“Field Trip” to Beaujolais

One of the great things about AVF, the group we belong to in Lyon, is that it sponsors what we call “field trips.”  Our most recent one was to Beaujolais, the once semi-autonomous fiefdom of the Lords of Beaujeu.   Our friends, Dominique and Roger, were kind enough to take us along in their car which made the trip even more enjoyable.  Our day included touring the village of Beaujeu, a delicious lunch, and a visit to a local family-owned winery.

Beaujeu was the ancient capital of Beaujolais region.  Bérard became the first Lord of Beaujeu in

Beaujeu from the air

966, so you can see that it’s been around for quite a while.  The Lords of Beaujeu were once pretty powerful both as politicians and as warriors, and they controlled one of the main transport routes between Paris and the South. At one time they controlled one of the three baronies in France.

Beaujeu now has about 2,000 inhabitants and covers about 1725 hectares (about one-third of which is in vineyards). From those vineyards and vineyards in the surrounding countryside, we get the majority of Beaujolais crus:  Moulin-à-Vent, Chénas, Juliénas, Fleurie, Chiroubles, Morgon, Régnié, Brouilly, and Côte de Brouilly. The day was cold and clear, and we had time to wander around this picturesque but vibrant village and speak with some of the folks who live there.  As their tourist office says, “Beaujeu, heir of a glorious past, is a small town in France where life is good…. Each year, more and more visitors…are discovering this territory and leave conquered by the beautiful scenery, the friendliness, frank and jovial spirit, simplicity, which are among the virtues Beaujolais.”  Well said!

Church of St. Nicolas

One of the highlights of our tour was the Church of St. Nicolas which was dedicated in 1132 by Pope Innocent II.  It is still in use and very remarkable both inside and out with side chapels and stained glass throughout the interior.  Hard to imagine a building that old still in use when "historic" on the west coast means 18th and 19th centuries! 

 

 

Some of our group at lunch - David is on the left

 and Roger is two seats away

 

Next stop was lunch at a local restaurant.  We had chosen our main courses and desserts in advance at the restaurant's request; both Anna and David chose coq au vin, Anna had tarte au pomme and David had chocolate mousse for dessert.  These courses were part of a many-course lunch that included aperitif, appetisers, salad, lots of fresh bread, and, of course, local wine.  Absolutely delicious and graciously served – no small feat for a large group such as ours.

 

 

In the cellar

And, finally we piled into cars to go to Régnie-Durette to visit the vignerons, Thierry and Cécile Robin.  There we went down into their cellar to taste some of their wines, including Beaujolais Neuveu (just before its release date).  One wall in their cellar is covered with the many awards their wines have won through the years.  Very impressive!  We definitely enjoyed tasting many of their wines – especially in the atmosphere of that rustic cellar.

Then it was back into the car and a very pleasant drive back to Lyon.  With several newly-purchased bottles of wine, bien sûr !

THANKSGIVING FEAST IN FRANCE

As we have mentioned before, Estelle, our French daughter, spent a year in the US and enjoyed the holidays specific to the US.  Like Thanksgiving!  When we were in Lyon for a year, we prepared a Thanksgiving dinner for Estelle’s family, and since we were in Lyon at Thanksgiving again, we offered to fix another Thanksgiving dinner.  Our offer was enthusiastically accepted, and, so we did it!

Our Thanksgiving was postponed to the weekend to accommodate work schedules, but otherwise was pretty traditional.  Estelle ordered a turkey and prepared a guest list, and Anna prepared the menu (David was in charge of wines):

Appetiser
California Dip (onion dip) with potato chips
Deviled Eggs
Cremant  (sparkling wine)

Main Meal
Turkey (duh)
Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Gravy
Corn
Cranberry Sauce
Dinner Rolls

Dehlinger [CA] 2003 Pinot Noir; Pouilly Fuisse, Tavel

Green Salad

Dessert
Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream
Lemon Meringue Pie
Coffee

L-R:  Estelle, Victor, Chantal, Paul, Dominique, Laurent, Roger, David

Anna prepared what she could a couple of days before the event.  The day before the event David and Anna transported everything (but the turkey) via subway and bus with roller suitcase and shopping trolley to Estelle and Laurent’s home.  David and Estelle went off to get the turkey while Anna began making pies.  By the end of the afternoon, David and Anna had everything that could be prepared ahead done and in the refrigerator.  Whew!  The next morning, the day of the actual feast, David and Anna put the finishing touches on all the dishes.  Meanwhile, Estelle and her mother, Chantal, had prepared a very impressive, elegant table.  All was ready for the feast!

Paul, Laurent, Anna, David

Estelle, Anna, Chantal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Estelle had invited our good friends, Dominique and Roger, and as soon as they arrived, we started munching and chatting, and the festivities began.  Anna explained the Thanksgiving story, with Estelle translating, so that folks could get an idea of why Americans celebrate Thanksgiving and why certain foods were pretty traditional.  David then announced, in French, bien sur, whatfoods we had prepared.  Then it was time for everyone to get down to the business of eating and more conversation.  As is typical, everything tasted good, and we all ate more than we probably should have.  David and Anna (mostly David) quickly had the leftovers in the refrigerator, all the dishes and glassware clean and ready to put away so that Laurent and Estelle could just sit back and enjoy the rest of their day. 

It was a perfect Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends, and everyone had a memorable and enjoyable time.  In fact, we are still hearing about what a fun time everyone had and how surprised they are at the amount of food we all ate.

La Fête des Lumières - Part 1

Our primary reason for returning to Lyon at the beginning of November for a six-week stay was La Fête des Lumières.  This annual December 8^th celebration has its origins in a thanksgiving to the Virgin Mary for saving Lyon from the plague or from the Prussians.  (We’ve heard both versions.)  It started with people lining their window sills with votive candles – a remarkable sight in itself in this city of apartment buildings.   More recently the city has transformed itself into an incredible world of lighting displays.   Facades of buildings are metamorphosed via lighting, major city streets are transformed into breathtaking lighting displays, and the bridges and banks of the Saone and Rhone are changed into works of art of light and color.  Not surprisingly, it has become quite the tourist event with large crowds of people gathering in the streets.  It is an amazing experience!  But, don’t take our word for it – check out the video of last year’s  Fête .

But, in this day and age, nowhere is safe from terrorists – not at any time.  That’s an unfortunate

fact that too many countries have experienced, and, as we’re sure you are aware, Paris was brutally attacked on November 13^th.  As in the US after 9/11, people have come together to honor and mourn the victims and present an outraged but undaunted  presence against the terrorists. The national government has declared a three month state of emergency (giving the government and police extraordinary powers), and almost all of the terrorists involved on the 13^th  are either dead or in custody.  But, the terrorist danger and raids and arrests will be going on for some time.

Because of all this, Gérard Collomb, Mayor of Lyon, has declared that this year’s fête will be transformed into homage to the victims.  La Tour Incity and " Le Crayon", the two tallest buildings in the city will be illuminated and there will be a memorial display in town, but the other major lighting displays are “postponed” until next year.  People are encouraged to line their window sills with candles to honor the victims, and school children will be selling candle holders with the proceeds going to a fund for the victims.

 

So on evening of the 8^th we will line our two large windows facing rue Moncey with candles and likely also wander around town to take in the displays on the river banks as well as the two buildings.  Stay tuned for Part 2.

 

The Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month

Today is Remembrance Day in France, our Veterans’ Day. 

The French suffered horribly during and after the First World War.  They lost many, many men and their countryside was devastated.   Just the mention of Verdun  and its estimated 700,000 casualties is enough to cause one to reflect at their sacrifice.  We often stop at the memorials that exist in even

Verdun

the smallest villages and are struck by the long lists of names, often many from the same family.  Was that the end of those family trees?  No doubt it was for many. The civilians not only lost fathers, brothers, sons, and friends but were left with destroyed fields, farms, homes, and villages.   So today we pause to remember.  All governmental facilities, banks, post offices, and many businesses are closed.  The buses that are running are flying French flags.  There will be speeches, sprays of flowers reverently placed at memorials, and moments of silence.  

This is also a good time to remember all the American farm boys, like Anna’s grandfather, who became Doughboys.  They, too, went through the hell that was WWI.  Those who survived were proud of their service, but didn’t talk a lot about it.  Anna’s grandfather told her he was just a cook in the Army – the documentation for his unit and for his Purple Heart tell a different story.  But, those Doughboys tipped the balance, and at last the war was over ...on The Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month.

Back in Lyon

After one of our most pleasant long flights from Seattle to Paris, we arrived in CDG with time to relax a bit before our two hour TGV (fast train) ride to Lyon.  (It always amazes us that it is so quick and easy to go through French Customs; returning home to the US is quite another matter.)  Then a short walk from Gare Part Dieu to rue Moncey, and we were “home.”  You would think that with all of the times we’ve flown, we would get better at dealing with jet-lag – but it was not to be.  We brought up most of our boxes in the basement, unpacked what was absolutely needed, walked over to our neighborhood Monoprix store to pick up a couple of things for dinner, and pretty much went into veg-mode.

That was Tuesday. Wednesday Anna did a bit of menu planning and came up with a shopping list, and we headed off to the large Carrefour (super marché) in the shopping center for some more serious grocery shopping.  Thursday was is bright and sunny and quite temperate (David spent the day in a polo shirt with no jacket).  We actually were feeling human enough to take a walk through town and across the Rhône to one of our favorite spots to eat in Vieux Lyon, la Ficelle.  We have noticed that several of the shops/cafes around us have closed or changed hands recently, and it was a relief to find la Ficelle remains the same.  The weather is so lovely that we ate outside to enjoy the sun.   Anna ordered her usual ham and cheese omelet, and David chose one of his two favorite crepes; these, along with a carafe of Côtes du Rhône, dessert, and coffee were just what we needed.  We “discovered” La Ficelle on one of our earliest trips to Lyon, in 2008.  It has been in the same family as long as we have known of it, and we have marveled at their stamina (it closes for Christmas and May Day). Through the years, we have watched as the sons grew older and began to shoulder some of the burden of running the place.  In fact, when we asked about Mama today, we were told she only works half days now and her son agreed she had earned her lessened work schedule.

Cathedral St Jean

After our meal we walked past the Cathedral St Jean, where Henri IV (“Good King Henry”) married Marie de Medici in 1600, and then we walked on through Vieux Lyon to our C3 bus stop.  Vieux Lyon is one of the oldest parts of Lyon (there are Roman ruins nearby which, of course, pre-date it).  To give you an idea of how old Vieux Lyon is, St Paul, a church near our C3 bus stop, actually dates back to 549, but that first building was demolished by the Saracens.   And, both St Paul and the Cathedral St Jean remain in use today.  Amazing!

It definitely feels good to be back in Lyon.

Day Trip to Solutré-Pouilly

One of the side trips we like to take from Lyon is to Solutré-Pouilly.  (Those of you who have been reading our blog for a while may remember this.)  This picturesque village is nestled in amongst vineyards in Bourgogne and has the Roche de Solutré, a spectacular limestone escarpment, looming in the background.  Quite the setting!  (More on the Roche later.) 


Anna at the gate of one of the local wineries.  That's the Roche de Solutré in the background


Surprisingly, in the midst of this small, country village is an amazing restaurant and auberge (Michelin rated).  Anna claims to have eaten her best meal ever at this restaurant (seven-hour lamb on a bed of julienned vegetables, and the sauce – oh the sauce!).  Anyway, David decided to make reservations although we never have before.  Brilliant move!  They were turning away customers because a tour group had booked the side dining room, and we were so glad we had reservations.  We started with glasses of Cremant (sparkling, refreshing wine) and corgette (zucchini) gazpacho topped with whipped crème fraîche and then moved on to a bottle of Moulin à Vent and another amazing meal.  (See pictures below.)

David's lunch: Beef slices with potatoes,bone marrow, and sauce Bernaise

Anna's lunch:  Also beef with slices of red onion and shitaki mushrooms on a bed of potatoes with an oriental-type sauce

After lunch we went across the street to a shop selling local wine and other goodies.  There we bumped into a group of folks from Sammamish and Issaquah, Washington.  Small world! Then we walked through the vineyards to the base of the Roche de Solutré and began our climb.  The top of the rock is not terribly high (493 m/1617 ft) and there is a well-defined trail.  We had lots of company – including our new friends from Sammamish and Issaquah.  The view from the top is spectacular!

View of the village of Solutré-Pouilly and surrounding vineyards from the Roche de Solutré

The Roche de Solutré is noteworthy because they have found evidence that humans hung out there at least 55,000 years ago.  (For those of you anthropologists and archeologists, this is where Solutrean Paleolithic culture gets its name.) They (cro-magnons, among others) came to this spot to hunt reindeer, bison, and horses back when horses were just little bitty dudes.   There is an excellent museum at the base of the rock along with an archaeological-botanical garden.  The French really do a good job with their National Historic Sites.  There is also a small café with a terrace and picnic tables.  This place is well worth the trip if you are in the area! 

Time on these day trips seems to zip by at warp-speed so it was soon time to get back on the A6 and head for home.  We will definitely return to Solutré-Pouilly on a future visit to Lyon, and we will be sure to make reservations at that wonderful restaurant, La Courtille de Solutré.    

Viténature

When we first came here in July 2010, we were pleased to see that there was a boulangerie/ eatery named Viténature across the street from our apartment.  How convenient!  Through the years we have gotten familiar with other local residents during our breakfast and lunch stops.  Some we just nod and say Bonjour to on the street; others, notably Bernadette and her daughter, Delphine, we have gotten to know better.  But, most important of all we have gotten to know Philippe and Angeline, the owners and folks who put in looong hours to make Viténature go.  In fact we have become good enough friends with Philippe and Angeline to exchange jokes, discuss news and politics, chat about our families, help each other with language, and even exchange small gifts.  We have taken Estelle, our French daughter, and all our American guests over to enjoy delicious pastry and, of course, repartee.   In fact when Leahanna and Gillian were here, Gillian took pictures of our pastries and later pronounced the Pain au Chocolat even better than pastry in Italy.

Viténature had become so much a part of our life in France that we have even written an earlier blog posting about it.   So, you will understand why we have mixed emotions when we tell you Philippe and Angeline have sold Viténature.  The long hours (with two little boys) and heavy workload of owning and running the place has taken its toll.  We are very sorry to see them go, but also very excited about what the future will bring for them.  The very good news is that they will be embarking on new adventures soon (after August, of course).  Right now Philippe is looking into florist shops and Angeline thinks she will likely work in a pharmacy.   Whatever they decide on will have much more normal, family-friendly hours!  They are even considering moving out of the city.

Philippe and Angeline invited Bernadette, Delphine and us to a small party last Friday to celebrate the end of Viténature and the beginning of their new adventures.  Naturally, the bubbly flowed and there was an abundance of finger food along with the recounting of fun and funny stories.  We gave them a few gifts:  a bottle of Veuve Clicquot for later and, since its summer and they now have time on their hands, a frisbee, two jars of bubble stuff, and two squirt guns.  (Philippe tried his squirt gun out on Angelline to make sure it worked…it did.)

L-R:  Angeline, Bernadette, Delphine, Anna, David, Philippe

We can hardly wait to find out what these two very capable, hard-working people decide to do.  Estelle, Leahanna, Gillian, David, Bob, and Kerry we’ll keep you posted.

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The Seventh Day

The next morning, we biked over to the German U-boat pens on the waterfront, a short distance away.  They were the main reason this part of St Nazaire was heavily bombed during the war.  Didn’t much hurt the enormously thick concrete roof and walls of the pens, but the near-misses destroyed most of the area around them.  The pens now are used for a museum and for various exhibitions and performances.  The two photos below are from Trip Advisor.

The following description from Wikipedia gives an idea of the massiveness of the installaion:

The base is 300 metres long, 130 metres wide and 18 metres high, amounting to a 39,000 m² surface on the ground, and a volume of concrete of 480,000 m³. The roof is 8 metres deep, featuring four layers: the first one is a 3.5 metre sheet of reinforced concrete; the second is a 35 cm granite and concrete layers; the third is a 1.7 metre layer of reinforced concrete, and the fourth, is a "Fangrost" layer of steel beams, 1.40 metres deep.

Interior of U-Boat Pen

Exterior of U-Boat Pens

We then rode over to the train station, where we were pleased to see that the train had a car dedicated to bikes used on the Loire path, including a staff of two on the car to manage the bikes and hand out claim checks.

Train Car for Bikes - Photo From Web

Although not the TGV, the local trains are very fast and efficient.  We covered 314km in about 2-3/4 hours.  Upon arrival in Blois, we said good-by to Tom, who would return to Britain where he is living, via Paris.  The rest of us rode to where we had left the car, put the bikes on the racks, and set off on the 4-1/2 hour drive to Lyon, arriving about 6PM.

Could not resist one more picture, taken by Roger as we arrived, I believe, in the town of Monlouis-sur-Loire.  It's a great example of how the French just kind of scatter art about, to be viewed in the most unexpected places, in the case, along a minor highway along the Loire.

 

Roadside Art

6km for the day, 422km for the trip!

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The Sixth Day

Left early – 7:30 – it was supposed to be at 7, but I overslept!  Did not attempt breakfast that morning, but went to a lovely patisserie in a river-side village down the road a ways and had coffee and pastry.  Pain au chocolat for me.

Taking a Break

The terrain was mostly flat, along the river or canal, with the weather getting a bit cooler as we got closer to the Atlantic.  Lots of back roads and trails, and villages, with a good deal of head wind as we approached the sea.

At the end we were faced with a spectacular narrow bridge over the mouth of the Loire to get to St Nazaire.  We investigated a bit and one could hire people with a trailer to take us and our bikes over the bridge, or find a bus stop and wait for a bus with a bike rack.  In the end we decided to go for it. 



THE BRIDGE!

Tom and David  After The Bridge

 

Roger and Tom After The Bridge

It was a pretty scary ride – VERY narrow bike lane, side winds, and lots of traffic for 2+ miles.  I allowed myself to follow too close to Tom and had to stop.  There was not much room to get back on, so I walked up about a quarter mile until I was near the top and could see a break in the traffic.  At this point I quickly remounted and managed to get to the other side.  We then headed for the SNCF station in the center of town to get our train tickets for Blois for the next day. 

We headed off to find our hotel and wound up getting a bit lost, but managed to see a bit of St Nazaire that way.  We checked into our hotel, put our bikes in the garage, and headed off for a celebratory drink in an outdoor mall a few blocks away.  While at the brasserie I scouted out restaurants in the vicinity.  We then headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up, change clothes, and went out to eat. 

To our surprise, when we came out of the hotel on our way to dinner, the clouds and fog had rolled in off the ocean and the temperature had dropped about 10 degrees F.  We had dinner at the Rialto, an Italian restaurant with a covered outdoor eating area.  I had what amounted to a steak with shallot sauce and a shared bottle of local sparkling wine.  Very good.  Profiteroles for dessert.

Le Rialto - Where We had our Celebratory Dinner Friday

We did 81 km Friday

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The Fifth Day

Very good light breakfast at the convent and then off again through agricultural area – vineyards, grain, corn, etc.  It began to get warm as we road on mostly paved roads and paths.  We stopped for sandwiches and ate them in a park in Ancenis. 

Lunch in the Park at Ancenis

After lunch we came across a lone rider in farm country with a low bike tire on his bike.  He was towing a small trailer, and had camping gear as he had been biking all over Europe.  Unfortunately, his pump did not fit the valve on his back tire!  We provided him with the adapter, which he used to pump up his tire.  We came upon him about a mile down the road – the leak was too rapid to do anything with and he was engaged in changing tubes.  We waited to ensure he would get everything fixed, and then everyone took off again.

Scenery Along the Loire

We had a bottle of very nice Muscadet – Ch. Du Cléray 2013 – Sèvre et Maine, on arrival at our hotel in Thouaré-sur-Loire.  Modern hotel with a courtyard in the middle where we had our wine.

Hotel Courtyard, Thouaré-sur-Loire

The hotel had a good restaurant across the road where we had excellent dinners – I had steak cut on the bias with potatoes and cêpe sauce [fabulous] with a half-bottle of 2012 Chinon red, Tom had excellent scallops on a skewer.  Did not note what the others had, but everyone seemed happy.

Did 62km for the day.

Biking Down the Loire - The Fourth Day

Another great breakfast at the hotel, and we were off again.  Fairly easy riding most of the time.

A large part of the attraction in the Loire valley is the plethora of Chateaus.  During much of French history, the French government was based in the Loire valley, so many of the aristocracy spent a lot of money building appropriate residences.  Here are a couple of additional ones:

Chenonceau

Chaumont-sur-Loire

Stopped for a beer at about 11:15 and noticed that lunch could be had for 12 euros, including 25cl of wine.  Great value – big buffet with various salads including meat and pasta, followed by a turkey dish with what was described as turkey with ‘Mexican’ sauce.  Not sure about that, but it was tasty, and included house-made frites.  Wound up spending 3 hours at the restaurant!

Back on the road, we faced some headwinds into our stop for the night, at a former 15^th century convent of the Cordeliers on top of a hill outside of Montjean-sur-Loire.  Panoramic view of the Loire. Our hostess – another charming French woman, who when she was taking me to see my room announced to the others that she ‘might not come back’!  [Think I might have to visit that place again – not sure Anna would approve!] 

Convent des Cordeliers

No restaurant on site, so we walked to a very nice crêperie, Chez les Filles, about a half-mile away.  Had a bottle of Cremant de Loire, from Domaine Du Tertre, a local sparkling wine, with our meal.  It was excellent - Tom and I carried the bottle back to the convent!

David with the Cremant Bottle Overlooking the Loire

Did 74km for the day.

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The Third Day

Breakfast the next morning was amazing – the table was loaded with breads, rolls, pastries, jams, juices, yogurts, etc.  Then, after we had started eating, our hostess brought us each two freshly-made crêpes!   Great with strawberry jam!

The Wonderful Breakfast at the Fleur-De Lys.

After finishing breakfast we were off.  Great riding – did at least 32km in the first two hours over mostly paved roads and paths.  The weather was very sunny as we wound through vineyards, along the river, and through woods.

Riding Through Vineyards

For some reason, David did not sleep well the previous night which made riding tougher than it should have been.  We had an uninspired lunch at a brasserie in Candes-St Martin.  There is a very old church in town and two fellow bikers wearing ‘CAL’ bike jerseys were just getting on their bikes – fellow grads!  Ran into them again at a bike shop in Gennes where we stopped for the night.

Typical Old Loire River Boat

Near Saumur, we passed through the troglodytic village of Souzay-Champigny, where there are still homes and businesses in caves cut in the soft rock.  There are villages like this in a number of areas in France, where the stone is soft enough to excavate yet sturdy enough to provide a secure area to live and work.

Troglodyte Village of Souzay-Champigny

Taking a Break - Gerard, David, Roger, Tom

We stayed at La Longue Vue, with a pool which Roger took advantage of, and a beautiful outside terrace looking out over the Loire Valley.  [Gerard really did an amazing job of finding great places to stay.]  Unfortunately, the view meant we had to bike up a bit of a hill to get there, but we all survived.  The hotel also had a good restaurant with seating on the aforementioned terrace.  Very nice bottle of local rosé.  David had salmon with oseille sauce and paprika – excellent.  One server handled all tasks for 10 tables!

Hotel Terrace with View

After dinner we sat around and had a philisophical discussion about various subjects - sort of like being in college again.

74km for the day

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The Second Day

After a nice breakfast and after paying our bill, we were off again, on a gorgeous early summer morning, with a pleasant ride along the river.  We arrived in Tours, an ancient cathedral city, at lunch time.  The bike route went right through the heart of the city, and we stopped at a small shop and bought sandwiches, with a sort of pizza on a half-baguette for David.  We found a park on an island in the Loire and ate our lunch.  Doing it this way saved a considerable amount of time, and was certainly more economical.

A Typical View Over the Loire

After lunch, we managed to get turned around and headed off in the wrong direction, fooled by signs for an alternate route along the river, through Tours.  We quickly got turned around and headed in the right direction.  We took a short stop to view the Cathedral of St Gatien, begun in the 12th century.

 

 

David in front of the Cathedral in Tours



Cathedral Organ and Stained Glass

In the late afternoon, we allowed ourselves a side trip to the Chateau at Azay-le-Rideau.  Unfortunately, it is undergoing an extensive exterior renovation, so is covered with scaffolding and draped with cloth to control dust.  Tom and David bought tickets to allow them to quickly tour the inside – very impressive.

Chateau Azay-Le-Rideau - without Scaffolding

We stopped for the night at a nice Gîte in Langeais called La Feur de Lys, run by a very charming French woman. We promptly drank lots of cold water and a bottle of rosé.    Had a nice size modern room and bath.  Went for a walk in town and saw a very impressive old fortified chateau undergoing restoration.  Had dinner at a crêperie, with a bottle of Chinon – a local red wine made with Cabernet Franc.

Flowers and Mill-Race in Langeais

Did 80 km for the day.  A word about the photos - they were mostly taken by Tom - thank you - a few taken by Roger and Gerard.  Some I took from the internet.
 

Biking Down the Loire Valley - The First Day

The next installment of the Tour-de-France-des-Vieux-Hommes, or Old Men’s Tour de France, kicked off early Sunday morning – 7:00AM- June 21, outside Gerard’s apartment in the 6^th Arrondisement.  Anna met Roger, Gerard, and David there to capture our departure with a photo.  We loaded the bikes on Gerard’s car and were on the road by 7:30.  Ahead was a long drive to Blois, in the Valley of the Loire River.  This is the town where we had stopped last year, after five days and 300 kilometers.  Tom was coming from Paris to Blois on the train.



The Lyon Contingent of The Happy Group

We were determined to make it this year to St Nazaire, at the point where the Loire empties into the Atlantic.  Unfortunately for our plans, we had done a lot of sight-seeing last year, and this year we had to be back in Lyon by the evening of the 27^th.  That meant we had not done half the distance, and so now had something over 400 kilometers to cover.  This was going to a challenge!
To recapitulate – the group consisted of Roger, Gerard, Tom and David.  Gerard and Roger are experienced riders, averaging 100km per week [Roger], and 200km per week [Gerard].  Tom and David, the Americans, are novices by comparison.

After about three hours we made a short stop for coffee, and hit the road again.  We needed to put on quite a few kilometers on the bikes that afternoon if we were to finish the bike trip by Friday.

We arrived at the SNCF station in Blois about 12:45 to find Tom sitting at a table finishing a beer.  We unloaded the bikes and headed into a residential section of town near the river so we could park the car for the week.  The weather was pleasant, with partial sun, good for biking. 



Three of Us at the Train Station in Blois

We biked for a half hour or so and made a lunch stop at an Auberge in the small town of Chailles.  A vacationing English family there kindly offered to take our picture.  Several of us had the curried chicken – very good. 




The Happy Group at Lunch

We learned from the couple who ran the restaurant that they have been trying to sell for some time, had lowered the asking price, but had little to no interest from potential buyers.  As we have noted before, these old-style family restaurants are disappearing rapidly.  We are fortunate to have had some time here while these wonderful mainstays of French culture are still common.

After lunch, we were off again – we were not so near the river, and the sun began to come out.  The bike route had a bit of up-and-down, so we less-experienced types got  a workout.

This part of the river valley was becoming much wider and flatter – the river bed was also quite wide, with plenty of room to spread out at flood times, with fewer dikes with bike paths on top than there were up stream.  The path did not follow the river or an adjacent canal as much as last year, and the land was more densely populated and cultivated.
 

We arrived at our first night’s stop, the chateau town of Amboise, about 6:30PM, after covering about 45km for the afternoon.  Our hotel/pension, Hotel Le Blason, was on Place Richelieu.


Hotel Le Blason



Chateau Royal in Amboise

After cleaning up a bit, we went out for dinner.  It was the night of the national Fête de la Musique, so the streets, squares, and restaurants were crowded, with bands everywhere.  We found a restaurant with a table and had a nice dinner, with a bottle of the local rosé, Plou et Fils, Touraine-Amboise.  The winery has been around since 1508!

After dinner we listened to a great jazz combo in a small square – trumpet, 2 saxes, base, drums, guitar.