Since I am a woman who appreciates routine to balance out the crazy that is life overseas, most of my day today looked just like last Monday (and many a Monday before that one): housework, grocery shopping, quilt class, prep recipe for baking class. I did, however, put up some Christmas decorations today that Mrs. X kindly gave me over the last week or so.
She gave me some garland, and since I don't have a real-sized tree, I hung my childhood ornaments from the greenery. (It's on both bookshelves, even though only one is pictured.)
She also gave me a set of Christmas lights, and I lined one window and the wall bookshelf with them.
On my way to quilt class, I crossed Marseille's newest
On the way home, I saw workers finishing putting the display together. The base of each sculpture stand is covered in modern art. (Cause that'll look great with replicas of ancient art.) Well, the Winged Victory of Samothrace is one of my favorite sculptures ever, and it's right outside my front door. Can't say I'm a fan of the (or any) modern art, but after some of what I've seen in France...it could be worse.
I headed out to the grocery store. The picture below does no justice...I'll have to take a video next time to show it. At Christmas, the main street of the city is lined with zigzag Christmas lights across it, and they light up at different times to give the appearance of being scattered sparkles (much like the Eiffel Tower)...and they go all the way from the Vieux Port up to huge junction at the far, far end of the street. It's SOOOO pretty.
Ever wonder how I grocery shop in a city and without a car? I use a grocery cart. Not the kind you use, but one like this:
I put the box in it to help keep the items stay stacked nice and neat inside...otherwise they fall over in the sack-like bag, possibly crushing things like bread or chips in the process. Every once in a while, a French woman will comment on the box, about what a great idea it is.
So, I pull it empty with me to the store...
...and then fill it up as I shop. It's a pretty common thing to do, so I've never once been given a hard time about it from security. At the check out line, I empty it onto the conveyor belt, and then refill it back once I've paid. This also helps me to not buy more than I can carry. Once the cart is full, I don't allow myself to purchase more. I'd rather make two trips in a week than have to throw out my bad back trying to carry more than I am capable of managing by myself. The grocery store is about a 10 minute walk from my apartment.
When I first moved to Portugal, a girl commented to me about how shocked she was to discover that Americans don't eat yogurt. I told her that we do. Then I saw the grocery store and I understood the comment better. This is the yogurt aisle at the (medium) grocery store:
On the way home, I saw that they had lit the statues. Oh boy. Just so...tacky. But this is what makes me love Marseille.
Somehow my day got thrown off and I didn't have anything planned for dinner. I stopped by the kebab shop next door to my apartment before heading upstairs. Kebabs are a regular thing here. I think they've got to be so bad for the health, so I try to only eat them once or twice a month. So, kebabs... put some mystery meat (chicken? lamb? both? not pork...) on a spit and let it cook in front of the flamed grid. Then Tom slices some off, and throws it into a flour tortilla with some lettuce, tomato, sauce and french fries. He rolls it up like a burrito, and then presses that in a grill.
This is what it looks like. Yum yum. Seriously, one of my favorite things to eat in France. I get what's called Algerian Sauce. It's made of mayonnaise, harrissa (which is a spicy purée of red peppers), onions, vinegar, and sugar. So it's creamy, spicy, sour and sweet, all in one perfect sauce.
I spent a small portion of my evening making my bed. I meant to pull out my duvet and duvet cover last week, but somehow just didn't get around to it. So I did tonight, and realized that the cover needed to be ironed before being filled. Let me tell you: even for a girl like me who enjoy ironing, trying to iron a queen size duvet cover is no easy task.
Filling it with the duvet by yourself is equally difficult. (Sidebar: flipping the mattress is impossible.)
So tonight I'll sleep delightfully under the heavy warm weight of my duvet. What bliss. I think I might go there now...
2 comments:
I remember being blown away by the variety and quantity of cheeses, wines, and breads at a typical French grocery store. Add yogurt to that list. :-)
...Is that Tom of Tom Thumb, by chance??
It wasn't Tom, actually. He's usually there during the rush hours only. I saw him on his way to Noailles with his shopping cart the other day and it made me smile. :)
Post a Comment