It's Tour Time!

Bonjour tout le monde!
Today, the 100th Tour de France started on the island of Corsica.  Just in case you don't know, that is where Napoleon Bonaparte was born, and it contains the two départements that had never hosted a tour.  No longer!  
I know that as Americans, most of us only pay attention to the Tour when there are identifiable Americans involved, such as Greg le Mond, or Lance Armstrong.  However, it is a sporting event that is worth watching.  There is a website - http://www.letour.fr/le-tour/2013/us/ - that shows and explains everything you would ever want to know about le Tour de France.  It is a great honor (and helps the economy) when a Tour stage comes to town.
On my recent trip, we spent time in Nice.  I wondered why the beautiful Promenade des Anglais was full of steel piping and other stuff; it is because the Tour is coming through on July 2 and they were building bleachers.  The stage in Nice will be a time trial - according to letour.fr: "An hour-long flight the evening before will enable the riders to sleep in Nice. Then they will have the morning to recover after the extremely tough passage through Corsica: in all likelihood, this should be the most physically demanding Grand Départ since San Sebastián in 1992! And now we come to this team time trial, where each team's time will be taken when their fifth rider crosses the line. Naturally, in what is a straightforward and relatively short test (25km), they are going to be moving quickly, very quickly! I am expecting an average speed of 55 kilometres/hour, and perhaps even more, on the Promenade des Anglais. There will be a duel between the Quick Step and Sky teams!"

I am watching the Tour as I write this - at the finish line, a huge motor coach came down the final stretch (as they are allowed to do, I understand), and the Finish banner structure caught the AC unit of the bus and punctured it!  The bus is now stranded at the finish line, unable to move, and the peloton is less than 15 minutes away.  Quel drame!  (they were able to back the bus up and get it out of the way, but the timing mechanism on the finish line structure was damaged, so the officials still have to figure that out...)

And, just because, here are some photos from Nice!

The Hotel Negresco - still the most exclusive hotel in Nice

A square in Vieux Nice

The Promenade des Anglais

Un jour a Arles

Bonjour tout le monde!
Today we had breakfast on the terrace of our hotel.  Although it was 7:45 am, the day was already on its way to being hot and humid.  I was dragging a little bit from our fabulous provencal dinner sous le ciel (or al fresco).  We visited Arles today - where Vincent van Gogh spent time painting.  Arles is also the center of the Provencal area, and has many Roman artifacts and buildings.  Our guide was very sweet and told us great stories of the area.  We had lunch by the arena, then wandered down the shopping street.  After walking a little bit along the banks of the Rhone, we boarded the bus to return to our hotel and actually got in some relaxation by the pool!  Tomorrow is our last day in France, and then it's on to Italy!
When you travel with Go Ahead, the luggage is handled for you.  I didn't know how much a luxury that was until I actually got it!  All those years traveling with EF and carrying bags up and down stairs and elevators.  However, I do miss the kids and hope to travel with some next summer before organizing another Go Ahead tour.  I am still thinking a food and wine tour in France; you will want to be a part of my group because it's going to be awesome!

The main 'place' in Arles

A Roman aqueduct outside Arles - it is in the center of a roundabout...it  also went on  both sides of the road.

The hospital where Van Gogh stayed after cutting his ear.

All bridges on the Rhone were bombed by the Allies before the landing on the Var in August 1944

North and South

Bonjour tout le monde!

We left Paris this morning.  Yesterday we had a great day, but I will write more about that later.  As we left our hotel, the sky was very dark and menacing.  By the time we got to the Gare de Lyon, it was pouring. It let up enough that I did not have to search for my umbrella.  The gare is lovely, and you need to visit the main hall 1 to see the old style and the Train Bleu, a cool restaurant done in the old style with lots of paintings and big lamps.  Our train left on time, and we were soon flying towards the blue sky (almost literally, as we outran the rainy weather).  

Here in the south, it is hot and humid. I am so glad that I packed lots of light clothing and have a fan.  We visited Cezanne's painting studio in the town of Aix-en-Provence, and then did a walking tour of the town.  There was at one time a tax on windows, so on many buildings some windows are blocked in, or the owners have had "trompe l'oeil" fake windows painted in their place.  Tonight - a Provencal dinner.

On the television - the French version of 4 Weddings, Macguyver, Murder She Wrote as well as Psych.  Different stations, naturally, with some Spanish and Italian stations thrown in.

A demain!

A fun Saturday night

Bonjour tout le monde!
I should say bonsoir, but I forgot to write this last night.  After a fun day of exploring Paris and visiting my old                         stomping grounds in the 7th arrondissement.  The building where I lived was bought awhile back by the Ile de France, and is now an office building.  But it's still there, along with the Pagode theater and the Cine-Image across the street that sells vintage movie posters.
But of course all that walking makes one hungry, so a bunch of us went to dinner at the coolest place ever: Restaurant Bouillon-Chartier.  They don't take reservations, so you come and stand in line.  Someone comes down the line and asks how many are in your party.  Then you wait.  Sometimes you see parties of 2 or 3 go by (we were 6), and then the group in front of you gets seated and you can move towards the sacred front material barrier.  When you are called "six!"  you are seated in the restaurant - sometimes you share a table, but we were perfect for a table of 6.  We had a first course, main course, dessert, and wine - and the total was incredibly small, only 22 euro/person!
But what makes this place awesome is that entering the doors is like going back into time...waiters in white shirts with black bow ties and vests and a long white apron.  They take your order by writing it down on the white squares of paper that cover the table.  At the end of the dinner, our waiter (actually, a waitress, a sign that there is progress) did the math on the paper with her pen; that was our check!

The line.  Not too long, but just after this, it was down the street.

The interieur, with luggage racks for packages.

Dinner!  Lamb chops and fries...note that there is no bread plate.  

Here is the link to the restaurant's website - http://www.bouillon-chartier.com/

Bon appetit!

Sunday morning television

Bonjour tout le monde!
It is Sunday morning in Paris, and I am watching television.  It is interesting to see what kind of channels we have in the hotel - no CNN, but BBC world does a good job of letting me know what is going on in the world.  What is really interesting is what American shows exist here on French channels.  Since I have been here, I have seen episodes of Crossing Jordan, NCIS: LA, and Macguyver.  That was interesting...
Like usual, Sunday morning on television is a combination of children's shows (including Scooby Doo), news, and documentaries.  Right now I am watching a documentary about American cheerleaders on a French channel. It talks about the real compared to the ideals that are show in movies and on television. They included a part about African American cheerleaders - who was highlighted?  Crenshaw, Dorsey and Farifax High Schools in Los Angeles.  Whoa.
Also included are cheerleaders for causes, like anti-racism.  It is strange to see how something so American is detailed, dissected and discussed by someone outside our culture.
Eh bien, more later.

A breather before the last minute...

Bonjour tout le monde!
I believe that we dodged the air traffic controllers strike.  Everything should be "back on schedule" by Thursday.  Our flight is a direct one from LAX to CDG - 10 hours and 40 minutes.  Hopefully there are lots of movies to watch!

It's always something...

Bonjour tout le monde,
I am supposed to leave on Thursday for France and Italy.  Naturally, there is a scheduled air traffic strike that is starting in France tomorrow (or maybe already, since they are 9 hours ahead).  Fortunately, the strike affects more flights within Europe, and not intercontinental ones.  But I will call again tomorrow; will keep you posted.  I know that you're all on the edge of your seats :)
This isn't the first time I've had transit problems and for the most part, all has gone well.  The last time we were in Barcelona flying home.  Part of my group had a different itinerary and flew from Barcelona to Frankfurt and of course their flights were cancelled.  However, they were completely rerouted from Barcelona to NYC and then home to LAX, and that was so much better than their original itinerary.  Small favors!
Keep your fingers crossed!!!
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/11/business/global/french-air-traffic-controllers-set-to-strike.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1370913478-/rptJTdr5XzhOVTnrhG7iA

Something new from the Eiffel Tower!

Bonjour tout le monde!
A new art work has been installed on the roof of the Quai Branly; it can only be seen from the Eiffel Tower!  Here is a link to the article:  http://www.france24.com/en/20130606-aboriginal-art-paris-museum-branly-rooftop-france-nyadbi
If you are in Paris, be sure to go up to see this wonderful artwork only visible from the air.  If you can't make it, I understand that it is visible from Google Earth.