Noz, the Great and Powerful(ly low prices)

Frozen pizza cone, anyone?

One of the simple pleasures in the simple life Ken and I are living here in rural south west France is shopping at Noz. At this shabby, cavernous island of misfit products, we find nothing we need and never come away empty-handed.

When our son was with us last summer, I proposed a contest to find the grossest food item at Noz. The competition was fierce, but I think Luke's dog biscuits may have beat my slimey pink gummies in a rigged two-to-one vote.

I don't know how many Noz stores there are in France (for that factoid I would need Flash), but I can share the chain's mission from its website: "Manufacturer, wholesaler or distributor flow products they can not sell on the local market." Inspiring, si? 

Our most recent trip to the wonderful land of Noz netted two bags of items we hadn't realized we needed or wanted including a dart board, two six packs of Oranjaboom beer and three kinds of mustard. Total cost, around 18 euros. But, hold on, don't even bother trying to find these deals on your next trip to Noz. If you want something specific, you won't find it. But if you open your eyes to the possibilities and click your heels together three times, you may just find your heart's desire at Noz.

Or at least some pizza-flavored ice cream cones.

Noz always has a saucy collection of condiments.

The Marmande location of Noz is huge, with an ever-changing selection of trash and treasure

Noz is a favorite destination when we're looking to kill a few hours.