Day 10, July 15

A rest day for the Tour and a travel day for us.  

I can't say enough about our B&B, Le Mas Perreal.  It has been so relaxing to be here for the past seven nights.  The location is fabulous for exploring all the villages of the Luberon.  The facilities are wonderful, spacious rooms, great showers, and fabulous grounds, and the hosts Kevin and Elisabeth couldn't make you feel more welcome...just like your were their best friends and they were happy to have you visiting!

So, after our last wonderful breakfast, we headed to Avignon to exchange our rental car for a smaller one, and to exchange the Tom Tom GPS.  Half way there we figured out how to get the GPS to work; the adapter plug on the end of the cable didn't work, so once we plugged the unit directly into a USB jack on the car, it worked fine...nine days too late.  

All went smoothly the AVIS in Avignon, which is located at their TGV station.  Avignon was way too crowded so rather than park and walk around there, we headed north to Chateauneuf du Pape for lunch.  We ate at the same cafe we did six years ago...it was still good, and then we headed north east toward the Alps and the town where we will be spending the next six nights, Aix-les-Bains.  The drive was all highway, and we were there in just under three hours, only 15 minutes before our 6 PM check-in time at Les Suites du Lac.  

It was extremely hot, especially for the Alps, so I was dripping with sweat by the time I carried our bags down three flights of stairs to our room.  The B&B has a gorgeous pool which overlooks Lac Bourguet and the surrounding high rocky peaks...a postcard setting.  The pool was so refreshing; I hated to get out.

Joni picked out a nearby restaurant for dinner since we had done enough driving.  Another delicious dinner of appetizers, main dish, dessert, wine, and coffee.  Hate to think how much weight we've gained!

We were back in our room by 10: 30 PM.  Tomorrow we head to Mont Blanc and Chamonix!