November 2, 2010
Walked up to Queribus: a day off the bikes
WEATHER: MOSTLY SUNNY, VERY WINDY AND GUSTY
After breakfast in the hotel dining room, we set off up the road on foot toward Queribus. It was incredibly windy as we walked the 2 km and 1100 feet steeply uphill. When we got to the kiosk to pay for the castle entrance, the woman there told us not to pay yet, but to go up the path to the castle and check to make sure we felt safe climbing the exterior staircase because of the huge gusts of wind. We thought we had already experienced the wind and would have no problem with the stairs, but that was not so. The 80 km gusts ripping across the exposed stairway were too much for us, since there was only a knee-high wall and a frayed rope to hold onto. We admitted defeat and walked back down to Cucugnan, where we sought refuge from the wind and lunch at the restaurant where we had the pear tart yesterday.
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In the afternoon we walked all around the town, including to the several hundred year old windmill which had been used until a few years ago to grind grain. We also went to the little theatre across the street from our hotel and saw a strange animated cartoon/story of the priest and the church of Cucugnan. It seemed quite anachronistic, and way too religious, but apparently is a well known production of a folk tale.
That night for dinner, we splurged on the 38 euro menu at our hotel dining room, and it was very good. This is a family operation. The chef was the son of the hotel owner, his girlfriend helped in the kitchen, the owner waited on tables. We had scallops in chestnut cream, ½ roasted pigeon with white beans and morels, a small cheese plate, and a superb classic lemon souffle for dessert. (Julia Child would have approved.) Another ½ bottle of Corbieres for 10 euros.
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