Today we got a glimpse of the remnants of the once bustling silk trade in Lyon. Continue reading →

It’s hard not to compare the past and the present here. We are staying in a part of Lyon called la Cité Internationale, which is a huge multi-use Renzo Piano-designed mixed-use complex which seems to have been begun in the 1980’s and finished in 2006. Continue reading →

Yup, 75 pounds of excess weight left us today. We found the local FedEx office – after several discussions with their office in the US, one false lead which took us to the wrong place, and a final moment of success in an industrial park outside of Lyon. Continue reading →

We spent most of our day in and around Tain-l’Hermitage, on the left bank of the Rhône. This is wine country! Continue reading →

We are in the city of Valence, which is considered the started point of le Midi, the south of France. Of course, we are going against the tide at this point, heading north and leaving the south to the vacationing hordes. Continue reading →

We stayed last night in the small town of Mornas, another cliff-hanging medieval town. There just seems to be no end to them! Continue reading →

We were sad to leave our lovely gîte this morning, and mostly sad to leave its wonderful pool. We spent yesterday there in a zen state, in our favorite spot under the olive trees, though I did bestir myself long enough to capture amazing cloud pillows on the horizon. God’s shaving cream?

Continue reading →

Though we were there in April, we did not have sufficient time to pay homage to one of Aix-en-Provence’s favorite sons, Paul Cezanne. Continue reading →

We’ve all seen their shops. They are in every country in the world, and there are 13 stores in Manhattan alone, not counting all the luxury retailers who stock their products. Continue reading →

The motivation may be different, but the passion with which we tourists pursue the visions of lavender in bloom in Provence certainly rivals the energy of those on the Route of Santiago de Compostela. Continue reading →