Posted by Anne & Kirk Woodyard – Music and Markets Tours

Wednesday is market day in Vias, when we load up our market basket with all sorts of goodies – an assortment of green and black olives from big wooden tubs, tapenade, nuts, cheese from the Pyrenees, a roast chicken from our friend Matie, who’s always happy to see us and tries out her English to welcome us, some sweet onions from the nearby town of Lezignan, pale green spring artichokes, plump purple eggplant, so shiny you can almost see your smile in them.

We duck into the church, whose side door, usually closed, is open for shoppers to stop in for a quick prayer of thank you for the bounty of the season. The vivid stained glass windows toss their colors across the floor as we

quietly walk through.

Returning home, we greet Alain, our neighbor, who shows off his garden-fresh produce and gives us a bag full of fava beans that he’s just picked.

A spot of house-cleaning, getting the place ready for incoming renters, and then time for lunch.

And what a feast we reward ourselves with! First course – Alain’s beans, pulled from the pod and dipped in sea salt – drizzled with a bit of olive oil.

The table’s groaning with our market haul – roasted eggplant, red pepper, and onions, steamed artichokes, roast chicken, and a chilled bottle of rosé from the Faugeres area, an excellent wine producing region of the Languedoc, our province of France.

We’re sure thankful for the beauty and bounty of Vias!

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