Back in Avignon and Christmas week

Saturday

Following our wine last night, we decided we should go to the grocery store before it closed.  It is not open on Sunday and we had nothing to eat at the house.  We started down the street and as usual on a Saturday, the square was a mass of people and this lady, all dressed up as a fairy was making animal baloons for the kiddies.

We walked on to the market and grabbed a few things.  Just as we came out there was a small parade going up the street.  A little Christmas parade.  They do this kind of thing all the time.  They just seem kind of spontaneous and there were people and cars everywhere.  First came these big plastic balls with people inside.  They whirled and twirled and danced to the music going up the street.

Then came the red and white people 

Some on stilts.  A lady offered to take our picture with them

Sunday

Once again we went off to Saint-Pierre for our concert.  This is a lovely old church.  It's ornate doors are beautiful

as is the inside

The Creche is huge 

The concert was about the birth of Jesus, but alas all in French, so we did not understand the context of the different pieces of music.  The little orchestra and the voices of the choir and soloists were beautiful.  The acoustics in these mammoth churches is phenomenal.  The seats not so much.  Nobody will ever fall asleep during the sermon if they have to sit on these seats. Ha.  

A nice evening and on our way home, another little group of street singers

If you don't go out everyday, you are going to miss something

A Christmas strawberry

Cotton Candy

Lots and lots of nougat. Very good here

Cheese, pretty pricey as Miss Terry found out when she bought some

Local musicians

The place we wanted to go to dinner at on Christmas Eve was closed, so we decided that perhaps a lot of restaurants may close on that day.  We decided to have our Christmas Eve dinner on the eve before Christmas Eve.  Terry picked out a restaurant that had good reviews and was open earlier than 7:00 PM so we headed out in in our Christmas finery.  It was about a 15 minute walk in the winding streets across the main thoroughfare.  When we got there, I could not see anything on the menu that looked very good to me, so we decided to walk back up closer to home and check out some restaurants there.  The one we were thinking of was closed (we think only open for lunch).  I remembered an italian place on a street closer to home, so we meandered over that way.  There was a sign on the door saying open 7:15.  Ok, we decided to walk around the corner to the Hotel Europe for a glass of wine and then come back.  We had a nice Cotes du Rhone red wine at this lovely old hotel

After our drink we walked back to the restaurant to find it closed.  Not a light on anywhere.  Hmmm!  We started to walk back down the street to another italian restaurant that we knew was open.  It was just kind of ok, but hey we are hungry.  Then we thought we should check out L'Essentiel, a restaurant that our friends Bill and Bronah Livingston had recommended to us.  They were open and there was chicken on the menu.  Voila!!  I can eat. 

I ordered the chicken with mushroom sauce and mashed potatoes and Terry orderd pigeon and she wanted the Foie Gras appetizer, which was a bit pricey.  I told her to get it and that would be her Christmas present from me.  She did.  But first they brought us a Chef's compliment soup.. Creamy cauliflower with pieces of chestnut in it and a light cream on top.  It was yummy

Then came Terry's Foie Gras

Then came the main course.  My chicken was so tender and the mushroom sauce and mashed potatoes were just yummy.

Terry liked her pigeon and mashed potatoes very much

As it turns out, it just may be one of the best meals I have had.   

We were too full for dessert, but they brought us a complimentary chocolate bon bon with a wafer thin orange lace cookie (chocolate and orange one of my favorite combinations).  

We absolutely waddled home.  A great Eve before Christmas Eve.

People enjoying Christmas Eve on the Place de l'Horloge.  It is a beautiful day.  We had a nice bowl of vegetable soup and coffee.

Mr and Mrs Santa outside a pet store

We just wandered through town watching all the last minute shoppers and then went home.  We were going to have a simple dinner of salad and chili, so we got that ready to go, then went back up town for a glass of wine on the Place de l'Horloge.  As usual, lots of traffic.  The balloon fairy was back and all lit up

Have no idea of the significance of this next bicycle contraption that was issuing smoke and firecrackers and bubbles, but here it is 

And a glass of wine while people watching

We are off to home and our simple dinner.  Perhaps a movie on the big screen of the Ipad Mini.  Well they didn't have "It's A Wonderful Life", so we watched a recent comedy called "St. Vincent" with Bill Murray.  We liked it.

A festive week in Avignon.  Merry Christmas everyone.