Just Hangin....

It's a beautiful autumn evening. 19, 20C and the warm sunshine beams down and energizes the city. It's shortly after 5 and Maddy and I just dropped Simona off for her weekly guitar lesson (can't wait to hear Stairway to Heaven). Instead of going back to our flat for the hour we decide to be like the locals and just hang at a cafe. We both sit in typical french fashion facing out towards the street to maximize our view and make sure we don't miss anything.  

There is nothing particular about Brasserie Etoile and like all cafes along Avenue Jean Medecin it is almost at capacity with a definite buzz in the air as people chatter away. It seems that nobody is in any rush to get home preferring to bask in the late day sunshine with a beverage and cigarette in hand. Lined with shops, cafes and restaurants on either side and with the tram providing a great example of what effective and efficient public transportation should be (the TTC an antiquated joke!!!) Jean Medecin is the main artery which starts at Place Massena and makes it's way north. Like many areas within Nice or for that matter any European city, Avenue Jean Medecin is very pedestrian friendly with cars being largely prohibited. No matter the time of day there are people walking everywhere and the shops are full. I have no idea if they are buying anything and right now it really doesn't matter because just sitting and taking in the city's vibe and rythm provides a great way to pass the time. 

Typical cafe along Jean Medecin ... Any Time of Day

Maddy quickly loses herself, organizing her animated Carrefour (think Walmart) collector cards that kids trade here, and I'm left enjoying a beer and watching the world go by. After 7 weeks I still can't figure out how it is that every restaurant, cafe and bar is full almost all the time.  Ok ok, I'm exaggerating, but not by much. Whether it's breakfast, lunch or dinner I'm amazed to see how full these places are. And not just the chi chi looking places either. Even teenagers at high school eat many if not most of their lunch meals at a restaurant daily!!


The notion of brown bagging it or cooking at home seems so foreign. I'm starting to realize it's me.... the foreigner!!.... who still hasn't quite realized that this is part of what they mean by" la joie de vivre". 

Gotta go get Simona ...... wonder if she's mastered that Led Zepplin classic yet? 

Sal