Rainy Day Road Trip To Provence

When we woke up this morning we knew we had rain coming.  It started as we were finishing breakfast.  No worries...I would rather drive in the rain than deal with it while we are sightseeing.  We had an off and on wet, but uneventful,  4 1/2 hour drive to the Pont du Gard.  

The Pont du Gard is a Roman Aquaduct.  Construction began in 20 BC, though recent excavations suggest construction may have taken place between 40 and 60 AD.   Either way, it's really old!  It was built to carry water from Uzes to Nimes.  The straight line distance between the two places is about 20 km, but the Aquaduct takes a winding route that is about 50 km, just to avoid some hills.  It's incredible to think that it was built using no modern methods. The Pont du Gard is now a designated

World Heritage Site.

We were to meet the owner of the Saint-Remy-De-Provence apartment we are renting at 5:00 p.m.  We got to St. Remy a bit early and got lucky finding a parking place just across from the apartment.  It's located in the Old Town and parking is hard to come by.  We walked around our new temporary neighborhood.  It's a lively one, with restaurants and shops galore.  The Wednesday and Saturday markets are held just outside our apartment.  I love the markets in Provence and can't wait to check it out in the morning.  There is a small grocery store next to us, so we bought a few provisions.  The apartment is a bit quirky, but it was a good deal and you get what you pay for.  I just hope the bed is comfortable!

Beautiful Villages

This is our last day in Burgundy.  We decided to drive to another one of France's beautiful villages.  This time we saw Chateauneuf-en-Auxois.  Chateauneuf means "new castle", and France has a ton of them.  The town is set at 2000-feet.  We saw the castle from miles away, sitting up on the hill and shining in the sun.  We commented about how nice it looked.  It wasn't until we got closer that we realized it was our destination.

We found a place to park and immediately went to the view point.  The view was incredible.  I took this panoramic photo from there -

We walked down to the medieval castle, but found it is closed on Mondays.  We walked around checking out the nice old buildings.

Next up - a scenic drive through wine country.  We did the Rick Steves vineyard loop from south of Beaune to La Rochepot.  We drove on windy country roads, past vineyards and villages.  At one time we were on a little road with vineyards on both sides, and they were so close to us that we felt like we were in the vineyard!  Then we set out for Autun.  It is a larger town, maybe even larger than Beaune.  When we arrived we left the guidebook in the car.  Not the best idea, as we had no idea what to do.  We walked around for about 30 minutes or so, then decided we were just wasting our time.  We got back in the car to find some Roman ruins we had seen signs for.  We discovered it is actually a Roman Theater.

I won't mention the nasty stuff Jim found when he went to check out the cave behind him.

Our final stop for the day was visit to Chateau de Sully.  The owners live there, so a guided tour was required.  While not as grand as some of the other chateau we have seen, it was still interesting.  A former French president (1873-1879) was born there.  At the end of the tour, the last one of the day, our 'guide' stayed in the house.  A comment he made during the tour makes me think he could be the owner. 

With the exception of our car situation (I was not able to contact Europcar today because the phone was never picked up by a person, and I ended up calling AutoEurope to cover myself), we had a great time in Burgundy.  Of the three regions we have been in so far; Normandy, Loire Valley and Burgundy, Jim and I agree that we like the Burgundy region the best.  Think of the Napa Valley, but less commercial and much cooler old buildings. They are wine crazy here, and no doubt about it their economy relies on wine.  Even so, we enjoyed ourselves and didn't do any wine tasting at all.  Driving on the back roads we were in awe of the beautiful scenery and charming towns.  And thanks to Susan and Monte for the recommendation of Carpe Diem.  We loved everything about it.  The food was superb, and Patrick & Eric were wonderful hosts.  They both went above and beyond to help us with our car situation.  

The only thing that would have made this time in Burgundy better is if we had done a canal boat trip on the Burgundy canal.  I dream of doing that someday.  Or maybe a narrow boat in England?  Either one would do.  

Tomorrow morning we leave for Provence.  This will be our last big road trip in France.  For this trip anyway!

A Rainy Day In Beaune

We woke up to a day that was very overcast.  Rain was predicted.  It's surprising that it's 25 days into our trip and this will be the first real rainy day.  We went into the dining room for our first breakfast at this B&B.  They serve it from 8:30-10:00.  Even though it was about 9:00, we were the first ones there.  We were enjoying our breakfast and had just about finished eating when a group of 10 people came in.  They had traveled together from Switzerland, and were visiting for the weekend.  They were returning home, because they had to work tomorrow.  Two of them spoke really good English.  I asked how long their drive was.  Three hours.  It must be nice to be able to visit other countries so easily.  

Sundays are not a good day to sightsee in much of France.  Things tend to be closed.  We thought it would be a good day to go to Beaune, since it's the largest 'city' around, with a population of 25,000.  The main thing we wanted to see was Hôtel Dieu.  It's not a hotel, it was a medieval charity hospital.  Now it's a museum.  It started being built in 1443 and was completed in 8 years.  It served as a hospital until 1971.  The Hospices of Beaune started allowing visitors in the 1950's, though it wasn't fully open to tourists until the early 1980's.  The Hospices of Beaune are Burgundy's largest landowner of vineyards.  There was an interesting audio tour.  The trickiest thing was to do it without getting wet.  The outside pictures taken on my phone turned out okay.  It was too dark inside for my phone, so I used the camera.  Due to technical difficulties I can load them on my iPad until after we return home.  The roof is the most striking feature of the exterior.

We finished our tour and found it was raining harder.  We decided we had better go get some lunch.  It was after 1:30 and restaurants in France often close at 2:30, re-opening at 7:00 or so for dinner.  We found a place, but had to wait a few minutes for a table.  Jim got coffee.  I swear, the cup was the size of a large thimble.  I got Boeuf Bourguignon (beef simmered in red wine with onion and mushrooms) and Jim got Coq au Vin (chicken stewed in red wine).  They are local specialties and we wanted to make sure we had them at least once while we are here.  A specialty we don't plan to partake in - escargot (snails).  Some things I just have to say no to.  While we were eating it started raining harder.  It let up some by the time we were finished.  We started walking around the old town area and found that besides restaurants, not much else was open.  We walked part of the original town walls.  I think we actually walked on every street in the old town area.  It started raining again, and we decided that after walking aimlessly for several hours trying to kill time until it was late enough for dinner, we had enough.  We found a place to buy take out sandwiches, we bought a pastry from another shop to share, a bottle of wine, and we headed back for our B&B.  So here we are, on a rainy Sunday evening.  We changed into comfy clothes, we've had our dinner, and we are drinking the wine.  Tomorrow the weather should be perfect for exploring on our last day in Burgundy.  

Beautiful Burgundy

We had breakfast with the Belgian couple, who spoke no English.  Even so, we managed to communicate a bit, at times with Patrick's translating.  Yesterday Patrick read our contract with Europcar, and told us we have 5 days to report our 'accident.'  This morning he called a number on the paperwork, and handed me the phone when it became clear that someone would speak English with me.  The woman I talked to said we must take the car to the location we rented it from - Paris.  No way, it's too far and out of our way.  Patrick took the phone and had some words with the woman in French.  When he explained the tire had already been replaced she got very annoyed.  Apparently she just deals only with roadside assistance, not accident reports.  She said to call where we rented it. Patrick called the number.  It was closed and the answering machine was full.  We will have to call Monday.  Hopefully someone at our next place can help if we need a French speaker.

We said our mercis and au revoirs to Patrick and Eric.  We then went to one of France's Official Beautiful Villages, Noyers.  I agree, the village is beautiful.  It's not touristy.  There aren't any souvenir shops.  We enjoyed wandering the streets and watching a place where real people live without catering to tourism.

Like all the other towns we've been to in France, Noyers had a monument to the men killed during World War I.  

When then went to see the Abbey of Fontenay.  It was founded in 1118 by St. Bernard.  The grounds were beautiful and very peaceful.  

When we finished there we set off for our new temporary home, La Rochepot.  It's in Burgundy, as is Carpe Diem, but it's closer to the other places we want to see here.  We set the GPS to avoid toll roads, thereby taking us through nice villages and saving us money.  I didn't have an exact address for Le Clos des 4 Saisons, only a street name.  We found it and we only had to make one U-turn!  The woman who checked us in speaks very little English.  Yikes, I hope someone here does if we need help with our car situation on Monday!  She showed us to our room.  I've seen smaller apartments!  We even have a private patio.

The Road To Burgundy - Or Who Needs To Speak French!

On Friday, October 3rd we packed our bags and headed for Burgundy.  We had all day, as we couldn't check into our B&B until 4:00 p.m., and we didn't have to be there until 7:00 p.m.  We decided to stop in Vezelay, since it was on the way.  As we approached and saw the town up on the hill it reminded us of an Italian hill town.  Then it was all downhill from there.  Long story short I hit a curb and it blew out the right front tire.  I've never had anything like this happen to me.  Ever.  Here we are in a foreign country and we don't really  speak the language.  Okay, don't panic... Jim took the tire off and put the spare, a small donut, on.  Then we walked around trying to find someone who could help us find a garage.  Jim thought it just needed some air, because he couldn't detect a hole.  We found the Tourist Information office.  Closed for lunch between 1-2.  Still, it seemed like our best shot of finding English speakers.  We got sandwiches and ate them outside, enjoying the view. Then we went back to the TI.  We still had a 10 minute wait.  I noticed a store across the street.  Maybe someone there could help.  I went in and asked the woman who worked there if she spoke English.  No.  Okay then, I would try to ask her in French if she knew where we could take the car.  I know words, but not conversation.  I pointed to myself, said voiture (car), acted out wheels and flat tire.  Jim was watching from across the street and he couldn't figure out what all my gesturing was about, so he had to come see.  After all that, she showed us a toy car. Thanks, but no thanks lady.  That won't help us.  The TI reopened and both women there spoke English.  Now we're talking!  They directed us to a garage just out of town.  We arrive there.  Closed. Until October 6.  No way!  There was a chain across the driveway, but enough room was there for me to drive in. An older woman came out.  No English.  Fermé!  That means closed.  Please Madame.  We just need air.  Jim shows her the tire.  She pulls out an air hose.  No such luck.  Jim finds the hole in the sidewall.  We need a new tire.  Okay, Plan B.  We will drive to Carpe Diem, our B&B.  Maybe they can help.  We found out about the place from our dear friends, Susan & Monte.  It's their favorite place.  They've stayed there twice now.  Susan said it's easier to find with the GPS coordinates, because it's tricky.  I got the coordinates from their website.  Our GPS didn't like them.  Screw it, let's just put in the address and go.  Slowly, because we are driving on a donut.  We arrived at 3:00, having no trouble finding the place.  Maybe because we were driving so slow.  An hour before check in.  Knowing that they would probably not appreciate us disturbing them when they are busy, we had to wait.  Jim mentioned that we had passed a garage driving into town.  We walked up there.  Yes, it was a garage.  They restore classic cars.  They had some cool ones.  Not likely they would have a tire for us.  We walked around, we sat in the car, we waited.  And waited.  Then it was 4:00.  We rang the bell and Patrick came.  His English is wonderful.  He opened the gate and we drove in.  He showed us to our room, then we went outside to discuss what to do next.  His partner Eric came out to meet us.  He doesn't speak English.  No matter, he calls and finds a garage a couple of towns away that has the tire.  We get directions and their card and away we go.  Slowly on our donut.  We easily find the garage.  They are expecting us.  The mechanic looks at the tire.  There is much animated discussion between him and the two women that work in the office.  I try to follow it, but they are talking way too fast.  He then asks Jim if he speaks French.  No.  I tell him I speak a little.  He proceeded to direct his comments towards Jim.  Huh?  He doesn't speak French!  Anyway, the tire they have is a slightly different size.  He sends us to the Peugeot dealer in Avallon, a bigger town.  Off we went, slowly.  Jim found the dealer in the GPS, but the directions weren't exactly what had been written down for us.  What to do?  We found it, but as we approach it I realize it's not the Peugeot dealer, it's a Renault dealer.  Oops.  I pulled I to a gas station next door.  We search for the right dealer.  It's not listed on the GPS.  I should add that it's not the most up-to-date chip, which is normally not a problem.  We were talking about how to get back to the Renault dealer to ask about where the Peugeot dealer is.  I caught a glimpse of a shiny blue building down the road.  It looked like it might be a car dealer.  We decided to check it out, and voilà, it was just where we were looking for.  Now there was more discussion with the woman in the office and her limited English and my limited French.  We got through it, and eventually we drove off with a new tire.  Much faster than we arrived.   I hope our insurance covers it, but if not it is something I'm not going to stress over.  It could have been much worse.  We returned to Carpe Diem and told Patrick what had transpired.  He will help us call Europcar to report the incident later.  In the meantime he suggests we go to our room and relax.  Come back at 7:30 for some wine, then dinner at 8:00.  Oh boy, now you're talking!  This is why we have come here, their renowned dinner and hospitality.

At 7:30 we went to the salon and were joined by 2 other couples.  One lives in Nova Scotia, Canada, and one lives just outside of London.  There was another couple from Belgium staying, but they did not participate in the dinner.  We started with an appertif, a glass of wine, while we got to know each other a little.  At 8:00 we sat down at the dining room table for dinner.  Patrick insisted we sit boy, girl, boy, etc. and not sit next to our spouse.  The table setting was beautiful.  I should have taken a picture of it. We had a small bowl of tomato soup to start with.  Then a dish with smoked salmon, artichoke stem, a poached egg and caviar.  It looks like a work of art, don't you think?

I didn't eat the poached egg, but the rest was really good.  After that we had veal with some veggies.  I don't eat veal, on general principal.  I made an exception.  Then came the cheese.  I also don't eat cheese.  I sampled 5 kinds.  Dessert was homemade ice cream with a raspberry sauce.  We had a different wine with each course.  Did I mention how good the bread was?  The meal was superb.    We sat there talking to the other guests until about 11:00 p.m.  It was a lovely evening and it made the events of earlier in the day fade away.  Maybe the wine helped.

Chateau Day #2

Today we drove about an hour to Chateau de Chambord.  We had to drive through the town of Blois (pronounced Blah) during their commute time.  Not fun.  And if I say so myself, I thought the town looks kind of blois, so the name is fitting.

Chambord is the granddaddy of the Loire Chateau.  It's surrounded by Europe's largest enclosed Forest park, a game preserve defined by a 20 mile long wall, and has a lot of wild deer and boar.  It was originally a hunting lodge, and it sure is a huge one!  It's six times the size of the average Loire castle.  It has 440 rooms and 365 fireplaces.  It was mostly used in the winter because the hunters could see their prey best after the leaves fell.  There are 80 rooms available to view.  We rented audio guides, and it was well worth the extra money.  Many of the signs were only in French.  The grounds are way too big to see without renting a bike.  It's no longer summer season and the rental place was closed.  We had a picnic lunch.  It's nice how the different chateau provide a picnic area.  After we ate we were both sleepy.  We decided to take a quick nap in the car before returning to Amboise.  

Chateau de Chambord 

We parked the car in our usual place, then walked to Chateau du Clos-Luce.  Its claim to fame is that Leonardo da Vinci spent his last few years there, and he died in the house.  The house was not as grand as the other chateau we have seen, but in the basement there were models of some of Leonardo's inventions.  He was a genius who was way ahead of his time.  Talk about a being multi talented...he painted, he was an inventor, an architect, a town planner...he did it all!  We also walked all over the grounds, where there were life sized models of some of his inventions.

We then walked back to the apartment.  It's time to get our things together to leave.  Next stop - Burgundy!

Au revoir Loire!

Chateau Day #1

We decided that two chateau per day was enough.  First we went to what seems to be everyone's favorite - Chateau de Chenonceau.  I could see why everyone says it's the best!

We arrived when they opened and for awhile we had the place, well not exactly to ourselves, but there weren't that many people there.  We went through the castle first.  Fascinating, both the decor and the history.  After the castle we went through the two different gardens, the flower and veggie gardens, the carriage gallery, and last but not least, the Donkey Park.

We had a picnic lunch before we sent off for the second chateau.

Next up...Chateau De Chaumont-Sur-Loire.  It's not as visually attractive as Chenonceau, nor is the setting as spectacular.  The rooms are not comparable either.  But we still enjoyed it.

After seeing the castle, stables and grounds, we headed back along the Loire River to Amboise.  Then came the fun stuff - more laundry!  After it went into the dryer we went exploring more of Amboise on foot.  I got a better shot of the Amboise chateau from a bridge going over the river.

That's about it for today.  We are going to a B-I-G chateau tomorrow.  It should be fun!