The last day

We spent the last day of our trip walking all over Paris, from Le Louvre to Ile St Louis, to La Bastille ... all under a bright, cloudless blue sky, the same that greeted us 14 days ago.

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Our final meal was with the family at Mama Shelter. Located away from the common area, near the Pere Lachaise Cemetery, the Philippe Stark designed restaurant was a fun and funky place for our more than four hour long final 'au revoir' with the family...

The good news is that we're going back in June!!

A cheese shop on Ile St Louis, Paris!! (click to enlarge / double click to taste)

Amboise - The Loire Valley

Our final two days before heading back to Paris was spent in Amboise, located in the middle of the Loire Valley, where we stayed in a cute manoir along the Loire River.


From there, we spent the following days visiting some of France's most beautiful and renowned castles:
The first was Chateau de Chenonceau which was built on the River Cher in the 16th century. Having switched owners many times along the centuries, it is mostly well known for being home to Catherine de Medici, Diane de Poitier (Henry II's Mistress to whom he gave the Chateau), Francois I, and Louise of Lorraine (who painted her room all black after the assassination of her husband King henry III). Most notable (and fun) was the kitchen which was divided into a small maze of rooms which comprised the pantry, dining room, butchery, and a small bridge to the actual kitchen which connected below the castle to a small pier where boats would bring food and supplies. One interesting note about Chenonceau is the fact that the Great Hall was used as a hospital during WWI.


The second was Chateau de Cheverny, which has been owned by the same family for the past 600 years, or 17 generations. Cheverny was a treat as it stood fully furnished. Although the exterior was less impressive than Chenonceau or Chambord, it seemed more manageable and definitively warmer to visit. The Marquis de Vibraye, his wife and their three children still live in the top floor as well as the foremost right side wing. The rest of the castle was fully open to the public to enjoy -- and we did.


Finally, we stopped to see the ridiculously large Chateau Chambord.
Grandiose is an understatement! Almost not worth visiting the inside as it is not only empty and cold but also confusing as its size leaves you going from room to room without really understanding where you are in relation to anything. The most remarkable part of Chambord is definitively the size and complex towers hovering above the massive structure.

Sarlat la Canéda - The Périgord

After a 4 hour drive from Eus, we arrived in Sarlat-la-Caneda located in the Périgord region. At first site, Sarlat looked like an average French town with typical shops and restaurants. It's not until we decided to go venture out into the medieval downtown that we realized just what a cool and unique little town it was. Narrow streets, one after another, made us feel as though we had gone back in time 700 years or so. The region of Périgord is known for foie gras, and there were vendors selling it everywhere - hence the bronze sculpture of geese near the town square. Sarlat is definitely a great destination for foodies who enjoy a good foie gras (Yay for Alex; yick for Jen).

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The next day, we had a very lazy morning enjoying fresh pastries and coffee. Our hotel terrace was right over the day's market, which prompted us to go out and check out the stands as soon as we finished breakfast. The amount of cheeses, meats and (amazingly) fresh fruits and vegetable was impressive. Also of note was the size of the door that opened to reveal the indoor produce market - notice the black spot to the lower left of the door - that's Jen, and it gives a good perspective of the actual scale of the enormous door!

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After perusing the morning market, we decided to drive north to go check out a couple of the region's tourist attractions: La Maison Forte de Reignac and La Roque St Christophe. Along the way we were amazed at how beautiful the Perigord really is.

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First we visited La Maison Forte de Reignac, which dates back to the 1300's. From the outside it looks like an old country house built at the base of a huge rock; however, once you enter you can see that the house was actually built INTO the rocks. It's sprawled out over three levels, and it includes bedrooms, dining, salon/living rooms, kitchens, and even a dungeon.

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Next we visited La Roque St Christophe, which is the site of a village that was built into the natural cavity in the rock - basically a big, 2km-long shelf. The site dates back 55,000 years, and in its heydey, as many as 1,000 inhabited the vilage....craaazzzeeeeeeee:

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The next day, on our way out of the region, we decided to stop by Font de Gaume, the last pre-historic cave with polychromatic drawings still open to the public (the most popular cave, Lascaux, is no longer accessible to the public other than a reproduction that has been created and is located near the actual cave).
During a four hundred feet hike into the tight rock cavity, we witnessed some amazing ~14,000 year old drawings of bison, horses and others. Although we originally were somewhat reluctant and not very interested to see these caves, standing there in person to witness the work proved to be one of the great experiences of our trip.

Aix and Eus

We left Frejus Thursday morning to head to Eus (a village in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southwestern France), where we would meet our good friend Jean Louis. Along the way, we decided to stop for lunch in Aix en Provence where we sat outside at a restaurant near La Rotonde, a large fountain representing art, justice and agriculture.

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After lunch we continued our route, passing through Nimes, Montpellier and Perpignan. Finally, we arrived in Eus (pronounced ey-oos), and we were very impressed by our first glimpse of the little village perched atop a rock:

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We arrived, met Jean Louis and settled into our apartment he rented for us right across the street from him, below the church and with a terrace facing the Canigou, one of the tallest peaks of the Pyrenees. The following morning, we woke up and had our coffee facing THIS:

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After a relaxed morning, Jean Louis took us on a discovery tour around the village which it turns out is filled by feline inhabitants.

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The best was kept for last when Jean Louis had us over for lunch in his home, our final meal in Eus. The salmon and leek quiche he served was one of our favorite dishes so far on the trip. Of course we also had selection of local cheeses(!!!!), and to accompany it all, we drank a wonderful Pouilly-Fumé followed by a local red, Domaine Des Chênes.

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At that point we parted, but not without agreeing that this is definitively a place we will return to SOON....and that it is an absolute must that Jean Louis come visit us in San Francisco!

French Riviera

After a wonderful, albeit short, time in Normandy, we headed South to the French Riviera for a quick 2 days through Nice, Cannes and Frejus where we stayed.
With a good friend of the family, Mathilde, we took a drive and visited a few of the nearby towns, such as Eze and Saint Jean Cap Ferrat. The sun was setting right as we arrived at the beautiful medieval village of Eze which was built, not dissimilarly like Mt Saint Michel, on a rock.

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That evening, after a great drive along the coast, we returned to the old part of Nice for our final meal on the "Cotes d'Azur". We're definitely coming back in the summer!
Tomorrow, we head off to Eus, near the border of Spain, said to be one of the most beautiful little villages in France... We'll let you know.

A Bientot.

Normandy

After a 2 hour drive from Paris, we arrived at the family home in Houlgate, Normandy. We were pleasantly surprised by the unusually clear and sunny skies which aren't typical of Normandy weather.

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We dropped off our things at the house and quickly got back in the car for a mid afternoon drive up the coast. Heading east, our first stop took us to Honfleur, a cute little fishing village where we walked on the cobbled stone streets and enjoyed port-side cafes! The all wood church was also quite interesting as it had unusually been built by sailors ... following the architecture of a boat, and of course using all wood.

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Heading back west towards Houlgate, we stopped in Trouville, sister town of famous Deauville, where we had dinner at renowed brasserie Les Vapeurs.

The next day was a nice family day. Aside from a few hours at nearby villages to check out antiques, we spent most of our time at the house relaxing and being lazy. The highlight of the day was definitely the meal cooked over the fireplace while we all sat around and enjoyed a few amazing wines that Uncle Phillipe had hand picked. Keeping with the Normandy traditions, the end of the meal was adorned by a cheese plate which had two of Normandy's well known cheeses, Camembert and Pont L'Evêque, AND a customary shot of Calvados liquor... which we flambeed with a cube of sugar!


Monday, our final full day in Normandy, we all decided to drive west to see one of France's most iconic images: Mont Saint Michel. The abbey that sits high atop Mont St. Michel dates back to 708, and the bay that surrounds it is famed for having Europe's highest tidal variations, which means that the difference between low and high tide can be as much as 15 meters. At times the Mont is completely surrounded by water, and sometimes the parking lots even get swallowed up by the tides!

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Tomorrow, we're off to the south of France... bonsoir!

jetlagged in Paris

We landed in Paris with quite an amazing surprise -- not a cloud in the sky and weather that allowed us to comfortably be in T-shirts for most of the day. WOW.
First stop, lunch at a typical Parisian cafe where we sat outside on the terrace. After a quick bite in the sun, we decided to play 'tourists' and go wait 45 minutes in line to make it to the top of the Eiffel Tower. With this type of weather, clear sky with an endless horizon, it was well worth every minute of the wait. The view was breathtaking and, if it hadn't been for our lack of sleep, we probably would have stayed up there for hours.

"The Eiffel Tower" - click to enlarge

Next up, we headed back to our hotel in St Germain, Hotel St Paul (near le marrais), to get ready for our first French dinner which was at Paris' oldest restaurant, Le Procope (est. 1686). The meal was fantastic - especially our dessert, Grand Marnier flambeed crepes! (weight gain: +5lbs)

Our second day ended up being even more beautiful than the first. After a night of much needed sleep, we were fresh and ready to go explore the depths beneath Paris: The Catacombs. (At the end of the 18th century, it was decided that the bones of the inhabitants of all the cemeteries in Paris were to be exhumed and redeposited into the underground quarries below the city streets, due to the fear of rampant infections and disease...very creepy and fascinating!) So we headed out of our hotel, walked through the Luxembourg Gardens (!!), and hopped onto the metro for a short ride south-west. After descending 170 steps below the street and navigating our way through a veritable labyrinth of cramped and dark corridors....we saw dead people: millions of them! (more info here)

"The Paris Catacombes" - click to enlarge

The site of all these bones got us a bit hungry, so we decided to head towards the Latin Quarter for a nice lunch outside in the sun. With wine, of course!
The afternoon ended with a 'must do' visit of Notre Dame and Sainte Chapelle. The latter proved to be mind blowingly beautiful as the clear skies allowed for the sun to directly illuminate through the 1100+ stained glass panes, which recount the Bible's version of the history of humanity.

"Sainte Chappelle"- click to enlarge

Tomorrow, we make our way up to Normandy. (projected weight gain: +10lbs)

Tour de France - March 2009

We're off again, and although we're being a bit less ambitious than our New Zealand trip, we've still managed for a packed agenda.


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19 & 20, Paris
Hotel St Paul
21-23 Houlgate (Normandy)
- 22 Deauville, Honfleur
- 23 Mt Saint Michel / Cancale (oysters!!)
24 Frejus
25 Nice, Canne, St Tropez, Monaco
26 Eus
27 Sarla la Caneda
La Villa Des Consuls
28 Chateauroux
29 & 30 Amboise
Le Manoir Les Minimes

We'll be spending a little over 2 days in the Loire valley, visiting some of France's most amazing castles.
Here are some of the ones we have on our list:
Chenonceau, Chambord, L'abbaye de Fontevraud, Chateau de Cherverny

Here's the valley's list:

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