Day 15 Mersault & Beaune

Well again we were lulled to sleep with the rain tapping on the roof and we woke up refreshed if not still a little hungry. We go into the coffee shop and order some pastries and a hot tea for Mark and a Cappuccino for me. I will say it was one of the worst I have ever had and only choked it down to get the small caffeine buzz. We hit the road for our 2 hr trip up to Mersault & Beaune. As we progressed the rain slowly dissipated and by the time we made it to Beaune the sun was starting to peak out on an occasion. It was evident that they had received alot of rain in the area as the was alot of standing water in the fields. We rolled through Mersault first and shot a few pictures of this cute little hamlet and it's colorful roofs and then off the few minutes to Beaune passing by Volnay and Pommard.

Mersault

Once in Beaune we stopped at a white information board to see where we could park the RV. Found the  answer and we were off following the directions and shortly parked not to far from the center of town. I was impressed at how focused Beaune was to the tourist and easy to get around in. We made the quick walk to the tourist center following the signs posted along the way. We found out where the local campground was, picked up a map of the area (free which was a first on this trip) and asked for dining recommendations.

Beaune

One of their many pretty flower pots.and beds

 The information center

We had a disappointing lunch at Le Cercle we both ordered French Onion Soup and a Croque-monsieur. Mark had no idea what it was but just order it for the ease. When I told him it was grilled ham and cheese he about hit the roof. Had to let me know that I was sick of Ham & Cheese. In my defense I had say it was on my list of french foods to try and it was heated not like the cold ham & cheese we had been nibbling on for the past few weeks. When the food arrived it looked burnt and then the Croq. M was very soggy and gooey on the bottom, like they had poured a hot cheese over the bottom piece of bread.  He seemed to think that the French Onion soup was made with Chicken broth. I personally couldn't tell as I though it had no taste at all surely not anything that tasted like onion. When I got to the bottom of the bowl I did find about 3 pieces of onion. The only saving grace for the entire meal was the carafe of wine. Who can argue with a wine at lunch.

We then went walking around town and found the Hotel Dieu or Hospice. This place really touched my heart and I highly recommend it as a not to be missed sight in the area. The poshness (if that's what it can be called) of the surroundings for the poor is rarely found. We got the audio guide and it was very informational. Wish I could afford some of their wine but upon seeing it in a local wine shop quickly realized it was above our budget.

From around town

Hospice

More from around town

After our tour of the hospice and walking around a little more we headed back to the RV to find the campground. Which was only a couple of miles away if that.

After parking the RV and researching restaurants we considered taking the bus into town. But upon further research the bus back stopped too early and we would have to grab a cab back or else walk. The staff at the campground kept reassuring us it wasn't a long walk. In our minds we realized their idea of a short walk and a short walk for us Americans are two very different things. As we were trying to decide what to do the incoming rain made the decision for us.

We ended up drinking some of our Italian wine in the RV while we waited for the campground restaurant to open. We had our first escargot of the trip here and it was out of this world. These were served in their shell with the fancy escargot holders. I had to laugh as I recalled the scene in Pretty Woman as the snail goes flying across the room. "No worries miss it happens all of the time" was not a line I wanted to hear said to me tonight. I have had escargot before but not in the shell so I watched Mark intently to learn. So I pick up my first snail and start to work. I work it and work it but that little bugger is hanging on for dear life. I soon realize why all the French girls are so skinny not only do they walk everywhere but they have to work so hard to get to eat their food.....this will become a recurring theme the rest of the trip. I finally put the snail down and try another one and this little guy has no problem and is soon in my watering mouth. Oh my how yummy. As I finished them I grabbed that first one and tried again to no avail and just decided to leave him be. Mark decide no snail was going away rejected that night and gave it a try. He too after an extremely long attempt gave up. I had lamb chops that were not very tender bust still tasty and Mark had the beef steak which was very grizzely. For desert I had a pear in a black currant sauce with a Cassis ice cream. Boy was this tart desert probably one of the tartest things I've ever had but it was so good that I kept eating it puckered lips and all. We also had a bottle of a wine from Beaune which was very good but I can't remember the name of it now.  Looking forward to getting some wine tasting in tomorrow. Back to the RV to fall asleep once again to the pitter patter of rain on the roof.