Chamonix, Lyon, & Bordeaux, France...and Avignon

The train station, Chamonix

CHAMONIX is a resort town like Truckee/Tahoe on a more massive scale with the peaks of the European Alps shooting straight up toward the heavens from our front door. We took the train into Chamonix from Switzerland on a partly sunny day in awe of these beautiful mountains. Our train inched in elevation, hanging over steep edges as we looked into a bottomless abyss. As we started our descent into Chamonix the skies turned grey and the clouds started to cover what we were hoping to stare at...Mount Blanc and Aiguille du Midi.

I was anxious to see these massive peaks rising out of this resort town that I've heard so much about from friends who have visited, skied, or even had their sandwich stolen from their hands from French locals (Forrest). What we got instead was cloud cover and drizzle. This is not how we wanted to see Chamonix, especially with six more days of rain in the forecast and coming from the Swiss Alps where we had the same weather. We quickly decided to keep positive attitudes and enjoy this stunningly beautiful town and time with our friends (Monica and her two boys Tommy and Noah) while sipping French wine and enjoying delicious dinners (I don't care what your kids say about your cooking Monica, it was fabulous).

But then it happened, we awoke to skies trying to break open. The mountain gods gave us a peak of all their beauty and massiveness.

View from our room at Monica's

There they stood before us, like an erection on a teenage boy, the Alps I've been dreaming of snowboarding for years. We were surrounded by these lushly treed mountains transforming into sheer rock and glacier covered peaks. We both just looked at each other and smiled. No words were needed, just sheer joy and amazement. The clouds were quick to return and we decided not to take the cable car to the top of Aiguille du Midi due to lack of visibility, but we felt fortunate to not leave this beautiful place empty handed. We stumbled across a hike and giddily found ourselves near the bottom of one of the glaciers.

Although we were expecting cloudy, rainy days, we got our rays of sunshine, smiles, friendship, and a little futbol (thanks Tommy & Noah!!...who crush it, by the way).

Until next time Chamonix, when I will be armed with a snowboard to ride you like that teenaged boy.

LYON:

A city known for its cuisine and gastronomy, along with its architecture and rich history, we were almost going to bypass this amazing city. For being the second largest city in France, we found it very easy to maneuver and explore as we hit every walkable nook and cranny we could find. The city was fairly affordable and very charming. There are restaurants everywhere with aromas that grab all of your senses and make it nearly impossible to walk by. You can definitely see pride in the city of Lyon.

Lyon is clean, friendly, and inviting. You can feel the history in the air as you walk around and take in the architecture. Our Airbnb host gave us a quick tour of the city, pointing out the must see and dos, along with some highly recommended restaurants (not quite in our budget, but nearly tempted for a splurge). He bought us a beer and we were on our own to explore.

The one must see, if any of you are in Lyon, was the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière. One word: mind-blowing! The inside of this building is breathtaking. The details, craftsmanship, and colors left us speechless as we walked through the doors, or maybe they were golden gates. I know most of you are probably sick of seeing pictures of the Cathedrals we have been posting at every stop (more to come!!), but they truly are spine tingling. Alas! This is not a cathedral, it is a basilica and the most awe-inspiring structure yet.

We ended our day with a delicious three-course meal where Robin, our waiter, recommended the fish dish. Baked in cast iron skillets, fish was flaked and mixed with mashed potatoes, other deliciousness and covered with bread crumbs. Followed by Speculos crusted strawberry cheesecake. This was our best meal to date and a welcomed change from eating baguette sandwiches (they are delicious too). I think we came in to Lyon with low expectations, but both left with a new found respect for this beautiful city.

BORDEAUX:

Known as one of the greatest wine regions in the world, with Napa being number 1 of course (see the movie Bottleshock if you haven't yet), although I may be a little biased living so close to Napa, but lets give the French a chance to change my mind on their wine. We were coming here for one reason and one reason only....wine. With that said Bordeaux was so much more. The cobblestone streets and old buildings lined the river and the city center. We imagined all the people who roamed these streets before us and the stories that the walls could tell us. We were on a mission, however, to find the most fantastic market in the world, Marche des Capuchins...or at least in France.

Olives

Stalls filled with anything and everything to satisfy any taste bud.

Fresh pasta

From fresh fruits and veggies, to meats and seafood, breads, cheeses, olives, fresh pastas, wines from the region, tapas, juices. Then I saw the one thing I was craving: fresh oysters, lining a seafood platter accompanied with a glass of wine for only $12! But it was only 10 am...screw it, I'm an adult and can decide what I'm going to eat...breakfast it was and it was absolutely the best I may have ever had.

As we finished up breakfast we decided to shop for dinner for the night. Some veggies, olives, cheese, bread, strawberries, and yes 2 bottles of Bordeauxs's finest (at least on our budget), and had an amazing dinner to end our stay in the historical, rich city of Bordeaux. And yes, the wine lived up to the hype.

AVIGNON:

Les Halles Market

A beautiful, quaint, ancient walled city in the south of France. We stopped here to break up our train trip to Italy and weren't disappointed. We toured the innards of the city and were able to find vacant streets among the 4 million tourists that visit each year. The most popular attraction being the Palais des Papes. Before Catholic Popes called Rome home, Avignon was it.

This Palais is grand and definitely worth a visit. Up next is the Pont Saint-Benezet, an ancient bridge...with river boat cruises lurking with in feet of its arches.

This I found fascinating. From the starboard side of the boat, people in their bathrobes looked on at the ancient site. And then probably went back into their air conditioned rooms. We were terribly envious as it was 97 degrees out. Our Airbnb did not have air conditioning. Never before in my life have I ever wanted to be on a river boat cruise so badly. Whether is it by train or car we would recommend spending some time in this region in France.