Jane and I are in Villefranche for a way too short two week stay. We have never been here in September. We have been here in January, February and April before. It is at least as beautiful as it is in other times of the year, and we are so happy to be here.
Of course with a different season there are differences. The first one that we noticed is that the streets are virtually free of dog poops. Apparently during the high tourist season, there is a greater sense of civic pride so the dog poops are picked up. You may remember that we complained about the dog poops in a post (here) from January 2016. Unfortunately the high season is beginning to come to an end, and we can once again see signs of the return of the dog poops.
Another difference is that all the restaurants are open virtually every night. We have only eaten out three nights since we arrived. Twice we have eaten at our local (half a block away) favorite, Le Serre. Sylvie, the owner, chef and virtually everything else, greeted us with surprise since we arrived in September and not in the winter. The other meal was at a more upscale restaurant that is not open in the winter, Les Garçons. It is on a nice small square just one block down the hill from our apartment. We ate outside and had a great meal and finished with a surprise - chamallow caramelisée au chocolat. It is the french version of s'mores. Instead of being on a graham cracker, the chocolate and marshmallows are put in a small dish and put in the oven under the broiler so the marshmellows brown on the top. As wonderful as it was to have our favorite summer dessert, it did not make us want to return to Minneapolis.
The gardens of the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild (here) are beautiful in the winter and in the spring, but they are spectacular in the summer.
Of course, when Jane is in the gardens there are two goddesses.
One thing that never changes is the beautiful view from Cap Ferrat across the bay of Villefranche.
We are continuing to be tutored in French and must work very hard on our homework, but from time to time we take a break to enjoy lunch on the balcony of our apartment.
It is getting on toward 5:00 pm so we need to go to the butcher, the baker and the vegetable man to get our dinner now.
Thanks for reading and please comment,
The Unabashed Liberal
