Auxerre, France

This weekend we returned to the town of Auxerre since our first visit was in the freezing cold weather. Auxerre sits along the picturesque Yonne River with two large churches rising up from its cityscape.

Auxerre, France

Auxerre, France

Auxerre, France

Auxerre, France

Auxerre, France - on one of the bridges a plaque honoring
Thomas Jefferson referencing the French-American friendship 

Auxerre, France

Auxerre, France

But the thing we wanted to do the most in this region was ride our bikes on the towpath along the Canal du Nivernais. There are about 500 miles (800K) of cycle tracks in the Bourgogne region alone. This was our first time biking in this area of Bourgogne, previously we have cycled north of Dijon.

Map of Bourgogne region cycle paths

On Saturday we rode south of Auxerre about 15 miles to Sainte Pallaye. We initially thought we could ride from Auxerre to Clamecy without realizing the distance and of course considering the return to the car. But as it turned out, Sainte Pallaye isn't even a third of the distance to Clamecy. So there is so much more to discover in this corner of Bourgogne.

With numerous people on houseboats riding the canals and at the locks, you can hear conversations with the canal attendants about where people are from, and where they are going. There was a lady riding her bike with a freshly picked wild flower bouquet, and picnickers galore. Lots of fisherman too.
We passed several groups of people with saddlebags on their bikes and had to assume that they were traveling long distances. There are companies for hire to transport your bags from one location to another and reserve accommodations in advance along the towpath. It was picture perfect ride!

Here's some sites we saw along the way:

Canal du Nivernais - not sure what this was other 

than a reenactment of by-gone-days in France

Canal du Nivernais - Chateau along the towpath

Canal du Nivernais

Canal du Nivernais

Canal du Nivernais - passing through the lock system

Canal du Nivernais 

Canal du Nivernais - Sainte Pallaye, a canal attendant's home

Canal du Nivernais

Canal du Nivernais - home along the canal

Canal du Nivernais

We were recommended a fantastic restaurant for Saturday night, something way beyond our normal fare. Upon arriving to the restaurant, the hostess pointed to George's shorts and said, "Sir, we don't allow shorts to be worn in this restaurant." Oh jeez, we just drove 25 minutes from our hotel, we both looked at each other -What are we going to do now. But she said "Don't worry we have a pair of pants that you can wear."

As George was changing, a prior conversation while we were packing for the trip came to mind. Husband-"Do you think I should pack long pants." Wife-"It might be a good idea if we eat in a nice restaurant." In all fairness, you wouldn't have known George was wearing pants of the rental kind. The meal was incredible and the service was outstanding. The restaurant was located next to the Yonne River offering beautiful views from the terrace for our aperitif before we were taken to the dining area.

As previously mentioned we've been to this area before, but we didn't give the town of Chablis a second thought, I think because we saw tourist buses. Say no more. But this journey put us in Chablis near the end of lunch time. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it now. When in France, if you don't eat between 12-2:30, you are plumb out of luck for a decent meal or no meal-period, restaurants either close or stop serving (large cities don't count).

So we stopped and had a very nice lunch in a sun-filled courtyard. Chablis is an extremely small town but it is probably safe to say that its name is a draw for tourism. But even if it was named something else, it would be a must see in this region. In the heart of some of the best wines you can find, you will also find narrow cobble stoned streets winding through the town with several wine tasting locations in addition to several cute shops for finding that unique French memento.

Here's some photographs of Chablis:

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France - a walk through tunnel

Chablis, France - love this exceptional sign work

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Chablis, France

Our last stop on the way home was pure luck. We randomly plugged in Ancy-le-Franc into the GPS and interestingly enough discovered a castle. Chateau of Ancy-le Franc was built in the 16th century during the rein of Francois I and was designed by an Italian architect in the renaissance style. I was just reading about Francois I and Leonardo da Vinci, but I'll leave that for another blog.

The castle and the grounds are immaculate. We were able to take a self-guided tour, but there wasn't enough time to tour the grounds.

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France - the murals are noted as remarkable

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France - stables

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France - inlaid ivory 

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France

Chateau of Ancy-le-Franc, France - the rear of the grounds, 

there is a stone building on the island in the distance

Ancy-le-Franc, France - oldest documented home in the town.

People are People

This morning as we were getting ready to leave for Paris, I was telling George about an episode that happened to me at the gym. The place I exercise at is mostly "mantown" meaning mostly men go there. It has the most variety of exercise equipment around, there aren't many gym choices in our area. The majority of the people are respectful of me and are nice. There is even one guy who calls me Mrs America, because he knows I am from the USA (not the beauty pageant reference). It makes me laugh.

People are willing to share the equipment because sometimes it is crowded. This day there were two young ladies working out, and I am thinking to myself, this is a good thing, even up the genders. One of them happened to be using a machine I wanted to use also. I ask if we could use it together. I got no answer from her. So I said No? And she said No! I stood there and waited. So she just sat there and sat there not using the machine, never used it. Then very slowly got off of it, paused before the last part of her butt cheek lifted off the machine and then stood there close by the machine. I don't understand why anyone would do this.

The French get a bad rap for being rude. You wouldn't expect them to say hello to you walking down the street. But it's because, in their mind, they don't know you, so why would they say hello to a perfect stranger. We Americans don't think this way usually, and so we "think" the French are rude. But I have to say this young lady was beyond rude and the worst experience I have ever had since moving to France.

The same morning George and I were at the Chaumont train station waiting for our train to Paris. I ask the person at the ticket window where I could find an ATM machine. She came out from behind her window and pointed down the street to the nearest bank, how nice. As I returned from the bank there was an older lady sitting beside George. Kind of sitting at an angle facing his way. There were several other seats available a distance from him. She started to say something to us in French and I could hear the words "American" in her sentences. I ask the ticket window lady to help me understand what she was saying. She says "there were a lot of Americans in this area." Okay so we're thinking, yeah we're at the train station, there's a good chance lots of Americans pass by there, maybe a large group of them came through on a tour.

Then the older lady's husband shows up and sits down next to me sitting close by leaning over into my space and they began to converse between themselves. We hear "American" again and the husband say "you're Americans, what part of the US are you from?" Cleveland, our reply. Alcoa--I know that area, Alcoa is there. And so the conversation began.

Our train arrived and they wanted to sit across from us to talk more. No sooner did we sit down than Colette was writing down their name, address, email address, and telephone number. We in turn, did the same. Serge (husband) spoke better English than Colette and with the French that we know, we had a good conversation with them for several hours. We learned about their families, recommendations for French locations we might like, and our opinion of everything French.

In the end, Colette was originally talking about a US military base near Chaumont established right after the war and this couple talked much about that, how they did babysitting for some military families and conversed with the Americans during that time. They were the sweetest people you would ever want to meet.

As we got to the Paris train station they wanted to help us navigate the Metro. We had some things to take care of at the station so we parted ways. We kissed each other goodbye, Colette blew kisses in the air to us too. Before the day was over they emailed saying they had met up with their grandson, and how nice it was to meet us.

Why am I sharing this story with you. What a contrast in people between the girl I experienced in the gym and the couple we met on the train. I give the girl at the gym the benefit of the doubt, perhaps she was having a bad day. People are people all over the world, every culture is different. How we recognize and adapt to cultures makes a difference in our lives and the lives of others. People are people like Serge mentioned in his stories about the military community after the war. They embraced the foreigners in their community at probably the lowest period in their lives and in turn, each enriched their lives forever.

Maltese Islands

The Maltese Islands are comprised of Malta, Gozo, Comino, and the tiniest of rocks, Cominotto, all are situated between Sicily and the African continent. They are a dry desert group of islands with cactus, lizards running to and fro and lots and lots of sandstone. Dill weed is truly a weed here, growing everywhere.

The remains of British rule are evident as they drive on the left, much to our surprise, but we should have known. The language of Malta is a mix of Italian and Arabic we were told. But English is widely spoken, we did not experience any language barriers.

Mostly rocky shorelines, but a few small sandy beaches can be found if you look hard enough. Steps away from our hotel was St. George's bay but it was mostly crowded and we wanted to spread our wings so we never went to this beach.

St. George's Bay, Malta

Valletta, the capital was founded in 1565 and is built in a grid style, I think unusual for cities of that time. It is a surrounded by a fortification and has shallow steps for sidewalks in the steep areas of the city. Views of the harbor can be seen from many vantage points within the walls. At night it is surprisingly quiet. You can find great shopping and many excellent restaurants in Valletta. Water taxis are available to take you to other parts of the city.

Valletta, Malta

St. John's Co-Cathedral was a must see in Valletta most importantly for the two Caravaggio painting (The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist and Saint Jerome Writing) that are on display within the church. If you would like to learn about Caravaggio follow this link.

The floors within the church are a patchwork of decorative marble tombs. I've been to many churches since living in France, but I've never seen so many tombs like these, they were a work of art, but of course so is the church.

Valletta, Malta - St. John's Co-Cathedral

Valletta, Malta - St. John's Co-Cathedral decorative tombs

We also visited the National War Museum that highlights the events in Maltese history during WWII. Many people built "homes" within the rocks during the war for safety from bombs.

We found by chance, a cute little restaurant called Angelica. Food critics for Jamie Oliver were present, taking pictures of food and the restaurant proprietor. The back of George's head might be in one of the photos, who knows. If you are ever in Valletta, you must have a bite to eat at Angelica restaurant, you won't be disappointed. Our bill at the end almost topped the lunch in Burgundy region two years ago, but we have yet to hit that mark. It is embarrassing to tell you how much we spent on lunch. You know you're in trouble when there are no prices posted on the menu.

Valletta, Malta

The island of Malta is a busy, car congested fast moving place. Even though our timeshare was located close to a mall, two cinemas and many bars, we felt extremely isolated once you stepped through the doors of the complex. We had a rooftop pool with wait service and all the other amenities you can imagine. When a local recommended that we visit, Mdina, often referred to as the Silent City, we were ready to get out of town. And yes it was very quiet there. With a population of only 241 and a walled city too, people almost whispered on the streets. There were several excellent restaurants within the city and we enjoyed it there so much, we returned several nights for dinner since it was a short 25 minute drive from our timeshare. 

Mdina, Malta

Mdina, Malta

We weren't initially going to rent a car but as it turned out it was the best way to get around even though it seemed the public buses go to even the most remote locations on the islands, and the islands are small. We like to go at our own pace and we saw people waiting for the buses in the dust and sun, it didn't look desirable. The locals also recommended going to the Dingli Cliffs and this turned out to be another excellent site to see.

Dingli Cliffs, Malta

The ancient fishing village of Marsaxlokk was a relaxed city in Malta. The brightly colored fishing boats paint the harbor with their colors of blue, yellow, red and green. Many having a pair of eyes adorned on the bow of the boat, an ancient myth still used today for protection against evil. It was a perfect place to have a fresh seafood lunch by the water.

Marsaxlokk, Malta 

Marsaxlokk, Malta

And just over the hill from Marsaxlokk is a nice, quiet out of the way cove to dive or swim named St Pete's Pool. If it would have been warmer that day, I can guarantee you we would have taken a swim. We think there must be lots of places like this on the islands, but finding them is the problem. We traveled on dirt roads many times to find places similar to this.

St. Pete's Pool

As mentioned Malta seemed to be a busy island, and by mid-week we were ready to explore Gozo the next smaller island to the north. Gozo is laid back, no one is going anywhere fast. We took the ferry and the car to Gozo to see the Azur Window and other sites. It is a popular diving area, in fact diving is very popular around all the islands.

Azure Window, Gozo 

We were able to hire a boat to travel though a short cave and come out in back of the Window pictured above. The sea appears calm in this picture, but our boat was small. By the time we exited the other side of the cave, there were relatively large waves with white caps for the small boat we were in. But the captain said not to worry.

Cave near the Azure Window, Gozo

Near theAzure Window, Gozo

The northern most part of Gozo is a remote area with little habitation. A few small towns can be found here and there, but mostly farming is what we saw. And here also is salt farming, something that I have never seen before. We had to stop and see for ourselves. The three toothed farmer came over and was easy to talk to. Have I mentioned the people of Malta are extremely friendly, they are.

North coast of Gozo, Malta - salt pans

Anyway the farmer explained to us how they harvest salt. He told us it takes 1 week to harvest the salt that has dried in the pans. Sea water is pumped to a larger holding pond, then placed in the pans. In this video you can see them sweep the salt and then scoop it into the bucket, whew, that seems like hard work when you realize the guy harvested 20 tons last year, no kidding. He then takes it to a facility where it is cleaned and packaged. He was expecting a storm the day they were harvesting. He told us if dust blows over from the Sahara Desert the salt is ruined. Even salt farming is weather dependent.

As we were returning to the southern part of Gozo to catch the ferry back to Malta we realized visibility had decreased. But what was causing all this. We seemed to have noticed a haze earlier in the day at the Azure Window on the western coast of Gozo, but didn't think anything of it. Thought is was just a hazy day. As it turns out this is dust that is blowing from Libya. I am amazed to learn this. By the time we made it back to Malta the skies were clear. We were told this usually happens in April, but this year the dust storms have carried into the month of May.

Gozo, Malta - dust storm

Another ferry ride to Comino Island sans the car, as it is a pedestrian only island, there are no roads, only rocky trails running across the island. There is a hotel there, but we did not see it up close. The Blue Lagoon is the main attraction on Comino and what we thought was going to be a quiet visit, was not. Our tour book said that June to September were the busy times of the year. I would not like to see it during those months. It was crazy crowded mid-week in May. Big ferries pulled up to the island dumping people off - all cramming to gain a inch of the tiny beach area in front of the Lagoon.

Comino Island, Malta - Blue Lagoon

We did not find this set up appealing even though the water was very appealing, so we searched for another spot near the beautiful blue water. Next cove over we found hundreds of jellyfish, I have never seen so many in one place.

Comino Island, Malta - hundreds of jellyfish

We eventually found our place in the sun and relaxed, swam, and snorkeled the afternoon away. The water was cold, but after the initial shock it wasn't so bad.

Comino Island, Malta - George snorkling

It was a fabulous week in Malta with sunny skies everyday. We would return again if given the chance, there is still much to explore and experience. It is expensive to fly there even from Paris.

Check out more photos at this link

http://flic.kr/ps/285kjt

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

After seeing the large strips of colorful tulips fields years ago in the news coverage from Holland, it has been a place I have always wanted to visit. But the timing must be right, or you'll miss this kaleidoscope of color. Our first stop on the way to Amsterdam was the Keukenhof gardens. Here you will find seven million bulbs planted on an 80 acre spread of garden. Our timing could not have been better, stunning is all I can say. There were canal boat rides that could take you out amongst the fields, gorgeous exhibitions of orchids and other themes. One pavilion was prepping for the largest indoor lily display.

Keukenhof Gardens

One job for a worker in these fields is to remove the flower that has some how found its way into the wrong colored section of the field. This way when you order bulbs from this company you can rest assure you will get all of the same kind, or color of flower.

Fields outside of Keukenof Gardens 

Also located in the gardens was a windmill where we learned some things about this iconic Holland machine. The gentleman operating it told us that the blades can be rotated horizontally depending upon the wind direction and the canvas covering the blades can be shorted when the wind is too strong, much akin to a sailboat sail. Most are/where used for pumping water or milling grain. He had one on his property for pumping water - with an electric backup when there is no wind.

No sooner do you pass into The Netherlands than the landscape begins to change. Canals large and small crisscross the fields and windmills dot the landscape. It could not be more flat.

The Netherlands are three meters below sea level and is sinking by a half centimeter per year. Amsterdam is a city that has been well preserved and is rich in history. The canals in the city are nothing but serene. We stayed in the Jordaan District of the city which has many quaint shops and a wide variety of restaurants. Rembrandt lived the last years of his life in this area.

I was fascinated to relearn some Dutch history. But it wasn't until we toured the church tower of Westerkerk that we learned that locations in New York City (originally named New Amsterdam) have Dutch origins- Harlem, Staten Island, Flushings, Bowery, Brooklyn and Coney Island to name a few. The Westerkerk Church tower was completed in 1632. It is built on wood pylons and it is beginning to lean. Rembrandt is buried here. Ann Frank was said to have written in her diary about this church's bells. We did not get the opportunity to visit the inside of the church, it was closed. 

Very windy on the platform of Westerkerk Church tower

Great views of the city from the platform of Westerkerk Church tower.

I have never seen so many bikes. I admire their culture of biking and I wish more cities provided bike paths for their citizens like the Dutch. For every road, there is a bike path beside it, so cool! At the train station there was a two-story parking garage just for bicycles. We didn't see many nice bikes, mostly rusty, old things. The worst the bike, the less chance of it getting stolen. You could often hear a squeaky bike coming from a relative distance away.

George was eager to rent bikes but at first glance, it seemed dangerous, in reality Amsterdam has one of the lowest bike accident rates. It took some getting use to crossing the street and looking both ways for, not only cars and trams, but all the bicycles. They ring their bike bells which is helpful if you happen to forget to look, but they don't seem to slow up for anything except traffic lights...well most of the time. Plus texting and talking on their phones added to my concern. So we rented some bikes for several hours. It was easier than I thought. People get out of your way on a bike and it was much easier following a local Dutch biker, they are fearless and travel gracefully through busy intersections. 

A museum dedicated entirely to one artist, Vincent Van Gogh, can be found in Amsterdam. The museum was interesting due to his personal artifacts on display; paints and paint boxes, easels, and perspective tools. Also interesting was the extensive research undertaken regarding the loss of color in his paintings, his use of colors is what Van Gogh is well known for. Van Gogh wrote often to his brother about his paintings and they provide a great source of information about this famous artist.

After 10 years of renovation and 375 million euros, the Rijk Museum opened this April. It is the Dutch National Museum and it is gorgeous both inside and out. Rembrandt, Vermeer and Frans Hals are the main attractions here, but I was equally captivated by a 1613 Dutch ship wreck recovered in 1976 with porcelain from China.

Artifacts recovered from 1613 Dutch ship wreck

Entrance to Rijk Museum

Stain glass dedicated to the artist on display

I can't tell you why I found these hats so fascinating, but here is what I learned. These hats were recovered from a 1980 archaeological dig of 17th century whale hunters graves. Each skeleton was wearing their knitted woolen cap. The information plate in the museum stated that each cap was individualized; the men recognized one another only by the pattern of stripes on their caps.

The one museum that we did not get an opportunity to visit was the Anne Frank house, but we sure tried several times. The lines were very long and slow moving.

Another unique and popular tourist attraction in Amsterdam is the Red Light District. Easy to find and within the core of the city, we were astonished to see several families walking the streets in this area, albeit before the onslaught of darkness. It is something that you just have to see for yourself. You can say that Amsterdam has something for everyone!

Here's some more photographs of our trip at this link

http://flic.kr/ps/285kjt