Epernay and the burbs of Paris

Last Monday was another holiday in Germany. There are so many holidays in the spring that it is hard to keep track of them. I think this one was Pfingsten which in English is Whit Monday. All I know is that it is a religious holiday, but after reading the Wikipedia entry, I’m still not sure exactly what it is all about.

We decided to go to Paris for the long weekend. We decided to spend the night in Epernay in the Champagne region on the way there so that we could have a shorter drive Friday night and get to see something new.

We left Friday after work so didn’t arrive in Epernay until 11:30 pm. I reserved a room at the Premiere Classe hotel which was a budget hotel (45 euro a night). It had gotten good reviews on TripAvisor and it was supposed to be next to a park or what I thought was a park. Apparently Parc D’Activities in French means industrial park. Oops!

The hotel was nice and clean but I do find it entertaining that the cheaper the hotel or crappier the apartment complex the more pretentious the name. There were some apartments near our house in Littleton named the Beaux Manor Apartments and they were anything but beaux. Likewise, the Premiere Classe Hotel was definitely not a First Class Hotel but for 45 Euros it was a great deal.

The next morning we walked the 10 minutes into the center of Epernay to visit a Cave de Champagne. We wanted to visit a smaller, less commercialized cave but the only one open at 10:30am was the behemoth Moet et Chandon. I guess most people wait until after 12:00 to start drinking Champagne.

The hour long tour was actually really informative. I didn’t realize how involved champagne was but now I understand why it can be so expensive.

I was surprised to discover that champagne is made from a mix of 3 grapes. Moet et Chandon use Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier to make their champagne along with some old wine so that they can keep a consistent flavor from year to year. They pick all of the grapes by hand so that none of the red grapes get bruised and result in coloring the wine. All three grape harvests are pressed individually and then blended together after they can determine the flavor of the grapes. The first fermentation process yields wine and then yeast and sugar are added to the mix for the second fermentation creating the bubbles. The longer the champagne ages, the smaller the bubbles get which more desirable.

After the 2nd fermentation, they tilt the bottles neck down and turn the bottles ¼ of a turn every day by hand for 8 weeks so that the yeast deposits settle in neck of the bottle. The neck of the bottle is then frozen to create a little yeast ice cube and removed.

I didn’t realize that they don’t make vintage champagne every year. There must be an extraordinary harvest for them to use only the grapes of that year. The last vintage Moet et Chanson made was in 2003 and the magnum bottle of that vintage started at 20,000 Euros.

The tour was conducted underground in the champagne cellars. There are 110 kilometers of cellars underneath the town of Epernay. I can’t even begin to image how many bottles of Champagne must be stored underneath the town. Sabine was even shocked by the sheer amount of Champagne that surrounded us.

Of course the Champagne tour wouldn’t be complete without a tasting. Sabine was just a little too young for some Champagne but she certainly enjoyed watching the bubbles in the glass.

After our tour we went for lunch at La Grillade Gourmande (www.lagrilladegourmande.com). It was a Michelin recommended restaurant and was a bit off the beaten track so wasn’t overrun with tourists. It was the best meal that we’ve had in France. We started with some Champagne and a dozen oysters. For the main course we shared a grilled Dorado filet with basil oil and grilled beef tournedos with fois gras. Although the dishes were simple with few ingredients, they were cooked perfectly and the wood fire imparted a lot of flavor to both dishes. We ended the meal with cheese for me and Chocolat Moelleux for Jim.

We arrived at the Veyron’s a bit late for dinner due to some traffic in Paris which made for a late evening as dining at the Veyron’s is always a lengthy affair. Their meals routinely start in the living room with cocktails and crackers. We then retire to the dining room for the main course, followed by salad (the French always eat their salad after the main meal) then the cheese course, dessert, coffee and then cocktails back in the living room. The French certainly know how to eat but sometimes you just want a quick bite and an early bedtime.

The next day we had a lazy morning sitting outside reading in the sun and watching their Jack Russell balance a soccer ball on its head. I think they could get that dog in the movies. He is amazing. Of course the chickens on their property don’t find him very amazing since he has killed a lot of their brethren. They are now forced to live in a tiny cage while he has free rein of the entire property.

We planned to visit Claude Monet’s house and gardens in Giverney that day but after the marathon lunch with the Veyrons, we didn’t get on the road until almost 2:30. We then got a bit lost thanks to our trusty (or not so trusty) GPS so close to 4:00 by the time we got to Giverney. Being a holiday weekend with glorious weather the parking situation was not good. It took us 30 minutes to find a parking place a few kilometers away. Unfortunately once we finally got to Monet’s house, the line to get in was long and Sabine was hungry so we decided to pass on the whole thing.

That night we packed all our stuff up and moved over to Jim’s friend, Andrew’s house. We had our first al fresco dinner of the season on Andrew’s balcony. It was a relaxing evening even with the male bonding banter that is inevitable when two guys get together.

The next day Andrew and Jim went out for a ride while I explored the little subdivision Andrew lives in. His area is very quiet and family friendly for being so close to Paris. It is bordered by a hilly forest on one side and an open meadow on the other.

After a very typical French lunch of omlette, cheve chaud salad, baguette and cheese, we drove to Versailles.

We wanted to see the gardens but didn’t want to pay for them or go anywhere near the main entrance which would be a mobbed on a holiday weekend in beautiful weather. Andrew thought we could actually walk into the back of the gardens from a farm with a petting zoo. We decided to visit the farm first but Sabine wasn’t too interested in the animals. Surprisingly she didn’t even flinch when one of the donkeys started braying like crazy. It scared me but she was unfazed.

We found out that the Versailles gardens were 8 k away from the farm and the gardens closed the gates at 7:00. Since it was already after 5:00 we decided to just go to the town and get dinner. However, on our way there we stumbled across a place where you could actually drive into the gardens and park. We only had about 90 minutes but had a nice time strolling around the gardens among the statues and topiaries.

We drove home to Bonn the next day but stopped at an amazing restaurant we found in the Michelin guide. The restaurant was located 2k off of the highway next to a budget hotel in a town of maybe 100. Only in France do you find gourmet restaurants next to the equivalent of a Super 8 Motel in a podunk town.

Where are all of the French toilet seats?

Where oh where has my toilet seat gone, oh where oh where can it be? These days everything in my life can be related to some nursery rhyme. I spend my days narrating my life to a 4 month old who I’m sure has no idea what I’m saying. To make my boring monologues a little more interesting for both of us, I generally set them to a nursery rhyme tune.

This last trip to Provence, I noticed that most of the cafes, restaurants and gas station toilets are all missing their seats. I wonder if there is a toilet seat thief out there. Or do these establishments buy a new toilet and immediately rip off the seat? Is the thought process that if there isn’t a toilet seat, there is less to clean? Or is it that they want to promote a squatting stance so then they don’t have to clean the toilet at all since no one will be touching it? Normally I find it depressing to drive back into Germany but this trip, I was happy to see the return of the toilet seat and self cleaning ones to boot.

We decided to head down to Provence again for Easter this year. It would be our first vacation with a baby so we were looking for an easy trip. We’d done the same route last year so we knew where to stay on the way down and Jim knew his way around Aix-en-Provence.

On Thursday morning we woke up at 5am intending to leave by 6am. Of course everything takes much longer with a baby so we found ourselves walking out the door 4hours later at 9am.

The trip down to our first stop in Chardonnay went well. Sabine slept a lot of the way and other than driving through a freak snow storm, it was uneventful.

We had a nice visit with Nick and Rebecca at Le Chardon and had dinner at their restaurant and then left for Aix early the next morning.

We were a little disappointed that the trees didn’t have leaves on them yet. Last year Easter was later so the landscape was farther along. As we drove, we pointed out every tree that had leaves on it, each hoping that as we got closer to Aix, everything would be in full bloom. I secretly hoped that we just had to cross some imaginary line and spring would be on the other side. Unfortunately that imaginary line is farther south than Aix.

I wanted to stay in the city of Aix for this trip so that I would have something to do when Jim was out riding his bike. We rented an amazing little apartment- http://www.charmappart.com/maisondauphine1a.html, just a few blocks off of the main drag, Cours Mirabou. The apartment was in a renovated building from the 17th century so had high ceilings with a floral appliqué ceiling, marble fireplace and wall to wall windows.

Once we were unpacked, we went out for provisions at Monoprix. Monoprix is a little like Target. I had only shopped there for groceries in the past but this trip I discovered Monoprix has great baby clothes that are very reasonably priced.

After dropping off the groceries, we went to explore Aix a little bit. Sabine was getting tired of the stroller so we stopped for a quick beer in a sunny square to let her stretch her legs.

For dinner we planned to try one of the restaurants that our hostess recommended – Ze Bistro, La Tomate Verte or Joe’s Pizza. We hoped that Sabine would fall asleep in the stroller so we could enjoy a nice dinner, but she didn’t have the same idea. After walking around for 30 minutes, we decided to get pizza from a street vendor and take it back to the apartment.

Aix has a produce market every day but only on Saturday, Tuesday and Thursday does it have a main market with clothes, antiques, soaps, linins, pottery and other specialty Provencal items. I love wandering around markets so that was first on my agenda for Saturday morning. We picked up some cheese and fixings for some mussels Provencal which I planned to make for Sunday night.

After loading up our stroller with goodies, we headed back to the apartment for lunch and so Jim could go out for a ride.

After Jim’s ride, I went out to do a little shopping. The French really know how to dress their kids. Every French town we’ve been to has so many kids’ clothing stores. The challenge is trying to restrain myself and remember that she’ll only be wearing the stuff for a short time.

On Saturday night, we were invited to a friend of Jim’s for dinner. Sophie, her husband Pascal and her two teenage boys, Mathieu and Paul live in a small town just outside of Aix. Sophie speaks English but her husband and boys do not so the evening was a mish mash of Franglish. I was surprised how well I was able to follow the conversations in French. I think I’ve just gotten very good at reading situations after living in a country where I don’t speak the language rather than that I’ve actually learned any French after listening to Jim speak to Sabine.

We had a very French dinner – duck ribs. I can’t say that I’ve ever even heard of people eating duck ribs but they were actually pretty good. We finished the meal with macaroons which are a specialty in Aix. I’ve always thought of macaroons with coconut or almond but these looked like brightly colored mini hamburgers. They have various flavors but my favorites were the chocolate and pistachio. Even the McCafe at a gas station we stopped at on the trip home had them.

Sunday was rainy so we had a lazy morning or as they say in French a Grasse Matinee (literally fat morning). We finally got out the door at about noon and headed to Lourmarin which was recommended to us by both Sophie and our hostess.

Loumarin was a little town in the Luberon region. It was only about 45 minutes from Aix. When we arrived it was about 1:00 and a few of the shops were open even though it was a Sunday. We needed to eat lunch and due to a bathroom emergency we chose the first place we saw for lunch. It was your standard café lunch. Jim got lamb and I got a salad. The French really know how to take the “healthy” out of a salad. This salad was loaded with fatty lardons (similar to bacon) and Roquefort cheese and then doused in dressing.

I’m not exactly sure why this little town was supposed to be so special. There really wasn’t a lot to see there. By the time we were done with lunch all of the little boutiques were closed except one. We walked up to the castle which wasn’t all that attractive from the outside. After taking a look at the stairs required to get inside we decided against going inside with the stroller and headed back to the car to go back to Aix.

The weather started to clear up so Jim went out for a ride while I wandered around the town to take pictures while the sun was out. Along the way I stumbled across an artisan market where I made a number of acquisitions, namely candlesticks.

Ever since our trip to Scotland, I have been obsessed with candlesticks. We visited a restaurant there called The Dog which had a bar covered with all different types of candlesticks. It had a really nice eclectic look to it which I’ve tried to copy with little success to date. For some reason I can’t quite master an eclectic or random look. I always want to make everything perfectly symmetrical or completely even. I think the technical medical diagnosis is Matchy-matchyosis.

While living in Europe, I thought I should collect some antiques and thought candlesticks would be a great start since they are easy to transport while traveling. I realized, however, that most antique candlesticks are made of silver. Silver sounds nice until you think about the hours required to polish the stuff. That seemed like far too much work for something decorative. Plus after checking out a few antique shops, I realized how pricey they are. So my solution has been to collect new candlesticks that are made to look old – going the shabby chic route or is it just the shabby cheap route?

Anyway, I found a few candlesticks at the market and was feeling a little passive aggressive about the fact that Jim was out riding his bike so I snatched them up. I considered it some good retail therapy.

High from my shopping buzz, I returned home to make some amazing mussels with tons of garlic, shallots, white wine, tomatoes and basil. They were the biggest mussels I’ve ever eaten and the sauce was so good that we ate it like soup after the mussels were all gone. It was by far the best meal that we had on our trip.

On Monday, Jim had planned to do a long ride while I went shopping with Sabine. Unfortunately, all the stores were closed for Easter Monday. The Monday after Easter is a holiday in Europe so you always have a 4 day weekend for Easter. Since we don’t have that day off in the U.S., I completely forgot that it was a holiday. I ended up going for a coffee on Cours Mirabou and people watched for a little bit.

After Jim’s ride, we went to Le Pain Quotidien for lunch and met Sophie, her friend Sylvie, and Mathieu for a coffee and soaked up some sun. Unfortunately, because it was so hot I took off my coat and then proceeded to leave it behind when we got up to go. A trip just wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t manage to lose something. Thankfully it was a ratty old Target trench coat instead of a camera this time.

The next morning I wanted to hit the big market again to pick up a shirt I had seen on Saturday but didn’t buy so I shopped while Jim watched Sabine and packed up.

We were going to just have lunch in the apartment but the cleaning lady had already come. We didn’t want to make a mess so we decided to stop in Bonnieux for lunch.

Bonnieux was another little town in the Luberon region and was on the way to Chardonnay. The town was built into a hill so the walkways were generally stairs. Since Sabine was sleeping we decided to just grab lunch at the first place we saw. We got pizzas and a salad and enjoyed the view of the valley on the terrace.

On the way out of town we stopped at the Cave de Bonnieux and tasted some wine. Our car was pretty tightly packed so we only bought a few bottles of wine.

We ended our trip with another stay at Le Chardon in Chardonnay. We wanted to try to eat at Relais d’Oznay after our fabulous meal there last year. I was especially excited about it since I had to abstain from wine and soft cheeses the last time around. Unfortunately, they were closed on Tuesday nights so we had dinner again at Nick and Rebecca’s. It was probably a blessing in disguise. I don’t think babies pair well with Michelin starred restaurants.

Nancy, France

Long time no blog. What can I say; I was busy having a baby and learning to be a parent. As far as excuses go, I think that’s a pretty good one.

Rather than rehash the birth and the last few months I think I’ll skip ahead to our first trip with our brand spankin’ new little girl, Sabine.

After being cooped up for the month of January and the beginning of February, we decided to see how Sabine would travel. We went to Nancy, France which had been on our list for a while. Nancy is only about 3 ½ hours away so was a perfect spot for a long weekend. We had heard that Nancy had some beautiful plazas and nice architecture and as well as a good dining scene. There were a few Michelin starred restaurants that we thought we might try if Sabine was up to it.

We left Friday night and were lucky enough to have Sabine sleep the entire way. I wasn’t sure how she would do in the car since she’s only been in the car a few times. Up until that point, I walked everywhere so she wasn’t accustomed to being strapped down in the car seat like a mental patient.

My search for accommodation was a Iittle bit different this time around. Instead of trying to find a charming B&B like I usually do, I was simply looking for a place with parking and large rooms so that we wouldn’t feel too cramped with the pack n’ play and the stroller. I also wanted one that had a fridge and a microwave so we didn’t have to try to get out for breakfast. I settled on a room at Suitehotel just outside the city center.

When we arrived on Friday night, we were very excited to discover that we had a movie channel with 33 free movies in English! We will definitely stay in another Suitehotel. Although the décor is reminiscent of a dorm room with cheap modern looking lighting, the rooms are so spacious and great for a family. Our room would have comfortably held a family of 4 and a baby.

On Saturday after breakfast in the room, we ventured out. Our plan was to do some shopping as shops would be closed on Sunday and to try and have a really nice lunch. We had identified a restaurant that we wanted to try.

Our first stop, however, was to see the Place Stanislas. We had both seen pictures of this large plaza and heard how beautiful it was. We were both a little disappointed by the plaza. I think it was because pictures we had seen had been taken in the summer so all of the cafes and restaurants had tables set up lining the plaza. Since it was way too cold for anyone to eat outside, the plaza looked a little bare and forlorn. It also didn’t help that all of the fountains were frozen solid.

After a quick stop at the tourist office and a coffee at Commerce café, we set out to find the restaurant we wanted to eat at for lunch. Unfortunately, when we finally found the restaurant, we realized that it was Valentine’s Day weekend so they had a set meal which was 80 Euros per person. We weren’t ready to blow that much money on a meal when we had a 2 ½ month old in tow who didn’t look a bit sleepy.

After trying a few more restaurants which were all booked up, we finally ended up at a seafood restaurant which was ok but nothing I’d recommend to anyone.

We decided to shop for the rest of the afternoon. They had a lot of kid’s clothing shops and the stuff was so much cuter than what I’ve seen in Germany. I’d go back to Nancy just for the shops. We ended up just buying Sabine a few things but nothing for ourselves.

When we were shopped out, we sought out a restaurant that had been recommended by one of Jim’s coworkers. Unfortunately the restaurant didn’t open until 7:30. We decided we didn’t want to wait around for an hour only to find out that they were all booked up so we went in search of another option. After getting turned away at restaurants all over town, we finally went to a hole in the wall pizza joint. By this point, we were just happy to be somewhere warm. Since it was pretty deserted (obviously everyone else wanted to be at a nicer place for Valentine’s Day), Sabine’s crying didn’t seem to bother anyone.

Sunday morning Jim ran out to buy croissants for breakfast at a nearby bakery. After we packed up the car and checked out of the hotel, we walked into town to go visit the Beau Arts museum. Unfortunately, Sabine wasn’t too interested in the museum so started squawking in the second room. Luckily, there was a couch in one of the rooms so I was able to feed Sabine while Jim did a whirlwind tour of the museum. I think our museum days might be over for a while.

After the museum, we once again attempted to find a nice place for a meal. While we looked we ran into a small farmers market. A guy was giving out samples and somehow we ended up walking away with 50 Euros worth of cheese. I don’t know how that happened.

We weren’t any closer to finding a restaurant for lunch but Sabine needed hers so we stopped at a cute tea and coffee shop for a quick feed and a coffee.

We decided that we might be walking around forever before finding a restaurant with space so we went back over to the touristy restaurant row off of Place Stanislas and ended up at France’s equivalent to TGIF. The restaurant logo was a cow with a bow tie which I think says it all. Oh, how far we’ve fallen.

We briefly contemplated staying another day so that we could watch a bunch of movies in the hotel room and have one more go at a good meal. However, we decided that cost wise that didn’t make too much sense so we headed back to the hotel and got on the road.

Even though Nancy didn’t turn out to be the dining panacea we hoped for, it was still a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend.

Provence

We rented a gite near Avignon in the Provence region of France along with some friends, Ben and Melissa, for a week of cycling and sightseeing.

The gite, Blanche Fleur (http://www.blanchefleur.com/) was much nicer than most of the other gites we’ve stayed in. In France an apartment or home rental with a kitchen is called a gite. Usually you have to bring your own sheets and towels and it is a relatively cheap way to travel. At Blanche Fleur, it was a bit of a step up as they provided linens and even had soap and shampoo which is unusual even for B&Bs in Europe.

For dinner the first night, we went into Avignon for dinner to a place that was recommended by the NY times. It was decent but didn’t compare to the meals we had in Burgundy and not one I’d recommend.

That night we watched some cycling videos. Ben brought a bunch of what I like to call cycling porn. I think his purpose was to get us excited about the riding we were about to do, but it had the reverse effect on me. The next day the plan was to ride to the top of Mont Ventoux so we watched a stage of the Tour de France with that climb. After hearing Lance Armstrong say that Mont Ventoux was one of the hardest climbs in the tour, I decided that I definitely wasn’t going to climb it. The fact that there was snow on the top of the mountain wasn’t exactly a selling point either.

The next day after breakfast we set out for our ride. After an hour and a half, we stopped for lunch at the base of Mont Ventoux in Bedoin and had some tasty sandwiches in the sun. While there, we met a fellow cyclist who happened to be an Olympic Swiss cross country skier and knew some of the same people as Ben.

I turned back after lunch and rode home in the sun to end up with a nice 50 mile ride. The others, however, braved Mont Ventoux. Unfortunately for them, they ended up getting caught in a hail / sleet storm and got separated due to the inclement conditions, while I went to Isle sur La Sorgue and wander along the narrow cobbled streets to scope out a restaurant for dinner.

We ate in Isle sur La Sorgue at Café Deco for dinner. It had a pretty terrace along a canal with flowing curtains which gave it a very romantic feel. Melissa and I had some gigantic scallops for dinner while the boys got their raw meat fix with some Beef Tar tare.

Ben was definitely a more adventurous eater than the rest of us. He couldn’t get enough of the blood sausage, beef tongue and knunkle stuffed tripe. I generally opted for the safe fish options at a lot of these country French restaurants.

The next day Jim’s knee was bothering him so we skipped the ride and went to the market in St. Remy. The market had tons of clothing, bags, jewelry, linens, soaps, pottery, specialty food and even antiques. I was in heaven. One of my all time favorite things to do is wander around markets. In all of our travels so far, I haven’t really purchased any suveniors but Provence was just the place to change that.

We had a great typical French lunch at La Fontaine (19, Boulevard Mirabeau) of a cheve chaud salad (melted goat cheese on toasts) with an open faced sandwich of lardons (bacon) and cheese.

Our next stop was The Pont du Gard. The Pont du Gard is an ancient Roman aqueduct which delivered water 30 miles to Nimes by dropping one inch every 350 feet. I’m so amazed by what the Romans were able to accomplish.

On Thursday, Jim, Melissa and I went to Palais des Papes (The Palace of the Popes) and also the Pont Saint-Benezet which was the basis for the French nursery rhyme which none of us knew. The Palace of the Popes replaced the Vatican in the 1300s. A French pope was elected and due to the instability in Italy, the Pope moved to Avignon and bought the entire city. The palace was huge (Popes apparently had quite an entourage) but disappointingly empty so it was hard to imagine the lavish decorations and furnishings.

In the afternoon, Jim went to ride with Ben and Melissa and I went to Beaucaire first and then Les Baux de Provence. In Chardonnay, one of the guys at the bar was talking about a town near Avignon that was beautiful and a must-see in Provence. I thought he said the town was Beaucaire but after arriving in Beaucaire, I realized my mistake. As we were driving in, both Melissa and I thought the other person has some gas. Once we parked the car to walk around the town, we realized that it was the town that smelled. After wandering around the smelling, charmless town for a few minutes, we decided to cut our losses and drive to Les Baux de Provence instead. On our way out of town, Melissa quipped, “Well, we’ve seen Beaucaire and we don’t care”.

Driving up to Les Baux de Provence, I realized immediately that this was the right town. The town was perched on top of a hill with beautiful rock formations in the surrounding hills. It was definitely a touristy town but we realized that sometimes there is a reason something is touristy – It’s pretty. We did some shopping and then headed down some very curvy, fun roads back to the gite.

We decided that we’d eat in that night since we didn’t know when the boys would be home. Melissa had the great idea to make a gigantic batch of mussels. It was the best meal we had in Provence. The mussels were delicious but sauce from the mussels was just as good with tons of garlic and basil; great with some crusty bread to dip.

Our last full day in Provence, we did a long, all day ride. Ben had scoped out some great roads on his solo rides that he wanted to show us. The ride was one of the most beautiful rides I’ve ever done. Some of the terrain actually reminded me of Moab, Utah. We rode 80 miles but stopped for lunch, coffee and bakeries often so I was able to survive.

The next day we drove back up to Chardonnay after dropping Melissa and Ben off at the TGV. We made reservations at a newly Michelin starred restaurant near the B&B (Le Relais d’Ozenay – http://www.le-relais-dozenay.com/) . It was one of the best meals I’ve had. Jim loved it more for the fact that there was a pre-dessert, desert and post-desert. The best part was the price. I think our bill only came to 110 euro.

We each got the 6 course gourmet menu which started with Tuna Tartar and puréed avocado with a black sesame sorbet (this was the best thing of the night even though it sounds odd). Then we had the fish dish course of red snapper with pistachio oil and a roasted red pepper cone with goat cheese risotto inside. The meat course was a bit of a surprise as Jim’s translation wasn’t quite right. It was sweetbreads (veal liver) with linguine, morel mushrooms and asparagus. I gave Jim my sweetbreads but the linguine was still delicious. Next up was the cheese course and then of course the three desert courses – Pistachio flan with pineapple puree and a chocolate covered cookie stick, chocolate molten cake, vanilla custard with a red fruit coulis and meringue cookies. I was ready to be rolled out the door, but it was the perfect end to our vacation.

Chardonnay, France

We kicked off our week in Provence with a stop over in Chardonnay. Chardonnay is located in the Burgundy region of France between Dijon and Lyon. We initially planned to head down to Aix-en-Provence the next day, but we had trouble finding a place to stay in Aix so decided to spend the weekend in Chardonnay.

I found a great place to stay, Le Chardon, on Trip Advisor (http://www.lechardon-chardonnay.com/). The reviews were great and it seemed like a perfect small town to have as a base for riding and wine tasting. Le Chardon was even better than I expected. I would rate it as the best bed and breakfast so far, mainly due to the owners who were such friendly, helpful and warm people. You can tell that this B & B is a labor of love for them. They truly enjoy people. It felt more like we were visiting long time family friends than staying with people we’d never met. We liked it so much that on our way home from Avignon, we stopped for the night again.

The town of Chardonnay is incredibly tiny, probably not even a population of 50. Le Chardon is the only restaurant / bar in town so a lot of people congregate there. Because we had no agenda for our time here, it was very relaxing. After only a day, we both felt like we had been on vacation for a lot longer.

Our first full day in Chardonnay, we went for a bike ride in the morning through tiny French towns, vineyards, and farms. We then went into the nearest large town, Tournus, to visit the abbey, have a relaxing lunch in the sun and do a little shopping.

Back in Chardonnay, we went to the Cave de Chardonnay to do a little wine tasting and purchasing. On the way home we stopped at Brancion which was a recently restored old walled city with a castle. The most interesting part about this area was that people actually live within the walls and it isn’t just a tourist location.
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At our host’s recommendation, we had a fantastic dinner at Le Auberge du Gourmet. The chef of the restaurant has been able to hold on to a Michelin star since the 60s. It was a great meal.

The next day we went for a ride and then headed to Beaune for the afternoon. Beaune is the capital of the Burgundy region so is a larger town than Tournus. We visited the Hospices de Beaune which was a hospital / charitable almshouse of the 15th century. The design of the building was so beautiful that I’m not sure I would have minded going to the hospital back then. However, the bloodletting might not have been too pleasant.

That evening we ate at Nick and Rebecca’s and had a relaxing night chatting with them and drinking some nice Chardonnays.

Annecy, France - Alps trip continued

Our next stop on our Alps trip was to Annecy which is a town just south of Geneva, Switzerland. Jim had been to Annecy in the summer and said it was a beautiful town located on a pristinely clear lake surrounded by mountains. Annecy was also equidistant to two cross country ski places we planned to check out.

Our first afternoon in Annecy, most of the shops were closed so we just wandered around the town and went out by the lake. It was still pretty bright out so we were able to get some decent pictures before the clouds rolled in for the rest of the trip.

While we were there, Jim was on a mission to find a café that he spent a lot of time during his last visit. Around every corner he identified a café as that being THE ONE, and then would add, “No, this is really the one”. Of course it wasn’t until our third day in Annecy that he actually found it.

For dinner that night we got recommendations from the concierge. She recommended a place called Contrasens which we had seen on our walk. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get a reservation until after 9:00. We hung out in the room before going over to a bar next door to the restaurant for a glass of wine. Dinner was good, but I wasn’t able to enjoy it as I should have. For some reason, earlier in the day I started feeling sick so had a bad fever by the time we sat down to dinner. Jim thought the food was very good, but I couldn’t really taste anything.

The next day, I still had a fever but was feeling better than I had the night before so I agreed to go skiing. We decided to go to Le Saises. According to the GPS it was only about 35 km away. I’m not so sure how they determined that measurement because it was a lot farther than that. It was raining in Annecy but it didn’t take long before that rain turned to snow. We started rising in elevation and in the span of about a mile there was suddenly 3-4 feet of snow along the road. We passed a bunch of people putting chains on their tires but figured they didn’t have all wheel drive. The road was pretty sketchy. For some reason all over Europe, they just love the hairpin turns. Jim loves to bike them in the summer, but driving them on steep, narrow roads in a blizzard is something else entirely.

We finally made it to Le Saises in one piece after considering bailing on a few instances. After a visit to the tourist center, we found the cross country trails which didn’t look very groomed. Jim asked a skate skier how the trails were and she didn’t give them a very glowing review. Since it was already late in the afternoon and the snow was still really coming down, we decided it might be safest to scrape skiing and get down before all the traffic from the ski hill got on the roads.

Five hours later with no skiing under our belt, we were safely back in Annecy albeit somewhat frustrated at how the day’s events had played out. We decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner at L’atelier Gourmand. It was a great meal and made our earlier skiing debacle sting a bit less.I’d definitely recommend the restaurant. It was good service in a relaxed atmosphere. The restaurant chairs were big comfy leather ones that you just sunk into. I was reticent to leave after we had paid our bill.

The next day we headed back up to Le Seises and the roads were much better. It was a busy bunch of trails with a lot of skiers. I was hoping for some sun but it was completely cloudy all day. We both had a decent ski but it paled in comparison to our skiing the next day at Le Ferclaz. The trails were great there and they even had a small lodge which I’ve found is not all that common in Europe. Unfortunately, it was another cloudy, cold day but we both had a good ski on almost empty trails.

After our hard ski, we decided to pamper ourselves and got a couples massage. The hotel had a deal with the spa next door. It was Jim’s first professional massage so he was a bit uncomfortable and it was good that we did it together. It was incredibly relaxing and was a great way to end our trip.

French Alps - Samoëns

Due to a lack of planning combined with instability in the area, we decided to scrap our Egypt trip and plan a last minute trip to the Alps for some sunshine and shushing.

Our plan was to spend three days snowboarding and three days cross country skiing. After researching the areas to ski in Austria, Switzerland and France, we ended up picking the Gran Massif ski area. Our decision was based mainly on the fact that we prefer French food and because we had friends vacationing there and our trips would overlap for 2 days.

We arrived in Samoens 1600 at 9:30 pm after getting lost in Switzerland for a little while. For some reason the little English woman living in our GPS system has something against Switzerland.

We had reserved a room at a guesthouse right on the mountain called Chalet L'Aéro http://www.aero1607.com/. When we arrived, we were surprised to find the road to the Chalet completely snowed in. We made the smart decision to hike down rather than attempt to drive down to the Chalet. Since there was a bar and restaurant advertised on the website, I figured that our late arrival wouldn’t be a big deal. However, on a Wednesday night all the lights were off and the door was locked. While we were contemplating the unappealing option of sleeping in our car, we found someone on the balcony smokeing a cigarette and they alerted the owners we were there.

The family who owns the Chalet was incredibly friendly and welcoming. The husband had a snowmobile with an attached sled to help us cart our luggage and gear down to the Chalet while the wife put together a cheese plate and fruit soup for us to eat.

The next morning we rented a snowboard for me and got our lift tickets for two days. I couldn’t believe how cheap the skiing is in comparison to the cost at Colorado Ski Resorts. We paid 41euro for a full day of skiing. I think it is around $97 for a day of skiing at Vail in Colorado.

However, the French do have some interesting lifts which might contribute to the reduction of price in the lift ticket. One of the gondolas was a standing room only situation; they herded us in like cattle. Another was a two person lift that looked like those buckets used to fix power lines. And then you also have the complete chaos of the lift lines, which are less like a line and more like a heaving mass of people stepping all over each others' skis and boards.

We met up with Jim’s friends Andrew and Matz to ski. I had a bad feeling about skiing with these three adrenaline junkies who push every sport to the limit. Unfortunately, I pushed my hesitations aside and consequently had one of the worst days snowboarding. I had a bad fall on the first run and jammed my finger. It swelled up instantly, but I could bend it slightly so figured it wasn’t broken. The next run I tried to board in deep powder and ended up with a screwed up neck. I couldn’t turn my head without turning the rest of my body. Since I figured I’d be in pain no matter what I did, I kept snowboarding but took it easy.

When I finally decided I had enough, I realized that we had skied so far from our original starting point that we’d have to do another 3 runs and another 3 lifts. So after another hour of skiing in pain and negotiating the chaotic French lift "lines", I had myself a little mini breakdown. Skipping lunch might have been a contributing factor to the breakdown.

That night we had dinner with our friends from Paris at a traditional Savoie restaurant. I had read a lot about Tartiflette which is a traditional Savoyarde dish so was excited to try it. You had to place your order ahead of time so we ordered while still on the mountain. Jim ordered the Tartiflette while I went for the Raclette Fondue. The Tartiflette was disappointing. It ended up being very similar to ham and scalloped potatoes and was quite bland. The fondue however was delish. Although, how can you screw up melted cheese and bread?

The next day after not sleeping much the night before, I decided against snowboarding and watched a movie in the room while Jim snowboarded. Nothing is better than a few muscle relaxers and the Sound of Music. I thought being in the Alps that would be a fitting movie.

It was a beautiful day without a cloud in the ski so I couldn’t stay in the room very long and ventured out to walk around the resort in search of lunch. I ran into Jim just as I was about to sit down at a restaurant so we had lunch outside in the sun on the side of the mountain. The food was crap but the view was spectacular.

We went snowshoeing after lunch on a pretty short loop on the mountain. It wasn’t a great place to snowshoe but I needed to get some exercise and wanted to be outside so it worked.

Although my first trip to the Alps was a bit disappointing, it was a beautiful place and the ski resorts of the Alps are definitely more scenic than the Colorado Rockies. However, it did make me miss our life in Colorado.