While we may not be known for our good taste, we know what tastes good — so our first priority was to sniff out regional dishes. We discovered a stand selling all sorts of fresh fish and crustaceans, as well as a savory specialty of the area: Tielle Setoise, a round pastry filled with octopus and tomato — sometimes with a bit of squid and mackerel thrown in for full-on fishy deliciousness.
We'll be trying that, for sure, but we dined Wednesday evening on oysters — always a favorite.
Also on our list of local delicacies to sample: a couple of sweets. Poutous, "a delicious treat made from honey" according to the Beziers tourist office.
Then there's Riquets de Beziers made of "two fine layers of crunchy nougat containing almond-flavored" paste.
The candy is named after engineer and canal-builder Pierre-Paul Riquet, who was responsible for the construction of the Canal du Midi. Blah, blah, history, blah. Just let me at that sweet treat. Oh, and one candy shop depicts Monsieur Riquet thus:
He may look like one of the 3 Musketeers, but I'll bet his candy tastes nothing like an M&M-Mars product.
Finally, Beziers is known for its big summer festival: the August bullfights, or ferias, held in the town arena.
As we are close to Spain, these are traditional, bloody bullfights. Please don't tell PETA, but we'll likely go to Beziers for the festivities. We'll partake in the music and wine fountains (yes, fountains!), but we won't stay to see the slaughter. Ick.
Instead, we may go see some bullfights in The Camargue region, where bullfighters "win" by pulling a paper rosette, cork or other token from the bull's horn. In the Camargue, the bull is the celebrated star of the bullring (not the toreador) and dies of old age. Bulls are buried in special cemeteries, with tombstones that note how many bullfighters they gored during their careers.
Note to family: Does this photo of a typical Camargue cowboy look like anyone you know?
Hmm.
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