July 24, 2011

Sunday night. Strange day due to jet lag. We were falling asleep at odd hours, and here I am awake well past my bedtime!

This is the view from out the window in our apartment here in lovely Beaune. All the rooftops are made of clay or slate. Asphalt roofs apparently never made it to this part of France (nor did vinyl siding). More likely, since these roofs look to be hundreds of years old, there was little threat of them wearing out.

Speaking of old, the apartment we’re staying is from the 1200s. I’m not kidding. I’ll post a picture of these beams they have in the ceiling that could only have come from some ancient tree. The staircase from the street is a circular stone thing built of pink-hued granite. What does the construction industry in a country look like when most buildings were constructed 800 years ago?

We spent some time exploring town today. Esmé successfully handled the bread order at the local boulangerie (bread bakery), while the others raided the local patissarie (sweet bakery). Amy was drawn into shoe shops, and I picked up a bottle of Cote du Beaune. The shop owner described this wine as “velvety,” but she obviously hasn’t tried a California cab.

We ate in a wine cellar turned restaurant (also of medieval vintage). Food was seriously good. I had duck and snails (I’m in France, OK?), Finley and Amy had beef Burgundy, and the twins shared a baby chicken dish. Right down the street, too.

A note on the weather for those enduring heat waves: high 60s and sunny 🙂

Bon Soir!