The "Beckoning Bocce" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Waiting for my pizza.  Ordered a Hawaiian pizza from Le Piment to take back to the villa so we wouldn't have to get dressed fancy after a long and glorious day at the beach on Orient.  For years we ordered our take-out at Tap 5, but this year the place is gone and replaced by a Casino (pronounced cas/in/no) store.  They have a nice variety of groceries, but no take-out offerings.  While waiting for my pizza I took a walk around Orient Village.  Behind Le Plage Restaurant was something that I hadn't seen for quite a few years in the village.  

Preparing to throw one of his Bocce balls toward the "Jack".

A Bocce match!  Eight guys playing a very competitive game with much shouting, drinking and smoking.  Bocce, a sport started in Egypt, is tradition- ally played on natural soil courts with balls made of metal or plastic.  The ball is about the size of a softball with a smaller ball called the "jack" being tossed first on the court.  Scoring is done by having your metal ball thrown or rolled so it is the closest to the jack when all balls have been thrown.  

Refreshments wait under the light.

Sound rather simple and it is, but the passion with which it is played is anything but simple.  I sat along the stone border of the match and enjoyed the sport that I first got to know while visiting years ago.  Back then the competitors would play their matches in the large open area in front of the many restaurants that make up Orient Village.  The half dozen or more restaurants were confined to the standing buildings and Carol and I enjoyed sitting along the stone and sand courtyard to get a better view of the matches.  Some evenings two or even three matches would take place simultaneously.  Great competition with everything spoken in French.  The competitors would bring their own Bocce balls in leather or felt cases and after removing them from their cases would polish them before beginning.  I'm sure there were many wagers, but it was kept quiet.  

Scoring is argued.  The green "Jack" is surrounded by the
Bocce balls of all contestants.  Closest counts for a score.
Click on photo to enlarge it.

Those evening meals watching Bocce ended when the restaurants expanded into the stone and sand courtyard.  Great for the restaurants, but our entertainment was eliminated.  Tonight, my find behind the places gave me another taste of excitement.  The street lights barely lit the area, but the excitement was intense nonetheless.  One of the competitors lit a cigarette while sitting next to me on the stone wall and when it was his turn he left it on the wall to burn to a nub while taking his turn.  

The cigarette burned out before its owner came back.

Drinks of all varieties were lined along a bench on the other end of the open area.  High fives and pats on the back were customary when one of the contestants made a good throw or roll.  These guys were amateurs, I assume, but they played with passion and fury.  I tried to capture the mood and event with my camera, but the lighting was rather dim.  Then it struck me ....... MY PIZZA!!  Headed back to Le Piment to find it sitting on the top of the oven, still hot.  I tried other evenings to find another match, but with no success.  Hoping to find another evening of Bocce next year when we return to our favorite vacation spot.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.