Lazy days in Montpellier

Merde, il pleut! 

We're in the midst of six or seven straight days of mostly overcast with at least some chance of rain. It rained all day Sunday. And temperatures are not much if any above what folks back home are experiencing. Remind me why we came here.

Rain coming - from our kitchen window

Since the Hutes' departure on Thursday, Karen and I have not had a great deal of excitement. Our days are filled with walking, shopping, reading, looking stuff up on the Internet, Scrabble (I'm ahead 3 zip on the season series - woohoo!), Sudoku, TV (we're deep into a very good Canadian - yes, Canadian! - scifi series called Orphan Black on Netflix), more reading, more Sudoku, eating, etc.

Are we bored? No, just taking a breather. Just living a quiet life.

Montpellier, Ecusson - note bits and pieces of old church architecture incorporated in building on right

We did check out an outdoor show of products, mostly farm products, from the Cévennes, the mountainous area just north of here. It was set up on the Esplanade, off Place de la Comédie. That was Friday, I think. It was remarkable for the weird fuzzy chickens and a baby bison in the little petting zoo enclosure. And for the irritatingly cheery commentary played over a loudspeaker system audible across most of central Montpellier.

On Saturday, we went for a walk in the precincts south and west of us, mostly fairly boring residential and commercial areas. But we did discover two substantial outdoor markets, both recently ended when we came to them. One is in a place called Place Roger Salengro which, judging by the people and shops in the streets around it, is a mainly immigrant area. We'll go back maybe on Saturday in the morning and check it out. There was one shop across from the square with huge mounds of very cheap Moroccan oranges.

Montpellier, sunny square near Course Gambetta

Montpellier, Les Arceaux

We walked on to Les Arceaux (the hoops), the area in the shadow of the ancient arched aqueduct. The remnants of it still run for a couple of kilometres from the Place Royale de Peyrou towards the mountains to the north - from which the city once got its clean water supply. The market is apparently set up under the arches. When we came along, the city crews were out cleaning up, and middle aged men were playing boules under one of the arches. It looked like it might be a really big market, given how much area the street cleaners were covering. This one is open Tuesday to Saturday, so we may pop over today. If it stops raining.

Montpellier, boules under Les Arceaux

Montpellier, grotesques on architraves of commercial building near apartment

We did walk down to the market by Antigone on Sunday to buy apples. It rained steadily the whole time, but we had umbrellas and, despite rumours to the contrary, we're not made of sugar. We were a little surprised that all the vendors seemed to be there, and quite a few shoppers too, despite the weather.

I was so bored - okay, yes, sometimes I'm bored - I undertook a not very successful photographic experiment in the apartment. Spooky.

Mysterious intruder

Yesterday was a better day than forecast, with some sun and temperatures in the mid-double digits celsius. We walked to Odysseum, the suburban shopping-entertainment complex out toward the highway and airport. It's another city-sponsored or -assisted planned building development. I thought the architecture might at least be interesting. We did walk through more of Port Marianne, which is adjacent, and saw interesting-looking apartment and commercial blocks. But aside from a space-age-looking lycée (community college) on the edge of Odysseum, the architecture there is uninpired and uninspiring. It reminded us of the Disney-ish architecture you see a lot of in southern California. The shopping mall is gigantic and sprawling, and full of nothing but global chain stores. We took the tram home.

Montpellier, Odysseum, Lycée Georges Frêche

Montpellier, Port Marianne

Today, I don't know. I may have to whomp Karen at Scrabble again.