We decided to dedicate two and a half weeks to exploring France, starting with Paris and then heading out east to drive through some of the smaller towns, cities and wine regions. Unfortunately, we landed in Paris only to be welcomed by cold and rain. This persisted until the final afternoon we were there, when the sun peaked out a bit. We still had a wonderful time, and loved staying in Montmartre, which really felt like a village in the city.
Exploring Paris
One thing that I will always remember about Paris – the wonderful fruit and vegetable shops. We bought some strawberries and fresh cranberries from a greengrocer and I will never forget the fragrance and flavour of those strawberries as long as I live. Just so delicious. And of course, macaroons, pastries, crepes and cheese! I also convinced Steven to try some escargot and he liked it!
Louvre Museum
The Louvre was huge, and quite impressive. The highlight was definitely the statue of the “Winged Victory” Athena Nike. She was magnificent, especially when viewed from the side. We also saw “Gioconda” – the Mona Lisa, and other wonderful paintings hanging in the gallery (with shorter lines).
Musee d’Orsay
This museum was a big of a off the cuff visit to escape the rain. We were nearing the end of our time in Paris exploring. This smaller museum was recommended as a visit and we’re glad we did. It had some great pieces and was well worth the time. We also got to see the special exhibition of Edvard Munch (who painted “The Scream”).
Champagne, Reims, Nancy and Strasbourg
We left Paris and headed east by train to Reims, where we picked up our hire car. We headed into the countryside where we were staying at a chateau in Juvigny. The chateau was situated on a huge block of land that had its own lake and forest. We even spotted a dear (although no photo because it got spooked and ran off). We went to Epernay and Reims to taste some champagne, and I can confidently say that I’d never truly tasted champagne until I went to Champagne. Forget Moet and Verve, there are definitely more exciting wines to try in France!
When we left Juvigny, we headed to Strasbourg via Nancy. We walked through a lovely park in Nancy and had a nice lunch on our quick stop. When we arrived in Strasbourg, it was raining. A lot! This unfortunately meant that we didn’t get to explore very much, and don’t have many photos to show for it. We did, however, enjoy some delicous Alsatian wine (riesling) and an excellent charcuterie and cheese board (there were no restaurant vacancies nearby so we parked ourselves at a nice bar for the evening).
We stayed one night in Lyon on the way back from Strausbourg. We heard great things about Lyon, however, we did not experience it. Either we stayed far too short a time, or we just stayed in a bad area. Alas, we left Lyon a bit disappointed. But we also bought some of the best mustard we’ve ever had from Dijon!
Provence region, French Riviera and Toulouse
Orange
On our way to Marseille, we made a stop in Orange completely by chance and convience. We were delighted to discover that Orange has a very interesting history from its Roman establishment with an impressive ancient Arc de Triomphe dating back much further than Paris’. There was also an awesome ancient thetre that we visited.
Marseille, Cassis, Goult and Gordes
We stayed in Marseille for a couple of nights after our big drive from Lyon. We were keen to explore the French country side and of course Provence. Our friend, Christine, passionately suggested we visit Gordes and Goult as well. Thanks so much! These were so beautiful and just the French country experience we were looking for. We also went for a drive to the seaside town of Cassis in the French Riviera. Steven was determined to have a swim, despite the freezing temperatures.
Arles, Nimes and Toulouse
Hankering for a bit more historical cities, we stopped by Nimes and Arles on our drive to Toulouse. Maria was determined to continue her Van Gogh quest and see some of the places he painted whilst living in Arles. Nimes also had a great Roman history to it, though we particularly loved the Jardins de la Fontaine.
Bordeaux and Saint Emilion
We loved France. The people and places were so beautiful and we’re eager to go back. We took the fast train to Amsterdam Netherlands.
Georgia
Nice 😊