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Provence Cycling Tour: Day 3

After two days of cycling, sleeping in and having a late breakfast at the hotel was the perfect beginning to our rest day. Next on the agenda? Laundry.

We split up into two groups to tackle laundry and bike maintenance. This worked out pretty well - we were able to get both tasks done by early afternoon. That left just enough time to lazily explore Aix-en-Provence - grabbing a snack at the boulangerie, and wandering along the main street where there was a band playing on a stage. I guess there must have been some sort of festival in town. It was interesting walking around and seeing shops and products catering to tourists - H&M, bubble tea, California ice cream - in a tiny French town. Aix-en-Provence is supposed to have lots of fountains, and I counted a few as we walked around - the most spectacular being the fountain in the Rotonde, especially at night.

We had dinner at Le P'tit Bout, a restaurant tucked in a tiny street under construction. The hostess led us down stairs into a cavern, where we were seated - it was almost as if we were dining in a wine cellar! I ordered grilled prawns, hoping for something to top my lunchtime experience on the first day of cycling, but it wasn't as good. Ah well. Dessert knocked me out, literally - it was a lime sorbet soaked in alcohol, served with lemon sugar. Walking back to our hotel was a tipsy trip - but I made it back, and collapsed into bed.

Tomorrow, we'll be cycling to Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume and staying in a cloister!

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