Alias Jones: World Wandering…

I am currently on the French coast in a little town called Le Lavandou, about 20 km west of St. Tropez.  I thought I would stop a little before St. Tropez because I felt I wanted a hotel room and expected this town to be a bit more affordable.

It was a little pricey for me, but I took a room in any event.  The good news is that for most travelers on vacation, the 60-120 euro / night is very affordable.  The town is beautiful, has some great beach (though its not so large, very nice) and beautiful water.   I found a slightly better deal with some negotiation.
This is a great place to come for a family vacation, and many do.  If you’re a few girls or a few guys looking for a real good time, this is not the best place.   But for a couple looking for a quiet get away, or a family looking for a small town, safe place to bring the kids for outdoor fun, I’ve found your spot.  Again, very affordable, but they’re not afraid to clip you at dinner.  Most everything seems to be 30 euro per head.  I chose the sandwhich shop and had a great sandwich… hamburger meat on a bagette with 3 different cheeses…. the 3 Cheese Americano, they call it.

As mentioned, its a quiet happy little town.  I took a walk around last night, and found this game being played with heavy metal balls, small shot-put sized, being tossed and rolled toward a hand-ball type ball.  Its called le putonke (I don’t trust my spelling on this).  About 11pm I walked up on 3 women about to play the game, and I invited myself as the fourth, and they gladly accepted me.  We played for a couple of hours before calling it a night.

Yesterday I took the small highway from Marseille to Toulon on the way to Le Lavandou.  If you get the chance to drive it, treat yourself… its very beautiful through some low mountains.  The sports bike guys like to go a little crazy on this winding, scenic road, and the local police seem to enjoy doing the same, but it is quite nice.

I bought a camera cable yesterday at Carrefour.  Carrefour is the French version of Wal-Mart, and this one was more crowded than most Wal-Mart’s I’ve seen.  I walked in, saw the line, and walked out mumbling to myself, then had a pain du chocolat to build courage, and went back in.  I was able to purchase the cable in the department without having to get to the big line.  Well done.

I short-changed Arles while I was there.  That town deserves two full days and I gave it a glance.  Next time…

Now I’m heading to St. Tropez, just up the road.  Anybody want to guess what I buy before I get there?  Come on… its easy…

Peace, Love & the French Riviera,

~ Alias