Road Trip: France, Part Three

The third and final installment of Road Trip: France saw us headed south in the trusty Renault Twingo to Bordeaux, Languedoc and Provence.

Although we were poor young folks, Bordeaux was surprisingly accessible. We stayed at the completely delightful Chateau de Foulon where we had an apartment complete with little kitchen and sitting room for under $100 a night (although, admittedly, was this before the dollar went to crap). We had wonderful breakfasts in the main chateau with the other guests in the regal dining room and the Count even came in to say hello before heading out to ride his horse one morning. There were great grounds that you could wander around with a little pond and a picturesque crumbling barn and peacocks and swans wandering about. Divine.

We made a loop of the Margaux region's wineries with the assistance of the tourism authority's vineyard map. Chateau Giscours probably had the best tour and facility, but our absolute favorite was Chateau Lascombes. This vineyard makes a grand cru wine (the fanciest - I'll save the discourse on appellations for another time) and doesn't really give walk-in tours, so was completely quiet, yet somehow they took pity on us and showed us around. We ended buying serious bottles here, although I think this vineyard is still a good bargain as it's not the fanciest or best known.

Having had our fill of tannins, we headed south into the not-as-travelled Languedoc region. In the interest of full disclosure, our next step was seriously in the hinterlands. It took champion navigational skills and a lot of windy mountain roads to find our way to La Cerisaie, a B&B in the small town of Riols. There's not much doing in this neck of the woods, but it was Bastille Day when we visited, so we were treated to the local parade down the middle of the village complete with firecrackers going off every which way. Complete with a pool and a delicious in-house restaurant, La Cerisaie was a great little escape. I imagine we could have filled a few more days with some ambling into the hills and sipping wine on the terrace.

But we had tracks to make, so after a detour to Barcelona, which is a tale for another time, we made our way to Provence. Specifically, another B&B gem called Le Mas de la Tour in the small town of Fontvieille, outside of Arles. This place was classic - provencal fabrics in the room, a warm pool outside and breakfast under the arbor. We had a perfect day trip to Arles to see the forum, buy some gifts, and while away the day in a cafe. It's also great hiking, jogging, walking country. We explored the local Montmajour abbey, took in the daily market, and generally enjoyed the loveliness of Provence.

Unfortunately the French road trip had to end too soon (although the auto adventures continued later in Italy), so our last leg was a drive to Nice, complete with insane laps of the city trying to find the train station, a day wandering the waterfront waiting for our overnight train to Rome, and general overload of summer tourism in Europe after weeks in the quiet countryside.

On the practical side: there are three key tips for a French road trip. First, Autoeurope typically has really good long term car rental rates. Second, the Rivages guide (now published in English by Fodors as the Rivages Guide to Bed and Breakfasts of Character and Charm, but more frequently updated in the French version or on the website) is indispensable. We found each place we stayed from this book, including places called only the night before. It is now referred to among the inner circle as "The Magic Book". Third, Michelin maps cannot be beat and the Michelin website has great maps for travel planning.

All in all, I'm a big fan of the European road trip as, not only does it make me use my limited foreign language skills, but it is far less likely that you will find yourself at a table next to an American couple and far more likely that you'll stumble into those delightful, unpredictable experiences that just don't happen on the well-trod path.

Road Trip: France, Part Two

So I started to relate the tale of a trip of yore - the road trip through France. After our run through Bretagne, we headed east into the Loire Valley.

Our home away from home was a gem in Cravant les Croteaux, just outside of Chinon, called Domaine de Pallus. Since we have been there, one of the next generation has returned home to the family vineyards that surround the inn and launched a rather successful effort to increase the profile of their wines, under a label of the same name. It appears that the inn has been opened under new ownership as Les Camelias des Pallus.

The town of Chinon itself is a cute afternoon's wander, with the Chinon castle at the top of the hill overlooking town. A culinary highlight was a little restaurant called Les Annees 30 at 78 Rue Voltaire, where we stuffed ourselves full of duck and the like.

We spent a few days taking the trusty Twingo down country roads to see some of the lovely Loire castles. A highlight in the summer is that the roads are spotted with sunflower fields, adding much to the atmosphere. The top three were definitely Chenonceau castle, Azay le Rideau and the gardens at Villandry. You could do all of these in a full day from Chinon - driving the hour and half to Chenonceau, then working your way west to Villandry and then to Azay le Rideau.

Chenonceau is about an hour and a half from Chinon along smaller roads. It's spectacularly set, as it's built over the Cher river. As it was raining the day we were there, we spent little time in the formal gardens and instead wandered the rambling interior. One particularly entertaining part, as with most historic sites in France, was the number of teenage employees standing around doing nothing save occasionally collecting a ticket. As two friends at the time were living in France and taking advantage of all of the benefits of the country's socialist tendencies, I quickly learned that this was part of the subsidies an aimless teenager can count on. As a tradeoff for the educational subsidies, living stipends, rent discounts, health care, and whatever else these teenagers were getting from the government, they had to agree to work a government job. And, unsurprisingly, there weren't enough jobs for all these people, so the government created jobs to do such things as stand around chateaus. I'd sign up for that in a minute.

We then dodged some rain and had a ramble around the gardens at Villandry. On a lovely day, you could take a picnic and spend hours running around the joint. They're formal "Renaissance" gardens that are a truly spectacular example of the form.

The last gem was Azay le Rideau, a small castle about twenty minutes from Chinon and more or less on the way back from Chenonceau. It's a moody place, surrounded by the Indre River that lends itself to lovely photos. There's a cute little town around it where you can wander about and have a snack. I bought some lovely watercolors from a charming gent whose name is lost to history.

We easily could have spent another few days in the Loire valley, eating delicious picnics and gazing at gardens and fields of flowers. But the road trip marched on. Next stop: Bordeaux.

Road Trip: France, Part One

Seeing as it's summer, the time for road trips, and my next trip isn't for a few weeks, I thought I'd recant a tale of old.

Once upon a time, some gal pals and I took a jaunt through France. Somewhat by design, and somewhat inadvertently, it was the perfect combination of pace and lack thereof. And it all went down in a stylish purple Twingo. (That’s a super small Renault car, for those who have not had the pleasure of renting in Europe before.) The itinerary went something like this.

Start: Paris. Two of the four of us resided in Paris back in those days, so there it began. Since Frank no longer has her divine little apartment in Montmartre, a current adaptation would involve charming Paris hotel of choice.

We rented a car, via Europcar from a location near the Bois du Bologne and set off. Note (and this is a all-encompassing note for foreign car rentals): European cars have funny little tricks to make the gear shift go in reverse. Sometimes it’s a button on the top of the stick shift. Sometimes it’s a little thing around the shaft that you have to slide up. Sometimes it’s a little button on the bottom of the knob at the top of the shift. Yes, this is as obscene as it sounds. So, anyways, before attempting to get out of a parallel parking space on a Paris city street, identify the funny little trick.

First leg: North to Normandy.

So we headed due North and did a fly by of the Normandy beaches, which were quite dramatic. Plus one of us was in a serious post-Saving Private Ryan WWII buff phase then, so Normandy was a must see. Lacking a place to stay that night, a combination of French proficiency and divine providence landed us at a little inn on the way to Mont Saint Michel - Hotel de la Croix d'Or in Avranches. A cute little Tudor inn, arranged around a courtyard of hydrangeas with a tasty traditional French restaurant. A find that could not have been duplicated if we tried. Plus it appears to still be well under 100 euros a night.

The next day we crawled out of bed at an ungodly hour and beat the crowds to Mont St Michel. Ever since the seventh grade, when I spent long hours in French class staring at a poster of the same, I'd been rather intrigued by the town and church piled onto a little island just off the west coast of Normandy. Unfortunately, the day we were there it was pouring and freezing. But we soldiered our way up the hill, did the requisite church and abbey tour and then huddled over cafe cremes in a cafe.

Leg Two: Brittany.

So for a variety of complicated reasons, we didn't plan too far in advance for the Brittany leg and through some combination of my bad French and perhaps some misrepresentative advertising, the four of us showed up at the B&B where we were supposed to be staying to find out that it was basically an extra bedroom in this old lady's house. So, after the better-French-speaking of us suffered through a night of hearing about this gentlewoman's various extremist separatist views, we cut our stay short and moved on to Concarneau. The last minute replacement lodgings bear no special mention, but Concarneau is a quiet seaside town with excellent oysters, ramparts to climb on, and good paths along the water for jogging and strolling.

We spent a day in Quimper, seeing the cathedral, wandering through the covered market and buying lace from the little old ladies in their shops. Then it was on to Pont Aven - town of artists and former abode of Gauguin, now filled with shops selling watercolors and galettes (tasty buttery cookies), but all still scenically perched over the Aven river. A good day trip, especially for the rainy day that we had. We hit some shops, checked out the contemporary art museum, and had a whole lot of chocolat chaud.

Luckily, the next legs of the trip, to the Loire Valley, Bordeaux, and on to the South got a little warmer and drier.

A Weekend in Paris

I didn't mean to start with a tour of European capitols, but this morning in the shower I was remembering a recent lovely weekend in Paris. So I will recount the tale, which I think is pretty much a perfect itinerary for a repeat visitor to the City of Light. It's light on sights, long on atmosphere, so it's definitely not for that once-in-a-lifetime trip.

We left on a Friday evening, and landed in Paris early Saturday morning. A little train-metro hop to the Rive Gauche and we arrived at the Victoria Palace Hotel. This was my fourth trip to Paris and, although my friend's adorable apartment in Montmartre has to be the best place to stay, this hotel was a decent find. It's off Rue de Rennes, almost to the Tour Montparnasse. Very transportation-accessible and very walkable to pretty much anywhere on the Left Bank. The rooms are very big for Europe and the bathrooms are way above average. They do a lovely breakfast, taken either in the salon or delivered to your room (much better, of course). It's a little heavy on the florals, but you can't have everything.

Day 1

So a shower and a rest and we were off to stroll. We made our way down towards Notre Dame and had a browse through Shakespeare & Co. Left without any exciting purchases, but did score a B-list celebrity sighting, which is always entertaining. Luckily, we ducked our head in a favorite shop of mine, where I have found some lovely antique maps and prints over the years. The name escapes me, but it is on the left bank, halfway down the block that has the Hotel Notre Dame on the corner, wedged between shops selling plastic Eiffel towers. The owner, who is precisely how you would imagine a woman who owns a print shop in Paris, is delightful and will dig out special requests from the drawers along the wall. After picking out two new items for my collection, we took some time-marker photos in front of Notre Dame (which, upon our return, showed us shockingly older than the photos from 5ish years ago) and then wandered our way down the Right Bank.

We made a stop at a place I'd always meant to go into, but never got around to: Le Louvre des Antiquaires. It's just north of the Louvre, in an old palace, and is a collection of antique dealers. The brilliance of it is they all have big display windows, so you can treat it like a museum, sans any intimidation. The jewelry dealers have some incredible pieces, if you're in the market for a sixteenth century crown, and there are fun specialty dealers with swords and paintings and watches and statues and all kinds of things for your chateau.

Anyways, so we continued our strolling, made a pass through Les Tuileries, and met our friends from London at Pershing Hall for an aperitif. Pershing Hall is a hotel/restaurant/bar of the Hotel Costes variety and has that parody-of-itself aura that is always entertaining for a cocktail, and not high on attitude, all things considered. The brilliant news, besides how fabulous we were meeting for a drink in Paris, was that it was "happy hour", meaning that for $20 or so, you got two drinks instead of one. Super! The drinks were good, as were the bar snacks, although I have to say the decor was not what I had hoped. Plenty of modern furniture, low lighting, and drapery, but the central piece was this two story courtyard with a garden growing up the one wall. Just didn't do it for me.

Anyways, so by then we had to dash to our dinner reservation on Ile Ste Louis, which was made extra annoying by the fact that it was pouring cats and dogs and we couldn't remember which block the restaurant was on. But, we made it to Mon Vieil Ami, which I can unequivocally recommend as the best restaurant selection on Ile Ste Louis. Admittedly, this is a relatively uncompetitive group, but I love the island and the fact that there's a cute, fun restaurant there now is just perfect. Anyways, modern Alsatian is the label. It's a small restaurant with a big center serving table and tables along the walls. Modern decor (think grey fabric and a big flower arrangement in the center with exposed walls), but still cozy. Menu is bistro, with an alsatian twist, so a little heavy on the offal, but still delightful. My pate appetizer was quite good, as was the braised chicken. Mike's knee jerk order of lamb intestines for his entree was hilarious, but didn't turn out as well. As he put it, they tasted like something that processes body waste. And he was right. But the wine was perfect and it was the perfect place for a cozy dinner in the rain.

After dinner, the rain had let up a bit, so we hit on the brilliant idea to walk back to the hotel. It wasn't too cold, so it was actually lovely - Paris with that movie-set reflection of color and light in the streets. And Ile St Louis, back behind Notre Dame, up the Left Bank and into Montparnasse is the perfect evening stroll. Great day.

Day 2

Day Two dawned a little late, but breakfast in bed with a basket of pastries and cafe au lait, and the french doors ajar to the sunlight, is just the best thing in the world. Today's itinerary: more strolling. But first, more fabulousness. We headed Eiffel Tower-ward to meet our friends for lunch at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon. Now a worldwide chain, we were still excited to check out Mr. innovative small plates himself. So we headed in and perched in a corner of the wraparound bar that constitutes the restaurant's seating. There was much instruction from the server regarding the proper way to order (isn't the point of small plates to do whatever you want?) and we were off. Highlights were the riff on zucchini and mozzarella mille-feuille and the lamb. Pricey for lunch (maybe 15-30 euros per item, so it adds up), but fun.

Then to strolling! We headed down to the Seine with the intention of a trip to the Musee d'Orsay but the line intimidated us, so instead we headed across the bridge to an antique show that had been set up in tents on one of the ponts. That was entertaining - half Westchester, half Versailles type scene and all kinds of things from old chinese furniture to deco chandeliers. After all that exertion, we headed back the the Left Bank and took a spot on a bench in front of these Les Invalides where we entertained ourselves for a spell by watching a little kid play soccer and then unsuccessfully attempt to fly his remote control helicopter.

Feeling fully rested, we strolled over to Rue Cler to obtain pastries and then found another prime spot in the gardens behind the Eiffel Tower to enjoy them. The main attraction there was pony rides for the kids, which were endlessly charming. Then, a certain someone who shall remain nameless decided we should go up the Eiffel Tower, completely violating the no standing in lines rule of this trip. But up (or, first in line, and then up) we went. Snapped some photos, made our way back down. Lesson learned.

Luckily it was dinner time, and we were slated for a place back near the hotel, so we strolled our way back only to find it was closed. Quelle probleme! After regrouping at the hotel, we landed at Atelier Maitre Albert, a Guy Savoy joint on the Left Bank, right near Notre Dame. Concrete floors, bright walls, rotisseries on view. Not a bad place, service was surprisingly friendly and the food was quite good - steak for Mike, fish for me. So a good save after all. After that, it was to Ile Ste Louis (I said I loved it) for a drink at the cafe, gazing at Notre Dame. Once we got too cold, we wandered our way back along the Left Bank and to bed.

Day 3

Last day! So sad. Today was a national holiday, so many things were closed, but no matter, as we could still eat and stroll. There was much sleeping in, followed by the divine breakfast, and then to La Grande Epicerie to assemble a picnic. This is a huge gourmet grocery store right next to the Bon Marche department store that is perfect for picnics. It has every thing you could ever want to eat, all the accoutrements and is accessible for those without the language skills. So we put together a feast and were on our way. We had decided on the Tuileries for the picnic and the weather held for us to sit on the grass and enjoy the scene. Tons of families out to enjoy the holiday, so no end to people watching. Lovely.

Then we had ourselves a stroll around the Right Bank. It was a window shopping day, given the holiday, but no mind as the windows are the best part anyways. Took a lap of the Place Vendome, which was lovely and hushed, and generally entertained ourselves with the things on view. Then it was back to the hotel before our big dinner.

Dinner was at Le Cinq, the three star restaurant in the George V hotel and was incredible. We started with drinks in the hotel bar, Le Bar, a swank, dark wood joint that was surprisingly unassuming. Then to dinner. The food was the right balance of creative but not overly-conceptual and the service was impeccable - omnipresent but relaxed. Decor is traditional french opulent, accented by modern floral decorations. We had the tasting menu, because why not. Highlights were bread with bacon in it (Mike's favorite) and my sweet breads with "paella" made of orzo with crayfish and chorizo and the insanely buttery mashed potatoes with Mike's veal. Of course, the cheese course was insane and the desert trio of bittersweet chocolate ice cream, pot de creme, and fondant cake pretty much put us under. And the meal closed with a box of homemade candies to take home (including homemade marshmallows - mmm) and an enormous rose for me. We closed the place down. And then had an after dinner drink in the bar. Over the top, but wonderful, and a great way to close out a great weekend.