IntrepidFromDC

Narbonne Marche. The Thursday market in Narbonne has grown over the centuries and now has exterior market shops in the hundreds. Amazing window shopping especially the food.

Narbonne

The people of Narbonne and Beziers are eternally grateful to Paul Riquet because he designed and oversaw completion of the canals that connect Mediterranean to Toulouse, effectively giving the French a direct connection for water transport from Mediterranean to the Atlantic Ocean. He built locks on top of locks that allowed a boat carrying goods to travel downhill.

In one pic you can see the train station on the left and my hotel on the right, half a block away. Planning it this way has pros and in some cities cons. In Narbonne it's especially helpful not just for the usual reason that it's nice to quickly get to hotel checkin and nicer to be close for when you leave so you know exactly how long it will take to get to the station after checkout - in this case it's doubly nice because although I'm at this hotel for two nights, tomorrow I have an early train for my day in Carcassonne.

Walking from my Beziers hotel to the gare for the 15-minute train ride to Narbonne, I take the long way through Victor Hugo Park, dropping crumbs of last night's leftover bread for pigeons, ducks.

I usually eat at the pay restaurants twice on a 7-day cruise, and in port. But I think both MDR and Lido deck food ar hit or miss. I don't eat exquisite French food back home very often but my cooking sure beats Carnival mdr by a longshot according to my daughter and me. If we see each other on the cruise I'm sure I'll manage to squeeze the substandard food into the conversation. But usually just to see reaction and talk about food. After football. See you in 4-1/2 days!

Excellent cappuccino. Oh, seaweed bread with local butter. Which reminds me, has anyone seen Matilda The Cash Cow?

Things that make you go hmmm. Strawberry and olive dessert topped sorbet, with mixed juices of both. And mini madelines, still warm from the oven. We also got homemade chocolates, I got mine to go. All I can handle right now is sips of water and I'm afraid to open the bedroom window for fear I'll float away when I drift off.

Bruno cuts the cheese. This was an event at every French table and I really wanted to make a video but of course I didn't. I did ask Bruno for permission to photograph. My favorite was the St. Marcellan (sp?).

Turbot with monster white asparagus that you could cut with a fork but it had a slight crispiness. Amazing again.

Homard! With fantastic ravioli stuffed with minced lobster. Sauce was sublime.

I don't know how this salmon and caviar potato with 2 caviar on top was prepared but it was amazing and I would have it again tomorrow if I could. It's one of those complex French dishes that has a whole bunch of ingredients in the sauce and you just OMG! with each bite. My favorite course.

Colossal oyster atop oyster puree foam. Sublime, I wish there were two. But that one oyster with the puree was 3 bites.

Again, I can't recall everything going on with this dish but it was as amazingly delicious as it is beautiful. The white marshmallow on the left is actually the albumen from the yolk on the right. The mushrooms were delicious and their sauce with (duck? Lamb?) was stiffed into the white part. Everyone in the restaurant was French but me and I was the only one who had to be shown by Bruno how to eat it.

Amuse Bouche was stellar. The rolls on the left have potatoes and other things inside. The little fish on the right I can't remember but they were both freaking stellar.

Dinner at l'Alter Native finally arrived and went. I am so bloated! I went for the 7 course extravaganza and every dish was amazing. After the homard I asked Bruno, the restaurant director, to dial back the serving sizes for the last couple courses.

Dinner tonight, Alter Native. This and Agastache are the two restaurants I have been anticipating the most.

Just walking around

Market

Lunch and big bar and restaurant hall.

I tawt I saw a puddy tat.

More views from and around the old bridge and cathedral...

I haven't seen Tweet Tweet since Lyon, but I've been good about never forgetting about these guys at dinner.