flying home

It's been a great trip. I fly out in a few hours. It'll be a lot easier writing the stories and adding photos when I get home. I spent last night here at Stefan's, and had a nice dinner at a little cafe a couple of blocks away near the train station. The place is called Stazione and served a great 1/2 liter dunkel beer. I had a delicious tomato soup with a huge dollop of cream and a basil garnish, followed by a gorgonzola penne dish with a nice mixed salad on the side. I should have stuck with the tiramisu, but the waitress talked me into a special combination of the tiramisu, creme brulee, and neoploitan ice cream. Too much, but delicious.

The night before, I stayed in a little town in France called La Petite Pierre - "The Little Peter." Heh. There were a few hotels, but none looked particularly interesting, so I cruised around town until I saw a "zimmer frei" sign - "room to rent."  I stopped and found the sweet lady who owns the place. We talked in German and when she found I was American, she told me all about her children in America, and the fact she can't communicate with her daughter-in-law because she doesn't speak English. After so many weeks of language challenges, I know the problem. She pointed to the building next door and said I could have it for 42 Euros a night. Yeah, the whole house. Two bedrooms, kitchen, lounge, bath, the whole house, for 42 Euros a night. Not bad. It started raining after I moved in, but I went into town for dinner any way. I found a place called The Lion of Gold and met a Belgian couple outside. They are both motorcyclists, he on a BMW GS, she on a BMW S. We hit it off and spent the next few hours eating, drinking, and talking motorcycles. Dinner was superb. I had an amazing fish pate appetizer, and a delicious salmon and potato plate in a cream sauce. Desert was indescribable. Really, I don't know what it was, but it tasted great. Some kind of creamy blocks that were between ice cream and yoghurt, with little pieces of fruit mixed in. I think they were berries or grapes, but at that point, I didn't care, it was so good. I may have to make a return trip to find out. Not a bad way to wind down a trip.