Not hating on Nimes

I woke up hungry after my measly dinner and fortunately, Amy did too having recovered from the mussels episode. Our host Emmanuel, told us we could leave whenever we want because he did not have anyone coming in behind us. So, Amy did some research and found a place called Coffee Yox Yukon—not a name you would expect in a city that dates back to forever.

The food was Americanized French; we both had egg burgers. I changed it up this morning and had a cortado instead of my usual café allonger (Americano), but Amy had her usual cappuccino. We also split a cinnamon roll; I have to say I make a much better one.

Part way to the cafe, I realized I had lost my reading glasses out of my new holder. hmmm. Amy said I did it on purpose so I could buy a new pair in France. Welll…Anyway, she wanted to read her book for awhile and I set off on my own to find lunettes de lecturer.

The French are really into their glasses it seems. There are opticians everywhere. Sometimes two stores on the same block! My quest was not difficult. The first place had only one pair, that I liked but were not practical. The second store only had dark options that I didn’t like. She called them loupe, which is in English what jewelers use. Third time is the charm, right?

The young man at the next store was very helpful as had been the women at the two previous stores. He had several options. I chose two to try, and we both agreed the lighter ones were better.

Along the way, I discovered yet another Unesco Heritage site. They are everywhere around here; it’s become kind of a joke with Amy and I. It’s the Maison careé which dates to the first century AD,

and it Is considered one of the best preserved Roman temples in the world. It is easy to see why. The detail on it is just outstanding. This one ain’t no joke.

I returned to Amy. She’s been second guessing her shoe purchase in Aix, so she is still in pursuit or maybe not. Footlocker here had a style she liked but not in her size. Maybe she should take that as a sign that her first choice is good. :).

From there, we made the mistake of going into Galleries Lafayette. I wanted to go in for nostalgia sake; I also remember this chain from my previous trip. Since cheetah is HUGE here, I got a long scarf that can triple as a belt or a tie on a purse.

I was also drawn to a pair of PJs called Animal Martinis. I was sure being only a medium, they would be too small for me. French sizes tend to run small. But the adorable and helpful saleswoman assured me it would be good and encouraged me to try them on. She was correct. I explained to her that usually the arms are too short for me and that was one reason why I feared they would be too small.

We had a nice chat with the cashier about where we were from and what Amy is doing in Le Puy. She looked a bit like Celine Dion.

There are crocodiles everywhere here and that goes back to the Romans celebrating their defeat of Egypt in 1st century BC. In 1535, King Francois I made it the official mascot of the city. And we think things that are 200 years old are ancient in the US!

Once again we began the search for food and took lunch at cute cafe. CaliKitchen had an LA and soft pink theme, including a pink sisters margarita, which, of course, I had to try. I also had a ginger shot preemptively because it is so easy to get sick while traveling. We both had the cheesey toastie which was yummy as has been almost every meal out.

As much as we were enjoying Nimes and the. beautiful weather, it was time to get on the road to Orange, another ancient Roman city. As always, the old cities and Google Maps can be a bit tricky, but we finally got to the highway. We were almost instantly up on the mountains again.

It was just a 45 minute drive, but it shaves a bit of time off our drive back to Le Puy tomorrow, and keeps us in warmer climes. After a few wrong turns, we found the air BnB. However, the code for the lock box was incorrect. Fortunately, the owner got back to me right away, but she gave me the same code! Finally, she provided the correct code and we were in. There was a spacious parking area. Yay.

My goal was to get settle as soon as possible so I could sit on the balcony with a glass of wine. My 8€ bottle delivered in taste!! But as the sun set, I had to move inside. When we arrived the Roomba was running. And now close to an hour later it was still going and going. I tried to turn it off but it was possessed. And loud. And annoying. The owner sent a note that the previous tenant had been a problem and that’s why the cleaning was still going. I feel like if check in time Is 4 pm and you arrive later than that, the cleaning should be done because checkout is at 11. Just saying.

I tried to watch a movie for a bit but the Roomba was too loud. I researched a place for dinner and I made a reservation for 7:30, which is still a little early by French standards. So, it was not surpsing that there was only one other couple in the place when we arrived. I got a ravioli which was awesome. And I had the lemon sorbet for dessert. The sorbets are just so good here. Not too sweet and full of flavor. By the time we left,

It had filled up.

When we returned to the room the roomba was finally blissfully silent and then, bam, on it goes again for awhile, before finally it shut off for good. I was ready to drop kick that thing. I was able to finish the movie and as usual, make an early night.