That's A Wrap

This is the final entry in our travel blog.  As I write this, I'm watching CBC news with a heavy heart as they report on the tragic events in Paris.  Paris is one of our favourite cities. There is a myth that Parisians are rude, but we've never encountered this attitude. Paris is a multicultural city and its citizens do not deserve this attack by a group of sub-human rejects. May they end up in hell for the rest of eternity.

First we would like to think our travel companions who made this trip so memorable.  They were John and Ellen Kelly from Australia, Sue and Dave Fahrner from London Ontario and Joan and Ken Rockburne from Belleville Ontario.  Their relaxed approach to travelling and their tremendous sense of humour made this a vacation that we will remember for a lifetime.

We would also like to thank the crew of the Scenic Sapphire, who provided wonderful service that made this a five star experience.

We would also like to thank our good friend John Brunet from Ottawa for persuading me to listen to Marg and go to Belgium.  It was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. On the opposite end of the scale though, John did give us that damn European chip for the GPS that caused us no end of headaches.  I still have nightmares about driving down the wrong way on buses only streets.

Vacation By The Numbers

Distance traveled by planes  -  12,700 km
Distance traveled by boat  - 400 km
Distance traveled by car   - 1500 km
Distance traveled by train  - 600

Trip took thirty seven days
Travelled in two countries
Visited thirty four cities or villages

Our Favourite City / Town / Location :

Brian : Paris.  It is one of the top cities in the world. It has everything that you would look for when visiting a city.  A close second would be the Chateau de Cormartin.  It is an amazing intimate look at life in 17th century France

Marg : It was a toss up between Vimy Ridge and Belgium.  Vimy Ridge because of its serenity and Belgium for all those things that make a vacation memorable.

Our Favourite Memory :

Brian : Dinner at the Pope's Palace in Avignon.  The atmosphere doesn't get any better than this.

Marg : The Organ recital at the cathedral in Viviers.  Magical.

Our Top Tip :

Brian : If you are renting a car, don't use the onboard GPS units or your own Garmin.  Instead try the mapping applications on your smart phone or go old school and use a map.

Marg : Look out for street crime.  Don't go to an ATM alone and don't engage with the Gypsies without holding onto your purse.

Twenty Five Things We’ve Learned About France and Belgium

1. 2015 is supposed to be a great vintage for wine because of the dry summer they've had in southern France.
2. ABC stands for either "Another bloody castle" or "Another big church"
3. Walking in a war cemetery makes everything else seem insignificant  
4. Flemish people in Belgium make Canadians seem downright rude by comparison
5. It is next to impossible to find a mediocre bottle of wine, but cheap wine is still cheap wine
6. It is also impossible to be on a diet in France
7. Finding a cell phone service is easy and cheap.  Getting the right codes to enable people from home to send you texts is hard
8. When someone sneezes onboard a river boat, run for cover !
9. Only a seven course meal would have a bite-sized hors d'œuvre called "amuse a bouche" or "fun in the mouth"
10. All of France and Belgium is an UNESCO Heritage Site
11. Despite not following any rules of the road, Paris drivers seem to have fewer accidents than Toronto drivers
12. After awhile historical buildings seem to become the norm
13. During multiple visits to vineyards, you can only be instructed in how to sniff wine so many times before it become laughable
14. A manbun on a semi bald male is the most ridiculous fashion for men that we've seen in a long time, actually all manbuns look dumb 
15. Graffiti, the urban blight, has spread to rural areas
16. There must be an art to walking on cobblestone paths with high heels
17. Greeting a salesperson or restaurant staff in French will always get a smile in France
18. When crossing the street in France act like you own the road, then be very careful
19. In a restaurant don’t expect to have a bread and butter plate
20. They have the most expensive sidewalk cafes ever
21. When using the rest rooms be prepared for a new experience every time.  
22. You have to eat "moules et frites" while in Belgium
23. Paris is a very busy tourist city, even at the end of the tourist season
24. Most Dijion mustards are really, really HOT
25. Never get in a cab in Nice, when the driver burns rubber getting to the taxi stand

Photos and Videos

Here are links to some more of our favourite photos.  We choose these pictures based on the personal memories that they invoked, the historical or cultural importance of the location, the reflection of the locality or the beauty of the scene.

Once you've opened the link you can either click on a picture and use the cursor keys on the keyboard to scan through the photos or click on the slideshow button and view the photos without any intervention..

Our Travel Partners

Antwerp

Ardeche National Park

Avignon

Beaune

Brugge

Chateau de Cormatin

Cluny

Dieppe

Djion

Fecamp

Fountainebleu

Ghent

Giverny

Honfluer

Juno Beach

Lille

Lyon

Mont Saint Michel

Monte Carlo

Nice

Paris

Rouen

St. Maries del la Mer

St. Remy

Tournon

Vimy Ridge

Viviers





Below are some links to internet based videos from places we've visited on this vacation

Scenic Cruise

Paris

Rouen

Brugge

Antwerp

Ghent

Honfluer

Juno Beach Centre

Mont Saint Michel

Dijion

Beaune

Chateau de Cormartin

Cluny Abbey

Ardeche Train Ride

Avignon

Perouges

Flamingos at Camargue National Park

Monaco

Our cruise director during his daily information session would often show humorous clips from the internet.  Here are two of the videos that stand out in my memory.

A dig at the Scottish accent

A song for those flying out of Nice on Easyjet

October 21 - The End Is Near

So it ends, not with a bang but with a whimper.  We left Paris for Roissey, which is close to Charles de Gaulle airport.  We are stayed at the Millennium Hotel which is rated between a four star hotel and two and a half stars.  I would give it two and half stars.

The reception was inviting and bright and the front desk staff are polite and efficient.  The room was unfortunately showing its age.  Although it was clean, it was very worn in many places.

Also the internet was not available.  I tried many configurations but none of them would allow me to connect to their network.  They keep saying that they had contacted their technical support but they wouldn't allow me to talk to them, which might have enable me to resolve this problem.  Luckily the Best Western next store had a strong signal and I was able to connect through them.

The restaurant is an Irish Pub and the food was better than your average airport hotel.  In fact Marg thought the dessert was as good as last nights birthday treat.

Marg has started coming down with the cold that is going around.  She thought she had beaten the odds but the bug caught her at the last moment.

We heard from Sue and Dave and they made it back to London Ontario safely.  They've not been able to shake this cough and cold, so they are going to see their doctor.

Tomorrow we are off the Toronto and then to Ottawa for a wedding.

It has been a blast.

October 20 - Marg's Birthday

This is our last full day in Paris.  It is hard to believe that more than five weeks has gone by since we arrived in France.  We have no regrets though.  We've seen all we wanted to see, done everything we wanted to do and experienced a vacation of a lifetime.

Today is Marg’s birthday.  So she decided that she wanted to go Montmartre to see the artists and have lunch at an outdoor bistro.  Later she wanted to take a stroll underneath the Eiffel Tower.  This would be followed with a nice dinner to complete the day and the trip.

We went to Montmartre by Metro.  It was a little scary because we were given the once over by a gang of thieves / pickpockets.  When three of them followed us from the entrance tunnel to the station platform, we stared at them and they left us alone.  I guess they realized that element of surprise would be lacking and the platform was too crowded to try anything violent.

Crime in Paris is similar to that in most large cities. Violent crime is relatively rare in the city center. Pick pocketing is by far the most significant problem. In addition to purses and wallets, smart phones and small electronic devices are particular targets. In Paris, pickpockets are commonly children under the age of 16 because they are difficult to prosecute. Pickpockets are very active on the rail link from Charles de Gaulle Airport to the city center. You may want to consider using a shuttle service or one of the express buses to central Paris rather than the RER. In addition, passengers are often targeted on Metro Line 1, which traverses the city center from east to west and services many major tourist sites. Schemes to distract and rob victims, such as asking if you would sign a petition or take a survey, are common and change often. A frequent method is for one thief to distract the tourist with questions or disturbances, while an accomplice pickpockets a backpack or a purse. Thieves may time their pickpocket attempts to coincide with the closing of the automatic doors on the metro, leaving the victim trapped on the departing train.

Many thefts also occur at the major department stores where tourists may leave wallets, passports, and credit cards on cashier counters during transactions. Thieves use popular tourist sites and congested areas to mask their activities. The crowded elevators at the Eiffel Tower, escalators at museums such as the Louvre, and the area surrounding Sacré Coeur Basilica in Montmartre are all favored by pickpockets and snatch-and-grab thieves.

The area around the Moulin Rouge, known as Pigalle, requires extra security precautions to avoid becoming a victim. Pigalle is an adult entertainment area known for sex shows, prostitution, and illegal drugs. Unsuspecting tourists have run up exorbitant bar bills and been forced to pay before being permitted to leave. Les Halles and the Bois de Boulogne are other areas in Paris where extra security precautions are warranted after dark.

When you get off the subway at Montmartre, you need to be in good shape.  The elevators are broken so you need to climb about one hundred steps to get out of the station and on to the street.

Artist in Montmartre

It was cold and damp at Montmartre, so eating outside became a non-issue.   So did getting our portraits done.  We hadn't thought about how we would transport the sketch around Paris without it getting torn or wet.

We walked around Montmartre for about an hour, just looking at the art galleries and painters who were braving the elements.  We even passed a fashion photo shoot in one of the small passageways.

We then went to the Opera district for lunch.  We ate the Manior Cafe.  I only mention this because we saw the most disgusting display of hygiene there.  The manager took the bread from the basket of a recently vacated table and put it into the bread basket that would be used at the next available table.  With half of Paris coughing and sneezing this borders on just plain stupid.

Atrium in Galeries Lafayette

After that we walked over to the Galeries Lafayette.  This is a huge mall where every famous designer has their own kiosk.  As you would expect the prices are out of this world.  What makes this so amazing though is when you wonder through the kiosks you enter a spectacular atrium.  The atrium is breathtaking in its beauty.  The roof is a massive blue stained glass piece of art.  Each of the five balconies is surrounded by ornate gold railings.

Atrium in Galeries Lafayette

To conclude the afternoon we strolled down the Champs des Mars and had a wonderful time just relaxing and staring at the Eiffel Tower.  I hope it is still standing when our great grandchildren are old enough to visit.  The Eiffel Tower has that special magic.

For dinner with we were joined by Joan and Rocky at the LeBistrot de Maëlle et Augustin II.  Our wine was from a vineyard near Tournon that we could see from the cruiseship.  It was a Croze-Hermitage from Paul Jaboulet Aîné.  Marg had scallops, with mushrooms and seasonal vegetables cooked in a lavender broth that turned the vegetables purple.  It tasted a lot better than it looked.  I had cod seasoned with fennel, dill and honey and cooked over a white bean paste.  Both meals were really good.  Joan had crispy Duck and Rocky had lamb.  I’m not sure how they would rate their meals.  For dessert Marg had this huge chocolate parfait/pudding/cake.  She didn’t stop smiling the entire time she ate it.

Seafood in a lavender broth

October 19 - Back In Paris

We are leaving Nice today and flying back to Paris. I had to repack my suitcase at the check in area because because it was 0.1Kg over the limit. That is how you define pain in the butt.

Nice airport is supposed to be one of the largest airports in France, but it was very small and poorly laid out.  Once we got into the departure area from the security check, we were jammed into a small common area with hundreds of other passengers and there was only one small cafe on departure floor.

About an hour before our flight left, they announced that our departure gate was in another area.  Low and behold as we entered this area we arrived in a modern airport terminal with restaurants and stores.

Joan & Marg relaxing at Hotel de Latour Maubourg

We arrived in Paris in the middle of the afternoon and are staying in Hotel de Latour Maubourg a small but quaint hotel near the Eiffel Tower and Les Invalides.  The rooms are small but they have very distinct decor.  It is almost like you are staying in a museum. 














I went out to buy some water and Coke. After walking for about twenty minutes I did find a store, but along the way I passed multiple cheese stores, bakeries, butchers and enough wine stores to stay full and satisfied for weeks.  Just no corner stores to buy water.

We met Rocky and Joan at the hotel and we went to dinner at the Bistrot du 7ème.  It was a wonderful dinner in a very swanky restaurants. I had beef and Marg had fish with a good Bordeaux wine.  It was unfortunate that their credit card reader was defective, so in order to pay our bill, I had run over to the ATM across the road and get some cash.  Cash, what a novel idea.

October 18 - Monaco

Having been in Nice last year for about a week, we decided to take a trip to Monaco for the day.

The Principality of Monaco is a sovereign city-state located on the French Riviera. France borders the country on three sides while the other side borders the Mediterranean Sea. Monaco has an area of 2 square kilometres and a population of about 37,800; it is the second smallest and the most densely populated country in the world. Monaco's most popular district is Monte Carlo. Although small, Monaco is very old and quite well known, especially because of its status as a playground for the rich and famous.

Monaco is a principality governed under a form of constitutional monarchy, with Prince Albert II as head of state. Although Prince Albert II is a constitutional monarch, he wields immense political power. The House of Grimaldi have ruled Monaco, since the thirteenth century.  The official language is French, but English are widely spoken and understood. Despite Monaco's independence and separate foreign policy, its defense is the responsibility of France. However, Monaco does maintain two small military units.

Economic development was spurred in the late 19th century with the opening of the country's first casino, Monte Carlo, and a railway connection to Paris.Since then, Monaco's mild climate, splendid scenery, and upscale gambling facilities have contributed to the principality's status as a premier tourist destination and recreation center for the rich and famous. The state has no income tax, low business taxes, and is well known for being a tax haven.

Monaco has the world's highest average salary at $190,000, and an unemployment rate of 2% with over 48,000 workers who commute from France and Italy each day.  According to the CIA World Factbook, Monaco has the world's lowest poverty rate and the highest number of millionaires and billionaires per capita in the world. For the fourth year in a row, Monaco in 2012 had the world's most expensive real estate market, at $7,400 per square foot.

You know you are in the high rent district when you see the real estate offices.  There was one listing for a four bedroom bungalow with a sea view for only 16,000,000€.  Also we passed a broker's office that specializes in selling executive jets.

Monaco harbour

We have been to the casino, so we went to royal palace instead.  It is a grand old building that is still occupied by the Prince of Monaco and his family.  Tourists are able to visit some of the older sections of the palace, including the throne room.  Marg thought that the furnishings were gaudy and over the top.  It reminded her of Graceland, Elvis Presley’s house in the Memphis, because the colours were depressing.  She was disappointed that it didn't display the style of the late Princess Grace Kelly.

The small village on top of the hill that adjoins the palace is filled with shops and restaurants.  I don’t know if anyone lives there.

We went back to Nice for supper and ate at a restaurant called Cafe de Nice.  It was a relaxing restaurant with good food.  Marg had a fish melody and I had duck.  We had a local wine from the Nice area that was OK but we’ve been spoiled by Scenic Cruises.  It may take several more meals to come back to earth. 

October 17 - Nice

Hard to believe but twenty months after we put down our first payment, our French River Cruise is over.  These two weeks went by so fast it became a blur.  Scenic promised us a five star experience and they did not let us down.  The boat was spotless, the food was outstanding, the excursions were wonderful and the staff was exceptional.

This may sound strange but despite all the great food, I think I’m going to miss the chocolate cookies that were out for each lunch, the most.

We said our goodbyes to the staff.  We are going to miss our waiter Ricardo and his assistance Sabrina. Danella and Anna who worked the lounge and got us our drinks will also be missed. Also Ishmael, who is a dead ringer for Sheldon on the Big Bang Theory and always had a big smile on his face, will be missed. Of course there were other staff, but I won’t bore you with a roster list.

Marg with Ishmael

Marg & the Captain

Of course we also had to say our goodbyes to our travelling companions. But as the cruise director said, don't be sad the trip is over, be happy you took it.

Upon debarkation, Scenic Cruises bused us from Tarascon to the Nice airport.  It was a scenic drive with mountains to the north of us and the Mediterranean Sea to the south.  It took about four hours.

John and Ellen

I really feel for Ellen and John as they head home to Australia.  They had to take the Scenic bus from Tarascon to Nice, which is about a four hour drive.  Then they had to catch a flight to Frankfurt which connected them to a flight to Singapore.  After a night’s layover they were flying to Sydney.  This is about twenty one hours of flying.  This obscene schedule is the norm for Australians.

Rocky and Joan flew to Paris from Nice.  We will catch up to them there on Monday evening.  Sue and Dave are staying in Nice for a few days before they fly home.  We will be staying in Nice for two nights before going back to Paris for Marg’s birthday.

Sue and Dave

Rock and Joan

A close bond has developed between Dave and Rocky !

Marg & Brian

Our cab ride from the Nice airport to our hotel was interesting.  The cab had only two speeds, Mach 1 and faster.

Nice is the fifth most populous city in France with a population of about 1 million people.The natural beauty of the Nice area and its mild Mediterranean climate came to the attention of the English upper classes in the second half of the 18th century, when an increasing number of aristocratic families took to spending their winter there.

We are staying at the Ambassador Hotel.  The Ambassador is a nice boutique hotel that is located about a block from the seaside boardwalk called the Promenade des Anglais. For the local inhabitants, La Prom has become a favorite place for bicyclists, baby strollers, and whole families who can be seen out for a stroll along the Promenade. It has also become a favorite place for skateboarders and in-line skaters. We went for a long walk on the Promenade.  There still some people swimming and sunbathing.

We then went to the old town where Marg finally found a necklace that she liked.  It is silver.  During our walk we meet several people from the river cruise, who are also staying in Nice for a couple of days.

The cold that spread throughout the ship has finally caught up to me.  So for dinner we went to a cheap, middle of the road restaurant called the VIP Grill.  What a shock when the bill arrived.  I’ve gotten quite used to the all inclusive service on the boat.

All the bars are showing the France .vs. Australia rugby match from the World Cup in England. Unfortunately the French are getting their collective butts kicked.