 3 hours 4t minutes. Tim drove and I played music using his phone and a connection to the car. He went BESERK when I put on Edith Piaf – the little sparrow. He can’t stand her. So we listened to other things - mostly classical and Barbra.
Traffic was very heavy in Lyon and we crossed the Rhone River several times. Just south of Lyon we stopped at an “aire” that had picnic tables and had our baguette, cheese, terrine, mustard and water. Tim wanted to open some wine but I convinced him to keep that until we get to the B&B and we’ll have wine by the pool.
We finished our picnic just in time as the rains started as we headed further south. We are scheduled now to arrive at the B&B about 3:30 – 4 pm. The perfect time for a bottle of wine. Tim drove the rest of the way to Modene as we listened to music from his iPhone. We can see why the Biancos didn't know where Modene is - it is a small village of only 400 people in the countryside outside of Carpentras.
La Villa Noria is in a gated complex with pool, lounge area and beautiful grounds. We arrived about 3:30 and Philippe and Sylvie greeted us and showed us around. Philippe explained that a "noria" is an old-style well where a pulley is used to bring up buckets of water from the well. He has one from the 18th century on the grounds - really neat. They bought the property in 2000 and opened the B&B in 2002-2003. It is a great property.
Sylvie grooming one of their cocker spaniels
We unpacked and relaxed at La Villa Noria and guess what - we had our bottle of wine on the outside patio from our room. Beautiful place. A beautiful afternoon.
Enjoying a bottle of our wine on our private patio off of our bedroom at La Villa Noria in Provence
Then we decided to do an "estate walk" like we always did in Delaware. We took our wine and roamed around the property. There were lots of things to see - the pool, herb garden, flowers, flowering trees, fruit trees, and even palm trees!
Tim with his wine by the pool
Chef Tim discovered the herb garden - He said "I know Philippe has one here somewhere!"
Larry looking at the "noria" - the crank on the right lifted the buckets full of water from the well and the water flowed into a cistern nearby
The old cistern -not a beautiful garden with benches
The patio of the main house at La Villa Noria - we ate dinner just inside the glass room on the right
After exploring the property on the grounds of La Villa Noria, we took a walk into the town. There is an old well, fountain, and a "laundry" there that dates back many, many years.
Tim "doing the laundry" at the communal laundry in Modene!
This is the old fountain and well with the laundry in the background
Emilie scheduled us to have dinner at La Villa Noria tonight. Philippe was the cook. Delicious. We were joined by 2 other couples who are also staying here - a couple from Cannes and a couple from outside of Philadelphia. Interesting dinner conversation and a fabulous meal.
Duck breast with peas and parsnips - delicious sauce. Perfectly done.
What a great start to a great adventure in Provence. We'll be a La Villa Noria for 8 days and 7 nights and Emilie has plenty of side trips planned for us. Tomorrow we expect to do a good bit of riding around as it is a national holiday to commemorate the end of World War II. Many businesses will be closed, but we'll have fun exploring.
Off to bed.
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