Get Out of Town

Bordeaux. Nice. City. It took us way too long to get there for a visit. We had a lovely time there over 5 nights. There's a lot to see and it seems like a very liveable place. I would seriously consider it if I were planning to move. Great bikes paths which will be even better once some of the many construction sites are done, lots to do, lots of culture, a great river front walk and a really nice mixture of old/historic and new.

One of the new masterpieces is the Cité du Vin leading the gentrification of the area called “Le Quartier des bassins à flots” or wet docks.

The ceiling of the Cité du Vin's panoramic view tasting bar

The Cite du Vin is a new generation cultural center, unique in the world they say, and, obviously, focused on all aspects of wine. Wine is presented in its cultural framework, its relationship to civilization, scientifically and agriculturally, its heritage and history and the future. The Cité is a cultu…

A specific word in French indicates rivers that end in oceans : fleuve. Getting my hair cut the other day in Boulogne Billancourt not far from the Seine I asked my coiffeuse, an immigrant like myself, if she knew anything about the Seine. « I know it’s a floose » she replied. Everyone in the salon erupted in laughter. This fleuve is no floose. Traversing Paris under 37 bridges on it’s 776 kilometer run from a plateau north of Dijon to the English Channel at Le Havre, the Seine, steeped in history with a capital H, is one of five principal ocean-flowing rivers in France. The Loire is the longest at 1010 kilometers. La Garonne, Le Rhône and Le Rhin are the others. Until joined by the tributary Aube, the river carries the first of its noms-de-fleuve, the Petite-Seine. Farther on, augmented again by the Yonne at Montereau, it is the Haute-Seine until Paris. Then it is the Basse-Seine to Rouen and, finally, the Seine-Maritime to the sweep of the sea. The Seine everybody sees is in …

Follow the red line from the sacred to the profane in the town of Saint Denis where there are two types of kings; from the Basilique Saint Denis, the burial place of the kings of France to the Stade de France where the kings of football play.

The metro runs to the foot of the Basilica then there is a red line traced on the sidewalks between these two monuments so you won't get lost in the spaghetti of Saint Denis and the autoroutes. From the Stade de France there are a choice of well marked metros to get you back home or you can continue to walk along the Canal Saint Denis to Porte de la Villette.

Take an audio guide tour of the Basilica and learn about the kings of France, and funerary monuments  as well as Gothic architecture. The Basilica is a major work of Gothic art, this church was the first to place a great importance on light, a symbol of divinity. It was  designed b…

The city of Bayeux is an easy weekend trip, just 3 hours west of Paris from the Gare du Nord, in Normandy. It is a city which holds lots of treasures. The cathedral is just magnificent. One of the prettiest I have ever seen. I also love another Normandy cathedral, the one in Coutances a bit farther afield. Both of these cathedrals are full of light and life. They are brought alive by their parishes and are true places of worship and spirituality. But also interesting places to visit as a tourist. I particularly like the light airy inside and the stained glass. The exterior dome of Notre Dame de Bayeux makes for a unique silhouette. The Bayeux cathedral was consecrated in 1077 by Bishop Odo of Conteville in the presence of his brother William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy and king of England. It is a gem of Normand architecture, considered one of France's finest and was miraculously untouched during the fighting of World War II. In fact the whole old city of Bayeux surviv…

During the confinement we had a lot of time to walk around our town, Villepreux, 11,000 people situated in the Yvelines department west of Paris. A usually quiet, non-descript town, we hadn’t thought too much about it before but there were a couple of spots that intrigued us while out walking within one kilometer of the house. One of them was the path that we walked called the Chemin entre Deux Murs or the path between two walls. What two walls? What was that all about? Then there’s the old village with a couple of houses that look pretty old including one with visible half timbers. There’s a chateau, in fact there are two, plus centuries-old farms and a neighborhood called the Prieuré or priory. The new center of town is a 1960s construction out of cement. Town houses and a shopping area that hasn’t worn very well over the years. The first impression is that Villepreux is a rather ordinary suburban bedroom community of Paris or closer Versailles. But once you start lookin…

Meandering along the Seine meanders: A walk from St Germain-en-Laye to Chatou Ile des Impresisonnistes, 2½ hour walk one way This walk is lovely at any time of year, and in fact views of the rivers are easier in the winter when the light is soft and you can see through the leafless trees. But the cooler air outside the city in the summer is also a reason to take this short trip west of Paris. You’ll enjoy bird life, impressionist history, passing barges, superb mansions and people to watch. Take the RER A to St Germain-en-Laye. Walk across the terrace past the château of St Germain-en-Laye built in the time of Henri IV (17th century). Exit the park through the Boulingrin gate on the right. Follow rue des Arcades to the left, then left on rue Thiers. Go past the Pavillion Henri IV. At the foot of the stairs take the rampe des Grottes on the right. Cross the street and continue down the steps to place de l’Eglise St Wandrille. Continue down to the bottom then go straight to t…