Jour 3 Annecy: Old Town Market & Palais de L'Isle

June 23, 2014

Jour 3 Annecy: Old Town Market & Palais de L'Isle

Before we even made it to Annecy, we had decided to have ourselves a little picnic. So, when we got to the town, we headed straight to the Old Town Market to pick up some delicious bread, delicious cheese, and delicious stretchy ham. Yeah, I refer to jambon de pays as stretchy ham.

There are random markets sprinkled throughout the town but the Old Town Market's probably the best and most bustle-y. I believe it's open on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays from 7AM to 1PM. And of course, we were there on Sunday. We got to the market about 45 minutes before it was supposed to close so by the time we made our rounds, a few stalls were starting to lower their prices just to get rid of some of their fare which was great for us.

All of us were incredibly charmed by this town and the views. You could catch glimpses of the Alps here and there. There's a quietness within the hustle and bustle. It's difficult to describe. I guess this is just what it's like to be in a small town.

The route we took to the market let us to the part that was selling clothes and shoes and knickknacks, which was cute and all, but I was really looking for the food.

We encountered a lot of stalls similar to the ones we saw at Marché Saint Antoine in Lyon. You know, things like olives and cheese and bread. But, in this small town setting, everything looked extra cute.

Sun-dried tomatoes are like gold to me.

Say cheese! So we decided to get some gruyere from this cheese stand. We ended up purchasing probably about a pound and a half of this awesome 18-month aged gruyere which was €12. I think that was the deal of a lifetime because let me say, that cheese was no joke.

We also got six slices of the jambon de pays in the photo below. There was a bit of blueish mold on parts of the ham, probably the same ol' bleu cheese mold. This ham was super salty and delicious.

I wish I could have taken all of these chunks of meat. Ugh, French ham is sublime.

These two magical stalls are where we got the protein for our lunch.

Why don't we have purple garlic in America? I mean, maybe we do, but I never see it at my grocery store.

The radish business was pretty booming that day.

Oh fresh produce, you make me so happy. Thanks. Thanks shallot. Ugh, that only works if you're British, I think.

I stalked at least two dogs in every city. We ran into this pom several times and every time, I was only able to snap a photo of her bum. Oh well, at least it's a cute and fluffy bum, right?

I need a charcuterie board like this! I see a DIY project in the near future.

The best part of this town is that there are canals everywhere that make for beautiful photo ops.

And you know, once you're done at the market and you round the corner, you're at that famous canal spot, y'all!

Palais de L'isle was originally built as a castle. In its lifetime, it's had several careers, including courthouse, a mint, a jail, and a home. Today, it's just a pretty spot for taking photos and I think there's a museum inside.