Day 15: Last Full Day in the Pyrenees

We decided to spend our last full day in the Pyrenees a little closer to Arreau. After breakfast we took a short drive up into the mountains to the village of Jezeau which has a small church with frescoes that make it affectionately called the Sistine Chapel of the Pyrenees. The village and church were very quaint, but unfortunately the church is only open on Mondays and Thursdays between 4-6 pm.

We then headed toward Bangneres du Luchon, which hosted both a finish and a start in this year's Tour. The route to Luchon took us over the Col du Peyresourde, so we got to travel over the final climbs for stages 16 and 17. We drove past both of our viewing sights; it looks so much different, very pastoral, when the crowds of the Tour aren't there. We also drove into ski resort of Peyragudes which was the finish line for stage 17. Of all the ski areas in the Pyrenees that we have seen this looked like the nicest.

The drive into Luchon was easy and we ended up with a great parking space right on the main street. We visited a lot of shops since this was our last chance for souvenir hunting. We had a great lunch of typical Pyrenean fare: onion soup and tartiflette, which is a casserole of eggs, potatoes, onions, and ham.

After lunch we took the gondola right off main street to the ski area of Super Bangneres, which has an elevation over 8000 feet. The fog was still present at the higher elevations, so out best views were of Luchon from the Gondola.

Upon returning to the main street of Luchon, we shopped a little more and then headed back to our hotel in Arreau, which is only 35 km away.

Our last dinner at the L'Hotel d'Angleterre was wonderful. Salade Nicoise for a starter, steak with carrots baked in a pastry shell, Robechelon cheese, a tiramisu mousse for dessert, and a fine red Bordeaux to wash it all down....the diets start tomorrow night!

Tomorrow we get up early, drive 100 km to Toulouse for a 10:20 am flight, then spend seven hours laying over in Paris. We plan to take a cab into Paris, visit the Musee d'Orsay, maybe catch the end of the Tour, and a quick bite at a cafe before our 7:29 flight to Boston.

Then it's back to reality...but who can complain after a vacation like this?

French Cuisine

These are just a few of the many wonderful meals we have had.

Day 14: A foggy day in the Pyrenees

For the next two days our plan is to just enjoy the Pyrenees, the Tour has headed north, as have the large group of Aussies who were staying at our hotel. So were done with this year's Tour...unless we decide to catch the final day in Paris on Sunday.

I went for a bike ride before breakfast, varying my route a little bit and turning around in the village of Ancizan once the road started getting too steep.

We had a relaxing breakfast, and then rather than immediately leave to get a good viewing spot for the Tour, Joni went shopping and I read the paper. We loaded up the car with some hiking gear and my bike, since our plan was to go to Gavernie, a national park on the Spanish border, after returning my rental bike in nearby Saint Lary.

Our ride to Gavernie took us over two cols, L'Hourquette d'Ancizan and the Col du Tourmalet, both of which were routes in last year's Tour, and the latter was also in this year's. Pea soup fog enveloped the mountain passes, cut down on sight seeing, and made a scary drive even more treacherous. We did stop on the first col and take a lot of pictures of cows...couldn't resist. Because of the fog there were times when you couldn't see the cows, but you could hear their bells.

When we got to the top of the Tourmalet, it was amazingly sunny and we were actually looking down on the clouds with the mountains poking through. A beautiful sight.

The fog caused us to cancel our Gavernie hike, so he stopped for a "proper lunch" at the La Grange aux Marmottes, in the tiny mountain village of Viscos. We first ate there two years ago, and last year we stayed there for three days. We both agreed,"OUR BEST MEAL IN FRANCE!" Mussel soup with gruyere cheese and a pastry topping for our starter. Lamb chops with baked tomatoes and casserole with Tarbe beans and carots in a tomato sauce for our main dish. Dessert was a parfait with vanilla ice cream, blue berries, sorbet, and sponge cake. Nothing like a two hour lunch.

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking and shopping around Luz Saint Saveur, a resort town close to Viscos and surrounded by mountains. For our drive home we avoided the Tourmalet and took the longer route through Lourdes, arriving back at the Hotel d'Angleterre at 7:30 pm.

Day 12 and 13: Tour Watching at its Best

It doesn't get any better than this!

Each morning I have gone for a relatively short bike ride before breakfast. Found some back roads today which had no traffic on them, so I could really relax. What a thrill to be riding in the Pyrenees!

After a wonderful breakfast of juice, coffee, tartines, & croissants, we have left immediately for our Tour viewing spots.

For these two days we have had fantastic viewing spots with spectacular mountain vistas and the added bonus of having to travel no more than 15 km each day to watch the Tour. On each day we saw the riders ascend the Col de Peyresourde; although from different directions each day. On Wednesday, after reaching the col, there was a long descent into resort spa of Luchon, but on Thursday the race ended at the summit in the ski resort Peyragudes. Thomas Voelker, France's favorite cyclist lead Wednesday's race from start to finish...and all of France is still celebrating. Voelker really hams it up, and speaks to the spectators whenever the race allows. So today, since his team was competitive; he really interacted with the crowd.

Today Alejandro Valverde, from Spain won; he's a veteran rider who is equally adored by the Spanish fans, and there are plenty of them in the Pyrenees. His name is usually the one most frequently painted on the Tour route in this area.

On Wednesday, we watched right in front of the car from an elevated spot that was about 5 km from the summit of the Col de Peyresourde. Today we had to park the car and walk up to our viewing spot which was less than 4 km from the finish line, the closest we have ever been to the actual finish line.

Wednesday's weather was scorching, so we were continually trying to find ways to stay in the shade, whereas today was overcast and foggy, with only moments of sun. Clothes kept being put on and taken off.

Both days we were back at our hotel with 30 minutes...that is a luxury we really appreciate since some times you can end up driving for hours.

Last night the menu was duck, and tonight we had veal. Life is tough.

Day 11: Goodbye Provence, Hello Pryrenees

Today's a rest day for the Tour and a travel day for us.

We got up early and headed into the village of St. Saturnin-les-Apt to catch their market day. Most of the vendors were still setting up but we got a good look at almost everything. Picked up some bread for lunch and a copy of l'Equipe, the daily French sports newspaper. Took some pix, wrote & mailed our last batch of postcards, and got back to Le Mas Perreal in time for our 9:00 am breakfast which was delicious.

Our drive to the Pyrenees, 525 km, took almost six hours with a few potty stops. We checked into the Hotel d'Angleterre around 4 pm and were warmly greeted (two cheek kiss)by Mme. Aubiban, the owner.

We then drove south to Saint Lary-Soulan, a ski resort 12 km south of Arreau, to pick up my rental bike, a Gitane! We've driven to St. Lary many times over the previous four trips here, but we still got lost; we were paying too much attention to the schlugge, the Tour followers who move from stage to stage in RV's. This area has never seemed so alive with Tour anticipation!

We returned to our hotel, didn't get lost, and then unpacked thoroughly since we will be here for five nights. Dinner at the hotel was its usual outstanding level of quality.

All in all the town seemed much livelier than usual; clearly the Tour was impacting Arreau. I was excited to see that our hotel was filled with Aussies, who are all on a bike tour. They were very quiet tonight; hopefully they get more spirited tomorrow.

Day 10: Markets, Villages, Oceans of Lavender

Another wonderful breakfast at le Mas Perreal: a carved out melon filled with melon puree and a touch of port wine, fresh squeezed OJ, raisin pastry, ratatouie omlets, and coffee.

Today we visited the market in Forcalquier and two small hilltop villages, Lacoste & Menerbes. Forcalquier is 50 km from St. Saturnin, a beautiful drive through fields of lavender and sunflowers. Joni shopped at a frenzied pace for about 2 hours, getting lots of products from Provence. I relaxed reading the paper and sipping coffee at a cafe.

Next we headed to Lacoste, a tiny village where Pierre Cardin is restoring the chateau which originally belonged to the Marquis de Sade. Very limited shopping, and just a few restaurants. We were too late to eat so he just had a drink. From Lacoste you get beautiful views the Luberon farms, and the village of Bonnieux, where we had lunch last year.

Leaving Lacoste we drove onward to nearby Menerbes. Author Peter Mayle lives just outside Menerbes, and we drove by his home.

Menerbes is slightly more lively than Locoste, some shops, but very expensive. Great views from Menerbes, including Mont Ventoux, the "Giant of Provence" with an altitude over 2000 meters.

For dinner tonight we drove about 30 km north to the village of St. Christol. Our dinner at L'Augerge de Laubion was fantastic, but the true highlight of today was the lavender that we saw on the ride this evening. Like the turning leaves of fall in New England, there is a peak season for lavender and we hit it. Our B&B host gave us a special route to take in order to maximize our exposure to lavender and it couldn't have been better. The best lavender that we have seen in 5 years coming to Provence. To paraphrase our friend Ann Martin, we saw "oceans of lavender". Our pictures were all taken between 7:30 and 8:30 so the light was starting to fade, but I still think you can tell how overwhelming it was.

Day 9: Movie Locales in Provence

July 15

We enjoyed a leisurely start today, commencing with a full breakfast of fresh fruit, freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, croissants, pancakes with sliced apricots, and coffee that was provided by our B&B hosts. Shared our table with a family of 3 who live in Munich; the husband was Irish, the wife Austrian/French, and their 12 year old son. We really enjoyed our conversation with them.

We spent the rest of the day touring the neighboring villages of Provence many of which were featured in various movies. The Luberon mountain chain runs east to west across the eastern edge of Provence and all of these villages are on one side or the other of the Luberon. We had lots of narrow windy roads...again!

Our first stop was in the small city of Apt where we visited a church where St. Anne's remains were encrypted for a while. Joni purchased a post card of the church for a relative in Massena. We then drove to Lourmarin, a very upscale but relaxed village where Peter Mayle now lives. Joni shopped as I read the paper as and enjoyed another coffee at the Cafe Ormeau. On the way to lunch we drove through the village of Vaugines, where the movies Jean de Flourette and Manon des Sources were made. We then continued to Cucuron to eat at an outdoor restaurant that bordered a very large man-made pond surrounded by plane trees...another locale used in the movie, A Good Year. Another delicious meal: beef stew for me and shells stuffed with eggplant for Joni. A citron mousse and coffee completed feast.

After lunch we continued our driving tour through Ansouis, Buox, Saignon, and back through Apt. Saw lots of lavender all along the way & took lots of photos before returning to our B&B by 5 pm in time for a relaxing swim before dinner.

Dinner at another family run restaurant; this one in St. Saturnin where we are staying. We ate way too much, but couldn't resist. Our menu included postage stamp sized ravioli stuffed with cheese and covered in langouistine sauce, escargots, 3 lamb chops enrusted in breaded herbs, chicken stuffed with olives, 4 different desserts (lavender ice cream, chocolate mousse, lemon flavored something, and a cake with poppy seeds and lemon), and finally coffee. Gotta cut down, but may have to wait until we return home.