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Sep 17

3 x 3

The three of us have three weeks to travel, we have a vague plan to cover three Countries; Germany, Austria and a bit of Italy.

‘Derek’ our Renault Captur, who had looked after us so well for 153 days and some 18,750KM, was left behind in Paris to begin a new life – probably one at a more casual pace.

We take the TGV to Strasbourg, a relaxing 2 hour journey across to the eastern border of France.  We are collecting new wheels tomorrow and overnighting in Strasbourg.

Finding the small town remarkably expensive, I took a gamble and booked another Airbnb. Greeted by the owner on arrival, Jane and I take a rattle lift up to the third floor whilst Don and our host take the stairs (they won’t fit in the lift).

The apartment is spacious with two bedrooms and a lounge room, all contain numerous beds – yes, including the lounge room.  I think the owner was surprised that there was only 3 of us and not 10!

Between pidgin English and pidgin French, the owner explains he needs to finish making the beds and cleaning-up. From the state of the kitchen – he’s got a bit of cleaning up to do!  Perhaps we set the benchmark too high at Pierrefonds. We leave our things and walk into the old town for lunch.

When we return, the place seems clean; sort-off, as long as we avoided eating in the kitchen we’ll be fine.  We could only find one coffee cup and took turns in the morning to share it around. Not trusting the cleaning effort, our showers are all very quick in the morning.

The positives are that it was well located – an easy walk from the train station and close to the historic parts of Strasbourg.  But, not somewhere I would recommend to anyone.

Jane asked us if this was the worst place we had stayed, without hesitation we both replied in unison “no-way, this is pretty good.”  I think we have her worried about what’s next.

Petite France is the heart of the old town, it’s straight out of a fairy tale; half-wooden houses line the canal, flower boxes adorn the buildings and explode with colour.  The area is bustling with Alsatian taverns, restaurants, boutique hotels and of course gift shops.

The cathedral is a striking feature of the town.  Construction started in 1015, though it was not completed until 1439. For over 200 years (until 1874) it was the world’s tallest building.

Strasbourg quickly became a prosperous merchant city, dating back to the days of the Roman Empire.  It is a town that has played a significant role in French – German relations throughout history.

Today, Strasbourg is a blend of franco-german culture and the host of several European institutions; including the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights and the European Parliament.

In 1988 the entire city centre of Strasbourg was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Jane is happy to be a passenger on this holiday, she has designated us as her “Secretaries”; relying on us for decisions on the next destination, sourcing accommodation (which she might now be a little nervous about), doing the driving and paying for everything along the way – don’t worry, she gets a bill at the end!

We are heading east to Passau where we plan to pick-up some bikes and do some cycling along the Danube.  Taking a couple of days to get there and explore a bit of Germany and Austria.  We’ve picked Füssen as our next destination and find a hotel online – we will leave the AIRBnB’s alone for a while.

We purchased a GPS in France only to find that the car includes one.  It’s in French, but we manage to get it working and at least we know tourner à droite and tourner à gauche to get us on our way!

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Sep 16

Paree!

I could bore you with a diatribe of how lovely, beautiful and wonderful Paris is.

But, Paris is a city you have to absorb; by sight, smell and taste, all on your own.

We had three glorious days to explore Paris.  We Stayed at the Best Western near Gare de Nord, nothing to rave about, it was convenient and clean.

We had two great dinners; the first at the traditional french Brasserie Flo, the second, more cutting edge french cuisine at Chameleon.

We took the city bus tour – a lazy way to see Paris.  It’s a great way to get orientated and see all the sites in a short amount of time.  We walked and walked, exploring the left and right banks.  You could spend months in Paris and still not have seen it all, we did well for three days.

I don’t think Paris can be adequately described in words (or, I am simply so far behind in this blog I’m taking the short track on this one). I’m going to let the pictures tell the story!

 

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Sep 14

Sister on Board!

We make it to Pierrefonds just in time to check-in with our hosts before they finish lunch and return to work.

I’ve booked our accommodation through Airbnb, so I am a little nervous about what we will get on arrival (due to past experiences) and particularly as this will be Jane’s first destination.

As we arrive, I’m confident the town is a good choice; the village of Pierrefonds sits in the shadow of one of the most striking Châteaux.  We pull-up outside the address and the Château is looming in the background.

The location is great and our hosts have recently renovated a 15th Century cottage on their property, our home for 3 nights.  Phew, we’ve chosen well!

Friday morning we drive the 60km to Charles de Gaulle to collect Jane.  It was touch and go whether she would make it, so I am relieved to see her come out through those airport doors, a little tired but excited to be in France!

The last time Jane was in Europe is in the 70’s, doing the typical right-of-passage as a young 20-something, backpacking around Europe and working in London. Her adventures took her to Russia and Afghanistan back then. This trip will be a little less adventurous.

After being in Europe for nearly 6 months, it’s refreshing to have someone onboard who is seeing things for the first time.

We’ve become a bit blaze about staying in 15th Century dwellings, but Jane is in awe and you do have to remind yourself to put things into perspective; when this place was built, Captain Cook wouldn’t discover Australia for another 300 years!

Pierrefonds is a lovely village, one of the best preserved we have been to (and we’ve seen a few).  A perfect first destination for anyone looking for quintessential France. The Château of Pierrefonds, dates back to the 12th Century.

It’s had a turbulent history and was partly demolished in the early 1600’s, remaining in ruins for nearly 2 Centuries. It was rescued by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (later Napoleon III of France) and restoration began in the 1850’s.

Inside the Château there is a collection of larger-than-life figurines, know as the Collection Monduit, these lead castings were made by the same company that made the Statue of Liberty.  

Down in the crypt is a collection of tombs with plaster casts representing Noblemen and Women, Emperors, Countesses and other important figures in history, dating back to the 12th century.

In recent times, the Château has featured as a location for films such as Highlander and Joan of Arc, as well as the BBC series Merlin.

There is a superb bakery and deli in the village and Jane’s first meal is a feast of french baguette, cheese and foie gras, washed down with a bottle of french bubbly – of course!

We thought there had been a mistake when we paid €22 for a small 100 gm slice of foie gras. Don went back to question it, only to discover it was €240 per kg! It was superb and we savoured every mouthful.

We ease Jane into Europe time, exploring the surrounding villages of Compiègne (not much to say about it) and Chantilly, visiting the Château de Chantilly which is impressively grand.

The grounds, which include a racecourse, cover over 115 acres. The current Château was completed in 1881 and is home to the Musée Condé, one of the finest collections of paintings in France and an impressive library full of rare historic manuscripts and first editions.

So, Jane has quickly settled into our casual touring routine; it generally starts with a coffee and croissant for breakfast,  then take in a few sites, find a lunch destination, enjoy the plat-du-jour with a glass of red, a few more sites for the afternoon, or an afternoon nap perhaps!

Dinner is usually a lesser event consisting of some nibbles, maybe a salad and some more french red.

Next stop Paris.

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Sep 11

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Normandy

The Bayeux Tapestry is more like a cross stitch than a tapestry, but impressive nonetheless.

At just under 70 metres in length, the tapestry’s 50 scenes depict the Normandy conquest of 1066 which culminated in the Battle of Hastings.

Housed at a museum in Bayeux, the overall experience is very well done. The price of admission includes an audio recording which talks you through each scene and the craftmanship behind the work.

Besides being informative, the audio also keeps the viewers moving – smart crowd management.

Upstairs, there is more information on the making of the tapestry and the Normandy invasion which you can wander through at your own pace.

The Normandy coast has a long and turbulent history from Celtic, Roman and Viking squabbles to the more recent history of World War II.  The Normandy Landings were one of the most significant campaigns by allied forces which led to the liberation of Europe and end of the war.

You could spend days visiting the landing sites and historic land marks along the coast. There are also countless museums. We decide on one, a newly released film shown in a 360′ cinema built on the clifftop at Arromanches.

Arromanches played an important part during the landings, an artificial port was created, which provided access for troops and heavy artillery.

The film is truly incredible, a collation of World War II archive material gathered from around the world, including german footage.

It summaries the state of play prior to the landings and graphically displays the landings and liberation of the French villages. The film is an emotive tribute to the soldiers and civilians who were killed during the battle.

Bayeux
Bayeux Cathedral
Arromanches

Once again we are winging-it with no accommodation planned and the new favourite web site chambresdhotes.org saves the day.

We have stopped at a small shopping mall for free wifi, within an hour our accommodation is secured and we head off to our B&B in Epreville, a small village just outside Rouen.

We are warmly greeted by Jean-Yves, with his excellent English. He shows us through his lovely home, trying to tempt us to upgrade into one of his premium rooms.

They are all lovely, but so is ours for the more ‘basic-price’, more suitable to our budget.

We also ask Jean-Yves for a dinner recommendation, he talks us through the nearby choices and we opt for the recommendation he describes in the more ‘basic-price’ category.

The French love a set price menu which always works out to be more cost effective. It might be good for the budget, but not for the waist. The ‘basic-price’ did not disappoint, another superb meal added to the memory banks.

Jean-Yves and his wife Marie-Lise have been running the B&B for 15 years. They are very proud to note that they are listed in the Michelin Guide.

A place in the Michelin Guide is earned not paid for, Michelin take their recommendations seriously and undertake covert reviews at anytime. From our experience, the honour is well deserved.

Rouen is a pretty town sitting on the river Siene. It was here in 1431 that Saint Joan of Arc was burned at the stake.

The impressive Notre Dame cathedral, with its Tour de Beurre (butter tower), according to a most reliable source (Wikipedia), the tower was financed by the sale of indulgences for the consumption of butter during Lent.

We even visit the art gallery in town on the promise of viewing some Impressionists. There are a few from well know artists including Claude Monet, but overall it was probably a little disappointing.

On departing Epreville, we stop off at the Castle Martainville, it’s one of those great finds, off the regular tourist track.

The castle was completed in 1505. Again, we are impressed that the entry includes headsets with a self guided tour of the property.

We were on a tight schedule to make it to Pierrefonds (need to check-in at lunchtime, or our hosts will be at work until late), so we did do a rush-job on the castle.

It is well worth the visit though, hosting an extensive and impressive range of regional furniture from the 15th Century and other household items including linen, china and clothing, representing everyday life at the time in Normandy.

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Sep 9

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Châteaux & Castles

The Loire Valley is referred to as the Garden of France, due to the abundance of vineyards, orchards and vegetables grown along the banks of the river. It is also know for its historic towns (unusual in France – not) and architecture.

I found a gorgeous B&B through a newly discovered website: Chambres d’hotes; Corinne & Marc run Le Clos du Haut Villiers, it’s a charming french home set in beautiful gardens.  It was a pity we only had time to stay one night.

On Corinne’s advice we had dinner in nearby Montrichard, sitting outside in the medieval square that dates back to the 11th century. It’s moments like this, that reminded us of how lucky we are.

There are numerous châteaux adorning the Loire River and its tributaries. We know we can’t visit the all, it’s a bit like wine tasting, you can only do so many in one day without them all starting to look the same.

We start with Chenonceau, one of the most impressive châteaux in France, stretching across the river Cher.  The current structure commenced in 1513 and has a unique history, being that most of it was in the hands of Women.

The construction of what is known today as Chenonceau, began in 1515 and was overseen by Katherine Briçonnet, but the property was seized by the crown for outstanding debts and became the home of Diane de Poitiers, mistress to King Henry II.

Diane embellished the property with extensive gardens she also commissioned the bridge from the château across to the opposite bank.

Upon the death of Henry in 1559, his wife; Catherine de Medici forced Diane out and took up residence at the château. Catherine added the grand gallery over the bridge and extended the already lavish gardens.

During the french revolution Chenonceau was in the hands of Louise Dupin, she is attributed to saving the château from destruction during the French revolution

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Château Villandry was a ‘sight-seen’ visit, as we stopped off for a coffee and peered through the fence. Impressive, but we decided to keep going before parting with our euros for an inside look.

Probably our favourite château was Azay-Le-Rideau. An original castle had stood on the site in the 1200’s, burnt to the ground in 1418. The land was acquired 100 years later by the King’s Treasurer, Gilles Berthelot. The château designe was strongly influenced by the architecture of the Italian renaissance.

In 1527, Berthelot went into exile, fearing being caught for having his finger in the till! The château was later confiscated by the crown.

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Rising out of flat coastal marshlands along the Normandy coast is a single rocky outcrop, at it’s peak sits the Abbey of Le-Mont-St-Michel. It has to be one of France’s most iconic landmarks. Technically, it’s neither a Castle or Château, but its been on my ‘bucket list’ for a long time.

The story goes, that in 708, the Archangel Michael appeared to the Bishop of Avranches, commanding him to build a church on the rocky islet. As a result, the Bishop consecrated a small church on the rock in 709.

Between the 11th and 16th centuries the Benedictine Abbey was built and a village grew under its shadow during the middle ages. Military defenses were added in the wake of the 100 year war, enabling it to survive a siege of 30 years.

Over 3 million people visit the rock either as pilgrims or tourists. We arrive late in the afternoon so the tourist buses seem to have already departed. We make our way through the narrow alleys to the top, unfortunately the Abbey is already closed. The views are still worth it!

It’s been a busy day: we’ve covered over 300km, took in three châteaux, an Abbey and numerous quaint/pretty/lovely historic towns along the way. Out of ‘puff’ we find a Chambres d’hote on the side of the road to bed down in for the night, it’s basic, clean and cheap (€35). Surprised to find something so reasonable near Mont-St-Michel. A bistro across the road provides an adequate dinner, lights are out not long after.

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