Chasing Shiny Pennies

Today (26th). We arrived. It’s a 6 hour train ride. Trains are the way to travel. I packed us a snack of strawberries, cheese, sausage, wine. Try getting that load on a 6 hour plane flight. We arrived, found the stay and dumped our stuff. Took stock of available necessities and planned our shopping trip. It started raining, hard, we donned our rain gear and headed out. By the time we’d finished shopping, the rain had stopped. We organized our stash, made drinks and a snack, and settled in. I spent some time planning long term and Liz took the short term stuff. We’ve kind of settled in to that rhythm. I get us from place to place and Liz (and Rick Steves) figures out what to do once we’re there.

Today (27th). Liz and Rick had planned our day and Maps guided us for a while. Then we found what seemed to be a open air market and got distracted. It was just a large square with multiple outdoor cafes. The plan flew out the window and we wandered on. And on. We bought some sausage and some pears. And wandered some more. We ended up where Rick wanted us to go all along. Montpellier’s Arc de Triomphe. Then a little further on, a Roman aqueduct. It was a great wander and it strengthened our resolve to join the pro circuit. We had a great lunch and wandered back. I found a photography shop on the way back that has a print I may end up with. If I can convince myself I can keep it undamaged for another month of traveling and then haul it back. It’s border line too big. We’ll see.

Today (28th). Rick’s plan for today was Avignon to visit the Pope’s Palace and then Arles for the Roman ruins and Van Gogh connection. We got almost to Avignon and the train stopped….for a long time. They do the same thing here with mass transit issues. The system shuts down, then a long period of silence and wondering follows. Then, finally, some elucidation….but not really at all. It’s very interesting when all the explanations and projections and promises are being delivered in a language that you don’t speak. So we sat for a while. Then a while longer. We got to Avignon 1/2 hour before we were scheduled to catch our train to Arles. So we just stayed at the station. Then we made it to Arles. We saw the Roman Coliseum (not the one in Rome….we were in Arles), it’s still in use today. Then we tried to find a way in to the Roman Amphitheater without paying. Then we shopped.

Not really, but I bought some piment infused salt and a box of pastries……I was hungry. Then we found a restaurant. While we’ve been here, we’ve been out of sync with local dining times. Most places close at 2 or 2:30 and reopen at 6:30 to 7:30. Or they only open at the later hours. We had tapas. Then we caught our train back to Montpellier.

Today (29th). I spent much of the early day figuring out and making arrangements for moving on. Semi-successfully. We’ve got train tickets and a stay in Pau (the closest I could get us to Larrau by train). Larrau is where Liz’s way back ancestors came from. We’ll rent a car and drive from Pau. Yay!!…..more driving. Liz said she wanted seafood for dinner and found a restaurant. We went. They were open but were only serving tapas. Out of sync….. On the way back to our stay, I checked on my photo. It was still there.

Today (30th). We needed seat reservations for our train from Pau (our next stop) to Paris so we made those at the station. While there, I tried (again) to make reservations on the leg from Paris to Brussels….no go. It’s been the same story everywhere. Digital-analog stirfry. But we got the one we would need in a few days, so that was good. It stilled the hounds baying at the door.

While we were getting our seat reservations on the Pau-Paris train we were chatting with the agent helping us and he happened to mention Sete. It’s a port town south of where we were. On the way out of the station, Liz looked up at the departure board and noticed a train to Sete that was set to depart. She said “Let’s go.’. We weren’t making that train…so I checked later trains and booked us a trip on a train in 30 minutes. Rather than set and wait we decided we had time to go replenish our supply of sausage and olives at a couple of markets we’d been to previously. We found this sausage. “Fuit Iberique”. The translator app on my phone suggests this means “Fleeing Iberia” (with some assumption on my part). While I’m not convinced, I’ve decided that I like the name and I’m keeping it. It’s the best sausage I’ve ever had (including Spanish Chorizo…and that’s saying something). I don’t know the meat (probably pork) or spices (I suspect little or none)…..it’s good though….very, very good. Get some. I can draw you a map of where to get it. Check on my photo when you’re there.

Anyway, we got our olives and sausage and hustled back to catch our train. The train was packed. But it was a short hop and Liz wanted to see the Mediterranean.

We walked into a madhouse. There was a maritime festival going on the day we chose to visit so there was a lot to see. Bands and costumes and ships and lots and lots of people. I didn’t get any pictures, I would go back to that town. It had an appeal. Without the crowd, I’ll bet it would be enchanting.

Today (31st). Not much shaking today. We prepped for our move tomorrow. I got our schedule locked in through Gothenburg, Sweden. Then we found a nice brew pub with great tapas.