bakeries

It's been a few days since I posted anything, because really nothing much has happened. But I guess this means I'm settling into normal life in rural France. And what occupies people in normal life in rural France, apparently, is the bakery.

It's not unlike the cult of the bakery in Houston, where people swear by their favorite place. But there, you mostly go to the preferred bakery a few times a year when you need a cake. Here, it's a daily business. You've got to get fresh bread at least every two days, and preferably every day, because you need a vehicle for the cheese, and the jam, and the butter, and the honey. And something to soak up those rich creamy sauces. But the bread is more elusive than you might think.

In our little pocket of the Luberon, for example, there is a clear ranking of bakeries. We do have a baker in Menerbes, and she is actually open in the middle of the day, when nobody else is. So I go there and get bread for lunch, or a grown-up version of a pig-in-a-blanket, which is a rather transcendental concoction of pastry surrounding a sausage and mustard. Heaven. BUT, among people who actually have standards for their baked goods, our local baker can't even be mentioned. She doesn't count. Her baguettes, it seems, don't even rank. So the people of Menerbes must drive down the hill and across the valley to one of the other towns for bread. But even that is not so simple... the much-coveted bread of Apt is not available on Monday. The also good, but not so good as Apt, bread of Goult is available on Monday, but not, we discovered, this week because she is "en vacances." Try Lumieres, they said. Down the hill again we went. And so on. The day of the week, the time of day... it's so complex that I feel I need a spreadsheet. And should you wish to combine errands... say, hit the fruitstand on the way to the bakery, well, good luck.

It is all so worth it, though, when lunch means a fresh baguette, a fresh tomato, and some incredibly creamy cheese. Just don't tell anyone I bought the bread in Menerbes.