Gene&Mary

We are a couple in our 40's, who will be going to Paris for our first European trip, in Sept. 2002. We would like to perhaps take a side trip to Provence on the TGV, as well as side trip to London for two days. Does anyone have any constructive advice regarding what to wear,eat, or see? My interests tend to be mainly of the historical/architectural type, while my wife would like to see Monaco and the Riviera(ugh). Any good tips on a mixture of the two? Thanks in advance for your help!

Maria

Please tell us how many weeks you have planned for this trip so we may offer advice. Side trips to Provence and London will eat up a lot of time.

gene&mary

Thank you! We will be in France from the 9 to the 20th of Sept. We do have plenty of time to prepare,but I like to be the "pleasant American", and not the Ugly stereotypical one, wherever I travel....so, that is why I am scouring information now. London is not a must,if time will not allow,but seeing a little bit of what France has to offer is. We are from Seattle, I have traveled a bit(twice to Korea and Japan, as well as Belize and Guatemala),so I know a bit how to behave when a guest in a foreign country. Thank you again for your sincere and quick reply! G.

Dina

We recently returned from a 7-week trip that began much like yours: couple in 40s from Seattle, September, first time in Europe, included London, Paris, Provence, parts of the Riviera. <BR>There is simply too much to tell here, so at the risk of being castigated by someone for self-promotion, may I refer you to my personal travelogue? We rarely dined out, and stayed in budget places, so it's not a list of great restaurants and hotels, but it has photos and stories from a first-timer's point of view that might help you decide where to go and what to do.<BR>www.costumegoddess.com/travelog.htm

Lexma90

9 days (I assume you're discounting the in and out days on each end) doesn't give you a huge amount of time. London, Paris & Provence; it would be difficult to fit it all in. You should probably drop London.<BR><BR>There's lots of historical interest in Provence, particularly ancient Roman. Arles is my favorite, and you shouldn't miss Avignon & Aix en Provence. St. Remy has a great weekly market. Orange is a little out of your way, but the Roman amplitheatre there is outstanding. You may say "ugh" to Riviera - I haven't really visited, just drove through and had lunch on the way from Italy to a play near Avignon, but I was absolutely amazed by the beauty of the Cote d'Azur. Rather stupid in retrospect, but I had focused on the "rich and famous" part, and neglected to consider that the area might be beautiful as well. There are towns in the Riviera there are less touristy; others may be able to give you names. Monaco shouldn't take long to visit!<BR><BR>There are many posts on "what to wear;" try doing a search to pull them all up. You won't really get a definitive answer; they'll range from "wear black" to "wear whatever you want."<BR><BR>There are also many posts on "what to eat." You need to decide how much you want to spend, and what you like to eat. Are you a foodie, and money is no object when it comes to French food? Or you'd rather spend your time & money elsewhere, and eat at charming local eateries? You'll find advice for both in this forum. My tip - you may get tired of spending several hours at each meal (I do!). Plan to have at least several picnic lunches, where you buy food from a local market & a bottle of wine and eat it next to a Roman antiquity or by the ocean.<BR><BR>Enjoy!

Rex

To Dina:<BR><BR>This is a first time trip to Europe? Wow. Even with only five minutes' browsing, I am fairly impressed by the trip, and stunningly impressed by the travelog web page. This can and should be a teaching example for many people here. We can all learn from this - - very eye-pleasing and effective, from a story-telling standpoint - - and source code NOT hidden, obscured or protected in any way!<BR><BR>Your web page creation ability is something to be quite proud of!<BR><BR>Your own personal web site is pretty cool too!<BR><BR>and to Gene & Mary - - sorry to get of track from your original question. I couldn't help it. Dina's work is really, really good!<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

Get real

Go ask your mother! My goodness you are in your 40's and don't know what to wear? You 're not going to the moon or have an audience with the pope-grow up and don't forget to change your underwear!

Capo

Hi Gene. I'm also from Seattle, and love both Paris & Provence. <BR><BR>The 9th through the 20th is only 12 days, so I think you might be stretching yourself a bit thin trying to see Paris, Provence, and London. I mean, you could certainly do it, but it wouldn't leave you a lot of time in any of those places. If London isn't a must, I'd recommend just sticking with Paris and Provence. In any case, September is a great month in which to go. <BR><BR>If you like history and architecture may I, first of all, suggest two books: Ina Caro's "The Road from the Past: Traveling Through History in France" and "An Architect's Paris" by Thomas Carlson-Reddig. If you're thinking you might like to visit any of the many small picturesque villages in Provence, you might be interested in the coffee table book, "The Most Beautiful Villages of Provence." <BR><BR>As the travel report at the website below notes, Provence got its name from the Latin "Provincia Romana" because it was a Roman province, so there are a lot of Roman buidings in the area around Avignon & Arles, including arenas in Nimes & Arles, a theater in Orange, and the magnificent aqueduct, the Pont du Gard, near Arles. There are wonderful photos, also at the website below, of the Arles arena, the Pont du Gard, and the Orange theater. <BR><BR>http://www.uakron.edu/modlang/99trip/trip08.html<BR><BR>Perched high above the Rivieria, you'll find another reminder of Rome's presence in the area: the Trophee des Alpes, built to honor the conquests of the local tribes by Caesar Augustus. The Trophee is in the village of La Turbie and has quite a stunning view down into Monaco. <BR><BR>Out of curiousity, why "ugh" for the Riviera? If you decide to go there, you might not find it nearly as bad as you think it is. (I don't like crowds or glitziness, but I love Nice and the surrounding area.)

ttt

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ryan

Gene & Mary,<BR>There is plenty to do while in Paris for 9 days. I'm sure you are already familiar with the museums, shops, etc. , in and around the city.<BR><BR>In terms of day trips, you might want to think about a day trip to Burgandy. (We did this on a trip to Paris 2 years ago.) The TGV from Gare D'Lyon will get you to Dijon in about 2 hours. There are numerous vineyards and chateau's nearby. We took a half day tour with a company called Wine and Voyages that is run by an American ex-pat (from Califormia!) Late September is the harvesting season so the grapes should be in full bloom. They do have website which you can find on any search engine.<BR><BR>As previous posters indicated, it may be difficult to go to Monaco and Provence in just one day.<BR>