Capt. Mondo's World o' Mondo-ness

Final Full Day in France
Pt 1 - The Sanglier
One thing I haven't mentioned up until now is that visitors to the chateau are asked to do some work while here. For the past few nights people have been taking shifts patrolling the vineyard, with the intention of scaring away the sanglier (wild pigs) that come out of the nearby woods to eat the grapes. This really just amounts to a late-night walk, since the scent of a human is usually enough to scare the sanglier away. Erika and I seemed to be exempt from this chore, presumably because we are parents of small children.

Last night we and all the guests were told not to head out into the vineyard that evening, as the groundskeeper was hunting for the sanglier who were apparently beginning to take a real bite (literally) out of the grape crop.

So this morning we heard that the groundskeeper had in fact bagged two sanglier, and that their bodies were down by the garage for anyone who wanted to see them.

So a group of us went over to see them -- sans kids. I was curious to see what they looked like, since I have heard a lot about them and on one trip on the winding path to the Med I had seen some rustling and startled, high-pitched squeals which I have always assumed came from one of the local wild pigs.

Both of them lay upon a large sheet of cardboard, there to absorb the blood, of which there was a lot. It was a full-grown male and a smaller female, along with an additional hapless rabbit that had fallen under the gamekeeper's sights. Beside the rabbit, and almost its size, was the male pig's balls, which had been cut off to preserve the flavour of the meat -- they were all ultimately destined for the dinner table.

Adjacent to the bodies of the sanglier was Josef's late '20s era BMW racing car -- which was the first time I had seen (or even heard) about it. I took some pics of the pigs, and with the car in the background I couldn't help thinking of those hunting trophy shots typical of the dawn of the previous century, missing only the shooter. (I've decided against showing the pictures here. I think my words are enough).

I am not particularly squeamish, and this is a working farm/vineyard, but I couldn't help but think about the wild animal "cost" of producing wine, which otherwise seems a pretty neutral, vegetarian-friendly thing to make.

The wine I tasted later that day still tasted as sweet (and dry), and we would have tasty roast pork for dinner (not the sanglier, for the simple reason that they weren't ready yet), but I don't think I'll ever see any ostensibly vegetarian fare as ever not having some form of animal impact. It’s one of those things that I have always implicitly known, but had never been much bothered about until this day.

Pt 2 - The Trip into Town
Neither Erika nor myself had really got the chance to see much of the town of St. Tropez this trip, so we arranged for the live-in nanny to look after our girls while we went for one last excursion into town.

So after breakfast we headed down to the town for a last look around, and (for Erika at least) to do some serious shopping.

Here I have to mention the underground parking garage in the town, as I have not run into any North American parallel. The place is spotlessly clean, so much so that the tire wheels squeak like shoes on a shiny floor. There's also piped in music, primarily comprised of 80s English pop hits. Also, for what it is worth, relatively cheap.

First order of business: buy some lavender honey to take home as gifts. We find a grocery store that stocks it, and that is taken care of. Erika's goal next is to visit a shoe warehouse she's heard about. This may not sound like much, but remember that this is highly-fashionable St. Tropez, so fine (mainly Italian) footwear was everywhere, and at prices you couldn't expect to find at home. Erika got a pair of boots that look great on her, and I ended up buying a pair of Italian leather sandals to replace the Rhodes I was wearing which was on the verge of falling apart. Next, we found a Lacoste clothing shop, where we quickly found a light blue short-sleeve shirt that suited me. No deals to be had at that store, and the shirt ended up costing me 70 euros. Erika then went on to look for a present for her Mother back home, but what she had in mind was not to be had cheaply (or cheap enough at any rate), so we gave it a pass. It was around this point that we noticed an odd trend -- we were invariably the first to be in a shop, but once we were inside, all of a sudden a group of fresh customers followed. It was like we "broke the ice" somehow for the others to follow.

By this point much of our spending money was gone, so we went for a stroll by the harbour, looking at the ever-present dockside art show by various local painters. Pretty much all tourist-quality stuff, though there were a couple of artists there whose paintings we liked. The money factor dictated that we wouldn't be buying anything however. At the other end of the harbour we ran into a stunning merry-go-round -- the first "double decker" I have ever seen. Couldn't help but take some pics of it. I also took a panoramic shot of the harbour, but a large boat ultimately spoiled the intended effect I was hoping for.

Afterwards we backtracked and headed into the old part of the town. Very picturesque of course, and I availed myself to the photographic opportunities where they appeared. The streets were all narrow and cobblestoned, and we had sometimes had to flatten ourselves against the walls of shops and houses in order to let the occasional trundling car go by. Erika found a shop selling sweets containing a light inside them, and bought a couple for the girls, with the intention of using them on the flight the following day.

We headed over to our usual haunt for lunch, the Cafe des Art, where we met Erika's father, who himself was heading out on a flight later that day. Had an incredibly tasty bouillabaisse, and had some tasty oysters and clams, which is saying something since up until then I've never had good experiences with either.

Had a good chat with Josef, talking about his life in France, his feeling on local politics, and was surprisingly candid about how and why he acquired his estate, and remarking on the local economy and where he thought it was going. An enjoyable talk, and am glad that he appears to be enjoying himself and his new adopted home.

After lunch we went our separate ways. On our way back to the car park I noticed that the local elementary school had already opened, and I couldn't help but think of the news we were hearing on the radio about the events unfolding in Breslan, Russia. Just knew that that wasn't likely to turn out well. Am lucky that we live where we do back home, and I sincerely hope our lives are never touched by that type of event.

We left the car park and St. Tropez to the tune of Culture Club's "Karma Chameleon" and then back into the ever-twisting roads of the French countryside.

Pt3 - Tour of the Vineyard
When we got back to the chateau I realized that this would be my last opportunity to take a tour of the grounds. The week here has gone quickly. I could either head down to the sea or go to the vineyards, but not both, as guest were expected to show up late in the afternoon for a pre-dinner get-together. I opted for the vineyards, if only because they weren't likely to be as lush when next we visit.

The following pics provide an idea of the landscape:

Tree-Lined Path by Vineyard	Cork Tree
Vinyard Panorama
Grape Bunch on the Vine	Chateau Volterra Facing North
Vinyard Panorama #2 - Looking at Beaches of St. Tropez in Distance