Friday, July 27, 2012

Images de la France…….

So as I wrap up my last few days in France I am forced to ponder when I will be back. You know that feeling when you travel, when go someplace new, you have those great expereinces… you just don't want to leave. You start wondering how quickly you will fall back into your daily routine..off to work, come home exercise, read, back to work… etc etc… while I like my life at home I have visions of myself travelling all over the world…living, experiencing, maybe even writing a blog ;-)

But, reality is reality and I must face it…. so because I can not stay here in Paris, or the south of France and have my morning coffee, explore cities and towns for hours, and at end the day sit in a cafe having a glass of Champange…. I have taken pictures to remember what it was all about and given the fact that I have already been sharing them with you…. I thought it would be a nice way to finish up the posts of the trip….. so here are my images of France…in my day I was a rather budding photographer and I think I still have the eye however I did not bring the equipment on this getaway.. so I apologize for any lack of creativity that might show through……….I hope you enjoy….



Lunch spot in Chateauneuf!
Happy with the barrels of wine! 





And you have to taste it!




Learning about the limestone….












































its definitely not flat!!
I loved the old winding streets of Provence… 

and fountains everywhere!

the towns were so picturesque! 







The coast was so beautiful! 


















Everywhere you look.. vineyards!

How is this for a spot to live

Champagne.. Reims.. the most wonderful place on the planet.. and the birthplace of my favourite wine in the entire world!

Cathedral of Reims… more history than Canada, on one sight...

the inside...


My favourite part of Reims.. Real Champagne, in a real French bistro from the 1930's.. at lunch! 

the beautiful view from the wonder tour of the upper area…...

And there is nothing like Paris!!!!!!

Dwight on the Velib, a bike rental system all through Paris! 

Art Everywhere!

Our morning runs in the Jardon de Luxenburg!

Would you believe a game of street hockey!!



And then there was our time in the Lourve…. yikes, there are not enough hours in the day!


Sitting here was more difficult than it looks…!
Inside the famous glass triangle…..


did I mention the beautiful art already… 

Yeah… I think I did…. how sensual is this…in marble none the less! 

They had a new artist displayed.. very wonderful…

Here he is……….check it out online.. really wonderful!

its a really, really big place.. a good thing I have my map guy with me! 


And of course the food and wine made for wonderful evenings……



The BEST restaurant in Paris…! 
We did have an elevator.. well..

Room for two only!

I hope you enjoyed the blog over the last few weeks, I certainly have enjoyed France. The people, the places, the food, the wine…..they have all contributed to some wonderful memories that I will always have……….

till next time…….happy chatting…….



Sunday, July 22, 2012

Paris, the city of lights..and bikes!

We arrived in Paris a couple of days before the last stage of the Tour de France, and we did this for a reason… we thought the city would be consumed by the event. Like any other big event we have been too, usually the city becomes so focused on what is happening everything else takes a back seat….not in Paris…… we did a ton the two days before the TDF!

The entrance to our apartment in St Germain
Iconic Paris

our evening walk the first night

View from Pont Des Arts




Love locks on the Pont des Arts… fascinating.. and in Paris very controversial..

On the Pont Neuf

And no first evening could go by without a stop here.. doing Canadian in Paris.. interesting..
Seriously… have you ever seen a espresso machine in a Canadian pub..? It might be a good idea :) 

The Great Canadian Pub


Time in the gardens..

A little shopping …and a walk through the Louvre…




These pictures can not go without a little explanation… As you might have guessed Dwight and I like wine, ergo we like wine stores… but Dwight on the other had has learned enough about wine to really understand what he is looking at… I would use the analogy of someone who loves shoes (me!) being in a store that has Jimmy Choo, Stuart Wizman, Fluevog, Channel, Kate Spade, oh yeah and lets not forget….Christian Louboutin! Can you imagine how long it would take me to get of there……..well.. welcome to my world when Dwight finds a wine store like this one…

It was called Lavinia ( www.lavinia.fr ) It had three large.. very large.. levels, mainly French wine.  What they called the Sommeliers cellar which you had to be escorted into… and we went in…bottles in there were upwards of $4000 Euro…but outside of that exclusive area you could find a selection of wine that we certainly would never see… I spent most of my time in the Champagne section… which was enormous, can you even fathom Champagne for $25.. good stuff.. we soooo need to change our import taxes!!! Another unique thing they had was a wine tasting enomatic machine set up in ever area..you use a card and sample wines they have for tasting … we even saw a Nuis St Georges… no light weight in the wine world… How civilized!  There was even a small cafe where you could get any of the wines they sold at the price there sold it at and a light lunch…. Trust me.. I didn't think I would ever get him out of there…..


Seats, tables, Champagne.. in a wine store.. why would I leave! 

And after only being in Paris for three days I have already done so much.. and topped it off today with something that I have dreamed of doing for a long time…..I watched the Tour de France.. and wow what an expereince…..so I mentioned that the city did not shut down for the race.. well more accurately  it lets the Tour take place in the city… it does this by making sure its held on a Sunday.. an absolutely do nothing day for the Parisians, it mobilizes more police for the event than I have ever seen in any city I have ever been in … including New York! And finally…..Parisians come out to watch the race…..what a wonderful thought… most events like this force the locals home, not wanting to handle the crowds.. and OMG.. there were crowds! No.. they love this event as much as the world does, they are proud to host it and they embrace the chaos that accompanies it…. 

it all starts with the most amazing parade I have seen…. they call it the Caravan! 

How fun is this………we were set up right under the flame rouge! 





French soap company…I like french soap…. :-) 

Have I mentioned I love Thomas Voeckler, our new PD jersey winner!

Finally the race comes and goes by so quickly you almost miss it… but it was wonder to see what I would call my hero's doing what they are so good at!





the yellow jersey!

They move SO fast! 
The rest of the week has us focusing on Paris.. Champagne and Versailles .. I can't even think about going home yet!……………

till next time, happy chatting…….

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Hello from Alsace, bonjour d'Alsace, Hallo aus dem Elsass

We arrived in Alsace expecting it to be the most active part of our trip and unfortunately, some would say fortunately, it has not turned out that way. As in Provence the plan was to rent road bikes however there were difficult to find on the internet before the trip so we were advised that the person greeting us would have information that would direct us to a local place for what we needed, well lets just say these bikes were not only not fit for roads but I would not even take them in a parking lot for a spin!

Needless to say I was extremely disappointed… this area is fantastic for cycling and try as hard as I could to find another location that would get me what I wanted, I could not… I now know what business I can start if I moved here! Note to self, bring my own bike next time...

So after some significant pouting, a little pornographic language, and some running to expel some energy.. I have accepted the new focus of our time in Alsace…… which is what you ask? Well, morning runs through the miles of local vineyards, afternoons in hill top villages visiting the history and shops, early evenings on Cafe patio's with a glass of local Cremant..and dinner.. well… sometimes on our wonderful little patio… and other times in Michelin star restaurants… ok..ok… maybe I should not be so whinny.. but seriously.. if you could see the cycling opportunities around here you might just have thrown a little temper tantrum….its like being starving, having the best meal in front of you, and not being able to eat it!

Here are some images of our time here so far………


Our little village...

Our apartment ready for breakfast

View of the Grand Cru vineyard from our balcony

Castle vist

Second floor, she is a beauty!


An evening dinner on our little terrace...
Colmar


Vineyards as far as the eye can see! 


This region, known as Alsace, has always been densely populated, Alsace is famous for its high number of picturesque villages, churches and castles and for the various beauties of its three main towns, in spite of severe destructions suffered throughout five centuries of wars between France and Germany. Mostly however Alsace is famous for its vineyards, along the 170 km of the Route des Vins d'Alsace that is highly travelled. 


You may noticed the distinctly German character of the villages, well the area has fallen under a number of different kingdoms. Thank's to Wkki and a little help from Dwight here is the resulting chronology..it certainly makes it a very interesting place to visit………..

YearEventRuled byOfficial common language
847–870Treaty of Verdun gives Alsace and Lotharingia to Lothar IMiddle Francia (Carolingian Empire)Frankish, Old High German
870–889Treaty of Mersen gives Alsace to East FranciaEast Francia (German Kingdom of the Carolingian Empire)Frankish, Old High German
889–962Carolingian Empire breaks up into five Kingdoms, Magyars and Vikings periodically raid AlsaceKingdom of GermanyOld High German, Frankish
962–1618Otto I crowned Holy Roman EmperorHoly Roman EmpireOld High German,Modern High German(Alemannic spoken widely)
1618–1674Louis XIII annexes portions of Alsace during the Thirty Years' WarHoly Roman EmpireGerman
1674–1871Louis XIV annexes the rest of Alsace during the Franco-Dutch War, establishing full French sovereignty over the regionKingdom of FranceFrench
(Alsatian and German tolerated)
1871–1918Franco-Prussian war causes French cession of Alsace to German EmpireGerman EmpireGerman
1919–1940Treaty of Versailles causes German cession of Alsace to FranceFranceFrench
1940–1944Nazi Germany conquers AlsaceNazi GermanyGerman
1945–presentFrench controlFranceFrench

[edit]

 I must admit the trekking here has been great.. with the lack of bicycles I have been making Dwight walk everywhere.. yes, run in the morning.. trek all day to the neighbouring villages.. I know, I know… its sounds like a lot of exercise but seriously.. how else am I suppose survive the food, wine and beer I am consuming on this trip!!! 


Now for more pictures……. :-) 




Grand Cru Vineyards everywhere!

An old wine press...

Dwight exiting the wine press! 


Ok.. a few more then I am done…….


Vineyard view from our hilltop town, yum yum

Not ready yet….


Dwight giving me his wine lesson of the day...

Our town at night.. much quieter!! 
I do know that this should stop… Alsace wine marketing, I can explain the stork later.. but yikes!




Thats all for now.. off to Paris in a couple of days……. should be exciting to see the end of the Tour de France… not to mention being in Paris… so much to do!! 


Till next time, happy chatting..