In the U.S., the Scots have a well-deserved reputation for cheapness. Or as they might say, “thriftiness.” And they are darned proud of it.
But here in continental Europe,
you don’t see many Scots. It’s too
expensive to drive – aye laddie, have you seen the price of gas these
days? And too far to swim, although I’m
sure a few thrifty Scots have tried.
So here, the title of Cheapest
Europeans goes to my own people, the Dutch.
Why do you think the masterpiece of Van Gogh’s Dutch period was of a
family eating potatoes? Because it’s
hard to get much cheaper than that!
But every so often the Dutch like
to escape their soggy land for sunnier climes.
And Provence is a favorite destination.
Spending money, however, is out
of the question. The Dutch are famous
for driving their campers south and parking them in the cheapest place possible
for the night.
And no expensive foreign food for
them. No, before departing they head to
their local Cheapco discount supermarket and load up the camper with everything
they need.
There is a reason they are not
the most welcome of tourists.
One time we went to the Saturday market
in Forcalquier. Normally, when people go
to the market they have a coffee and maybe a croissant. But not the Dutch. No, you could see them standing around in the big
parking lot, drinking coffee from their thermoses and eating cookies they had
brought from back home.
In fact, any time you see someone
drinking coffee from a thermos in a parking lot, you can be sure they are
Dutch. I mean, spend $1.50 on a
coffee? Are you mad?
Today we met our friend Chloe in
St.-Remy for lunch. When we got back to
the car we saw a camper in the middle of the charmless parking lot. Next to it was a family sitting around their
little portable picnic table, eating something that looked suspiciously like potatoes. A quick
check revealed the familiar NL on the license plate.
My people!
KVS
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