Stormy weather

The morning was fine enough, albeit a little hazy. We went to the Malaucene market, and bought some expensive cheese from the mountain man and some tasty olives (Glenn's new boyfriend -- the olive de Nyons). We also had a decent coffee. Here is a phot of Glenn and I enjoying it.

This is Glenn enjoying a new beverage -- the Monaco -- grenadine, lemonade and beer.

After the marketing was over, we explored the medieval quarter of Malaucene, which is south of the main strip where we have mostly spent our time heretofore. We went to an art gallery with a lot of nudity in its selected works, and Glenn chased a cat, to go with the dog with the mohawk he had earlier followed around the market (see above).

Then we had some lunch, grilled cheese sandwiches with spelt bread (Rosanna) and seed bread (Glenn and I) made with the mountain man's cheese (Beaufort) and grilled in beurre noisette aux echalottes (brown butter with shallots). Then we all piled into the car, with Rosanna's luggage, including Violette la bicyclette in her box, and headed for Marseille, with an almost-empty tank of gas because the driver of the moment (Rosanna) does not like the petrol station in town and wanted to patronize another. Alas, we got past Carpentras without finding a station to serve us. The little blinking gas pump icon on the dash grew more insistent. Things were looking so grim that Glenn turned off the air-conditioning to conserve fuel (have I mentioned how warm it is here?). Finally, we went into a town (Monteux, which I new was rather large and well-served because I accidentally ended up there on my bike a week and a half ago) and filled up. From there on it was clear sailing.

We had a very happy moment for the frugal among us at the Marseille Provence airport. We parked in the lot nearest to the terminal, where the first 15 minutes parking is free, and then you pay through the nose thereafter. We managed to all use the loo, get Rosanna and her bags checked in, get her visa stamp for Ireland, drop off Violette in the over-sized baggage, go the car for the parking slip, run (and I mean RUN) to the caisse and get it validated, all in 14 minutes.

The trip back home was somewhat stressful. There was an enormous rainstorm with thunder and lightning. Cars were crawling along on the autoroute (speed limit 130km) at 50km with their four-way flashers on. Then we got off on not the best exit, but managed to wind our way through Avignon to the road to Carpentras, one lane of which was closed. In Carpentras, Glenn found a shortcut. It grew increasingly narrower and more washed out (it was a BIG rain) culminating in a wee wet passageway through an incredibly small medieval stone arch wide enough for one car barely (but of course the road was 2-way) and with a curve the other side. I decided to simply honk and carry on through. Now we are taking refuge at the cyber cafe in Malaucene and I am enjoying a much-deserved pint of blanche (but only the one) before we go home to rescue the towels and other linens we left on the terrace to "air out".