Joel and Francoise visiting

After their week of hiking in the Drôme, the plan was for Francoise and Joel to come and visit us on the Cote d’Azur. They’d rented a place in Villeneuve-Loubet, just down the road from where we live.

On Sunday, we decided to do a quick visit to Italy, which is something we’ve not done so far witht them. After some contemplation, we decided to head for what must rate as one of my favorite restaurants in Italy, even anywhere! The place in question is Il Giardino, in the picturesque Ligurian village Vallebona. The concept is rather simple – you pay 30 Euros, and they bring you HUGE amounts of food, and as much wine as you can handle. Here’s what I mean by huge amounts: about 9 antipasti, 3 plates of pasta, 3 plates of meat, and a desert. So basically, you won’t leave the place hungry (in fact, no point to bother about dinner either).




The meal was as tasty as ever (simple, but tasty. It’s not a place to go for in case you are into “haut cuisine”). Especially the antipasti were a real delight. I think I had even more to eat than usually, since I now had to finish not only Mathilde’s plates, but also Francoise’s and Joel’s. Well, it’s a hard job, but somebody’s gotta do it, right…? It was a lively day at Il Giardino, since somebody’s first communion was being celebrated at the table next to ours (added a nice “Italian touch” to the proceedings). After the meal, we had a quick tour around the village – it’s a typical Ligurian mountain village, but a refreshingly untouristy one. The views over the valley the village overlooks are pretty nice, as well.

After Vallebona, we made our way to another pretty little Ligurian village we like very much indeed, Dolceacqua (“soft waters”). It’s a very picturesque little place, with a river running through it (with a very photogenic bridge connecting the new part of town to the old village). Dolceacqua is a little bit touristy, it has to be admitted, but nothing like say Saint-Paul de Vence on the other side of the border (they do share one trait – apart from being pretty old villages – a lot of artists seem to have made both villages their homes). After sending some time to admire the tidy (for Italy!) cobble-stone streets and well-kept houses (and taking pictures of the famous bridge, of course), it was time to head back towards France.

On the way back, we did stop in Menton, which is a rather pleasant little seaside town right on the French side of the border. The Italian influence is very noticeable here, from the architecture and pastel-coloured houses, to the plates on a lot of the cars parked here, to the smattering of Italian that can be heard everywhere. It’s got a pretty nice seaside promenade, where we enjoyed the setting sun, admiring the azure-blue Mediterranean…

The rest of the week took on a rather pleasant routine, with Mathilde spending time with Joel and Francoise as her schedule allowed her to, and me joining for the odd lunch and most dinners (handily, their apartment was just down the road from where I work). The weather was very pleasant, so we could dine outside each time…

On Thursday, we’d been invited for dinner at my parents’ place in Antibes. My parents had been rather busy that week, since the “gang from Karis” (relatives of mine from Finland) was visiting (all 10 of them!), having rented a villa in Biot. So, on Thursday, it was time for the big get-together… After some logistical problems (somebody had parked in my parents parking space, and Mats didn’t have quite as good a sense of direction as he thought, and no GPS either, etc.) everybody finally arrived, and we could start with the aperitif (champagne, what else?).

It was quite an international gathering, with Finnish, Swedish, English and French being spoken often all at the same time, but it all ended up being a very lively and pleasant meal. The food and wine was as tasty as always. It was great to meet the old Karis gang again, they are a very lively and friendly lot, that’s for sure!

Friday night was Francoise’s and Joel’s last night on the Cote d’Azur. Since the weather was still very nice, we decided a nice little barbeque would be the perfect way to finish off their visit. I was tasked with getting the fire going, a task from which I believe I acquitted myself rather well in the end… The food was tasty with the usual tasty French BBQ fare (merguez and cipolata sausages, some lamb chops – and OK a bit of veg as well…). I hope this won’t offend Finnish sausage fans, but I have to admit that a French merguez sausage beats the “HK bleu” hands down…

Sad to see Joel and Francoise off again, but it shan’t be long before we shall visit them in Angers!