It's Me, Sara Louise

1. Le Petit Village has four castles. They’re mostly in ruins now, but castles nonetheless. And there were turrets. And if there were turrets, there must have been fair maidens high up inside them, with those cone shaped princess hats that have the silky scarf attached to the top (I got one once at Disneyland but I never had a turret). And maybe there was a Prince and an evil step-mother, a dragon, and a curse. I’m just saying. You never know.

2. My daily baguette. Le Petit Village is so tiny that we do not have a boulangerie, but we do have an épicerie that sells a little bit of everything, including freshly baked baguettes. But if you aren’t there before 10am, you’re not getting one. A lot of competition in Le Petit Village to get a baguette and with the addition of one more person, moi, it got that little bit more fierce.

3. When the Boyfriend and I go for a drink, €10 will get you two Ricards (pastis) for him, two glasses of wine for me, and a bit of change. In Dublin, €10 might get you two drinks.

4. While I’m on the topic of drinks… the wine! The choice, the quality, the price, oh my! Now I have steered clear of the box of wine since college (great for poolside convenience) but here, the box of wine is good stuff. At my first dinner at Papa’s house, on the table was a label-less bottle of wine. Every time it was just about empty, someone would take the bottle, leave the room, and come back with it full again. This to me was truly a miraculous feat. Do they have wine on tap here I wondered? Nope, apparently a box of wine that you just refill the bottle with. So now I have my very own label-less bottle and my very own box of wine. 5L for €12! They might as well be giving the stuff away.

5. And I can’t talk about wine without talking about cheese. There is somewhere between 265 and 500 different types of cheese produced in France and I fully intend on introducing myself to all of them. Right now in my cheese box there is a Camembert, Banon, Roquefort, Pavé Ocre, and a Gorgonzola (Ok, Italian, not French, but it’s my favorite). Not to mention the Parmesan, shredded Emmental (we have to have it, it’s the law), and the block of Edam in the fridge. Back to the cheese box. Even though the cheese box is full of delectable goodness, a warning has to be shout out before opening it. The smell could knock out a small child and strip the paint off a house, but oh, how I love it.

6. Both Papa and the Boyfriend’s Brother have gardens full of onions, lettuce, corgettes, tomatoes, and peppers. I love homegrown veggies and their weird shaped natural goodness.

7. Dogs are everywhere. Now if you aren’t a dog lover, I’m sure this would drive you crazy (hello mother) but for me it’s like living in my own personal petting zoo. They are at outside cafes, in restaurants, and just wondering the streets. Sometimes a village dog will just follow the Boyfriend in the house and hang out for an hour or two. Go ahead, make yourself right at home.

8. There is a 101 year old lady that lives across the street. Everyday she sits for a couple of hours on the bench at the side of my house. Just chillaxing in the sun, soaking it all in and saying bonjour to everyone who passes. She’s super duper cool.

9. In French, the days of the week are not capitalized. That has to save you time somewhere along the line.

10. Double cheek kissing and sometimes even triple and quadruple cheek kissing! Ooh la la!!!