Day 16, July 21

Last full day in France!  

Left the B&B at 7:15 AM, stopped at local boulangerie for coffee and a few croissants for the road and headed southwest toward Avignon, an easy 3 hour drive on the highway.  Arrived around 10:30 and headed for Lou Mistrau in Avignon, our favorite cafe, located right in the center of the city.  It's a great spot for people watching.  July is the theatre festival month in Avignon, with hundred's of theaters of varying sizes, all competing for your interest.  Throughout the day, the cast of the shows are performing in the streets and actually walking among the tables in all the cafes, handing out flyers and engaging anyone who will pay attention.  Based on the costumes of the actors, and the thousands of posters that occupy every free space on every wall, the Avignon theatre appears to be quite progressive, avant-garde, and risque.  Every production appears to push some limit to grab an audience.

Joni had a few items left on her Provence-only shopping list, so as she got in her final hours of shopping, I sat at the cafe, read the paper, and watched the continual show in front of me.

We left Avignon around noon and continued toward Nice, which was another two hours to the south.  We stopped in the hilltop village of Biot, which is just 20 k from Nice, for a late lunch at  l'Auberge du Vieux Village, which specializes in crepes and omelets. Joni had the former and I had the latter and for dessert, we both had crepes sucree; covered in ice cream, chocolate sauce, creme Anglaise, and whipped cream.  Sinful.  

The main reason we stopped in Biot was to buy some of their unique glass which is filled with bubbles as a result of a special technique that is only practiced here.  We bought four glasses for ourselves and four for another.  Our luggage is going to be well over the limit due to all the glass, pottery, and wine we've bought!

We checked into our hotel around 5 pm, I went down to the beach for my final swim in the Mediterranean, it was 93 F, and Joni repacked our bags to evenly distribute the weights and protect our fragile purchases.  

For dinner we walked to Old Nice and returned to a restaurant where we had lunch earlier on this trip.  I had gaspacho for my entree, and we both had veal with a cream tarragon sauce for our main dish.  We continued our decadent practices for one last evening, Joni have a creme brulee for desset, and I had a chocolae fondant.  We took one last stroll down the Cours Salayea in Old Nice, and returned to our hotel for our last night in France.  

All in all, this was a perfect trip, but I"m ready to go home too!

Day 15, July 20

Last night we had dinner in Chambery, choosing the traditional cuisine of the area referred to as Savoyard, which includes cheese casseroles like the tartiflette, and fondues of all kinds.  We opted for a tartare of tomato for our entree, then cheese fondue for two with assorted charcuterie (pork variations) for our main dish.  It was delicious.  We went for the fully Monty too, so we had an aperitif for the first time, and closed with dessert, and coffee.  Nothing was photo worthy, but we really liked it nonetheless.  We were back at Les Suites du Lac by 10 PM and asleep by 10:05 PM.  At least I was.

This morning we were up at 5:30 and out the door by 6:05.  Stopped at the local boulangerie for the usual supplies and headed for our Tour viewing spot, Mont Revard, the next to last climb on today's stage.  Mont Revard is only 27 km from our B&B, so we were at our spot by 6:55 AM.  Although we were not anticipating that we would find a spot with a view equal to the Col de Madeleine, we were very pleased with our site.  We are only 1/2 km from the summit of the Mont Revard climb and we overlook Aix les Bains, Lac Bourget and all the surrounding mountains.   When we arrived we looked own on the cloud covered Lac Bourget.  As the sun came up over our backs, the clouds over the lake slowly burned off revealing a fabulous view.

There's a ski area at the top of Mont Revard, so I walked back up there in search of more coffee and perhaps even a croissant.  My walk was not in vain, by the time I got back to the car the once too hot to hold coffee was now cold.  Along the walk I passed the work crew who were setting up the traditional summit banner for the riders. They paint a line across the road and install photo-finish cameras there as well in order to determine how the points are awarded for the King of the Mountains competition.  They have lots of time to complete their task.  The riders aren't due until after 3 PM.

By the time I returned to our car, the surrounding area had filled in.  A pair of Belgium brothers who now live in Cincinnati ending up parking next to us.  Coming from Belgium, where cycling is the national sport, hands down, they are big fans.   We talked about Lance...they said they were more disappointed in how he initially responded to doping allegations rather than to the actual fact that he doped.  Their favorite American rider is Tyler Phinney, who is not racing.  They agreed that the future of American cycling lies with Tejay van Garderen and Andrew Talansky, and they felt it's time for Cadel to retire.  Like us they were at Alpe d'Huez on Thursday, and the Col de Madeleine yesterday.  They're driving home today. 

While the crowd waits for the riders, many people paint the name of their favorite rider on the road.  I regret to note that we wrote "Lance"  five years ago along the route up the Col d'Aspin.  Two French teenagers spray painted right in front of us in orange "FROOME DOPER" across the route, and many people commented when they saw it.  It seems the French press is quick to accuse any successful rider of doping these days.  Hopefully it's not true, but that's the legacy that Lance's generation created.

Anyway about an hour later one of the French road maintenance trucks stopped right in front of us, the men got out with paint rollers and white out the word "DOPER".  The crowd applauded and many thanked them.  I approved of this type of censorship!

The racers finally arrived just before 2 pm.  The Mont Revard climb is the second to last climb on this stage, but it is about 50 km from the finish line, so obviously a lot can happen before the finish.  But if there was going to be an attack on Froome by one of the five  contenders who were within six minutes of him, it would be happening by this point in the stage.  That didn't happen but what was almost as exciting was that Jens Voigt, the 41 year old German rider for RadioSchack was in the lead. Jens is the oldest rider on the Tour and one of the most popular.  It was great to see he still has it.

Jens' lead wasn't very big, and in fact even the peleton was close by; they were setting a fast past and the crowd had really grown so much that the riders could barely squeeze through us.  So this makes for hard viewing but exciting viewing.  I blindly took photos with my 18-105 mm lens zoomed in the most.  Got some great shots and a lot of bad ones too, but that's the Tour.  

The two women standing on the wall in the upper left corner of the picture look a lot like Kim Delutis and Kate Paradice.  You never know who you'll see when y ou're on vacation.

Perhaps because this was really the last significant day of race, the peleton stayed together, everyone guarding their spots and all the up and comers hoping to show off.  Didn't see the end, but it sounded exciting; from what I could understand from the French radio in our car Froome and Quintana battled to the last km.  

So the only suspense for the tomorrow's last stage, which will be a night for the first time, is can Mark Cavendish continue his streak of winning sprints on the Champs Elysees?

Our 26 km return drive to our B&B took longer than did our morning ride, a few traffic jams, or bouchons, as the French call them.  So we arrived at our home in the Alps at 6:15 PM.  After four turn downs we finally got a reservation for dinner.  Apparently the next two weeks are the most popular with the French for their summer vacations.  Reminds me of Cape Cod in late July too.

For dinner tonight we returned to "L'Auberge de Saint Simon" where we ate the first night we were in AIx Les Bains.  Obviously we liked it, and in fact Joni had exactly the same enree and main dish as she did six nights ago.

Tomorrow, we're up early, leaving Aix, and heading to Nice with a stop in Avignon for some final shopping.  

Day 14, July 19

Today we went to the Col de Madeleine...another life list destination for any serious cycling fan.  We didn't have to travel as far today, so we slept until 5, and were in the car by 5:40 PM.  We were able to buy croissants, a baquette, and coffee at the nearby boulangerie which opens at 5:30.  What a treat.  

Another long, steep, windy mountain road got us to with 1 km of the summit of the Col de Madeleine where we parked our car, and set up camp by 8:00 AM.  The scenery here is incredible...without question the best Tour watching spot we've ever had.  This  spot is fabulous.  Today's wait for the riders will be much shorter, they are scheduled to go past us at 1:40 PM.

From our car, I walked to the summit, bought some souvenirs at the restaurant at the col, and took lots of photos.  On the way back to the car I was able to get hot coffee and croissants from a pop up concession stand.  What a treat.  While waiting for the racers I was able to work on my blog.  I had two days to catch up on.  Here's the view that I had as I typed on my iPad.

If you look closely, you'll notice I'm holding my iPad.  I'm not sleeping!

The caravan arrived right on schedule, 11:45 AM, They always get people going, here our neighbors started dancing with the girls in yellow who are selling Tour souvenirs.  We we ended up getting lots of swag, mostly worthless trinkets thrown from the sponsors vehicles, since we were not crowded all in comparison to the two previous stages that we attended. It's amazing how  happy we all get when we get free stuff.

The first riders, Canadian Ryder Heyjedal and Frenchman Roland Pierre, did not appear until 1:50 PM, several small groups followed and the peleton with race leader Christopher Froome came by at 2:04.  

Christophe Riblon,from France, wearing the the polka dot jersey that he earned after winning yesterday's stage at Alpe d'Huez,  passing in front our Fiat.

Here's a shot of Mark Cavendish, our favorite rider, getting some food from his team car.  The continuous firing option makes caturing such moments possible.  Cav's always toward the back of the peleton duing the mountain stages.

Finally the last rider at 2:13.  All in all the riders were especially spread after just 65 km of a 205 km race.  

This has certainly our best Tour watching experience ever.  The scenery was spectacular, our viewing spot gave us views up and down the mountain, the weather was very comfortable, we got to stay next to our car, no one tried to get in front of us for either the caravan or for the riders, the spectators around us were very friendly, and the riders were well spaced out.  You couldn't ask for a better day.

Day 13,July 18

Today...Alpe d'Huez!  I've  wanted to watch the Tour on this climb for years and today we did it.  

Knowing that it was going to be very crowed; there were estimated of over 1million spectators lining the 23 hairpins, we got a very early start; up at 4:30 AM, and in the car at 5:05 AM.  Most of the 125 km drive went quickly except for final 12 km which took us up a very step, narrow, & twisty climb to the little village of Villard-Regulas.  We had to park here and walk the next 3.5 km to get to the actual Tour route.  In Villard-Regulas we bought croissants, a baguette, coffee, and a copy of L'Equipe.

The walk to the village of Huez took about an hour and was steep with both climbs and descents.  I'm glad I was walking rather than driving.  Huez is ski village so it is jammed with condos, and chalets...and especially people, all waiting for the racers.  We took a rest break at an outdoor cafe, more coffee and croissants, and then walked another km up the Tour route before selecting our viewing spot right next to the "5 km to the summit" banner.

It was 10: 15 and the racers were due until 4:15.   Pas de problem...the parade of spectators at Alpe d'Huez was a continuous show...many, many people in costumes:  super heroes, Elvis, US presidents, etc.  About 100 yards north of our viewing spot was a large group of Italian men in their 20's who played musical continually and sang through their own portable microphone.  I walked further up the route, past another hairpin, and encountered multiple groups with even louder music systems, barbecues, etc.  It was a lot like tailgating at football games times ten.  The Dutch clearly get the best partiers award...I've never seen anything like them at any sports event.

The first racer, American Tejay Van Garderen, was in the lead by quite a bit, and actually kept it for both laps.  When he passed us the 2nd time with only 5 km to the finish, he held a 38 second lead over Frenchman Christopher Riblon.  But sadly with one kilometer to go, Riblon caught Tejay, who ultimately finished second.  

The riders were very spread out as they passed in front of us, so we got to great shots of them all.  Again, Christopher Froome of Team Sky seemed well in command.  When he passed us the second time, he had dropped Alberto and the other challengers, ultimately increasing his overall lead in the general classification.

Before the last racer passed us, the French refer to him as "le lantern rouge", we learned that Riblon won the stage.  Riblon, incidentally, stayed at Les Suites du Lac during the past year...they have a autography photo of him at the front desk.

The descent back to Villard-Regulas was slow and tiring.  We missed the turn in Huez and walked an extra kilometer before realizing it.  By the time we got to our car, there was still a bumper to bumper traffic jam heading down the mountain.  But, by the time we unloaded our back packs, used the facilities, and bought dinner (pretzels, nutty buddies, & Perrier), the traffic jam had dispersed, and we headed back to Aix les Bains at 7:30 PM. 

We got to the B&B at 10 PM...by far our longest day Tour watching ever.  But it was worth it, we've now experienced Alpe d'Huez.  

Day 12, July 17

Leisurely breakfast on the terrace at Les Suites du Lac...great pastry.  

Drove to the summit of Annecy-Semnoz, which is very close by, where Saturday's stage 20 will end to scout out possible viewing spots.  Took some photos at the finish line, there are beautiful views down to Lac d'Annecy from the top.  

Drove down to Annecy for lunch, sightseeing, and gift shopping.  For lunch we ate at the Bistrot du Rhone, rated #2  out of 226 in Annecy by trip advisor.  Very plain on the outside, you'd never go in.  It is very popular with the locals, many of the diners were businessmen, or businessmen meeting their families, or mother's and daughters taking a break from shopping.  The menu was very limited; two choices...we had a white fish served on potatoes with an incredible sauce made from herbs, peas, and carrots.  For dessert...a fresh strawberry tart.  A husband and wife ran the place.

After lunch we walked all around Annecy, through the shopping district, down to the parks by the lake, and then through  the old city that included a prison in the middle of one of the  two main canals.  Annecy is a beautiful city.  

Returned to our B&B for some late afternoon swimming and then dined at "Le 59" in Aix les Bains.  This was rated #2 out of 80 in Aix, and it lived up to it's rating.  We went with the fixed menu which had few choices, but it was one of our top three dinners in France so far.    For courses we had an amuse-bouche that consisted of two items:  puree peas with goat cheese, and  a piece of fish with peanut sauce.  Second course was an emulsion of broccoli with salted almonds on top.  For the appetizer they served melon flowers, ham, and a jellied green citron terrine.  For an entree...roast pork with small slices of eggplant, and a vegetable beignet.  For dessert I had three local cheeses with honey, and Joni had 3  different presentations of apricots.  Coffee include 3 homemade cookies...beyond description.

Before heading back to the B&B we walked about 1/2 block to the Casino which is renowned for it's ceiling mosaics & paintings.  Although the building inside and out was very elegant, it hardly seemed like the casinos seen in all the James Bond movies.  People were in shorts, jeans...just like the casinos on American Indian reservations.

 

Day 11, July 16

Breakfast outside on the terrace at Les Suites du Lac.  Gorgeous views of the pool, lake, and the mountains.  I wonder if they have a view tax here?

Breakfast is self serve, although you're assigned table is already set with a basket of croissants, tartines, butter, jellies, and assorted tea bags...they must get a lot of English guests.  Although based on appearance, it looks like more of the five rooms here are occupied with Northern or Eastern Europeans ...fair skin, blond hair.

They added some new occupants to the place too.  Farm animals!  Goats and chickens are just outside our door.  The rooster greeted us this morning with a beautiful wake up call.  He sounds just like an American rooster.  

After breakfast we drove to Chamonix, which is about 125 km from Aix les Bains.  You can take the highway all the way, so we were there in about 90 minutes.

There's one section that's elevated high along the slope of the mountains which last about 3 or 4 miles.  I'm not a fan of driving on tall bridges and this one totally freaked me out...I was petrified on it.  So we returned via a different route.

The weather in Chamonix couldn't have been much better.  The sky was totally clear, although it was hazy due to the heat...it was in the 90's.  We were thrilled to be able to see so much since it was raining during our last visit.

As soon as we arrived we immediately went to station where you can take a train up to Le Montenvers, a tiny village at the end of La Mer de Glace, the largest glacier in the area.  The train ride lasts about 30 minutes and brings you to a height of nearly 2000 meters.  The views got better with every turn.  Absolutely spectacular!

Once we arrived at the end of the train ride, you then take a cable car down to glacier.  However, you still have to walk the final 430 steps to get to the caves that they have carved into the ice.  

Doing our homework paid off, we brought fleece to wear in the caves and it was really necessary, although it was welcome relief from the 90+ temps in Chamonix.  They carve new caves every year because the glacier moves so much each year.  All along the steps to the bottom they have signs showing you where the glacier was in 2010, 2003, 1990, etc.  It's incredible to see how much the glacier has receded each year, and clearly it's receding more ear year. 

The hike back to the train station was a tough one, but the views were worth the effort.  Just incredible.  There's a hotel/restaurant at the top of the train station, so we had lunch there.  Tartiflette, (a potatoes, ham, and cheese casserole) and a cold Heineken.  Great combination after a hike on a hot day.

Chamonix is a true hiking/climbing center in the summer, so there were lots of people who took the train up to  and then hiked along the many trails, some of which go to the summit of Mont Blanc.  On the train ride down there were many climbers covered in ropes, and carabiners..everyone was tired and I think half the passengers were napping for at least part of the ride.  Joni and I closed our eyes for sure.

Once back in Chamonix,  we did some shopping.  Found a store with the same photo that we bought there on our honeymoon in 1973.  Hard to believe.  We took  an ice cream break and amazingly got to watch the last 30 minutes of today's Tour de France  stage which was won by Rui Costa from the Movistar team.  While we were walking around we came upon an orchestra of American high school students from all over the country who were performing in the center of town.  I actually recorded them to.  They were really good.

We took a longer route back to Aix les Bains, skipping the terror inspiring elevated highway and driving through some of the iconic ski villages of the French Alps, Megeve. St.  Gervais, and Praz sur Arly.  The last one we had never heard of but it was the most picturesque of all; chalets everywhere...but much nicer than Mittersill. This route also took us through Annecy, where we will watch stage 20, so we checked out possible viewing spots too.

We arrived in Aix les Bains in time for dinner...we went simple tonight pizza.