tedgale trip report on se and sw france
Oct 17th, 2005, 03:30 PM
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tedgale trip report on se and sw france
This is the start of my trip report, typed by someone too tired at this point in a long day even to manage capitalization in his title. Already today we have been in Toulouse and Paris and Montreal, before reaching home in Ottawa.
Wonderful weather for most of our trip (low 20s C. or low 70s F.), though we had 3 or 4 days of cloud toward the end.
Though we flew to Toulouse via Paris, we ended up mostly east of there. Long story, to be recounted in a subsequent chapter of this report.
Our base for week 1 was Uzes -- a jumping off point for the Alpilles, the Drome and the gorges de l'Ardeche.
We rented a house through French Connections(www.frenchconnections.co.uk).
This was a very happy choice, through which we met Maggie Oliver, who handles the 3-storey property we rented.
Maggie also does occasional B&B in her own "drop-dead chic" townhouse in Uzes.
She recommended, among local restaurants, a new one called Les 80 jours -- a recommendation we fully endorse. The restaurant is in the old town, in a stone building within whose ground-floor arched rooms they have created a smart bar and a good, not terribly splashy but very professional restaurant.
We also enjoyed L' hostellerie provencale and its restaurant La Parenthese. This is in the newly classified district of the Bourgades (grande bourgade, petite bourgade) where we were staying.
What we most enjoyed in Uzes was the practice of holding open houses, vins d'honneur and gallery openings -- a chance to meet and mix with the local denizens of this perfect, cosmopolitan community.
(Imagine any community having an Andre Gide parking garage...!!)
More details and complete references tomorrow, when my brain clears.....
Wonderful weather for most of our trip (low 20s C. or low 70s F.), though we had 3 or 4 days of cloud toward the end.
Though we flew to Toulouse via Paris, we ended up mostly east of there. Long story, to be recounted in a subsequent chapter of this report.
Our base for week 1 was Uzes -- a jumping off point for the Alpilles, the Drome and the gorges de l'Ardeche.
We rented a house through French Connections(www.frenchconnections.co.uk).
This was a very happy choice, through which we met Maggie Oliver, who handles the 3-storey property we rented.
Maggie also does occasional B&B in her own "drop-dead chic" townhouse in Uzes.
She recommended, among local restaurants, a new one called Les 80 jours -- a recommendation we fully endorse. The restaurant is in the old town, in a stone building within whose ground-floor arched rooms they have created a smart bar and a good, not terribly splashy but very professional restaurant.
We also enjoyed L' hostellerie provencale and its restaurant La Parenthese. This is in the newly classified district of the Bourgades (grande bourgade, petite bourgade) where we were staying.
What we most enjoyed in Uzes was the practice of holding open houses, vins d'honneur and gallery openings -- a chance to meet and mix with the local denizens of this perfect, cosmopolitan community.
(Imagine any community having an Andre Gide parking garage...!!)
More details and complete references tomorrow, when my brain clears.....
Oct 17th, 2005, 11:28 PM
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Salut Ted et bon retour! pas de regret, le temps se couvre sur la France...
j'attends la suite avec impatience!
je vois ce matin dans "le nouvel Observateur" une maison en vente à 20km d'Uzes. 200mē. "magnifique vue sur la campagne environnante" 424.000€
ça te tente? ;-) il y en a plein d'autres sur ce site http://www.emilegarcin.fr/
la suite, la suite!
j'attends la suite avec impatience!
je vois ce matin dans "le nouvel Observateur" une maison en vente à 20km d'Uzes. 200mē. "magnifique vue sur la campagne environnante" 424.000€
ça te tente? ;-) il y en a plein d'autres sur ce site http://www.emilegarcin.fr/
la suite, la suite!
Oct 18th, 2005, 03:03 AM
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Here are some more Uzes suggestions:
Zanelli is a pasta restaurant that we greatly enjoyed, not least because you can dine on a huge, raised stone terrace overlooking -- in fact, dominating --, a large square just off the Place des Herbes. Mostly French clientele when we were there.
Huge plates, handsomely arranged. Two courses were more than I could manage.
Of course, we visited the Bistrot de Grezac. It has changed owners and the food is less striking than when we ate there last. Still a good choice for seafood -- I started with a large platter of oysters, mussels, clams, huge langoustines and some delicious bulots (snails) thrown in for good measure. As with Zanelli, plan to eat outside -- much nicer than the interior, though the nearby traffic somewhat lessens the appeal.
Now here is a real find in the Bourgades, just off the central ring-boulevard: Au quinze (Number 15) is a grand old house (hotel particulier) whose magnificent stone staircase climbs around an interior courtyard.
The rooms are large and newly renovated. We met the new Belgian owners by chance and were given a tour, with full details of their meticulous renovation.
Behind the house is a magical garden with raised terraces, hidden garden rooms and a pool. One of the smartest places we saw. You can contact them on www.auquinze.com.
Another discovery a few minutes SE of Uzes is St. Siffret -- a delightful village just off a D road lined with plane trees. It has at least one B&B, plus an interesting looking restaurant in the former school-house.
We also met the owner of Monte Arena, a B&B in a palazzo-like house in the centre of the village of Montaren, N of Uzes. Their website (www.monte-arena.com) is only "up" in French at the moment, though.
That same day we visited Vezenobres, N of Uzes on the way to Ales. As Ales was a centre of the coal mining industry (!) we did not imagine the area would harbour a medieval hill-town of great beauty and interest, as Vezenobres is.
More to follow.
Zanelli is a pasta restaurant that we greatly enjoyed, not least because you can dine on a huge, raised stone terrace overlooking -- in fact, dominating --, a large square just off the Place des Herbes. Mostly French clientele when we were there.
Huge plates, handsomely arranged. Two courses were more than I could manage.
Of course, we visited the Bistrot de Grezac. It has changed owners and the food is less striking than when we ate there last. Still a good choice for seafood -- I started with a large platter of oysters, mussels, clams, huge langoustines and some delicious bulots (snails) thrown in for good measure. As with Zanelli, plan to eat outside -- much nicer than the interior, though the nearby traffic somewhat lessens the appeal.
Now here is a real find in the Bourgades, just off the central ring-boulevard: Au quinze (Number 15) is a grand old house (hotel particulier) whose magnificent stone staircase climbs around an interior courtyard.
The rooms are large and newly renovated. We met the new Belgian owners by chance and were given a tour, with full details of their meticulous renovation.
Behind the house is a magical garden with raised terraces, hidden garden rooms and a pool. One of the smartest places we saw. You can contact them on www.auquinze.com.
Another discovery a few minutes SE of Uzes is St. Siffret -- a delightful village just off a D road lined with plane trees. It has at least one B&B, plus an interesting looking restaurant in the former school-house.
We also met the owner of Monte Arena, a B&B in a palazzo-like house in the centre of the village of Montaren, N of Uzes. Their website (www.monte-arena.com) is only "up" in French at the moment, though.
That same day we visited Vezenobres, N of Uzes on the way to Ales. As Ales was a centre of the coal mining industry (!) we did not imagine the area would harbour a medieval hill-town of great beauty and interest, as Vezenobres is.
More to follow.
Oct 18th, 2005, 11:53 AM
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Welcome back, TG!
Very interesting report--seems like you really had a chance to wander about and to make some discoveries. Fun! It's also very helpful to hear that you were satisfied with charminghouses...I am a bit curious about your "open house" experiences etc. I think I lost something in that translation!
letour
Very interesting report--seems like you really had a chance to wander about and to make some discoveries. Fun! It's also very helpful to hear that you were satisfied with charminghouses...I am a bit curious about your "open house" experiences etc. I think I lost something in that translation!
letour
Oct 18th, 2005, 04:34 PM
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About the open houses:
The owners of Au quinze threw a party for the entire neighbourhood. They put notices in public places. As we were walking past the house and as we had already met Madame, she beckoned us to come in and have a glass of pastis with the locals.
Then we were walking home one night and were asked in to another neighbourhood party -- in a garage(!) -- to sample the wine from a tiny (2 hectare) vineyard nearby.
There was a lovely vernissage in a gallery near the Place des herbes one evening -- but we did not try to "crash" it.....
The owners of Au quinze threw a party for the entire neighbourhood. They put notices in public places. As we were walking past the house and as we had already met Madame, she beckoned us to come in and have a glass of pastis with the locals.
Then we were walking home one night and were asked in to another neighbourhood party -- in a garage(!) -- to sample the wine from a tiny (2 hectare) vineyard nearby.
There was a lovely vernissage in a gallery near the Place des herbes one evening -- but we did not try to "crash" it.....
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