Day 16. Stage 16. The tour de France has cycled thought the center of France and making their way across the South of France. Last Sunday, they complete They begin in the town of Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, provider of 60 per cent of France’s truffles to the market, in the Rhône-Alpes Region towards Gap, on the famous ’Route Napoléon’ and capital of the Southern Alps, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Given that the elevation at the start line in Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux is 99 meters (325 feet) and the finish line at Gap lies 1,268 metres (4,160 ft) above sea level, Stage 16 is a grueling up-hill ride of 162.5 kilometers (101 miles). Air gets thinner, breather harder.

Sounds like a nightmare bike ride to me.

This is why I would undoubtedly be one of the fans at the finish line holding my enormous purchase of cherries in, say, the nice and big Jars Plume serving bowl, spitting the pits into, say, the Jars Tima dipping bowl, drinking, say, a rose--because it's in season--Provence style in a white Jars Maguelone tumbler, with the Jars Tourron pitcher still half full of my favorite vintage. Oh, and look! Jean-Luc is walking over with our lunch of coulommier and real French baguette on the Jars Vuelta tray, calling, "Who's winning, mon petit cochon?"

Why all the Jars ceramics? Becuase the South of France is where these marvelously glazed ceramics are made. In 1857, Pierre Jars founded the family company "Manufacture de poterie Jars" in the south of France. To this day Jars Ceramics has remained true to the founder's creative vision of turning objects of day-to-day living into work of arts, while transforming the functional into beautiful. "

If you had to put the Jars' philsophy between quotation marks it would look like this: "If Jars was a path, it would have a scent of hazelnut."D'accord.... Maybe this makes more sense en français.

In any case, let me say in English that the Jars Ceramics dinnerware will bring functional beauty to any table, turning every meal into a thing of loveliness and light. (What can I say? My reveries français is rubbing off on me.)

Join us again Friday July 19th when the cyclist make continue their chase of the yellow jersey in Stage 19 of the Tour de France in the Rhone Valley, home of Revol.