Hello everyone, yes, I'm still here. Been so busy, no time for internetting! Markets to look round, logs to collect, boats to decorate, trp to hypermarket, coffee in the sunshine, and a bus trip to Nimes!
Last Tuesday we caught the local bus to Nimes, about 40 mins away. Only 1.5 euro to anywhere on the bus, Nimes one end of the line, Avignon the other. We loved Nimes, a really lovely town; but there have been so many lovely towns on our trip! The town is very old, existing in Roman times. There is a huge bullring which was once a Gladiator arena apparently, (dont worry, the French bullfight is not like the Spanish -they tie a ribbon round the bull's horns and the bullfighters have to remove it. Sounds a bit girly really, like undoing the ribbon of the girl sat in front of you at school then running away).
There is also a bullring here in Beaucaire. When I first heard that, I was imagining and hoping with fingers crossed that it might be like the new Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham, with a Selfridges etc, but no such luck.
Anyway, back to Nimes. It was a lovely place to walk round, The old town was really attractive – narrow streets, tall buildings, and wonderful individual shops, lots of nice restaurants. Very picturesque! And sunny too! Places are so much nicer if the sun is out. The architecture was slightly different to other towns we have visited, much more Spanish, its not all that far to the Spanish border really.
We had a coffee in La Place de Horloge (square with the clock tower), I just love sitting watching people! Bizarrely there was a woman with two tiny tiny pygmy goats on a trolley. I think she was collecting for an animal shelter. I wanted to buy one, but Tim said No Goats on Boat!
We also found a huge Roman temple in the middle of town, in beautiful condition, with columns and a roof, better than the Acropolis but not so big. We also saw a lovely street with a type of canal in the middle, with lots of pretty bridges, which led up to the gardens, but we didn’t have time to go there – save it for next time.
We chose a little café restaurant for lunch, where lots of local people seemed to go, which is always a good sign. I had Tarte d’Oignon to start, then ham and mushroom galette with salad then coffee, Tim had a hot cheese starter, then a lovely fish dish, and a rice and caramel pudding. Excellent value for 12.50 euros each.
We’ve been in Beaucaire over a week now, and getting to know the town and have met some more boat gypsies like us. Some people have lived here on their boats for over 5 years! There’s a little community of English, Dutch, Belgian, Danish, everyone very nice and helpful. There seems to be an annual competition for the best decorated boat, some people have really taken it to extremes, with much thought and creativity in evidence, eg Santa on a bike, a moving reindeer and sleigh, Santa in a deckchair, piles of presents, more lights than Blackpool! I managed to find some gold tinsel and some icicle decorations, so as not to let the side down, but I think we will only get the booby prize.
On Wednesday we are meeting up with about ten other boat gypsies for a Christmas lunch at one of the quayside restaurants, so more news soon!