Making our way back
We are slowly driving back to Perpignan to return the car and fly home from Barcelona. Because we're taking backroads, it takes us a long time to get somewhere but the sights are worth it. Some of the drive was along the Mediterranean and part was in farmland and the Camarague. Lots of buildings advertising local goods which are usually fruits and vegetables. Fields of grapevines and sunflowers.
We stopped for lunch at a seaport called Grau du Roi. It's the only resort town in the area that faces the Mediterranean. Lots of yachts in the port and restaurants, most of which open around 7. We found a place that was open and had moules. In some of the big cities, the wait staff doesn't exactly like us and make no effort to hide their feelings. Their small town people are great. We stopped at a truck stop for a cup of coffee and everyone was delightful. One woman walked me to the bathroom instead of telling me where it was. I'm using one of my trekking poles as a cane, though, so people feel sorry for me.
We had decided to stay in Sete, another beach town, because it's more than halfway to Perpignan. I booked an apartment hotel at the last minute. We didn't expect it to be great, but it turned out to be one of the nicest hotels we've ever stayed in. I had asked for a shower instead of a bathtub and I think we might have been upgraded to accommodate that request. For some reason, here at the hot seaside, all the hotels are so proud of the fact they have bathtubs. They do have shower fixtures in them but they're so high, they're hard to get into. This apartment is huge. 2 bedrooms, huge shower, WC, large balcony, and a great pool. We also got 6 sets of towels and toiletries.
We just had the greatest and cheapest meal of this trip. A hole in the wall place that you would never walk into unless you saw it reviewed on Maps like we did. Each plate of food comes with salad, rice, French fries, and a baked vegetable dish of yams and eggplant. A small bowl in the middle is filled with whatever meat you ordered. I had what they call porc caramel and Nicole had chicken with a very light curry sauce.
Everywhere we've been pizza restaurants dominate. Even fancy restaurants offer pizza. Last night we could have had pizza but we went with foie gras instead. It was a banner day for food. Tomorrow we'll probably be eating at our hotel at the Barcelona airport.
We stopped for lunch at a seaport called Grau du Roi. It's the only resort town in the area that faces the Mediterranean. Lots of yachts in the port and restaurants, most of which open around 7. We found a place that was open and had moules. In some of the big cities, the wait staff doesn't exactly like us and make no effort to hide their feelings. Their small town people are great. We stopped at a truck stop for a cup of coffee and everyone was delightful. One woman walked me to the bathroom instead of telling me where it was. I'm using one of my trekking poles as a cane, though, so people feel sorry for me.
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| Lunch |
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| Grau du Roi |
We had decided to stay in Sete, another beach town, because it's more than halfway to Perpignan. I booked an apartment hotel at the last minute. We didn't expect it to be great, but it turned out to be one of the nicest hotels we've ever stayed in. I had asked for a shower instead of a bathtub and I think we might have been upgraded to accommodate that request. For some reason, here at the hot seaside, all the hotels are so proud of the fact they have bathtubs. They do have shower fixtures in them but they're so high, they're hard to get into. This apartment is huge. 2 bedrooms, huge shower, WC, large balcony, and a great pool. We also got 6 sets of towels and toiletries.
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| View from the balcony of saltwater lagoon. The Mediterranean is on the other side of the city. |
We just had the greatest and cheapest meal of this trip. A hole in the wall place that you would never walk into unless you saw it reviewed on Maps like we did. Each plate of food comes with salad, rice, French fries, and a baked vegetable dish of yams and eggplant. A small bowl in the middle is filled with whatever meat you ordered. I had what they call porc caramel and Nicole had chicken with a very light curry sauce.
Everywhere we've been pizza restaurants dominate. Even fancy restaurants offer pizza. Last night we could have had pizza but we went with foie gras instead. It was a banner day for food. Tomorrow we'll probably be eating at our hotel at the Barcelona airport.
Apparently, the woman at the truck stop had heard of your legendary sense of direction.
ReplyDeleteJust saw that it is the hottest day ever recorded in Europe. Lucky you! Most people miss that sort of event.
THe Camarague. - did oyu see white horses and bulls?
ReplyDelete