Montpellier

Holiday Mood

Our entrance door is pinched between an Armenian sandwich restaurant and Brasserie Faubourg, a lively place in the afternoon, a spot where we’ve wondered if we should have a beer, but decided it’s a notch too sunny. When you tread inside our two storied block, there’s a light switch we couldn’t make out on the first day, so we carried our bags on the spiral steps in complete darkness and almost fell over. Entering the apartment, you’re struck by its unconventional layout, the bedroom  is huge and the kitchen and living room are crammed together as if you were expected to spend all your time in bed. If you wonder what I fell for, the answer is simple- the wooden beams, the stone floor and the high ceiling, as well as the veranda, that’s sheltered from view, but unfortunately dirty. I had to laugh a little at myself for yet another time having traded facilities for charm. That’s me in a nutshell, all right!

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Peaceful Days

I realized I wrote the previous entry in a state of what you might call holiday blues. Now, four days away from our return, I feel I can do our vacantion more justice.

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I wake up at about 8, my mouth a bit dry from too much wine yesterday, my head heavy with sleep. I have trouble falling asleep when it’s this hot. I move around from the couch to the bed and then back, chasing the evening breeze.

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I open the doors to the balcony and let the morning light in, then follow it for the rest of the morning, first as a perpendicular line on the neighbouring block, then like a reflector on their balcony door, as if waiting for whoever lives there to step into the sunshine and grab their 5 minutes of fame.

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I make some coffee, it’s too hot to drink it warm and so I add three ice cubes and a dash of milk. I listen to the city sounds, the occasional car or motorcycle ventures into our little alley and I welcome the feeling of everyday peace it brings me.

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I open my book, it’s supposed to be glorious, but for now I fail to see it, so I put it away and start reading about a trip to Mauritania in winter, walking through the dessert and sleeping under the stars. Maybe we could do that for Christmas?

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I open the cupboard and take out a couple of Oreillettes, sweet cakes thin as a sheet of paper, sprinkled with sugar and tasting like orange blossom. They’re so good, I need to learn how to make them, I don’t think I can live without them from now on.

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Today we’re going to F’s aunt for lunch, so I should chill that rosé and brush up my French. It’s coming together, all the words I forgot or never learned in the first place suddenly come to the surface.

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She lives in the countryside, in a quaint stone house by an olive grove, with a husband and a lovely dog who’s afraid of her own shadow.

We’re looking for a property, for now we’re still dreaming, but I could really see myself living here during the summer and I know that if it was my place I wouldn’t have time to get bored.

It’s ten already and I’m still lounging in my beach towel, to hot to put on clothes and too alluring to go back to sleep.

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Drop me a line. I’ve missed you!

 

 

Holiday Cooking

As I was telling you a couple of days ago, we combine eating out with cooking our own food, even on holidays. I’ve always preferred renting a place that at least allows me to make my own coffee and putting together a couple of easy dishes for lunch, every now and then and Montpellier was no exception.

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Summer holiday

The days go by slowly, filled with small incidents and petty errands. In the evening, our heads are full of plans and the day after holds the promise of never-ending adventures, but the morning sees them all crumbling down, like a house of cards, due to the heat. I’m so lazy I could beat a cat in a idleness contest. I’m so lazy I could probably purr, I just haven’t tried it yet.

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Montpellier 2017

You-huu from my holiday paradise! It’s my third time in Montpellier and I absolutely love it! You should definitely book your flights if you haven’t been here already- you have the sea a 15 minutes tram ride away, the old town with its charming piazzas and wine bars, lots of cool shops, a wine festival in July and a couple of dazzling art museums, too. On top of all that, you have the French cuisine, lovely Southern people and a pretty international vibe to it all. 😉

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Summer of Desire

I wanted to go to NY so bad this summer, but it’s still not happening. I’m seriously bounded by my expenses until the end of August, when the apartment will be officially out of my hands, which is why I don’t really dare to start dreaming about the (big) summer holiday. But we are going to France and I can’t wait. We’re going to Paris for a couple of days, then Montpellier, where F has family and fond childhood memories and the town will be our base to visit neighbouring places like Collioure. Maybe we’ll go to Nice from there, maybe to Barcelona, maybe settle on a couple of day trips to Marseille and Nimes.

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Slow Life

How are you? I’ve been taking it slowly lately, work’s been scarce and I’ve not been feeling great, either, but the weather’s been splendid and I’ve had my partner in crime, Sam, to keep me company. So we went to the woods, bathed in a pond and a river (him, not me), picked some lilies of the valley and felt free and truly blessed to have each other. I’ve always preferred pets to people and as a 10 year old, I used to climb over the garage, where I had a “secret laboratory”, and  “cultivate” moss and mushrooms with my huge, lazy, orange, tiger cat.
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