The Roads Less Traveled: Traversing France With Mai Tai Tom & Tracy
Mar 8th, 2017, 08:00 AM
#181
Original Poster
kerouac...thanks for the info. I was Googling "monument near Eiffel Tower," "statues near Eiffel Tower," etc. and couldn't find it.
By the way...we'll be back for wine (we can never stay away for too many years). I like "useless Parisian knowledge" (I had an old girlfriend...well she wasn't old then... who used to say I was the "king of nickel knowledge"...not sure if it was a compliment or not).
By the way...we'll be back for wine (we can never stay away for too many years). I like "useless Parisian knowledge" (I had an old girlfriend...well she wasn't old then... who used to say I was the "king of nickel knowledge"...not sure if it was a compliment or not).
Mar 8th, 2017, 08:33 AM
#182
Original Poster
kerouac, I added your commentary to my Day Sixteen (thanks), and since you really have me feeling guilty about the wine, I hope you don't mind that I gave some kudos to you and the website Any Port In A Storm. I owe you two bottles now.
Mar 8th, 2017, 09:34 AM
#183
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As always your trip reports are a delight to read, Tom! I am thoroughly enjoying this one.
I'm glad you enjoyed Park Buttes Chaumont; one of our favorites. Looking at your pictures you must have visited on a week day, as it did not appear at all crowded. If you go on a warm weekend, especially Sunday, you would find it at its best, with the grassy hillsides covered with blankets, covered by French families. Quite a different vibe. Also there are Guignols (puppet shows) for the kids; I love watching the kids watch the puppets!
I should also mention, in case anyone else wants to see the park, that a bit of planning can make your visit less stressful, especially if you have physical limitations. If you want to enjoy the park by walking downhill, rather than up, head for the Botzaris Metro stop. That is at the highest point in the park, so you can take the easy way down, or across bridges to high points like the Temple. Botzaris is also served by the 48 and 60 bus lines, IIRC. One last note, if you use the Metro be sure to find the elevator at Botzaris as it is one he!! of a climb up the stairs to the surface.
I'm glad you enjoyed Park Buttes Chaumont; one of our favorites. Looking at your pictures you must have visited on a week day, as it did not appear at all crowded. If you go on a warm weekend, especially Sunday, you would find it at its best, with the grassy hillsides covered with blankets, covered by French families. Quite a different vibe. Also there are Guignols (puppet shows) for the kids; I love watching the kids watch the puppets!
I should also mention, in case anyone else wants to see the park, that a bit of planning can make your visit less stressful, especially if you have physical limitations. If you want to enjoy the park by walking downhill, rather than up, head for the Botzaris Metro stop. That is at the highest point in the park, so you can take the easy way down, or across bridges to high points like the Temple. Botzaris is also served by the 48 and 60 bus lines, IIRC. One last note, if you use the Metro be sure to find the elevator at Botzaris as it is one he!! of a climb up the stairs to the surface.
Mar 9th, 2017, 10:06 AM
#186
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So enjoyable touring the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont via your TR. There are so many things in Paris which we have yet to enjoy. Glad you, too, experienced perfect weather. Thanks again for the great report!
Mar 20th, 2017, 04:16 AM
#187
Original Poster
Only one more after this.
This was a day trip we had booked in 2014, but the plague I contracted forced us to cancel our plans (you see, I didn't infect everybody). There were no such concerns today. Tracy and I hopped on our tour bus at 9:15 and headed toward the countryside where we would visit two magnificent châteaux, Château Vaux le Vicomte and Château de Fontainebleau. Not only are these châteaux magnificent, but unlike Versailles you can actually walk through them without fear of being pushed into a priceless mirror by hordes of tourists. Oh, and to cap off the day, we dined at our favorite Paris restaurant. It doesn’t get much better than this!
Since today's verbiage would make no sense without photos, please click the link and enjoy our story (with photos) of what might have been the best day of our journey.
<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-seventeen-nous-visitons-deux-chateaux-marveilleux/</B>
This was a day trip we had booked in 2014, but the plague I contracted forced us to cancel our plans (you see, I didn't infect everybody). There were no such concerns today. Tracy and I hopped on our tour bus at 9:15 and headed toward the countryside where we would visit two magnificent châteaux, Château Vaux le Vicomte and Château de Fontainebleau. Not only are these châteaux magnificent, but unlike Versailles you can actually walk through them without fear of being pushed into a priceless mirror by hordes of tourists. Oh, and to cap off the day, we dined at our favorite Paris restaurant. It doesn’t get much better than this!
Since today's verbiage would make no sense without photos, please click the link and enjoy our story (with photos) of what might have been the best day of our journey.
<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-seventeen-nous-visitons-deux-chateaux-marveilleux/</B>
Mar 21st, 2017, 08:50 AM
#191
Original Poster
"Your puns can be real groaners"
irishface...Think of poor Tracy...she has to listen to them every day.
I will have to come up with new ones so Kim doesn't drive us off the road in Scotland...he's had to hear them for the last 47 years (first guy I met at SDSU).
Upon reflection, the two châteaux day ranks high on our all-time France list. I know that Versailles is where everyone wants to go, but visiting Château de Fontainebleau, which is truly beautiful, makes (to us anyway) for a much better overall experience. In any event, thankfully only one more day to go on this thing. For those of you left..thanks for the nice comments.
Every time we leave Paris, we think maybe this is our last time, but then I do a trip report and all I do is yearn to go back to Paris.
irishface...Think of poor Tracy...she has to listen to them every day.
I will have to come up with new ones so Kim doesn't drive us off the road in Scotland...he's had to hear them for the last 47 years (first guy I met at SDSU). Upon reflection, the two châteaux day ranks high on our all-time France list. I know that Versailles is where everyone wants to go, but visiting Château de Fontainebleau, which is truly beautiful, makes (to us anyway) for a much better overall experience. In any event, thankfully only one more day to go on this thing. For those of you left..thanks for the nice comments.
Every time we leave Paris, we think maybe this is our last time, but then I do a trip report and all I do is yearn to go back to Paris.
Mar 21st, 2017, 09:08 AM
#192
Tom, despite many visits to Paris I've never made it to either of these chateaux - did you book the tour long in advance? do you think that it was better than trying to get there by yourselves? did you get long enough at each place?
Thanks anyway for prompting my interest in visiting them.
Thanks anyway for prompting my interest in visiting them.
Mar 21st, 2017, 10:10 AM
#193
Original Poster
Hi annhig...We booked about six or seven weeks before our visit.. You get more than enough time for both. I liked it because for once I didn't have to mess with figuring out which train to catch and how to get transportation from one chateau to the other. I kind of liked having someone else deal with the details (it doesn't happen often). If I were just to do one, I would choose Château de Fontainebleau, but both were good.
Mar 21st, 2017, 10:20 AM
#194
thanks Tom. I have to say as I get older (!) the idea of having someone else deal with the tedious organising while I just enjoy myself becomes more and more appealing. I'll be remembering what you said about it if/when we get to Paris again.
Mar 22nd, 2017, 02:45 AM
#195
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As always, I have enjoyed your report immensely. I shared this with my sister-in-law as she and my brother are going to Paris for the first time next month.
She absolutely loved it and couldn't wait for your last installment.
She absolutely loved it and couldn't wait for your last installment.
Apr 3rd, 2017, 11:42 AM
#196
Original Poster
Yes, the Trip Report is now complete! Here's our last day in Paris. As always, click the link below for the story with photos.
<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-eighteen-last-tango-paris/</B>
Day Eighteen – The InTents Place de la Concorde, I’m Thinking Here, Sac It To Me, Canal Zone, Master Locks, Where’s The Beef, I’m Here For The Soup, Mai Tai Tracy’s Kitchen Suffers A Setback, Dinner Outside My Comfort Zone, The CDG Macaron Thief, No Oxygen Required and Final Thoughts
We woke up early realizing this would be our last day in France, and for the fourth consecutive day the weather in Paris was our best friend. After a much needed coffee and pastry, it was back on the metro and before you could say “I really need another Pain au Chocolat,” we were standing on the Pont de la Concorde, looking out over the river. I told Tracy it looked so gorgeous I should dive in, and she replied I’d be in Seine to do that.
It was a short walk to the Pace de la Concorde, the largest square in Paris. In the 1830s statues and fountains were added thanks to architect Jacques Ignace Hittorff. Among the statues of eight French cities at each angle of the Place de la Concorde (well, it is an octagon) are ones representing Nantes and Bordeaux.
La Fontaine des Mers commemorates France’s Maritime Trade and Industry. The sculptures represent the Rhine and the Rhone Rivers, as well as Grapes and Wheat Crop and symbolize France’s Spirit of Navigation, Agriculture and Industry.
It’s just not a trip to Paris without a picture of the famous Obelisk. I asked Tracy if it had a name, and she answered Luxor. Although I looked and looked, I couldn’t find any slot machines, because this 3,000 year-old obelisk actually came from the Luxor Temple in Egypt, not the cheesy Vegas hotel.
An event happening on this day included numerous tents occupying much of the Place de Concorde, so it was time to depart in search of food before we visited that Contemplating Guy statue.
After a nondescript breakfast, we entered the Sculpture Garden of Musée Rodin, with Napoléon’s final resting place in the background.
Of course, like most visitors, we paid our respects to the bronzed Le Penseur.
As I looked at him, I pondered who he was modeled after, but it was really too lovely a morning to do much pondering.
We also stopped by to see the Monument to Balzac, whose multi-volume collection, The Human Comedy, could be the title of many of our misadventures while traveling. Unfortunately on this day I didn’t see him in his best light.
We traversed the gardens out back for a bit…
...before entering the museum (gardens and museum €10). The Hôtel Biron (which houses the Musée Rodin) had undergone an extensive interior renovation since our last visit. We had never really enjoyed the interior of the old museum, but they did a great job in making this a place to wander through easily.
I believe this large sculpture was welcoming us to his new digs.
In 1879, Rodin entered a competition for a public monument to honor the French Republic…the result…a fierce-looking bust of Bellona, the Roman goddess of war.
Channeling my inner Hall & Oates, I told Tracy, “The Kiss is on my list to see.”
As it turned out, one of the lovers’ husband reportedly sang, “I can’t go for that; she’s a maneater, and I’ve lost that loving feeling.” From the museum website, “The Kiss originally represented Paolo and Francesca, two characters borrowed, once again, from Dante’s Divine Comedy: slain by Francesca’s husband who surprised them as they exchanged their first kiss, the two lovers were condemned to wander eternally through Hell.” After killing her, I wonder if Francesca’s husband shouted, “She’s gone!”
We ran into the “Mini-Thinker” (not his real name)…
…and a guy who was in really good shape, except for that missing head thing.
A painting caught our eye, Van Gogh’s Vue du Viaduc A Arles Ou Le Train Bleu. Hey, sometimes it’s hard to come up with a title. We also viewed Van Gogh’s The Harvest. I couldn’t tell whether it had been cropped.
It was back to sculptures with the Burgher of Calais. Suddenly, I was in the mood to go to In-N-Out.
When I asked this guy the name of his sculpture, he didn’t know the answer.
I very much enjoyed L’Âge mûr (The Mature Age), by Camille Claudel, the woman Rodin refused to marry. This works shows her pleading on her knees for Rodin to come back to her instead of going back to his wife. There is a plaster version of this at Musée d’Orsay.
Back outside were The Three Shades, whose name sounds like a 1950s doo-wop group in need of a lead singer named “The Lamp.” In actuality, “in Dante’s Divine Comedy, the shades, i.e. the souls of the damned, stand at the entrance to Hell, pointing to an unequivocal inscription, ‘Abandon hope, all ye who enter here’.”
Colorful flowers abounded…
…and we bounded out to catch a metro to our next destination.
This beautiful day called for us visit Basilica du Sacre-Coeur de Montmartre. Those stairs stared us right in the eye, beckoning us to dare the cardiac fates on our last day.
Tracy looked at those stairs. I looked at Tracy. A few minutes later we boarded the funicular (one metro ticket each way…and well worth it) to the top.
Before heading up, we took the last selfie we will ever take of ourselves. I had to stand back so as to not take up the entire frame of the picture. It was also at this point I realized by sunglasses have been crooked for our past few trips. I hate selfies!
Unfortunately, the “impressionist haze” our guide Michael Osman told us about years ago made photos of the city from the church useless.
We wandered throughout Sacre-Coeur with hundreds of our closest friends in tow.
As we exited there was a sign that no photography was allowed inside.
I guess all these people taking photos makes the “photo police” a little more lax in their enforcement. I shutter to think what would happen had we been caught.
Heading back to the funicular, I caught a glimpse of a cute church out of the corner of my eye. Saint Pierre de Montmartre church is one of the oldest churches in Paris. Constructed on the site of a Roman temple and a 7th-century Merovingian church, it was consecrated in 1147. The Merovingians dynasty lasted for about 300 years between the 5th and 8th century, but just like UConn’s women’s basketball team, the dynasty eventually ended.
After descending, Tracy window-shopped while I contemplated our next stop.
In 2014, while I was in the middle of my plague-infested final week, we visited the Canal Saint-Martin and walked from Jaurès metro station along the Basin de la Villette to the Parc de Villette (photos from 2014).
This time, we’d head the other direction toward République. Just outside the Jaurès metro stop a mini-tent city was a stark reminder that a tourist’s view of Paris is quite different than those from other countries who seek asylum.
My first thought as we walked along Canal Saint-Martin toward République: “It’s much lovelier when you’re not hacking up a lung.”
When we reached one point, it was a lock that something big was about to happen because a group of people were standing on a bridge and none of them were looking to see if Billie Joe McAllister was going to throw something off of it.
Instead, on this section of the nearly 4.5 kilometer long canal, a lock (and not the kind that people stupidly put on bridges) enabled a boat coming down the canal to continue on its journey.
As the throng grew larger, the locks did its job, and the boat, along with the rest of us, went about our merry way.
Just like Los Angeles that has seen areas previously devoid of visitors now becoming popular dining meccas, it seems this section of the Canal Saint-Martin has become a haven for hipsters and is also going through a period of gentrification. We were going to eat at a recommended place on one corner, but it was already packed. Those hipsters are everywhere.
It was time for a major decision. Thanks to our infamous Air France strike in 2014, we missed our traditional lunch at Chez Fernand in the 6th arrondissement on that trip. Metro here we come. I, of course, had to say hello to my main man St. Michael first (I hope he doesn’t know I’m a Presbyterian). I mean the guy helped save my life…I think.
At Chez Fernand on rue Christine, it was time to smell the bœuf bourguignon. Although we didn’t get our usual table (some damned tourists beat us to it…who do they think they are?…photo on right from 2012 at “our” table)…
…I thoroughly enjoyed my escargot, although I was slightly tong-impaired on this afternoon making diners near us a little nervous that a shell might be flying in their immediate vicinity. My beef was terrific, as usual.
Tracy’s roasted chicken and mashed potatoes were also delicious, but our shared dessert garnered the big “Wow.”
Lava cake might be a trite dessert on some menus (see the movie “Chef”), but this lava cake paired with an out-of-this-galaxy salted caramel ice cream melted into “heaven on our taste buds.” Before we could take a photo, it was safely ensconced in our stomachs.
Before leaving, Tracy got into a conversation with a couple of Brits (on this trip “Brexit” seemed to be all the English taking a holiday in France), who told her that they travel from London to Paris just to eat Chez Fernand’s French Onion Soup. Now that’s an expensive bowl of soup.
We happily and contentedly departed Chez Fernand, however little did we know that heartbreak loomed only a few minutes away for my wife.
First, the shop located near Chez Fernand selling earrings that Tracy purchases on each trip no longer was in business. I thought about taking her to a pub to drown her sorrows, but she was intent on visiting a store on the other side of the Seine.
We hopped on the metro and headed for the Madeleine metro stop. As an aside, on one of these trips I might just spend part of the day visiting the coolest metro stations in Paris…kinda weird, but it sounds fun to me.
One of the things Tracy relishes most from our Paris trips is our final day stop at Hédiard, a luxury food store across from L’église de la Madeleine (photos below from one of our previous trips). Hédiard is where she stocks up on Herbes de Provence for Mai Tai Tracy’s Kitchen.
The closer we got to Hédiard, the bleaker it appeared for her favorite herbs. Sure enough, we read the words that brought Tracy to tears (ok, the photo is staged).
As I tried to comfort my wife, we walked aimlessly, finally finding ourselves back near the Garden of Two Larrys. Tracy looked up and saw a restaurant sign. She said, “The way you’re eating on this trip, that might become your nickname.” I knew all was better in the world, and that the trip was nearing its end.
In the metro, we heard our favorite band one more time. I plunked down a couple of euros.
That night we strolled past a colorful gallery…
…through the Place des Vosges…
…to our favorite Parisian haunt, L’Ange 20.
As you can see in my review of L’Ange 20, Christopher (our amiable waiter) once again had me straying outside my food comfort zone, and I was (as Maxwell Smart would put it) “Loving it!”
The next morning it was off to CDG, where our cameras disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 2009 when we hurriedly changed planes en route from Rome to L.A. For those who didn’t read that trip report (Rome 2009), we had our cameras stolen by a fake security guy, only to remarkably have them found by our friend and amateur sleuth Joanne (aka Emma Peel) two days later (long story, read the report).
Well, we decided to buy her a gift, and when we saw a Ladurée cart in the airport, we thought we’d buy her a key chain with macarons and an Eiffel Tower.
When we got home, Tracy put the box aside until Christmas. When she got it out to wrap, she said that the box felt “a little light.” Sure enough, when we opened Emma Peel’s present, the box was empty. He had given us the display case box. If you see this guy, tell him we want what’s “inside” the box!
After Squirrley and I bid au revoir to a miniature Eiffel Tower, we settled into our seats for the flight home.
Air France was ecstatic not to have a repeat of the below scene that happened on our last flight home from Paris (Greenland looks a whole lot different while sucking oxygen).
Our trip was now officially over with memories galore.
From Burgundy…
..to Provence…
…to Uzés and its surrounding area
…to our stop in historic Nîmes…
…to the beauty of the Languedoc area near Pézenas…
…to Paris
…and the châteaux…
…it had been another eventful journey with great sights, terrific weather, impeccable lodging and marvelous meals. Our bases in Beaune, Bonnieux, Uzés and Pezénas were perfect for the areas we visited. I recommend all four of those properties highly, and they all rank among the best places we have ever stayed in Europe (or anywhere else for that matter).
The countryside was gorgeous, and the vin rouge plentiful. Was it a little too relaxing for us? Maybe, but who’s complaining?
<B>Enjoy The Journey! Attitude Is Everything!</B>
<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-eighteen-last-tango-paris/</B>
Day Eighteen – The InTents Place de la Concorde, I’m Thinking Here, Sac It To Me, Canal Zone, Master Locks, Where’s The Beef, I’m Here For The Soup, Mai Tai Tracy’s Kitchen Suffers A Setback, Dinner Outside My Comfort Zone, The CDG Macaron Thief, No Oxygen Required and Final Thoughts
We woke up early realizing this would be our last day in France, and for the fourth consecutive day the weather in Paris was our best friend. After a much needed coffee and pastry, it was back on the metro and before you could say “I really need another Pain au Chocolat,” we were standing on the Pont de la Concorde, looking out over the river. I told Tracy it looked so gorgeous I should dive in, and she replied I’d be in Seine to do that.
It was a short walk to the Pace de la Concorde, the largest square in Paris. In the 1830s statues and fountains were added thanks to architect Jacques Ignace Hittorff. Among the statues of eight French cities at each angle of the Place de la Concorde (well, it is an octagon) are ones representing Nantes and Bordeaux.
La Fontaine des Mers commemorates France’s Maritime Trade and Industry. The sculptures represent the Rhine and the Rhone Rivers, as well as Grapes and Wheat Crop and symbolize France’s Spirit of Navigation, Agriculture and Industry.
It’s just not a trip to Paris without a picture of the famous Obelisk. I asked Tracy if it had a name, and she answered Luxor. Although I looked and looked, I couldn’t find any slot machines, because this 3,000 year-old obelisk actually came from the Luxor Temple in Egypt, not the cheesy Vegas hotel.
An event happening on this day included numerous tents occupying much of the Place de Concorde, so it was time to depart in search of food before we visited that Contemplating Guy statue.
After a nondescript breakfast, we entered the Sculpture Garden of Musée Rodin, with Napoléon’s final resting place in the background.
Of course, like most visitors, we paid our respects to the bronzed Le Penseur.
As I looked at him, I pondered who he was modeled after, but it was really too lovely a morning to do much pondering.
We also stopped by to see the Monument to Balzac, whose multi-volume collection, The Human Comedy, could be the title of many of our misadventures while traveling. Unfortunately on this day I didn’t see him in his best light.
We traversed the gardens out back for a bit…
...before entering the museum (gardens and museum €10). The Hôtel Biron (which houses the Musée Rodin) had undergone an extensive interior renovation since our last visit. We had never really enjoyed the interior of the old museum, but they did a great job in making this a place to wander through easily.
I believe this large sculpture was welcoming us to his new digs.
In 1879, Rodin entered a competition for a public monument to honor the French Republic…the result…a fierce-looking bust of Bellona, the Roman goddess of war.
Channeling my inner Hall & Oates, I told Tracy, “The Kiss is on my list to see.”
As it turned out, one of the lovers’ husband reportedly sang, “I can’t go for that; she’s a maneater, and I’ve lost that loving feeling.” From the museum website, “The Kiss originally represented Paolo and Francesca, two characters borrowed, once again, from Dante’s Divine Comedy: slain by Francesca’s husband who surprised them as they exchanged their first kiss, the two lovers were condemned to wander eternally through Hell.” After killing her, I wonder if Francesca’s husband shouted, “She’s gone!”
We ran into the “Mini-Thinker” (not his real name)…
…and a guy who was in really good shape, except for that missing head thing.
A painting caught our eye, Van Gogh’s Vue du Viaduc A Arles Ou Le Train Bleu. Hey, sometimes it’s hard to come up with a title. We also viewed Van Gogh’s The Harvest. I couldn’t tell whether it had been cropped.
It was back to sculptures with the Burgher of Calais. Suddenly, I was in the mood to go to In-N-Out.
When I asked this guy the name of his sculpture, he didn’t know the answer.
I very much enjoyed L’Âge mûr (The Mature Age), by Camille Claudel, the woman Rodin refused to marry. This works shows her pleading on her knees for Rodin to come back to her instead of going back to his wife. There is a plaster version of this at Musée d’Orsay.
Back outside were The Three Shades, whose name sounds like a 1950s doo-wop group in need of a lead singer named “The Lamp.” In actuality, “in Dante’s Divine Comedy, the shades, i.e. the souls of the damned, stand at the entrance to Hell, pointing to an unequivocal inscription, ‘Abandon hope, all ye who enter here’.”
Colorful flowers abounded…
…and we bounded out to catch a metro to our next destination.
This beautiful day called for us visit Basilica du Sacre-Coeur de Montmartre. Those stairs stared us right in the eye, beckoning us to dare the cardiac fates on our last day.
Tracy looked at those stairs. I looked at Tracy. A few minutes later we boarded the funicular (one metro ticket each way…and well worth it) to the top.
Before heading up, we took the last selfie we will ever take of ourselves. I had to stand back so as to not take up the entire frame of the picture. It was also at this point I realized by sunglasses have been crooked for our past few trips. I hate selfies!
Unfortunately, the “impressionist haze” our guide Michael Osman told us about years ago made photos of the city from the church useless.
We wandered throughout Sacre-Coeur with hundreds of our closest friends in tow.
As we exited there was a sign that no photography was allowed inside.
I guess all these people taking photos makes the “photo police” a little more lax in their enforcement. I shutter to think what would happen had we been caught.
Heading back to the funicular, I caught a glimpse of a cute church out of the corner of my eye. Saint Pierre de Montmartre church is one of the oldest churches in Paris. Constructed on the site of a Roman temple and a 7th-century Merovingian church, it was consecrated in 1147. The Merovingians dynasty lasted for about 300 years between the 5th and 8th century, but just like UConn’s women’s basketball team, the dynasty eventually ended.
After descending, Tracy window-shopped while I contemplated our next stop.
In 2014, while I was in the middle of my plague-infested final week, we visited the Canal Saint-Martin and walked from Jaurès metro station along the Basin de la Villette to the Parc de Villette (photos from 2014).
This time, we’d head the other direction toward République. Just outside the Jaurès metro stop a mini-tent city was a stark reminder that a tourist’s view of Paris is quite different than those from other countries who seek asylum.
My first thought as we walked along Canal Saint-Martin toward République: “It’s much lovelier when you’re not hacking up a lung.”
When we reached one point, it was a lock that something big was about to happen because a group of people were standing on a bridge and none of them were looking to see if Billie Joe McAllister was going to throw something off of it.
Instead, on this section of the nearly 4.5 kilometer long canal, a lock (and not the kind that people stupidly put on bridges) enabled a boat coming down the canal to continue on its journey.
As the throng grew larger, the locks did its job, and the boat, along with the rest of us, went about our merry way.
Just like Los Angeles that has seen areas previously devoid of visitors now becoming popular dining meccas, it seems this section of the Canal Saint-Martin has become a haven for hipsters and is also going through a period of gentrification. We were going to eat at a recommended place on one corner, but it was already packed. Those hipsters are everywhere.
It was time for a major decision. Thanks to our infamous Air France strike in 2014, we missed our traditional lunch at Chez Fernand in the 6th arrondissement on that trip. Metro here we come. I, of course, had to say hello to my main man St. Michael first (I hope he doesn’t know I’m a Presbyterian). I mean the guy helped save my life…I think.
At Chez Fernand on rue Christine, it was time to smell the bœuf bourguignon. Although we didn’t get our usual table (some damned tourists beat us to it…who do they think they are?…photo on right from 2012 at “our” table)…
…I thoroughly enjoyed my escargot, although I was slightly tong-impaired on this afternoon making diners near us a little nervous that a shell might be flying in their immediate vicinity. My beef was terrific, as usual.
Tracy’s roasted chicken and mashed potatoes were also delicious, but our shared dessert garnered the big “Wow.”
Lava cake might be a trite dessert on some menus (see the movie “Chef”), but this lava cake paired with an out-of-this-galaxy salted caramel ice cream melted into “heaven on our taste buds.” Before we could take a photo, it was safely ensconced in our stomachs.
Before leaving, Tracy got into a conversation with a couple of Brits (on this trip “Brexit” seemed to be all the English taking a holiday in France), who told her that they travel from London to Paris just to eat Chez Fernand’s French Onion Soup. Now that’s an expensive bowl of soup.
We happily and contentedly departed Chez Fernand, however little did we know that heartbreak loomed only a few minutes away for my wife.
First, the shop located near Chez Fernand selling earrings that Tracy purchases on each trip no longer was in business. I thought about taking her to a pub to drown her sorrows, but she was intent on visiting a store on the other side of the Seine.
We hopped on the metro and headed for the Madeleine metro stop. As an aside, on one of these trips I might just spend part of the day visiting the coolest metro stations in Paris…kinda weird, but it sounds fun to me.
One of the things Tracy relishes most from our Paris trips is our final day stop at Hédiard, a luxury food store across from L’église de la Madeleine (photos below from one of our previous trips). Hédiard is where she stocks up on Herbes de Provence for Mai Tai Tracy’s Kitchen.
The closer we got to Hédiard, the bleaker it appeared for her favorite herbs. Sure enough, we read the words that brought Tracy to tears (ok, the photo is staged).
As I tried to comfort my wife, we walked aimlessly, finally finding ourselves back near the Garden of Two Larrys. Tracy looked up and saw a restaurant sign. She said, “The way you’re eating on this trip, that might become your nickname.” I knew all was better in the world, and that the trip was nearing its end.
In the metro, we heard our favorite band one more time. I plunked down a couple of euros.
That night we strolled past a colorful gallery…
…through the Place des Vosges…
…to our favorite Parisian haunt, L’Ange 20.
As you can see in my review of L’Ange 20, Christopher (our amiable waiter) once again had me straying outside my food comfort zone, and I was (as Maxwell Smart would put it) “Loving it!”
The next morning it was off to CDG, where our cameras disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 2009 when we hurriedly changed planes en route from Rome to L.A. For those who didn’t read that trip report (Rome 2009), we had our cameras stolen by a fake security guy, only to remarkably have them found by our friend and amateur sleuth Joanne (aka Emma Peel) two days later (long story, read the report).
Well, we decided to buy her a gift, and when we saw a Ladurée cart in the airport, we thought we’d buy her a key chain with macarons and an Eiffel Tower.
When we got home, Tracy put the box aside until Christmas. When she got it out to wrap, she said that the box felt “a little light.” Sure enough, when we opened Emma Peel’s present, the box was empty. He had given us the display case box. If you see this guy, tell him we want what’s “inside” the box!
After Squirrley and I bid au revoir to a miniature Eiffel Tower, we settled into our seats for the flight home.
Air France was ecstatic not to have a repeat of the below scene that happened on our last flight home from Paris (Greenland looks a whole lot different while sucking oxygen).
Our trip was now officially over with memories galore.
From Burgundy…
..to Provence…
…to Uzés and its surrounding area
…to our stop in historic Nîmes…
…to the beauty of the Languedoc area near Pézenas…
…to Paris
…and the châteaux…
…it had been another eventful journey with great sights, terrific weather, impeccable lodging and marvelous meals. Our bases in Beaune, Bonnieux, Uzés and Pezénas were perfect for the areas we visited. I recommend all four of those properties highly, and they all rank among the best places we have ever stayed in Europe (or anywhere else for that matter).
The countryside was gorgeous, and the vin rouge plentiful. Was it a little too relaxing for us? Maybe, but who’s complaining?
<B>Enjoy The Journey! Attitude Is Everything!</B>
Apr 3rd, 2017, 08:02 PM
#200
Original Poster
Thanks everyone...Tracy told me to never take that long to write a trip report again.
"...Where to next?"
John we're heading to London, Edinburgh and the Scottish countryside later this spring. I just don't know which kilts to take.
"...Where to next?"
John we're heading to London, Edinburgh and the Scottish countryside later this spring. I just don't know which kilts to take.
