Travel another way

Travel notes from Michelle, one of our guests on the tour to Provence.

“Today, we were off to wine tasting (Chateau Neuf du Pape wine), then chocolate tasting.  What a yummy combination!  We have learned so much about the French culture just by hearing about how wine is made.  We had lunch in a small French village called Chateau Neuf du Pape; it almost feels like the back lot of a Disney tour.  It’s absolutely amazing!

Michelle, Kathy, the oenologist, Jeannie, Sandy, Sue and Pat at the winery of Chateau Neuf du Pape.

After lunch, onto the Bernard Castelain candy making tour.  Their chocolate was ranked #1 in Gourmet Magazines 2007 magazine.  Just as a point of reference,  Ghirardelli was ranked last, and even Hershey ranked above Ghirardelli.  Just excellent!

We saw our first rainbow in France; we would definitely travel with our tour leader Jacques again…she is wonderful, as is Valerie.”

Travel notes from Michelle L, Rhode Island, one of our guests on the tour to Provence.

“Began the day with yet another excellent breakfast prepared by Phillipe and Viviane (the proprietors at the hotel).  Then, we went to an olive oil factory and learned how olive oil is made.  It’s amazing, we take so much for granted.  We just pour the olive oil on our bread without thinking about the trees, the tending of the soil, the harvesting etc.  We should all be more grateful and aware of the labor that goes into each bite of food.

Then, onto Roussillon, a beautiful old village a top a stone ledge. Kathy and I bought paint pigment; then we all went onto the ochre trail.  It was bold reds and golds, much like Bryce Canyon without the spires.  Absolutely beautiful!

Then, if that was not enough, onto the nougat factory.  We learned how nougat was made, had plenty of samples :-)

Back at the guesthouse, I (Mitch) had the most wonderful, luxurious massage of my life.  What a wonderful trip; new places, new friends, new ways to be.”

Travel notes from Michelle, one of our guests on the tour to Provence.

“Today, the six members of our party spent our first day together.  Kathy and Mitch, Pat and Sandy, Susan and Jeannie spent the morning in the Avignon marketplace.  It was spectacular!   Second hand European clothes were wonderful; beautiful soaps, lotions, linens and to top it off….a parade went by!

We spent the afternoon in the Palace of the Popes.  There was a beautiful carousel in the middle of the square, and nearly all of us bought jewelry from a man who made original silver pieces…one of a kind.

Back at the guesthouse in the Luberon, we had a most delicious dinner beginning with salad greens, then 3-day marinated beef stew.  It was so soft and tender, you just lay your fork on the beef to cut it.

Jackie (we call her Jacques) and Valerie are wonderful.  Our rooms are all different, each more charming than the next.  We’re loving this trip.

(How lucky we are to be spending such a magical time in fabulous France with such wonderful women. We are so fortunate to experience the wonders of France and the new friendships we are forming. The wonders we see before us each day are an experience in itself but the frosting on the cake is to be with women who are kind, friendly, warm and most of all——fun. We are truly rich). We should be thankful for what we have each and every day…” Michelle

Last travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, she and her friend Eppie went to Italy.

“Another interesting note: people in Italy won’t serve you something you request if they don’t think ‘its right’.  Eppie ordered coffee before dinner and was denied because one doesn’t drink coffee until AFTER dinner. (He said ‘drink wine with dinner).  A cappuccino after 11:00am? Forget about it. I tried once and the person just said no and walked away. BUT, it IS okay to have Gelato at anytime of day, even an hour before dinner. In fact, I think its even approved as a meal substitute.

Doggie bags or to-go boxes? Are you nuts? Why would you have leftovers? Eat it all, mangia, mangia! Besides, if you are holding doggie bags how can you hold your Gelato?   Having lived in San Jose for 7 years, Laura and Valerio anticipated our astonishment and would tell us what to expect. They remarked that when they left in 2000 for the U.S. restrooms were free, now there’s a cover charge (,50€) that may or may not include a toilet seat, (kind of gross) a toilet bowl (eewww really gross) paper (don’t ask, don’t tell) or all 3. (Totally disgusting and only to be used in cases of extreme emergency). So why are we paying??? Men have it good, that’s all I have to say about it.

After San Zeno (remember him?) We walked towards a bit , then picked up Nicolo from school and headed northwest to Lago di Gardo (Garda Lake) and to the lake side village of Bartolino. Talk about PERFECT TIMING, the Festa del Uva e Vino (grape and wine festival) was starting within an hour of our arrival. So we decide to kill time and sit down and have enormous bowls of Gelato.  Sure enough, at 5:45 a little band of local musicians paraded through the street followed by a mule pulling a cart filled with young girls (8-12yrs) dressed as peasants (including head scarf) handing out bunches of red grapes- they were delicious! ”

At 6:00pm the Mayor (complete with red, white and green sash) cut the ribbon and announce that the festival had begun. We strolled through the many booths, all of which were selling food or pouring wine. Valerio works somewhat nearby and he drove over after work and joined us. What a treat! The festival is very popular with ‘the germans’. Apparently many ‘germans’ have summer homes on Lake Garda and come down for this festival. We even saw some Lederhosen.  (I believe ‘The Germans’ includes anyone who speaks german, as the neighbors to the north of Italy are actually Switzerland and Austria).

We had a great time walking around, looking how each booth was decorated and what kind of food they were serving. Everything from Gnochi Bolognese to Polenta e Funghi to Seafood. Not one burger joint.  One booth served roast pig, and I mean the whole pig right down to the eyelashes and teeth. The pig had a tennis ball in his mouth!!  Any of you who know me (and our dog) well can guess how unsettling this was for me. Poor Strider!! So we all had plenty to eat and listened to the loud music (all american or at least english. Whenever I hear YMCA or Celebration again I will remember Bartolino) Valerio remarks that most of the music you hear in Italy isn’t Italian, only Americans think ‘That’s Amore’ and ‘o sole mio’ are typical italian songs. Silly me for expecting italian music in Italy. So most meals had english soundtracks. So with this day being our first full day in Verona, I’d say we’re off to a great start!”

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, she and her friend Eppie went to Italy.

“What’s so incredible is that most of downtown Verona is many centuries old, so historic, but to the residents its just part of their day to day landscape. You’ll see everyday businesses operating in these wonderful old buildings, or an ATM built into the side of a castle. Its so fascinating for us, but just part of life for them.

We eventually headed to Laura’s home and met up with her husband Valerio. They live in a suburb about 20 minutes away from downtown. They just moved into a beautiful brand new Condo 10 days ago and between Valerio working and Laura keeping up with 3 year old Nicolo and 10 month old Elia (ee-lee-ah) it’s a wonder that they were  organized. Of course, they aren’t unpacked yet, but its home sweet home. (The last time I saw Nicolo was 15 months ago. While he was very shy at first, he said ‘Bella Joan’)  We went out to a ristorante that had 6 or 7 PAGES of pizza choices. That’s what? Over 75 kinds? Decisions, decisions.

While we were there Valerio reviewed the pages of activities he had researched as options for us to go see and do. He said after reading all my emails from France with the tour French Escapade, he felt he had to measure up to those experiences.

The next day Laura (and Elia) took us to the Basilica San Zeno, the oldest and most significant church in Verona, which just happens to be in the neighborhood where Laura grew up. St. Zeno is the patron saint of Verona and he was also black, being from Africa. His claim to saint hood is that he converted ALL of Verona from pagans and mere christians to Catholics. As in Pisa, San Zeno’s relics are on display. The church is fascinating, it took centuries to build. Laura has always appreciated the irony of San Zeno being black because many people from Verona are very “racist” and prejudiced; even those from other regions of Italy (such as Sicily) are often disliked and discriminated against. In 1999 Laura + Valerio couldn’t get married at City Hall because Valerio is from Sicily and the Mayor ‘didn’t like’ people from Sicily and would not allow the wedding there.”

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, she and her friend Eppie went to Italy.

“Our trip to Verona was a crazy one. After ordering our standard “cappuccino e cafe americano’ at the train station early on, Eppie had her change thrown back at her while others just stood and watched. Her crime? Being American we suppose. Nothing like starting off on a pleasant note. Italy has a schizophrenic society.

Our train from Genoa to Milan arrived 12minutes late. We had only 3 minutes to reconnect and we missed it. So did over half of everyone else heading to Verona. So suffice it to say that our eventual trip was way over crowded and we ended up sitting on our luggage in a corridor because it was so over booked. We didn’t have the nerve, energy or inclination to make a fuss about the elderly couple occupying our seats. (So much for being ugly americans). 

My friend Laura was there waiting for us and found us within a minute of walking outside. She took us to our hotel to check in,  and an hour and a half later we were in a little trattoria having a late lunch.

We walked through much of downtown Verona, including past the ancient arena, and many historic and beautiful landmarks that are more than 1000 years old. We even went to Juliette’s Balcony and the House of Montaque, which is now an upscale restaurant that does NOT exploit or even mention Romeo’s name. (Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliette after moving to Verona and hearing locals tell about Guiliette and Romero. He  put the story on paper and anglicised the names.  Juliette’s tomb is still visited everyday).”  

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, Eppie and her went to Italy.

“While at the Genova train station we wanted to secure our agenda for the next few days. The next hour involved a lot of yelling, major arm waving, and I think name calling. I would not be surprised to learn that there were some adjectives in there, too. After standing in a line for 30 min I approached the ticket agent who said he spoke ” a little” english. I presented our plans for traveling to Santa Margherita, Pisa, and Verona. The man was gruff and not friendly at all, and when I told him we have eurail passes he went NUTS. Absolutely ballistic. Yelling. A whole upper body workout including waving and pointing. He pushed himself away from his desk, turned to his co-workers and kept talking, turning towards me and pointing and gesturing. Very theatrical and humiliating, but quite non-productive because I had no idea what he wanted. Keep in mind he could speak english. He could, in theory, ask or tell me what the problem was. But he continued to berate me in Italian and I could feel my face burning with embarrasment. When I asked him what was wrong he started up all over again and flipped his ‘open’ (english once again) sign to ‘closed’. I asked again what I had done wrong. He waved his sign in my face and said ‘go to information you don’t know’.

So I did. Turns out that there is a 4€ difference in price from a general ticket and one bought with a eurail pass on 2 of the trips. 2 trips, 2 passengers = 16€. So he would have had to void and reissue the tickets, and I guess that just wasn’t something he wanted to do. The lady in information wrote down everything I wanted, train #s, times, prices, etc and told me to take those slips back to the ticket window, give them to the agent and pay for our tkts. So we get back in line. Finally, the ticket agent (different) took the slips, examined them, confirmed the days again and # of tickets (in english). Then she asked me if I had “anything else”. I said” no, just those trips please”. She burst into a tirade. “Hey, you, don’t you have eurail pass? You no tell him (waving in her now absent co-workers direction). You no tell me you have Eurail pass! Crazy, stupid, you no tell”. Call me crazy, but then why don’t they just ask (or put up a sign) requesting us to present the pass. I think the railway employees in Italy set a new standard in workplace rage. “Going Postal” in the U.S. Is going to have to relinquish its championship belt to the Italians.

So after all this trauma, we catch our tain to Santa Margherita and then take a shuttle bus to Portofino. It was close to 4pm by the time we got there. It was perfect. Quiet, beautiful, picturesque, just as I imagined. We had a very nice, quiet little dinner right by the little sailboats bobbing in the harbor listening to music and playing ‘name that recording artist’ with the manager. I earned a ‘bravo’ by recognizing Sarah Brightman within 15 seconds. All in all, it was a very nice  day in Italy but it took a glass of wine for me to recover from all of the aforementioned American bashing. Ciao!” Joan

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, Eppie and her went to Italy.

Immediately upon getting to the train to Genoa, Italy we had ‘issues’. First, we had reservations on a particular train car (#9), in specific seats. How frustrating to find there was no car #9! As the train began making all those gearing up sounds Eppie and I threw our bags and ourselves into car #8. After which the train did indeed pull out of the station. We were told to report to #4, which isn’t exactly as simple as it sounds. Oh sure, we just walk up 4 cars. But while the train is moving and rocking from side to side, and we’re making 2 trips each back and forth because the aisles are narrow and crowded.

Long story short – motion sickness. It was very dizzying walking counter to the direction of the train, staying balanced, while schlepping bags. Remember, to get from 1 car to the other you have to open a sliding door, step across the gyrating ‘joint’ where car 8 meets car 7, open another door, and so on. With a couple(okay, 4)suitcases, 2 ‘carry-ons’ and a back-pack. Eppie is my hero. She would haul those puppies through those people like Moses parting the Red Sea. Dang! It took about 45 minutes but we finally got everything to our newly assigned seats, which of course, were occupied by a retired-age couple who were not happy to be ousted by us.

The seating arrangement was like a table booth in a restaurant, however with separate seats, not a bench. I guess they had wanted our side since it faced the direction of travel, plus it was roomier as it had 3 seats. Nevertheless, we ousted them and they scooted around the little tray table to their assigned seats. (Note: we did this not because we want to bully people but because in Europe a train traveler can get “fined” 50€ if they commit an infraction regarding their ticketing. So we where already concerned about being in the ‘wrong’ car. We wanted to be in the ‘correct’ seats) Then I had to create space for all of our luggage. I lifted up smaller (and nicer) luggage to make room for our bigger, more scuffed bags, then placed the smaller ones on top of the large ones. Logical? Considerate? I thought so, did they? Hell no.

The older lady immediately addressed her husband with arm waving, attitude-tossing malice sneered in my direction. Complaining and insulting hurts more in a foreign tongue since you are unable to attempt peace negotiations. Where’s Jimmy Carter or Jesse jackson when you need them? So after a 15 minute stand off and dirty glances, I opened an italian map and studied it, then took out my passport, handed it to the man and showed him my last name. “Aah! Di Pietro!”. I pointed to my wedding ring. ‘Si,si’ he said, beaming. Apparently I moved up a notch or two in his book because at least I demonstrated the good sense to marry an Italian having not had the good fortune to be born one. I muttered (butchered I’m sure) something about ” mi esposo familia abruzzesi”. and I pointed on my map in the general direction of Introdocua, where Rico’s father was from. This was met with more “Si, si” and more friendly chatter. By the time we said goodbye in Genova, I had learned that they had family in San Francisco and we shook hands.

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After our trip, she went to Italy.

“In Pisa, there is a Cathedral which is enormous, ornate, and constructed of beautiful white marble. Then there’s the Bapistry, another sacred building with a large dome. Not as large as the cathedral but still quite impressive. Both are sitting on a lawn, which looks so strange. I guess I’m used to large churches, museums, government buildings, monuments built on plazas and/or with parking lots. This was very impressive. 

Then of course there is the famous leaning tower, which was originally designed to be a bell tower. It is dwarfed by the other 2 buildings. The chronological (and architecural) history of the tower’s construction is well documented. For 25€ you can climb up inside. All of these buildings, which were constructed with white marble, had very recently been cleaned and were striking. In addition to these 3 buildings there are 2 museums, one of which was until recently a hospital. We were told that Pisa is the oldest city in Italy, and the 2 mile wall around the oldest part of the city is the oldest intact wall of its kind in the world.

While we admired the leaning tower from afar, we spent our €uros on being able to walk around inside of the cathedral. Amazing frescos, sculptures and windows.  The patron saint of Pisa (John Baptiste de_____?) “relics” (body) is on display in a glass tomb. They should have done that with Elvis so there wouldn’t be so much speculation about his whereabouts.  

After a few hours we hopped the bus, completed our tour and railed our way back to Genoa. There we got off at a different station, went shopping for an hour or so and when it started to rain we ducked into a tiny ristorante and had an excellent dinner and chatted with the owner who ‘loved’ the U.S. 

Then we caught the train for 1 stop, caught a bus to the airport and then walked to our hotel. I gotta mention that there were only 4 people on this bus, one being the driver. This MANIAC drove about 70 mph through these narrow city streets, we had to hang on to the bars even though we were seated. Twice on turns my butt slid off the seat despite hanging on. Only my feet being firmly planted kept me from flying across the aisle.  It was like being a stuntman on a chase scene. So tomorrow its arrivederci Genoa and we’re off to Verona.” Ciao Joan

Travel notes from Joan D., San Jose , California, one of our guests on the Provence tour. After the trip, she went to Italy.

“Pisa is a 2 hour train from Genoa, southeast. Pisa is pretty much on the ‘border’ of northern Italy and Tuscany, (Toscano) and is close to the mediterranean. We shared our seats with Maria, an Italian woman in her upper 40’s and her 6yr old daughter Franchesca. They were on their way home, traveling all the way down to the heel of Italy’s boot. (12 by train) being female, we quickly worked out a way to talk for over 90 minutes.  Eppie would ask Maria questions in Espanol (hey, who knew?) And if Maria didn’t understand or know how to respond in English, she’d answer in Italian and then if we looked lost (like, yeah!) she’d try in German, (ich spreche) so then I’d tell Eppie the answer. Then I’d ask in German, she’d try to answer in English. It was a fun and friendly experience. God Bless her, she had been in Genoa visiting her 27 year old daughter and 26 year old son. (She explained in German) then she pointed to Franchesca and said “ooops”. Some things are international.

Eppie and I had no game plan for Pisa, we figured we’d find a tour and that’s exactly how it worked out.  We hopped one of those double decker buses right outside the train station and  and rode through town. Pisa is much bigger than I thought it would be, I have always heard that it’s small, dull and nothing to do but see the leaning tower. But while its not urban, its sprawling. When we arrived at the major tourist stop we got off and walked into the large complex I was immediately impressed by the immense size of two of the buildings, and by how white they are in contrast to the very green grass on which they sit. I was also shocked by the immense crowd of people! There had to have been 75,000 people within the ancient walls of this complex. The complex is roughly a half mile long and 1/3 mile wide, so it’s roomy but since they ask ‘don’t walk on the grass’, the walkways were packed with families and TONS of students.”

   To be continued tomorrow!!

Today I decided to post the diary from Susan and Kathy who were our guests in Provence. They went to Paris on their own afterwards while Eppie adn Joan went to La Cote d’Azur and Italy. Tomorrow, I will post their comment about Italy.

From Susan and Kathy, Castro Valley, California.

We had a great time in Paris.  Our apartment was just as it was described—and with the 10 or so pictures we saw of the apartment, there were no surprises–except a pleasant one–we even had a bathtub!  We were never more than a 10 min metro ride from anything.

We spent Sunday at Versailles where they were having a special musical fountain display in the gardens—which meant they turned on the fountains and piped in classical music.  It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed it immensely.  Then on the way home, we stopped at the Eiffel Tower and saw it in all its night time glory–sparkles and all.  Yes, we had to go to the top!  The rest of the week was filled to the brim and we saw everything we had intended to see.  Thursday afternoon the weather turned very cold and by Friday AM, we were ready to leave Paris in a pouring rain.  It is good to be home—–Joan and Eppie–are you ready to come home yet?

Thank you all for a wonderful time in Provence.  We enjoyed being with you all and the memories will last a life time.  Jac and Valerie—you two rock!!”"

Here is a picture of Kathy and Susan in Provence

kathy and susan

From Joan D. diary, one of our guests who traveled with us to Provence before heading towards the Cote d’Azur.

Still in Monaco. It only takes 30 minutes to drive by and point out many landmarks. It also helps you understand the lay of the land. We knew after taking this tour that it’d be cool to head back to M-C after we toured the area around the Palace. We went to the Cathedral of Monaco where Grace Kelly married her Prince. (They are now buried there side-by-side)  We found this entire area – the hilltop overlooking the city- very beautiful and clean and wall-to-wall history.

We then took advantage of Monaco’s FREE city bus service and rode over to Monte-Carlo. By the way, there is 1 police officer per every 60 people in Monaco and thousands of surveillance cameras throughout the Principality, so as they told us on the tour train, “smile, you’re having your picture taken”. Sure enough, we didn’t see any gang types, beggars, gypsies, tramps or thieves. In Monte-Carlo I had to try my hand in the glamorous Casino, (as in Casino Royale). I played slots because you have to pay and get a line of credit just to walk into the ‘betting parlors’. I put my 20€ in the poker machine and doubled it when I got 4 kings. I cashed out and STRUTTED out a winner!

Eppie and I then walked next door to do a little (very little) shopping and then dined at Cafe du Paris, where I splurged and used my winnings to enjoy a glass of pink champagne. My overall impression of Monaco; it was more urban than I had thought it would be. Still, many parts were beautiful, scenic. I could live there. Apparently I am not alone in this thought as only a very small % of residents are native to Monaco. The weather is nice, the economy is strong, the streets are safe and clean and there’s lots of dogs. Oh, and there’s gambling and public transportation is free. What’s not to like?!  One more observation about France in general: we noticed on numerous occasions that VERY young kids (3,4,5,6) are just walking around without obvious adult supervision. Out of concern we’d watch the child to see if it was lost or wandering and sure enough, eventually an adult would come over and claim them. You never see a dog off a leash or without supervision, but kids we’d see running a block ahead of their parents. Funny in a peculiar way.
So back to Nice for the night and then we’re off to Italy on Monday.

Still from Joan’s diary, one of our guests on the Provence trip in October.

“It was with an enormous amount of anticipation on my part that we headed off to Monaco. While I woke up early, (giddy with excitement no doubt) mon ami Epifania slept until 10:30! By the time we were out of the room it was 11:30.

We walked a couple of blocks down the street alongside the water to the well known Hotel Negresco. We had thought about doing brunch until the 54€ price tag made us think again. We decided to save the € and the calories and went into a brasserie for tapas and cafe au lait. Then we made the 20 min walk to the Nice Ville train station and caught the local to Monaco.

Upon arriving, one could be impressed that the train station is new, sleek and built into the rock of the hillside overlooking downtown Monaco and its harbor. We walked from there to the Oceanographic Museum, no small feat. About 2.5 miles, the last 1/3 of which was up the hill on which the Princes Palace is located. But what a view! At the Oceanographic Museum you can get on the little tour trains that take you all around Monaco and Monte-Carlo. More tomorrow….”

Joan D. San Jose, California

Still from Joan’s diary D. from San Jose, California, one of our guests on our trip to Provence.

It was with mixed emotions that we said our goodbyes at the train station in Avignon. We had such a wonderful time and have stored away so many fun memories of Provence.

Thanks again Jackie and Valerie for everything. Check their site to travel to France at www.frenchescapade.com

Now we leave Provence and travel east through the Cote du Azur to Nice. Nice (pronounced Neece) is 3 hours east of Avignon by train – we traveled through Marseilles, Toulon, Cannes and Antibes to name a few. We followed the shore most of the way once we hit Marseille, so the views were great. When we arrived in Nice we could tell immediately that we were back in a big city. What a crowd! We grabbed a cab to our hotel ( Le Meridian) which, to our delight, is across the street from the Mediterranean. We learned to our extreme dismay that cabs to Monaco, which is about 13 miles away, cost 80€, which = $120.00. I’m not sure how to say HOLY CRAP in French, but I was ready to look it up. Since it was already 4:30 pm we decided to stay in Nice for the evening and take a train to Monaco/Monte-Carlo for 4€ the next day. And I’m so glad we did.

We strolled down the promenade (you do that in France, stroll. In San Jose you walk, in New York you hustle, in Texas you mosey, in France – you stroll ) So we stroll past some high-end shops and then some not-so-high-end shops until we arrived in an area that was clearly gearing up for a busy Saturday night. It was like a pedestrian boulevard with many restaurants and sidewalk cafes. We ate early by european standards-7:30 is usually the earliest restaurants begin serving. But that is when the staff is charming and friendly and takes time to describe things. Its been my observation that usually each waiter has about 12 tables, so after 8:30 when the place fills up you rarely see them.

So while we’re sitting at this cafe having dinner we can see vendors and shoppers and people walking their dogs all filling up the street. By the time it 9:00 the place is beginning to bustle. Eppie and I started to walk (strolling doesn’t work off your dinner, but walking does) all around without paying particular attention to where we were as long as there was a lot of light and lots of people. We end up hiking up into an old section of town, up a hill on very narrow streets with a lot of young people hanging out in these hole in the wall pubs and bars. It reminded me of Monmartre. We followed someone who was walking his dog as far up as we could go, there was either a castle or a church up at the top but whatever it was it was closed. We got a little nervous – the streets became as narrow as hallways and they were crowded with pub crawlers.

We finally made our way back to a very large plaza that had a crowd standing around one end. We sauntered over and discover a young man, probably mid 20’s, had rolled a piano onto the plaza and was playing these concertos and sonatas beautifully. It was awesome. Of course people were filling his tip jar. It was very nice – here we were watching the result of thousands of euros worth of piano lessons for the amount of a small tip. Soon after this concert was over we headed back to the hotel and called it a day. Tomorrow – Monaco

From Kathy and Susan, 2 of our guests on our tour to Provence with French Escapade.

Hi all–tonight is our last night in Provence and the gods are sad.  After a week of beautiful weather, we returned to our farmhouse about 4 pm, sat ouside and talked with a few people and then it started to cloud over.  Now it is raining quite hard and thunder and lightening right over the hotel—-quite spectacular.  It is about 6pm now, Susan will have a massage at 7pm and then to dinner at 8.  Last night we had dinner here also and had duck–it was delicious—-what a tough life!!

Today we went to the Alpilles (small alps) to a quarry which has an underground light and music display of Van Gogh paintings projected onto huge slabs of stone.  It was pretty neat.  Then onto the medievel village of les Baux de Provence which is perched on the side of a rock mountain with the remains of a medievel castle topping it.  They have displays of catapults which was very impressive and the medievel knight giving the demo was really cute and quite funny.  The view down into the valley was awesome with its patchwork quilt design of olive tree orchards and grapevines.  Lots of shopping or just sitting and people watching.

It will be a sad day tomorrow to be leaving this wonderful place.

Love to all. Kathy and Susan, Casto Valley, California.