En route to Milano (Milan) this morning, we made a detour to Èze Village, a 30-minute drive from Nice. Perched atop a hill, this charming medieval town is home to art shops, galleries, restaurants, hotels, and a historic church. It would have been a delightful stop - if not for the frustrating ordeal at the gas station caused by my car’s troublesome tire.
The tire had first gone flat in Firenze, and although we thought it was fixed, it failed again in Nice. As it turned out, the rubber tube inside had a hole, making a simple patch impossible - I needed a completely new tire. Unfortunately, the French man who ran the Avia gas station in Èze Village was entirely unhelpful. Perhaps it was the language barrier, or perhaps we were Asians, but despite selling tires, he refused to assist us.
In desperation, I contacted Sixt (France) for help, but the only solution they offered was an expensive tow - €140 one way - to the nearest tire shop in Nice. Finally, as a last resort, Dad spotted a tire in the shop that matched our rental car’s radius size and confronted the gas station guy about it. Reluctantly, he agreed to sell it and install it - for €160. Why he didn’t offer this solution from the start was beyond me, but at that point, I just wanted to leave - despite the absurd price.
Highway robbery at its finest. But as with all travels, you encounter all kinds of people - you take the good with the bad.
Next post: Milano (Milan), Italy
Previous post: Antibes & Cannes, Côte d'Azur, France
No comments:
Post a Comment