Amsterdam/Bruges Christmas 2013

Montmartre, Sacre Couer and Desserts

Tuesday, july 31

Today is my last day in Paris.  I am a little home sick, so will be ready to had home tomorrow.  The French do love their dogs and take them everywhere, which of course makes me miss The Diva that much more.

Today, I took the Metro for the first time since my stay and went to Montmartre.  It is just way too far to walk.

After the initial 300 stairs up to the base of the Basilica, I strolled along the Artisans area where the shops are so quaint and the artists abundant.  Some are painting their own masterpieces in the Square and others are attempting to get tourists to sit for a sketch.

I made my way up to the Basilica and walked silently throughout the Church.  As always, I lit a candle.

I decided it would be it would be interesting to climb the Dome and see Paris from a higher place.  Sacre Couer has just about the best view of the entire city.

It is posted that there are 300 steps.  What's another 300?  Well, these are steep, winding and very confined.  At one point, I actually felt like I was going to have an anxiety attack due to the claustrophobia, but I managed to catch my breath and carry on.

Once I reached the top and felt the cooler air and breeze, I felt better.

There was soft music being piped in and "My heart will go on" was playing.  I had to laugh at the irony as I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest, not go on.

The 360 views were spectacular and I'm glad I made the climb.  Going down was a bit easier.

I treated myself to a cafe au lait at a cafe at the base of the Basilica and then wandered in and out of the shops.  I found a wonderful place for lunch with an unobstructed view of Sacre Couer and a great place to people watch. 

I then left the area and headed off to my dessert making class.  There were only 5 of us in the class.  A family with 2 girls and myself.  Our instructor was from Australia and was so knowledgeable and personable, it made for a wonderful experience.

We made 6 different desserts, Creme Brule, 2 cream tarts, a chocolate lava cake, peach mousse and famous tea cakes.  We all had to work at putti g the ingredients together, including the caramelization of the Creme Brule.  Another instructor was teaching a dinner class and was concocting all sorts of cocktails to accompany the meal and kept coming over with the drinks to get our opinion. It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to try the recipes at home.

It was difficult to eat all that sugar, so we all just had a taste. 

I returned home about 7:00 and was so tired, that I passed on dinner and took the time instead to pack.  

I did indeed have to buy another carry on that I will check tomorrow.

I will learn to pack lighter, I will learn to pack lighter, I will learn to pack lighter...................

I bid adieu to Paris and Provence.

 

Wandering aimlessly in Paris

Monday July 30

I had a thought of traveling to Giverny to visit Monet's house and gardens, but decided against it.  I have been on enough trains, planes and automobiles for awhile.  I think seeing the wonderful Lavender fields of Provence and the gardens of Versailles will suffice. I will save it for my next trip.

I decided to just aimlessly wander today.  I hadn't spent a lot of time in Le Marais and enjoyed my small taste on Saturday night that I thought i would begin there.

Since I am an early riser, I am out on the streets early before most things open it appears.

I crossed Notre Dame to Chatelet and past the Pompideau Centre.  I wandered to Places du Vosages and then back along to Les Halle's.  There is a very different feel and culture to this area, still very bohemian.  The women are not "Chanel" beautiful, but "Hippy" beautiful and the fashion is very artsy and flowing.

Next thing, I know I am passing Opera and then am at Le Louvre.

I head back and wander around Isle Ste. Louis.

I decide to stop for a cafe au Lait.  My waitress is slow and disinterested. 

This is where I have to insert some sadness and dismay to this trip.

Paris is not at all what I wanted it to be.  The tourists are rude and the staff and locals are disinterested and dismissive.  This began my first evening when I stopped at a Computer Store to purchase a Sim card for my Ipad.  The staff initially were ok.  As i questioned the young man activating the card, he kept saying he didn't know what i was talking about.  He refused to insert my card into my device.  His boss came over to help and said that the young man did not really understand English.  Guess that is an excuse for being rude. I then went to a familiar restaurant for a bite.  It was early by Paris time, about 6:00 pm and the place was almost empty.  I could barely get the waiters attention.

He brought me my wine, then my meal and I had to ask three times for some water. I would have taken it personally had I not seen everyone else being treated the same way.

As I wandered the area, I felt very invisible.  Now, I am by no means a waif, but I could not believe the number of tourists just walking into me like I wasn't there. 

The shop keepers as well, would greet you with an obligatory "bonjour" and that was it.

I miss my neighborhood, where when walking along the street at least some stranger will smile at you.

In restaurants, I order, they bring it. I ask for the bill, they bring it and no further conversation takes place.

Today in Montmartre, I asked twice for directions.  I was heading to my dessert class, knew the street was near by, but wasn't quite sure how to get around the Basilica. I asked a waiter and he didn't understand me, so he walked away. I then asked a women working the Pharmacy.  She said she didn't know.  She didn't even make an effort to look at the map.

There were some lovely exchanges, but the majority were snooty and I had never experienced that in Paris before, nor had I witnessed it.

I did read an article in The Huffington Post:

PARIS -- It's a July evening on the terrace of the legendary Cafe Flore. A coiffed woman sips chilled wine, another savors her chocolate eclair.

The one thing to complete a perfect picture of Parisian life? A dash of French rudeness.

It comes from the waiter, who snootily turns away a group of tourists: "There's no point waiting," he shrugs, even though there are many empty tables. "No space outside."

Such rituals of rudeness have long been accepted by visitors as part of the price of enjoying such a beautiful city as Paris. But it seems the French themselves, who over centuries have turned rudeness into an art form, have become fed up with their own incivility, according to recent polls and publicity campaigns.

There's a fabled history of French rudeness from Napoleon, who called the English a "nation of shopkeepers," to former President Nicolas Sarkozy, who infamously snarled at a voter: "Get lost, poor jerk."

Now, bad manners and aggressive behavior top the list of causes of stress for the French, even higher than unemployment or the debt crisis, says pollster IPSOS. A total of 60 percent cited rudeness as their number one source of stress in a survey last year on social trends.

"We're so rude," admits 34-year-old French teacher Stephane Gomez, as he comes out of a Paris metro station. "France lacks the civic sense that you find in Anglo-Saxon countries."

"It's so easy to be polite, but we don't do it," says 30-year-old Zahia Sebahi. "I never see someone give up their seat for an elderly person."

But Paris's public transport authority is leading the fight-back in a summer-long publicity campaign against rudeness.

Billboards depicting Frenchmen with animal heads have dominated metro stations; they target passengers who are rude to staff and push and shove. "If you shove five people getting onboard," the posters say, "it won't make us set off faster." Bus ads read: "One bonjour doesn't cost a penny, and it changes your day."

Transport officials say they've tried to keep a light touch on a serious matter.

"We used humor to not be moralistic," says Isabelle Ockrent, RATP communications director. "But we've been alerted by our staff that there is a real problem."

Public transport staff even held "rudeness forums" over three days in late June in 20 metro stations, in which they exchanged views on correct etiquette with passengers.

Among other things, people were asked what they thought the root causes were for pushing and shoving: Lack of time? Unhappiness? Many Parisians attribute the decreasing tolerance to rudeness to the fast-pace of the Internet age, with i-Pods on the metro and mobile phone noise in public spaces.

"It might seem obvious, but when stressed for work, Parisians forget `hello' or `thank you' when asking for a ticket," says Ockrent.

Parisians, it seems, may be pleased to be going back to finishing school.

Passengers regularly gawk at the ads, which have stretched from ceiling to floor inside some metro stations, and the RATP say the campaign has gotten near universal positive feedback on it.

The results of this year's IPSOS trend research won't be published until fall. But the agency can already reveal that the backlash against rudeness is rising.

"In 2012, one thing is clear; the French are irritated and want a return to good manners. They've had enough of rudeness ... reached a limit," says Lise Brunet, IPSOS's director of trend studies.

"The acceleration of life with cells phones means that people have even less time to follow the rules of politeness," adds Brunet. "Today, it's even more of a concern than the economic crisis. People just want to hear `Thank you.'"

In France, the world's most visited country, rudeness is also a concern for tourism companies – especially as France feels the bite of the financial crisis.

Atout France, the country's tourism development agency launched a summer campaign in regions where tourism is suffering to promote service quality.

"We're very aware of the problem making tourists feel welcome," says Fanny Moutel, communications director for Atout France, the country's tourism development agency. "We've noticed that there are fewer English visiting places like Brittany and Normandy and the Loire, so the campaign aims to improve the way tourists are treated."

Where English-speaking tourists were once greeted with raised eyebrows and a Gallic shrug, more and more French in the service industry speak English.

That's just one of the many ways in which France is changing.

Earlier this week on a high-speed train, there were puzzled smiles from passengers after a decidedly un-French loudspeaker address:

"Hello, welcome, please greet your neighbor, and may you adopt a zen attitude."

_____

RELATED ON HUFFPOST:

When I went out to dinner, I walked the Village in the area where I am staying.  In the past the Restraunteurs would be out on the street greeting tourists with a Bonne Soir and enticing them into their establishment to dine.  Not so this time.  People will actually be viewing the menu and be totally ignored.

I was craving crepes, so choose a restaurant that specialized in them.  My waiter was quite friendly as I greeted him en Francais.  I chose an English menu and saw his demeaned change slightly. Again, he brought my food, my bill and nothing more. 

There have been some shop keepers and Transit people who have been just lovely, thankfully.   Even today, as I was waiting outside the cooking school for my class to begin, a homeless man approached me quite aggressively asking for a Euro.  I ignored him and he kept insisting to the point of touching me.  I then kept saying no and he became more forceful.  I had to literally get up and walk away.

Perhaps I was just totally spoiled by the wonderful ness of the people in Provence.

Versailles

Sunday July 29

Another early rise and off on my, trek to Versailles.

I took a bus to Les Invalides and caught a train from there.

It was about a 45 minute ride.

When I arrived, the walking and line ups began.

My feet were horribly sore from the walking the day before, so I struggled Immensely today.  I found a ticket outlet on the street and lined up there for tickets.

I hobbled my way the 15 minutes to the  Palace and then the line up began. It turned out to be about an hour and 15 minutes. Another line up in thealace for audio guides and then I began. I have to admit, I didn't really enjoy it.  Yes it was astoundingly opulent and historical, but the rude tourists pushing their way into and out of each room was distracting.

I made my way through the suggested areas and then headed to the gardens.  They, were beautiful and there was very appropriate classical music piped through.

I found a lovely spot in the gardens to scatter more ashes, then slowly and painfully, made my way back to the train station.  So nice to be sitting.

I arrived home, had a bit of a rest, then headed out to dinner.  A lovely restaurant on a side street just outside of my hotel beckoned me. I enjoyed a tasteful wine from the south of France, and a wonderful salad with chicken, herbs and zucchini.  I followed it all up with a chocolate mousse and cafe au lait.

As I dined, I had the opportunity to watch those around me. Although I am dining alone and at times, craving company, I notice those with companions are either, not conversing, staring past one another or more often than not, are both texting on their cell phones.  Slightly absurd in my opinion 

All of a sudden, it began to pour rain, just out of no where.  It didn't last LNG, but I was happy to be tucked away under a canopy.  When the rain stopped, I wandered over to Shakespeare and Company, bought a book about Coco Chanel and hobbled tiredly back to my room where I had a hot soak in lavender in an attempt to soothe away the challenges of the day.

Paris

Friday July  27

Today we leave our beautiful Provence.  I cannot believe we have already completed a week.  I think this is the first trip where I did not have one pang of homesickness, nor did my fellow travelers.

The wonderful women I travelled with were, Sheryl and Billie.  Mother and daughter.  Sheryl is from Newbraska, marked with 2 children in College.  She is an Occupational Therapist. She travelled with her mother and what seems like her very best friend, Billie.  Billie is 73, bad knees, an army wife from Mississippi and the nicest person you could ever know.

She struggled a bit during the trip with her knees but ever, ever did you hear a complaint from her. Sheryl is just as sweet and dedicated to her mom.  billie's husband sent the2 of them on the trip together.

While I was waiting at the Marseille airport, it was Sheryl who first approached me.

Cindi, is a lovely woman, who became my close friend.  She is married, and from Park City, Utah, but is moving back to Arizona.  She is very positive and has inspired me a number of times during the trip. She is well read and has a wicked sense of humor that had me giggling on many occasions. She works in the non- profit sector and is very environmentally aware.

Denise is a Professor from Sacremento, California, is divorced with 2 sons and a granddaughter. She seems to have travelled the world and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch with her and then a dinner together in Paris.

Robbi and Jim, are a wonderful couple from Australia. They have been operating Aroma Tours for 18 years.  Robbi is an Aromatherapist and author.

Jim reminded me so much of Steve.  He was more gray, but they had some very definite similarities.  They both enjoyed talking, teaching and laughing.

We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast together and  climbed into the van for the last time.

We said hugful and tearful goodbyes with promises to stay in touch.

We were being dropped off at the airport, but funnily enough, none of us were flying.

Sheryl and Billie were staying another night at an airport hotel, Cindi was traveling onto Aix-on-Provence for a few more days and Denise and I were headed to Paris for a few days, but different trains.

When we departed ways at the airport, it became like a culture shock.  I went from talking and laughing daily with friends, to being totally anonymous.  My cab driver did not speak our entire trip to the train station, I spoke to no one at the train station or the entire ride to Paris.

The train was pretty uneventful.  It was full and unfortunately,I was backward facing that didn't allow me to read due to motion sickness, so I basically just listened to my IPod and dozed off and on.

It was a vey long walk from disembarking to a taxi stand in Paris and lugging all of my luggage was a challenge.  I managed to score a very old, decrepit cab driver that barely spoke English and hadn't a clue where my hotel was.  I basically had to direct him the entire way.

I was happy to be back in room 24 of Les Degres de Notre Dame and for the life of me could not be bothered unpacking for a third time.

I headed out for a walk, saw my beloved Cathedral and then went to a familiar restaurant for a bite to eat.  It was early and not busy, but that did not stop the waiter from all but ignore me.  I didn't take it personally, he ignored everyone.  I had a glass of wine and the obligatory Croques Monsieur and headed out for another walk.  I wandered over to Isle St. Louis and wandered the cobblestoned streets .  I bought a small cup of delicious ice cream and headed back to the hotel.

My friend Denise and I emailed about meeting up the next day and she too felt the anonymity of the city after the charm and overt friendliness of Provence.

Avignon and Le Chateau

Thursday July 25

After breakfast today, we headed to Avignon.

On the way we spotted a vibrant Sunflower field, which was quite odd since the sunflower season was almost done.  Billie, or Mamma "B" as we came to call her, came to Provence for the Lavender, but adores sunflowers, so Jim, drove us up to the field for some amazing photo's.  Thankfully, the bees this time were more interested in the flowers than me.

We took a scenic route to Avignon along The Rhone and were able to see the great wall that surrounds the town.

We split up in the centre of town and Cindi and I decided to visit Le Place des Papes.  The Palace of the Popes.

It was overwhelming, interesting and very hot.

We all met up and enjoyed a delicious lunch at a cafe overlooking The Rhone.

I ordered a Pizza referred to as The Princess and for some reason, everyone thought that appropriate.

We shared bowls of salad and plates of Frites and of course bottles of Rose.

We headed back to the village for some down time and another chance to swim, since it was so hot.

We had an Olive Oil tasting in town that was wonderful.  I didn't realize there were so many variations of Olives.  We also tasted a variety of vinegars 

The young woman who was teaching us, was very impressed that I was from Canada.  She had never met a "bad" Canadian.

That evening, being our last dinner together, we were taken to the most glorious Chateau. It was located at the end of a private road with Sycamore trees arching along the way. 

In the adjoining field was a huge flock of sheep being herded by a few very rambunctious Boarder Collies.

The Chateau was magnificent.  We managed a few photo's in front and then headed to the terrace for our meal.  Breathtaking. 

The Sommelier who served us, presented us with a special glass of Champagne, along with an interesting Amuse Bouche of  tapenade, toasts, sardines and artichoke. We ordered our courses and went off to take more photos of the grounds.  There was a gorgeous Koi pond, little bridges, random settees and sculptures all around.  I could totally see a mediation or yoga retreat happening.  

Our first course arrived and it was a delicious splay of haricuts  verte, followed by the a mouthwatering Guinea Fowl.

Before the dessert, I wandered off to take a few more photos and to scatter more of Steve's ashes.  I found a trickling brook and so aptly placed them there. He would love it there.  It was at one point the home of Nostradamus.

Another delectable gateaux chocolate for dessert, then off to wander the Chateau.

It was glorious and if I could afford 400 euros a night, I could stay there.

We got back to our hotel about 11:00 pm and we all gathered in the gazebo for a little debriefing from Robbi and Jim.  They spoke of how much they enjoyed our small group.  They usually have 15 on a tour and we were a group of 5. Jim kept saying g he has never seen a group all get along so well before and that we had the honor and privilege of being the first "Jimettes"

They said they would love to see us return for another tour and to only tell our nice friends about them

Robbi, then recited the following.

I will not die an unlived life.

I will not live in fear

of falling or catching fire.

I choose to inhabit my days,

to allow my living to open me,

to make me less afraid,

more accessible,

to loosen my heart

until it becomes a wing,

a torch, a promise.

I choose to risk my significance;

to live so that which came to me as seed

goes to the next as blossom

and that which came to me as blossom,

goes on as fruit.

fully alive - dawna markova

© Dawna Markova

Back to our room to pack.

Market Day in St. Remy

Wednesday, July  25th

Today is Market day in St. Remy.

We begin with an early breakfast and Robbi supplied us with a wonderful large sac to carry all of our purchases.

It truly was bustling and covers many kilometers of the town.

Right off the bat, I purchased a lovely straw hat from the craftsman himself, some jewelry, a bandana, some cookies and some amazing chocolates.

I also had to purchase another bag to carry everything I have already bought in Provence.

It was decided we would pick up some goodies for lunch and share back at the hotel.  I bought baskets of fresh fruit and cheese

When I could take no more of the crowds, I headed back for a swim and then met the girls to share our food.  The cheese we bought was amazing and the fruit tasted almost fragrant.

Later in the afternoon we left to visit St. Paul de Mausole where we learned the story of the life and death of Vince t Van Gogh.

I scattered some of Steve's ashes, where Van Gogh was shot and the we headed through the gardens where his paintings are on display.  We saw the hospital and room where he lived for a time and then headed off to Les Baux to see the illustrations of Van Gogh and Gaugin brought to life on the cave walls.

This was brilliant.  You walk in to the   Coolness  of a cave, it's dirt floor and gray walls and then it goes dark.  Vibrant music begins as the art is projected onto the cave walls, floors and ceiling.  It is breathtaking.

Walking around while the illustrations are moving, can really affect your balance, so it is best to just stand still and take it all in.

Out into the heat of the Provençal sun and off to the perched village of Les Baux.

This was my favorite village by far.  High up upon a mountain top, it contains, quaint shops tucked into the rock, wonderful restaurants overlooking the canyon,  a quaint very simplistic church, and a wonderful exhibit of Princess Grace's visit to Les Baux.

I purchases some linen and then entered a shop tucked away in the rock.  It had the most beautiful silk scarves.  The owner reminded me of the actor Bill Nigh, but spoke NO English.  We still managed a transaction all en Francais.  Just say " Canada" in France and they will love you.

Sadly we left the town too soon and then headed to wi Rey out in the country.  Jim gave us a private tour and it was wonderful.  The barrels are housed in a great room with a cathedral like feel to it.  We then tasted a Rose, white and red.  If I had room in my luggage, I would have bought some for home.

We returned to our hotel and had 20 minutes to refresh for dinner.

We dined again in our village, under a wonderful canopy

Dinner was,  a warm goat cheese salad, a lamb so succulent, I needed only my fork, and a chocolate mousse.  Of course this was all accompanied by a wonderful Sauvignon Blanc.

We wandered the village again, before retiring for the evening.