Barely a toe over the line in a Taipei Metro station. Metro riders are very orderly.
Right before we left San Francisco for Taipei someone asked me “How do you spend your days when you’re traveling? What do you do with your time?” It’s a good question, and not an easy one to answer since our days are so different depending on where we are. When we’re bike touring the answer is easy- we spend the days cycling and eating. If we’re house and pet sitting the day is structured around what the animals need from us and what we can explore in our free time. When we’ve pitched up in a new place though, or even a place we’ve been before, it’s harder to answer that question. So I decided to keep track of what we did on our second and third days in Taipei.
In a downtown metro station at about 10:20.
Day Two (after our first nights sleep, day one was 6:30 am arrival day). We slept until 6:30 or so, had coffee and tea in our room and went down for breakfast at 7am. After breakfast we hung about our room doing a little travel planning and catching up on emails and texts until 10.
Walking to our museum destination and admiring the neatly parked rows of scooters.In the basement of an office tower is one of those quirky specialist museums. Yes, as billed – miniatures. Tin toys. Amazingly detailed miniature houses. I won’t call them dollhouses. Each diorama or vignette had a creator credited, and often a small backstory.This pre-war typical Japanese street was just infused with nostalgia and sadness for what was destroyed and will never be again.Astonishing miniature Hall Of Mirrors, Versailles. You can see my reflection at the end of the hall.
Definitely worth a visit if you’re in Taipei for a few days, we spent about 90 minutes there and headed off for a restorative caffeinated beverage at a coffee shop we spotted on our way to the museum.
Mr. Brown Coffee Nanjing Store, billed as Your Urban Living Room. That’s hot chocolate for me.And coffee for Rich. We ordered on the ground floor and then went to the 3rd floor hang out space. The second floor was the work zone.
We read the home news (yikes!) and chatted and messed around on our phones for about an hour. Then headed out to find an adapter at a big electronics mall.
Goodbye Mr. Brown. Very chic you are. Rich said his Americano was excellent.Wandered into an event space beer hall at the Taiwan Brewery on our way to the electronics mall. Stopped to take a picture.There was a pop up shoe and clothing event on the ground floor. Very popular.And eleven floors of all kinds of electronics and electrical lifestyle products. Rich thought it was pretty awesome.Surrounded by small streets of electronic and gaming stores.
I checked my google map and found that a shushi place I had marked on my map at some point was nearby. It’s now almost 2pm and definitely time for lunch.
Conveyor belt sushi! One of my favorites. The Taiwanese aren’t too rigid about eating times, but many small restaurants do close between 2:30p and 5ish.While Rich is figuring everything out, trying the app based order system and identifying dishes, I’m scooping plates off the conveyor and chowing down! With unlimited pickled ginger.The little train delivers your app based orders. Good sushi and very reasonably priced. We had a good feast for about $20.
Back to the hotel by metro and we showered and chilled until evening when we headed out with two things to accomplish: find Rich’s favorite shirt at the Wufenpu Shopping District, and eat pork buns at Renhoe Night Market. If successful it will be the third time he has bought this shirt in Taipei. The market is a ten by ten grid of small streets all filled with shops selling clothing, shoes, and handbags. Rich is looking for one specific shop that for two years in a row had a shirt that he loves for Asia travel. The first one, purchased in 2023, was destroyed by sweat and sunblock and retired in Sri Lanka. The second was purchased in 2024 and is in France. It failed to make the trip back to the US for this onward hot trip to Indonesia. Rich had a good idea of where the shop is (and yes, this time we dropped a pin on Google maps), but it takes some searching, and the shops do change a lot.
On the way from the metro to Wufenpu Shopping District we stopped at some Lunar New Year lights.Ok, which way? And mind the scooters! 5:45 pm.This way?Found the shop! They had the shirt in his size, but not in white. So he got it in blue. And by 6:30 we were at the Rahoe night market to get some black pepper buns. That $65 Taiwanese dollars is just under 2.00 American dollars right now.Pulling the buns out of the oven. Find a place to stand and try not to burn your mouth on the piping hot pork.Just before 7:00 it was on to dessert, vanilla ice cream in a pineapple bun, with a fresh watermelon juice in between.No pineapple in the pineapple bun. The crosshatch top and crumble topping give it the name. It’s a sweet delicious bun.One last stop at our favorite Taipei bar, the Tipsy Dragon. The first time we came here they had a bar cat. Didn’t see them this time.We got wrapped up in China versus Chinese Taipei badminton match! Really fun to watch – super fast speeds. One drink each then home on the metro.
Day three was another fairly early wake up, about 6:45 am. Pretty good after dealing with a frustrating and hilarious early morning hotel experience. Our room had a tv in the bathroom , so you could watch TV from the tub, and it inexplicably went on with full volume at about 1:30am. It took us a while to figure out how to turn it off, but we did and went back to sleep. But 45 minutes later went off again! We called the front desk and a staff member came up to our room with a remote control and did something. The tv thankfully stayed off the rest of our time at the hotel. But, it wasn’t the most restful night.
There’s the shirt. Over a yummy savory breakfast at the hotel.We decided to hike the mountain trail across from our hotel. We felt in need of some good step climbing. We headed out about 8:30 am.You will notice that photos of me are taken as I’m trying to keep up. Usually of my front. And his are of his quickly retreating back as I hurry to catch up. Bonus kitty at a temple. On guard.We think this branded signage is new. Taipei Grand Trail. 92 kilometers along Taipei’s scenic peaks. This section was quite popular on this Friday morning with other retired folks. We were glad it wasn’t a weekend.Lots of viewing platforms.And little signs to hold up as you took photos. It says The Usual Place.Another sign and two happy hikers.Near a graveyard, a place to sit. It’s being consumed by the tropical foliage. Some view.Yup, it’s a Grand View.Another sign.And a lovely woman feeding the feral cats.I had to get involved. Caused a bit of a cat fight though.Heading down to catch a bus back. Cross the river.Noodle lunch at Captain Wang’s Sauce Sauce Noodles again. So good!
We got back to our hotel after walking about 7 miles. After afternoon coffee and tea in our room we hit the hotel gym. The rest of the day encapsulated why we know it’s time to start looking for a place to be able to return to. A place with our stuff. With a kitchen where we can cook good healthy food. And where we can get enough exercise and do the kind of work outs we want to do. After the gym we showered and hung out, and then started the search for dinner. In my previous working life if you had told me “you will eat out every night. You won’t have to grocery shop or cook.” I would have been thrilled! But it does get to be a chore. And it is a struggle to eat healthy when you’re eating out so much. That evening after a bit of a struggle, we ended up at a lovely little family run Hong Kong style restaurant close to our hotel. No photos since we were both a bit burned out and wanted to just eat and go back to the hotel. It was good to have a check in with each other and confirm we are on the same page about finding a home base.
Early next morning at the metro station to get to the airport.Very thrilled to see that our Eva air flight is Hello Kitty branded.Look at that plane! So cute.Hello Kitty snacks.And a cheers with Hello Kitty cups.
Happy to be off the 13 hour flight from SF and in Taipei.
Wednesday February 12, 5:30 am. We left San Francisco on Monday February 10th near midnight. Look at those happy but tired faces. We love Taiwan, and this is our third trip here. Transitions are tough and stressful and leaving San Francisco, sneaking in one more catch up visit with friends, putting stuff back in storage and making notes about where things are, is tiring. We were both looking forward to, and dreading, the long plane ride.
How lucky are we to have so many friends to catch up. A walk and dinner with Anne and Vic, and the Golden Gate Bridge view from Tunnel Tops park.I have to be quick to snap a screenshot of the city mascot in CityMapper, still the best transit app we use. I love this little dude holding his Boba Tea and a lantern to send into the sky.Less than 3 hours left of the 13+ hour flight, flying over Japan in the early hours of the morning.On the express train from the airport to Taipei Main station – Rich using the magnetic wireless cell phone charger on the train. Such a fun convenience.Heading to our hotel on the rush hour metro escalators. Metro is trying to get folks to stand on both sides of the steps, instead of standing right and walking left, to increase capacity at rush hour. Yes, the escalators carry more people when everyone stands.Dropped our bags at the hotel (check in is at 2pm) and walked out for breakfast at a nearby cafe. Rich looking slightly dazed.Mine is a peanut butter, ham, and cheese on a croissant. A tasty combo. My expression doesn’t make it look so tasty, but it was.Rain was threatening so we borrowed umbrellas from the hotel and walked around a bit waiting for rush hour on the metro to ease off before heading to the Taipei Zoo. This is in the Shilin District of Taipei.The lanes have numbers and names, and are too small for cars, but scooters and bikes abound.
Day one was all about staying awake! And what’s a great way to stay awake? Head to Asia’s largest (or one of the largest, depending on who you ask) zoo. Taipei Zoo.
Uh oh. Looking a bit sleepy on the MRT.The Shiba Inu is the safety and politeness poster mascot dog.Public transport for the win again, Metro right to the zoo.This Lunar year is the year of the snake, so snakes on the zoo tickets. Save them for the mythical scrape book.The map. Do not be fooled into trying to walk the grey line, that’s the train route.A good cross section of animals.
Zoos can be problematic. They promote conservation and awareness, but a sad depressing zoo is just awful. Thankfully the Taipei Zoo is quite good. It moved to its current site in 1986 and has 90 hectares (222 acres) open to the public with more land available for expansion. We walked our poor jet lagged feet off – almost 9 miles total on day one, probably 5 of those at the zoo. The tropical vegetation is really lovely, the animal habitats are good sized, and boy do you get your walking in as the zoo is huge.
A fun focus on poo! You can climb into the big yellow poo to experience life as a maggot. We passed. A capybara in front of the Pangolin Dome. The dome has multiple species all out in the open to experience and was quite well done. My favorite were the Cotton-top tamarins wandering the enclosure.A bee eater posing for the camera.A common marmoset saying “hey.”. If you do go to a zoo, go early in the day when the animals are most active and about to be fed.One of the two pandas at the Taipei Zoo, snoozing with an appreciative audience.And the second one (I think) wandering their outdoor environment.
After the zoo and a quick snack of Onigiri from the 7-11 we headed to our neighborhood and had a noodle lunch before checking in to our hotel and having a much welcomed shower. There are showers at the airport, near baggage claim carousel number six (in T2) but we decided against using them since there is one for men and one for women and the men’s was occupied. We changed into a few new clothes when we dropped our bags at the hotel that morning.
Rich’s beef noodle soup. Not visible to the naked eye – all the garlic!My cold braised noodles at 王艇長酢醬麵, which Google translates as Captain Wang’s Sauce Sauce Noodles. Address: No. 18, Qiangang St, Shilin District, Taipei City, Taiwan 111Post shower and coffee and tea, still awake and out to the Shilin Night Market.Happy Lunar New Year.The Lunar New Year fire crackers helped wake us up! They are meant to scare away evil spirits and monsters. So much smoke. The small streets of the night market have some charming small restaurants in addition to street food stands. Noobtent – a camping themed bar. Yes, there are camp chairs and tents inside for you to enjoy. So cute. I love these themed places. No, we didn’t go in, a cocktail was not going to keep us awake.Dinner was a cold noodle and spicy miso sauce dish. Delicious. We walked back to our hotel, awake enough to enjoy the New Year’s decorations.Such an atmospheric neighborhood.
Mission accomplished, we stayed awake until 9 pm and slept quite well. More Taipei to come!
Definitely one of our favorite views in the UK. The harbor at Tenby, Wales.
When we were both working our vacations were at most three weeks long, and were in search of new places and new experiences. Now that we’re in our fourth year of constant travel we still love new places and experiences but also love to revisit familiar places.
Arriving from Norwich to London, Liverpool Street Station. And back with our good friends Erik and Hannah in Tenby Wales. One of our happy familiar places.Coast walks from Tenby are stunning.Two handsome men and a lovely view.Headed to lunch in Laugharne which is famous for being Dylan Thomas’s home for the last four years of his life.The garage of the boat house, where Thomas wrote a lot of his most famous works.It’s set up as if he walked away for a cup of tea. He died while on tour in New York City, so in a way, he did just walk away.The boat house. It’s a small museum.I requested that the guys look “moody and poetic”. Rich is used to my requests, Erik laughed! I first visited Laugharne in 1984 or so, it’s nice to see that Dylan Thomas’s popularity is still strong.Laugharne Castle. Such an imposing site. Such a tough place to find on the map when you’re looking for “Larn”.Rich packed up and ready to leave Tenby.
After a delightful stay in Tenby we headed off to Bristol, another of our favorite UK cities. This was our third stay in Bristol. It’s always fun to chat to a local and see their sometimes puzzled delight over our love of Bristol. It’s an easy train ride from Tenby, and easy to get back to London from Bristol, thanks to the Great Western Railway which linked London and Bristol in 1841. Engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Yes, we are fans of his work and highly recommend the SS Great Britain museum ship, which he also designed.
Bristol Temple Mead station. Plenty of bikes in Bristol.A swan and a view over the Floating Harbor, a lock controlled off shoot of the tidal River Avon created in 1809.Homages to Brunel are many in Bristol!The hydraulic equipment at Underfall Yard Visitor Centre, which explores and explains the elegant engineering behind the Floating Harbor, and its importance in the development of Bristol.Artsy shot out of the historic building.It wouldn’t be a trip to Bristol without a visit to a Banksy artwork.And, like a magnet pulling us in.The Bag O’Nails pub. My favorite pub. Another must visit place for us.The cats of the Bag O’Nails pub.Pub patrons trying to seem uninterested in the cats.The cats truly uninterested in the pub patrons.Just minding my own business by the record player.Gotcha! Lured in by my wool sweater and scarf and spot near the heater. I failed to look nonchalant when this cat graced me with their presence.The Left Handed Giant pub, another favorite of ours.Sometimes it was also a bit cold inside the pubs.The ceiling of The Cornubia pub. Horse brasses and beer mats. Yes, a lot of pub visits.It was not cold inside the Cornubia. My favorite pub fire so far. Clean burning coal. Wood fires not allowed in that area, the bartender said, but clean burning coal is ok.We took the train to Bath to go for a walk in the hills.The Bath Skyline Trail.A break on a well placed bench.Snow hanging on thanks to the cold weather.
We take as many opportunities as we can to meet up with friends, so we shoved off from Bristol towards Hastings, where friends from London had recently moved.
Charing Cross Station, London. On our way to Hastings. Nice digital departure board.British seaside towns. Love them. They share similarities but are all so different.The covered promenade with the Hastings pier in the background.What does this British seaside town have that no other one does? Our friends Joe and Justina!We had a great walking tour of Hastings. A lovely town well worth visiting. Up on the East Hill.The net shops on the harbor. Where fisherfolk store their equipment and hang their nets to dry. From above the tall narrow black buildings look like toys or monopoly houses.And no day is complete without a pub stop, this time at The Clown.And after an easy train ride, back in London for a few days.The modern skyline in the glorious winter sunshine.I love the juxtaposition of the Tower of London and the Shard. It was a super cold and still morning, the reflection of the bridge in the river caught our attention.Frost on the river walk, and slightly hazy air made the view soft focus and golden.We were staying right near Spitalfields and the view of City of London with the old buildings in the foreground was captivating.Modern buildings looming over old buildings.Museum of the Home, located in a row of old almshouses. Loved the Rooms Through Time exhibit, the evolution of London dwellings from 1630 to present. Dinner date with young friends who recently moved to London.
When we were in Lyon on our way to Paris we caught an arts update on TV which mentioned the Tim Burton exhibit in London. We quickly booked tickets for our last day in the UK. So glad we did. Our two London museum visits, Museum of the Home and the Tim Burton exhibit couldn’t have been more different. Where one dealt with the practicalities of home, changing styles of furniture and social interaction, the other was the products of one man’s talent and creativity.
Recreated office, the desk blotter doodles were fantastic.I wasn’t aware what a talented artist he is.Obligatory selfie set up.Many of the movie sets and costumes had signs not to photograph them. This Nightmare before Christmas-esque mobil and wallpaper had no such sign.
I’ve been having a hard time with this blog post. We flew from London to Chicago, saw our good friends Michelle and Alan – I have no pictures! – and Rich’s birth mom. From Chicago it was off to Grand Junction Colorado to see my Mom and Sister and Niece, very few pictures. Then Seattle, then San Francisco.
Lori looking out the window on January 20th, 2025.
A lot of Americans will understand the trepidation we were feeling, trepidation that has proved correct. It feels frivolous to do anything but focus on the state of the nation. Watch the news? Keep the news at bay? Focus on family and friends? Yes, that.
Winter hiking near Fruita, Co.My Mom. Seattle with our favorite Pacific Northwesters. Northwesterns? Cecily and Christine.
41 months. That’s how long we’ve been traveling since selling our place in San Francisco. So many amazing places and wonderful people. Many hotel rooms, wonderful house and pet sits, pensions, apartments. We both realized this winter that we are ready to have a place to call our own. Spring our stuff from storage and move it into our own space. We still intend to travel a lot, but we’ll be able to go home. Cook in our own kitchen. Sleep in our own bed. Host guests! Have parties!
Sutro Tower in San Francisco and the Happy Travelers.
But first we head off to Taipei and then Indonesia. The house hunting can wait until we return to the US in the summer. Stay tuned!
All good things must come to an end, so after a lovely month in Paris, we finally had to close the doors to our apartment in the 12th Arrondissement. We were headed into the darkness of the UK and the approaching winter solstice. A proper northern winter will build character, we kept saying to each other. (As to why were making this choice in lieu of an island in SE Asia!?)
Je suis prêt, on y va!The Brighton Beach Bandstand
It’s not that we particularly wanted to leave France, but we had to get out of the Schengen zone as we were at Day 89 of our 90 day allowance, so cutting it a bit close. And there really is lot to love about the UK, even in winter. So we caught the post rush hour metro to Gare Du Nord for our 11am Eurostar to London. Yippee, a train not a plane to the UK!
Our enthusiasm for our train trip was soon tamped down after we passed through Eurostar security and immigration to find the waiting area packed to the gills, with people lined against the walls, and sitting on the floor. This of course triggered my immediate moaning about the woeful under design of the waiting area. « Hey, I’ve sized waiting areas for HSR services, and this is a mess. « We didn’t get any photos of this fiasco, but trust us that it was very crowded.
All minor travel woe is forgotten. Eurostar Plus class was nice with spacious seats and a light meal. Very civilized.
Well, as it turns out, the normal cramped quarters on the mezzanine of Gare Du Nord were stressed by the load of 3 trains worth of passengers, as the 9 and 10 o’clock trains hadn’t boarded yet due to big delays. The E320 train sets carry nearly 900 passengers full, so 3 trains full is a challenge for any building design. But the situation was exacerbated by poor info signs and an inaudible P.A. system, so we didn’t figure this out until we saw the chaos for the boarding area and an attendant holding up a tiny paddle with “9:00” on it. They should have held us 11 o’clock folks outside security, but made no indications of delays to our service, and so we were still subject to the 1 hour advance check in cut off. Eurostar can definitely do better.
The Thameslink is fantastic. An hour to Brighton direct from St. Pancras InternationalSmiling in Brighton at the 4pm sunset!The colorful beach huts of Hove; some color through the gray.Keeping warm with a beach walk and coffee with our friends Gary and Ruth The expansive yet cosy Lion and Lobster pub in BrightonAnd my first hand pulled British craft bitter in awhile. Delicious!The cosy pubs of England are hard to beat in winter.Have a seat by the fire.Holiday cheer and lights abound.Ok, maybe we were missing Paris a little.Inside the Paris House (Le Pub) in Hove, the warmth and sounds of live Sunday night Jazz.
So our Eurostar train finally boarded after nearly two hours, and departed only 40 minutes late. But hey, at least we didn’t have our bikes -:) Our slightly agitated travel states soon calmed down as we took our Eurostar plus seats; which is a nice upgrade (but certainly not essential) from the standard service with the bigger business seat car layout and light meals delivered to your seat. And yes, white wine; which tasted pretty good after the misery of the waiting area and boardiing process. Note that the Plus class is a much cheaper upgrade than business/premier class, so often only €20-€40 more than standard. Eurostar business seems outrageously priced in comparison as same first class type train seats as the Plus service: just fancier food service; dedicated boarding, and a lounge….ok, the lounge might have been nice our day; but not worth €100 more each! And it would have been packed with 3 trains worth of people.
The windswept beaches of Brighton in early December Cat subtlety mocking Cheryl out in the cold.Serious winter fuel up at Sea Breeze Fish & Chips in Hove.Ready to get out and put those fish & chips to use.In addition to great trains, the Brighton/Hove area has great transit with real time info and frequent service, including up and down the south coast. The wonderful footpath system of the UK.Enjoying winter sun and views on Mill Hill above Shoreham by the Sea.Sheep looking inquisitively at us for guidance (or maybe food?).
We love returning to places we like; and we have fond memories our 2 week stay in Brighton in 2022. Ok, it was Hove, actually. This time we stayed for a week on the Hove/Brighton border and closer to the water. A great choice as it was a walkable and lively area, but less touristy than the Lanes or areas around the train station. I even went back to the same place to get a haircut as 2 years ago. Brighton was also an easy shot back to London and our next destination, Norwich.
Cheryl relaxing again on the Thameslink, where we would transfer to a Greater Anglia train to Norwich.Norwich is a small city in Norfolk County with a lively center, relaxed yet sophisticated vibe, and an engaging history.Our stay in Norwich included looking after a sweet dog, and walking the dog always got us out, even on frosty morningsPre Christmas buzz in the beautiful Art Nouveau Royal Arcade in Central Norwich.
So what was our strategy for the UK winter? A pub a day, lots of walking in the short « daylight » , and catching up with some friends as possible. The dark winter days were a bit tough for these Californians, but the countryside and old cities are beautiful; and there is nothing like a cosy English pub on a cold, rainy (or snowy) day in December. You often open the door to find a warm buzz of people, pints, and if lucky, a nice fire to sit by. We often cite the footpath system and Pubs as what we would take from the UK to form our perfect Country.
Our Norwich stay was greatly enhanced by our local friends Jon and Jane; here on the grounds of the University of East Anglia (UEA)The UEA buildings in the background are part of the Norfolk Terrace student housing, a Grade II listed architeturally significant example of 1960s modernist design by Denys Lasdun and Partners that is now in need of reconstruction.The old school Earlham Park Cafe was always a great destination on our daily dog walks, and Bindi loved their dog sausage for just £1.Bindi knows the way to Sausage Cafe (sung to the tune of “Do you know the way to San Jose”).Sad dog during the Holiday closures of our other common destination, the Eaton Park cafe. Sorry, no dog sausage or Bap today Bindi.
After a nice recuperation in the familiar grounds of Brighton, we set off to the uncharted lands of East Anglia, and specifically Norwich. We had scheduled a long house sit to take us through the New Year and I admit, I had to look up where it was on the map, even after years of roaming about the UK. It’s the hub of Norfolk County and home to about 140,000 people.
The peaceful UEA campus grounds along the Yare River.
Norwich is less than 2 hours by train from London, but a world away, and thriving with its own unique history as a center of wealth and prosperity in England going back 1000 years. During the Middle Ages it was a close second to London in stature, but started to recede during the Industrial Revolution as it had no coal or swift water to power manufacturing.
Jane showed us a stunning view of the Broads National Park at the top of St. Helens Church in Ranworth.The climb up comes with warnings.And rightly so.It was great to have Cheryl’s sister Kathy join us for a week in Norwich.Even (well behaved!) big dogs are welcome at most pubs in Norfolk County.
We had a nice warm cosy house and garden to call home for 3+ weeks, complete with the sweetest dog in the world. Our daily walks with her took us through the neighborhoods, parks, marshes, and rivers of the area, and certainly helped us feel at home over the holidays, especially in this dog crazy area, where dogs are welcome in almost all restaurants, pubs, and most stores. And our easy going golden lab was a popular addition to a few bus and train adventure as well, where she was welcomed and coddled by other passengers.
Kathy and I in busy central NorwichElm Hill is a street in the oldest part of Old Norwich and has hundred of intact Tudor era buildings dating back to the 16th Century.Lots of courtyards and alleys to explore in NorwichNorwich has the highest concentration of Medieval churches in England, so many have been repurposed for other uses, including crafts, arts spaces, and this antiques and collectibles.The spectacular Norwich Cathedral is over 900 years old at its core and sets the atmosphere in old Norwich.The Cloisters attached to the cathedral are the largest monastic cloisters in England.Bindi on the train to Comer.Bindi needed some reassurance on the train.Cheryl loved having her sister here, and a day out at the Norfolk coast in Cromer.Norwich is home to one of the best independent Department Stores in the UK , Jarrolds, which has three cafes, a massive gourmet food floor, and the more usual department store offerings.Trapped in the chilled cheese room at Jarrolds
We had a great time uncovering the layers of Norwich history and exploring the area. This is one of the joys of slow travel; diving deep into the history and culture of an area that most people from Abroad don’t even visit for a day. Norwich also has a few good small museums and we even took in a classic British holiday Pantomime performance at the impressive Art Deco Norwich Theater Royal, and almost felt like locals, as we met our friends there as well, and even understood some of the quirky local jokes and references. But not all.
Outside Holkham Hall in Wells Next to Sea.Cheryl and Kathy enjoying a mince pie and Prosecco at Holkham Hall, during our candlelight walkthrough of the historic 18th century country club state home.The ruins of St. Saviour’s Church in Surlingham date back to the 11th century, but many of the large flint stone materials were eventually pillaged for construction in the 17th century. Amazing any of it survives.It seemed everyone in the village of Eaton (part of Norwich) headed to the pub on Christmas Day for a pint. Most pubs are open for a few hours in the afternoon just for this purpose.Or a delicious gin&tonic.
With our dog, walking up a storm was easy; but our next goal of « a pub a day » took some dedication and admittedly we missed a few days. but fear not, we doubled up on other days to catch up. We also discovered that the pubs are popular throughout the Christmas period, when so much else is closed. So to the pubs we went. Do as the locals we say.
Happiness is proper tea and a scone, cheddar, and chutney plate at the Earsham Street Cafe in Bungay.Delicious and worth a stop before or after a local walk.Our 6 mile loop walk from Bungay.Part of our walk included Bighods Way, named after the local 12th century Norman family and their castle.Beautiful winter light on Bighod’s Way near Bungay.It seemed Bungay residents knew how to brighten up the winter with paint.At one of our favorite local pubs, The Alexandria, in Norwich’s Golden Triangle neighborhoodThe St. Andrew’s Pub in Central Norwich. We were really working at our “pub a day” goal.Pinot Gris and a pie.
The weather was mixed during our stay, but blessedly dry for the most part. But there were many days of gray (the grisaille!) with heavy low clouds and a bit of cold mist. But the pubs did their trick, and were a great respite on the dark sunsets (at 3:30!!). Friendly locals and lots of conversation…not to mention my favorite real ale cask bitters.
We’ll have fond memories of our time in Norfolk
We highly recommend you go a bit out of your way to see Norwich. We plan to return, but perhaps in spring or summer when we can sail on the Broads and see another side of the beautiful area. Happy New Year and new adventures!
Palace of Versailles. 8:30 am on a Wednesday in November.
Museum planning can be quite a challenge in Paris. First – which museums? Choosing between the 136 options looks daunting. Even when you narrow it down to the 111 listed in the great book our friend Nancy brought with her, that’s too many for a one month visit. Second – which days are they closed? Monday is a popular closure day, so going to a museum that isn’t closed on Monday means it might be a bit more crowded than usual.
Two horses and humans walking through the forecourt of the Palace of Versailles. I think they were just locals who use the park as a cut through. The noise of hooves on cobblestones sounded like time travel.Looking down the gardens of the Palace.The palace opened at 9, so we used our 30 minutes to check out the view.Getting going early had the pay off of no crowds. And cold November weather helped too.
Versailles probably wouldn’t be fun for us crowd adverse people in Spring or Summer, so this might be our one and only visit to this A List site.
The Hall of Mirrors with our fellow early arrivals.As we walked around we kept joking “now why was there a revolution?” in response to the luxury on display.Pensive gazing out the window while listening to the quite good app based audio guide.Miles of parquet flooring! Shiny too! Make sure to budget enough time to explore Petit Trianón.Sophora Japonica, or Japanese pagoda tree, planted in 1764 for Marie-Antoinette near the Petit Trianón.Temple de l’Amour. The folly in the English Garden of the Petit Trianon.The Petit Trianon, a laughing American tourist, and the classical angel statue. The app based audio guide covered a lot.The “Water Mill” in the Queen’s Hamlet.The Hamlet had a rough time surviving but several renovations later, you have a good idea of what it was like originally.It is a peaceful respite from the grandeur of the Palace.
While we waited to get into the Palace there was a little guy, probably about seven years old, having a meltdown about having to visit the palace. He screamed and cried and his adult spent some time talking him down. He uttered a memorable phrase which we filed away for future use: “This is the stupidest thing in the entire stupid world!”
I sure hope that little guy made it to the hamlet and got to see the farm animals.I’m sure the pigs, goats, and bunnies would have cheered him up. Not stupid.
So how else do we decide on museums to visit? Well, when you go to a lot of museums in France, and in the world, you see connections. At a museum in – Lyon? Dijon? I honestly can’t remember – a little card said about a missing painting: currently on display at Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature in Paris. What what what? That sounds fascinating. So it was marked on a Google map and Rich remembered and off we went.
The museum is in an old Hôtel particulier. A grand urban mansion.Yes, that’s a stuffed fox curled up on the chair. The rooms were themed, and simply beautiful.Don’t let the name of the museum put you off. It’s not really a celebration of blood sports, but more humans relationship with nature and animals.The falconry room.Adorable little hoods for the falcons to wear. Putting feathers on a bird.
Even with only a month in Paris it was so fun to circle around topics or artists and come across them in different exhibits or even in cemeteries.
The grave of Théodore Géricault, in Cimetière du Père-Lachaise.One of our early morning Louvre visits was specifically to visit The Raft of the Medusa, by Géricault.Alone with this massive canvas.Which is replicated in bronze on his tomb.A cold and grim subject. Again, the smiling American tourist.
A college friend (thank you Jen) reminded me of the chapter in Julian Barnes’ book History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters, chapter five, Shipwreck, which relays the story of the creation of this painting and the history behind it.
The artist visited morgues to achieve the correct shade of skin tone. Not far from The Raft in the Louvre is another famous Géricault painting: The Charging Chasseur, or An Officer of the Imperial Horse Guards Charging.Which is also recreated on the artist’s tomb.At our final Louvre Visit to see this exhibition, Figures of the Fool.Here was another work by Théodore Géricault, The Woman with Gambling Mania (French: La Folle Monomane du jeu) from 1822.I can’t be the only one who goes through museum exhibits hoping for fun reproductions in the gift shop? These marginalia of little monsters or grotesque characters would have made fantastic pieces for the museum shop.Chimeras of Notre-Dame de Paris: Monster Leaning on the Parapet Paris, 1847-1862
Although we missed the re-opening of Notre Dame by a few days, we did get to see four chimeras removed during a restoration in the 1800s. Gargoyles spout water away from a building, chimeras are ornamental, adding to the overall atmosphere of the Cathedral.
Such a moody and beautiful presentation.Chimeras of Notre-Dame de Paris: The Pelican The Lioness Monster Leaning on the Parapet The Wandering Jew.
We also visited the Musée d’Orsay for the Gustave Caillebotte exhibit, amazing, and Nancy and I went to the Azzedine Alaïa museum. He was a talented and famous Tunisian couturier and shoe designer.
Laser cut velvet. Gown or work of art?Beautiful and beautifully displayed.We loved the window which let you see his atelier. Left exactly as it was when he died.
There were other museums we visited – my head is still spinning from what we saw – and of course, the best museum of all: the city itself. Thanks to our new friend Roy, whom Nancy met on her flight over to Paris, we even got to see a Chambre de bonne. These small top floor maids rooms on Baron Haussmann’s 19th century mansions. Ever since listening to this 99% Invisible podcast about Chambre de bonnes I’ve wanted to see one. But how? Well, have a friend who makes friends.
Hi Roy! Thank you again for showing us a side of Paris we wouldn’t have seen without you.The servants staircase.The corridor of doors to small, very small, apartments. Some have been joined together to make more useable spaces.How happy am I? In a Chambre de bonne. The view! Eiffel Tower one direction, Basilique du Sacré-Cœur the other.Those very top windows will be the Chambre de bonnes in this building.
Everyone who travels will tell you that the most amazing experiences are not found in guide books. They happen. You walk by them, if you’re lucky and open to saying yes, you get to have unexpected and delightful times, and even better with friends.
We have a running joke while we travel where we put things in a Bay Area context for each other. Guanajuato is the Mendocino of Mexico City. Parc Vincennes is the Golden Gate Park of Paris. When we discovered that Paris is actually smaller in size than San Francisco, but with over twice the population, we felt a bit more at home. We lived in SF for decades, most of those years without a car, so Paris felt like a super lively, more busy SF.
What? In my mind Paris was much bigger than SF.
Almost every Metro trip we mapped out on CityMapper was about 30 minutes or less from our Paris apartment. The Metro does move along and wastes very little time dwelling at stations – on the older lines you can actually open the doors while the train is still moving. And people do. But to walk across the city, or to your destination, really doesn’t take long. We started taking one Metro ride, and instead of transferring to a second line, just walked the rest of the way. Or, walked the whole way. We took buses as well, which is a great way to see the city and rest your feet.
Paris is so walkable. Nancy demonstrates that even the weather can’t stop her. Rich and Dan on the Coulée verte René-Dumont.
The retail scene is so vibrant. Restaurants and shops abound. And bakeries- so many bakeries. Pharmacies everywhere. Laundromats – check. Chocolate shops – check. As you walk you never suffer from a lack of interesting things to see.
So many 6-8 story buildings. So much housing.
Although the population of Paris has shrunk since its high of 2.9 million in 1921, it now hovers around 2.1 to 2.2 million. As with many cities smaller family size and gentrification have had an impact. But the population certainly keeps the city humming! A street near our apartment simply teemed with parents and children at school drop off time. We quickly learned to try to avoid that street at morning drop off.
Paris is doing a lot of street re-imagining, making more space for people not using cars to get around. This is a street in the Montparnasse neighborhood getting an update. Wider sidewalks and planting areas.And in the 12th, a massive redesign of Place Félix Éboué, adding bike and pedestrian space, more trees and amenities, and removing car lanes.These changes seem to have brought out a lot of folks on bikes.On my Paris bingo card this lady transporting her dog and baguettes would be quite a get.Of course we got out on bikes! Despite the chilly weather.
We used Lime bikes while in Paris. Cycling in Paris is quite good, although with so many cyclists I would recommend skipping rush hour at first, until you get the hang of Parisian cycling it can be intimidating. It helps to be a calm and confident urban cyclist since you will be passed by faster Parisian cyclists with only inches to spare. And be careful stopping at red lights since not all cyclists do and you risk a rear end collision!
After all that cycling around France we did this year – finally! The Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe.Now we can fully appreciate the cobblestones the Tour de France cyclists face in the Paris circuits that typically feature in the last stage of the race.Not our own comfortable bikes, but a great way to explore Paris.The Tunnel des Tuileries. Once full of auto traffic, now graffiti, bikes, and pedestrians. Delightful.And along the Seine River on a road where cars used to be.Notre Dame, just a few weeks from re-opening after the devastating fire. That’s Rich on the bike on the right.After parking the bikes we snapped the apparently obligatory Eiffel Tower photos.Yup. We were here. Proof.
It’s fun to see, or bike by, the big attractions, but our joy really comes from simply wandering. Having an errand – find a good coffee roaster to buy beans – and then seeing what we see. Be a Flâneur. Wander the city. Stroll. Observe. Be delighted. It’s what we did for so long in San Francisco, and it was such a luxury to have the time to do the same thing in Paris. As we kept reminding each other, stop and look up, look around.
Enjoy coffee and chocolat chaud.Coffee shop dog. The family who ran the shop had their two kids and dog keeping them company since it was a holiday and schools were closed.Nancy joined us in Paris and shared our cafe stops and delightful times.I particularly love Kermit and the painted poles echoing his color scheme.Neighborhood markets and murals, Montparnasse. A wall of old advertising, uncovered and refreshed on Rue des Martyrs.In the 9th. The society of mineral water building.The bubbly water in the pipe!The beauty of Paris.The passages.The people in dark wool coats strolling the passages.Basilique du Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre glimpsed from Bd Haussmann on our way somewhere one morning. And the real life of a city going on.Sacré-Cœur from the Musée d’Orsay.Enjoying a chocolat viennois at the Cafe at d’Orsay.One of the famous and stunning clocks at the old train station turned museum.
Watching Paris put on her Christmas and holiday decor was wonderful. Although we didn’t see too many lights on private balconies, the commercial corridors and chocolate shops put on a show.
Chocolate Christmas tree. Buy a forest of them!Baby Jesus meringues. Apparently a retro treat, it’s a soft candy, not a hard crunchy one. I think it’s more like a marshmallow or melt away candy.A forest of Christmas trees for sale in the 17th arrondissement.The netting on the trees looks like spider webs.Trees for sale on R. des Martyrs which is closed to car traffic on Sundays.Nancy and I inside Galleries Lafayette admiring the massive Christmas tree.Which put on quite a show as it changed colors.We walked to museums.We walked to go to specialty shops only open on Saturdays to buy artistic stamps.We walked until the sun set (at 4 pm) to watch the lights come on.We even walked in the snow.All that walking meant we needed to keep up our strength. The soufflés at Le Récamier were just the thing.We had a one meal out per day rule. So we made those meals count. Sometimes we didn’t need to go far. This oyster stand set up one weekend for two evenings on our neighborhood market street.12 shucked oysters from Brittany and white wine.Thanks to Dan we visited Buns Land for some amazing Biangbiang noodles. Mostly take away with just three stools at a tiny counter.We also drank vin chaud when we could. Hot mulled wine. This was the best we tried, from the wine stand at the regional merchants evening market where we also had the oysters.Rosy cheeked vin chaud drinkers.Had to try it at La Défense Christmas market too! Complete with souvenir cup.Nice and hot, but a bit sweet. But we kept our souvenir cups to savor sweet memories.More vin chaud please! At a small Christmas market at Pl. des Abbesses.A nice version, not too sweet. The quality of the wine was not as good as at the regional merchants evening.
Late November and early December seemed to be a great time to visit Paris. Holiday cheer was getting going, but Christmas crowds hadn’t fully arrived yet. The weather was mostly grey but the sunny days we got felt even more special. The one day of snow was scenic but melted quickly. And having friends visit, first Dan and then Nancy, was just wonderful. And we got more photos of the two us than we usually take. As Nancy joked, it’s proof Rich does have a right arm – that’s his selfie taking arm usually not seen in our photos together. A big thank you to Nancy for the great photos.
Look at that! We have legs and Rich has both arms!We sit together!We stand together at our local bar!We got to pose in front of a Christmas tree. And we got to spend time with one of our favorite people in all the world! Nancy.The flâneurs of Paris.Apartment lobby mirror group photo of the happy travelers.
When we came through Paris in May, on our fantastic bike tour through France, we visited our friend Jason who was on sabbatical from his professorship and staying in an apartment he found through sabbatical homes. It turned out that he and his wife could only take two of the three month final increment on the lease and he asked us if we would like to take the third month. Yes – was our pretty fast reply. Since we’d stayed at an apart hotel just up the street from the apartment we knew we’d like the neighborhood, and we’d been to the apartment for dinner so it was an easy decision. And a great decision.
The neighborhood street market, Tuesday and Friday. An early visit to avoid crowds later.The wide sidewalks of Bd de Reuilly in our 12th arrondissement neighborhood.Windows that face La Promenade Plantée. A greenway somewhat similar to the high line in NYC. Those windows and iron balcony just scream ‘Paris’ to me.
We hit the ground running with our Amis du Louvre cards and a trip to Disneyland Paris. The high and the low? The culture and the pop? Mona Lisa and Micky Mouse!
The RER A goes right to Disneyland. One transfer from our apartment, metro to RER.The mouse ears on the train departure signs are pretty darn cute. And helpful.Exit to Disneyland.
As huge fans of public transportation we were thrilled to take a train right to the entrance of Disneyland. We’re both very familiar with Disneyland Anaheim so we spent the day making comparisons and ranking the rides between the two parks. Paris for the transportation win, for sure. And our monthly Navigo passes (~€80) covered the entire trip, as well as all metro and trains in the Paris area (Zones 1-5)
It was a grey and chilly day at the happiest place on earth.I sort of expected Europeans to be a bit blasé about Disneyland, maybe treat it as a brash American import. Nope. Disney fans are Disney fans. Thunder Mountain Paris for the win! Most of the ride is on this island, so you start and end through a tunnel. Phantom Manor, The Haunted Mansion in Anaheim. Both are fun, similar layouts, nothing terribly different, except the spooky French in lieu of English. Très amusant!Hyperspace mountain. My new nemesis. Before the ride. I should have paid attention to the signs warning about motion sickness. And noticed the shoulder harnesses.
It is right there in the name. Hyperspace. Not just space. I’m used to the one in Anaheim which is pretty much a simple rollercoaster in the dark. I knew right away this one was a mistake. It went upside down twice. We now call it the brain scrambler. I lurched off the ride to find a bench, feeling pretty shaken up and a bit nauseous. I am past rollercoaster age, I decided. I’ve always avoided rides that go in a circle, the worst motion sickness ride for me is the spinning tea cups, but this one really was awful. Even Rich thought it was a bit much in the dark, and he loves rollercoasters.
The only thing I could face was Small World. Go ahead. Start humming the song.
The grounds of Small World are more extensive in California, with more topiary animals, but the ride felt fresher and more culturally correct in Paris. One of the biggest differences we noticed was how quickly the lines for the rides go under cover in Paris. In Southern California you can be outdoors quite comfortably year round, and the rain isn’t torrential. It was chilly and a bit drizzly when we visited and we were glad for the shelter.
Recovered from my brain shaking. A big motivation to visit was that we were there during a very quiet time. The Halloween decorations were down and Christmas decorations not yet fully up, so it’s not a popular time to visit.But, being efficient Disneyland, some holiday decorations were already up.We could bore you much more with our detailed observations of how Paris is different than Anaheim, but won’t. Ask us the next time we see you in person about Pirates of the Caribbean. We have thoughts.Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant.
On to the high culture: we learned about the friends of the Louvre card from our Paris apartment connection, Jason. Not only do you get to go to the Louvre as often as you want, you also get a different entrance, at the Passage Richelieu, so no big line like at the pyramid or in the Carousel Mall.
Rich cracking the map.
We had visited the Louvre once before and it was a lesson in frustration. The audio guide is a Nintendo based handheld gizmo which is confusing to operate, even for people younger than us. Signage is not great, the layout is labyrinthine, and you will walk miles and miles finding the art you want to see. But it’s the Louvre! On display: 35,000 works of art. In the collection: 500,000.
In the newly renovated Anne of Austria Summer Apartments, the Torlonia Collection.The marble sculptures are on display outside of Italy for the first time.Amazing detail.An early Birkenstock?Rich added for scale in front of a massive painting.
We visited the Louvre six times this visit. Once was only to visit the bathrooms and get a coffee, which was a mistake since it was afternoon and very busy, but we will share what we learned. The Friends of the Louvre card – fantastic if you can make it work. We had it mailed to our Paris Apartment, and we applied from within France. Sunday am turned out to be a fantastic time to visit. At peak times the crowds are thick, but for an hour or two Sunday am we wandered the halls and galleries of the less popular wings and rooms with very few other visitors. We even peeked at the Mona Lisa – no, no selfie.
A happy Louvre visitor. This is in a room just past the Mona Lisa, The salle Mollien Room 700, Denon wing, Level 1. The Red Rooms, Les Salles Rouges.
We visited three special exhibits during our six visits, The Torloni Collection, Figures de Fou, and A New Look at Watteau. We kept reminding ourselves how extensive the Louvre collection is that they can mount amazingly specific exhibits by plumbing the depths of their own collections. And when you view the Louvre outside from the I.M.Pei pyramid and understand how little of the connected buildings is display and how much is storage and other use – it’s overwhelming.
Under the pyramid at 9:02 am. My fearless tour guide. If you aren’t one, find yourself a map friend who won’t get lost in the many rooms and levels of this museum.Leaving on a Sunday at 11:24. After coffee at the Starbucks in the Louvre (!). Still not super crowded but the line to get in through security is now very long.
There will be more Louvre photos in later posts, but our recommendation is to get yourself a Friends of the Louvre card if you can. We paid 120€ for both of us, good for a year and allows you some discounts at other museums and into the Louvre Abu Dabi. Not sure we’ll use that benefit but who knows! The usual museum card coffee and gift shop 10% discount too. We ended every visit with a caffeine break.
The Happy Travelers in the sun at Luxembourg gardens.
Some of the special exhibits will have their app based audio guides, Figures of the Fool did, so check before you go and bring your earbuds. We searched on line for paintings we knew we wanted to see and read write ups to each other standing in front of the paintings. There are small bathrooms scattered along the galleries, some very well hidden, so if the line is long at the main bathrooms- and it will be ladies – try to find one up in the galleries. More from Paris soon. We just arrived in the UK for a nice long stay, until January 14th, happy holidays to all.
Bourges through a window of the Palais Jacques Cœur.Lyon is the bottom heart, then Bourges, then Orléans. All by train as our bicycles have entered winter hibernation.
Looking forward to a month’s stay in Paris we left Lyon, and the sunshine, although we didn’t realize it at the time. And we headed to Bourges. Bourges isn’t a big tourist destination, although Rick Steves tours do stop there to enjoy the half timbered houses and the huge gothic cathedral with its 13th century stained glass windows.
Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Bourges. Seriously huge. We called it a triple decker cathedral.The soaring interior and lovely chandeliers.
Bourges has nearly 500 half timbered buildings, more than any other French town, and the ruins of a Gallo-Roman wall. A tea and cake shop, Cake Thé, uses one tower as a dining room, if you follow the path to the shop you will find the remains of the wall and a lovely walking path.
Twilight on a street of half timbered buildings.The upkeep of the buildings must be very challenging. We saw a few supported with external bracing like this.It was a great town to explore.With sweet little cobbled streets.Lined with small houses.And more half timbered buildings on a quiet street near the center of old town.Of course a Camino route goes through town. And, this is the last you will see of our sandals for a while.
One of Bourges’ other sites to see is the Palais Jacques Cœur, a large Hôtel particulier – a grand urban mansion, freestanding and not connected to its neighbors. Cœur was a government official and successful merchant in the 1400s. Too successful, as his ability to lend large sums of money led to his eventual arrest and downfall. It seems never to pay off to have a King in your debt.
He did not get to enjoy his mansion, traveling during construction, arrested before he could live in it.So many craftsmen were employed to make this building an absolute masterpiece. Gargoyles abound.Stone carvings on every surface.You’d need a fireplace this size to heat the massive rooms.Another view through the old windows.A bat detail on the mantle piece.More fantastic stone work.
Although the palais is not furnished, it changed hands several times and was the town hall for a while, the audio guide helps you picture life in the building, and understand the amount of money and work that went into its construction.
And more gargoyle downspouts. Unfortunately for me the rain had stopped. I love seeing these in action.
Our two night stay gave us enough time to visit one of Bourges other fascinating sites, Le Marais, or the marsh, or swamp, in English.
A sign pointed the way as you walked down a neighborhood street.On the map the Marais looks like a city of water. We caught a glimpse from the train and had to see it on foot.
The Yèvre River is the source of water, and the swamp had provided a defendable space for the town. The 300 acres now hold 1,500 garden plots on which locals grow food, build small summer huts, and enjoy strolling on the levees. Some plots are only accessible by boat.
I imagine the locals know their way around the small paths and bridges, we had to check the map frequently.Whimsical folk art.A building being taken back by the vegetation.Very nice for an afternoon stroll.A boat ready to carry gardeners to their plot.We imagined quite a lovely summer scene in the Marais.Hey bourgeoisie, keep out!
It’s a fun way to travel, a few nights here, a few nights there, get the sense of a place and understand its place in the region and the country, and then off we go! But first, a nice dinner out at a restaurant we spotted our first night, and made a reservation for our second night. La gargouille.
Such a cozy looking spot.With plenty of namesake decor.More gargoyles, and Rich, not a gargoyle. Anticipating dinner.Gargoyle tartar! (No gargoyles were harmed.)The second best tartare I have had in France.And off to the train! Even when traveling bike free we can’t help but check out the bike spots on the trains.
Our last stop before Paris was Orléans. We went through Orléans on our bicycles when we rode along the Loire River in 2021. We enjoyed it then, in a sunny October, and knew there was enough to see still for a short stay. This is where the grey November weather caught up with us. What the morning news show called la grisaille. The greyness.
The Loire in la grisaille.The fog made for a very atmospheric walk along the river.This narrow building caught our attention in the old streets by the river.The old town streets giving framed views of Cathédrale Sainte-Croix d’Orléans.The front of the cathedral.Always crossing Camino routes.An autumnal display brightens a grey day.Inside the cathedral on All Saint’s Day. St. Joan in stained glass.
Joan of Arc, Jeanne d’Arc in French, is honored as a patron Saint of France for her role in defending Orléans in April 1429. You can find her in cathedrals, as statues, and paintings in the Musée des Beaux-Arts d’Orléans. Her story is powerful and poignant, as she was only 19 when she was tried for heresy and burned at the stake.
Many lit candles that day.St. Joan at night, dramatically lit.The Happy Travelers looking ahead to Paris.
We missed summer in Europe in 2024. Like really missed it. It was great to be in the US for the summer, but it’s been a relativley cold spring and fall in Europe. So we were thrilled to get a last gasp of pleasant fall weather in one of favorite French cities, Lyon. Some places we seek out, such as our return to Taiwan and further exploration of Malaysia earlier this year. Other places in Europe we seem to end up in more often due to their location, and Lyon is one of these places since it’s usually our train gateway to and from the Vallée Verte.
Soft autumn light on the Rhône.
This was actually our fourth visit to Lyon, and the second time this year, as we passed through for two nights in March on our spring bike tour along the Via Rhôna. In March, we caught up with some freinds staying in Lyon, and explored a few new places, but didn’t have time to dive in deeper. So we decided to return and spend a week this time, and it was really a joy, from the lovely autumn warth and sunshine (finally!) to the amazing food and friendly people.
Shorts and sandals! On the pedestrianized Montée de la Grande-Côte, which takes you up to the Croix-Rousse neighborhood.A snipet of the vast Mur Du Canuts. A huge building mural depicting the rebellion of the local silk workers from 1831-1848, some of the first labor revolts of the industrialized world.
Lyon is France’s third largest city, but for many French, it’s the best. As we found out, many Lyonnais wouldn’t consider living in Paris or Marseille. It reminds me of the rivalry between New York City and Boston growing up; one clearly the biggest and dominant in cultural icononography, but the other more livable and approachable, espcially as a tourist.
Along the Saône River, which has a more industrial and gritty feel than the Rhône promendaes.
What I really enjoy about Lyon is the geography, as it has some dramatic hills at it’s edges, and the confluence of two major rivers at it’s core. You even get views of the Alps when it’s clear. It’s also very walkable and easy to get around by bike and public transit, although pales to Paris in its extent of metro and trams. I imagine the access to the Alps, Massif Central, and Mediterranean is a huge benefit with those with the means to get away regulary. Oh, and the weather is a bit nicer than Paris.
Ready to explore the Lyon Bienalle’s largest installations at the former SNCF workshops known now as “Les Grands Locos”.
We also were lucky to time our visit with the large Biennale Art Show, which showcases about 75 artists in venues around the city. The 2024 theme of “Crossing the Water” invitied a wide array of interpretations and seemed especially pertinant to the migrations of people across the globe due to wars and economic opportunity, as well as animal life impacted by climate change.
The installations at the SNCF Railyards site were often extrememly large scale and experiential like Hans Schabus – Monument for People on the MoveMona Cara – The CactusSlightly Creepy carnival installation by Clément Courgeon – The Cart of the CleverLorraine de Sagazan & Anouk Maugein – Monte di Pietà at the MAC. Labeled and recorded, the objects that compose it are linked to traumatic memories. I have also crossed the water many times, but luckily by choice.Grace Ndiritu – The Blue Room features around a hundred prehistoric, Roman, Egyptian, medieval, modern and contemporary pieces from various Lyon museums. It was part the Biennale at the Musée d’art contemporain de Lyon (MAC).
I really enjoyed the Biennale and it was well attended but did not have a crush of visitors, due to its long run and dispersed venues. The artists also seemed to represent a modern and diverse cross-section of Fench and foriegn artists, something often missing from all the classical art museums of Europe. The other musuem we really enjoyed was the recently renovated Musée Lumière. Dedicated to the cinematogorphy and the history of the Lumière family, the Musée Lumière looks back at the various technical creations of Louis and Auguste Lumière and their family. It’s well curated and has a great collection of early film equipment, as well as engaging and interactive elements, all set on the grounds of the historic building and workshops.
We reluctantly skipped the striking new Confluence Museum as the week we were in Lyon was one of the Autumn school holiday weeks and anything child and family friendly was very busy….saved for our next visit to Lyon.
The Place Des Jacobins dates back to the mid 16th Century is an important historic junction of 12 streets. The fountain was added later in 1885 after the start of the Third Republic and some disputes about content. Public art and monuments are taken seriously in France.Off the bikes and back on transit!
Paul Bocuse looks over the street nearby Les Halles. He is Lyon’s most famous chef and has a legacy 3 star Michelin restaurant and the new Les Halles is named in his honor.
The way the locals eat and drink in Les Halles.
The food presentation at Les Halles is often like a museum installation.
We opted for a classic Moules marinière feast at Chez Lyon in Les Halles. Mussels are generally in season from August to January.
We probably could have shared a bucket, as they were huge! But sooo good.
I can do this…and I did, as well as about 1/3 of Cheryl’s bucket -;)
The typical chimneys of Lyon with Grafitti/Art?….how did the the street artists get up there?The famous Frédéric Bartholdi fountain featuring Amphitrite looking over the four tributaries of the Garonne River….in Bordeaux?! It was his intention to sell this to the City of Bordeaux in 1892, but Lyon scooped it up instead.We stayed in an apartment and a hotel for parts of our visit, but both were just a block from the Left Bank of the Rhone; a perfect location to access all the city and the river’s many cafes and 5km of paths, but out of the tourist zones.Lots of space for people, dogs, and bikes along the extensive Berges du Rhône.Selfie on one of my frequent runs along the Rhône, with the Mussée de la Confluence in the distance.Access in pedestrianized zones is generally controlled by retractable bollards activated by residents and delviery vehicles only. Why is this hard to transfer to US cities?
Besides the great variety of food in Lyon, we really were impressed by the lack of impactful car traffic in most nighborhoods. There are some busy main arterials, but in general, you can walk freely and cross small streets with ease. There are 7 tram and 4 underground metro lines that cover the ciy pretty well, and an extensive bike network. And as in much of France, they are investing more in public spaces for people with a huge project to expand car free space in the commercial core, not to mention a massive renovation of the always busy Lyon Part-Dieu train station. As always, the surface tram lines are a nice way to get around and sightsee as well.
Roman ruins are tucked into Lyon in surprising locations, such as the 19AD Amphitheater of the Three Gauls in the 1st Arrondisement.Random Roman ruin fragmants yet to be pieced togther by a grad strudent, and cats…always!This cat seemed to be in some sort of guardina role. We kept our distance.Taking advantage of water collected in the ruins.
Cities with layers of history are always intriguing, and Lyon city along the Saône used to be the core of Lugdunum, a thriving Roman city dating back to 43 BC. It may have had up to 200,000 inhabitants at its peak, which is in incredible as Lyon today only has 500,000 inhabitants in the age of modern infrastructure. There is a large Gallo-Roman museum, two amphitheaters, and lots of other remnants to be seen if you want to dive deeper into this history.
Beyond the usual recycling and residential composting, we were surprised to see public compopsting bins in such a large city.Delicious dumplings at Enginomo. The culinary scene in Lyon includes a good variety of food choices, not just French Gastronomie.The “Pot Lyonnais” The usual French wine ‘pichet’ comes with a twist in Lyon as it has a thick glass bottom and only accomodates 46cl instead of the usual 50. Apparently the factory bosses used these bottles to take a little from each worker of their weekly wine rations.Notice the thick glass bottom, which also makes a “Pot Lyonnais”very stable!
Beautiful architecture, trams, and sunshine.
Former 19th century hospital is now the Grand Hôtel-Dieu, as well as shops and gathering spaces.Low morning autumn light on Les Célestins Theater.We used the last few minutes of our 24-hour transit pass to take the funicular up to the Basilica of Notre Dame of Fourvière. It’s impressive and one of Lyon’s top sights, with views of the city from the nearby terrace.Remains of the Gier Aqueduct which brought water to Lugdunum from over 50 miles away. Parts are still fully intact while other sections are now one with later development. Amazing.This streetscape reconstruction in Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon was still in the archeolgical phase, as Lyon sits atop layers of history.Enjoying the nice weather on our exploration of the hills.Colorful liquor bottles caught Cheryl’s eye at a casual neighborhood bistro where we had lunch in Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon.Sunshine on the Saône looking toward Croix-Rousse.Street Art and murals are a mainstay of Lyonnais life and there are websites dedicated to the various artists.We feel the same way.Nothing but smiles after a stimulating week in Lyon. But will this great weather last?
Lyon is not always a must see to most visitors to France, and I think it’s still a bit overlooked. Paris is amazing, but Lyon is a place you can really feel comfortable in quickly and will be rewarded by friendly people and a vibrant cultural scene. We were glad we came back for a longer look. Happy travels!
When we end a bike trip nothing feels better than taking a nice break at our wonderful generous friends’ house in the Vallée Verte, France. We shop for food and cook in every day instead of searching for open grocery stores and restaurants. We have leisurely mornings and afternoon naps.
We watch the alpine glow and the cows waiting to go back to their barn.
But this break was even better since we had our dear friends Christine and Cecily joining us for a week. Usually we spend our time in the alps hiking from the house, catching up on stuff, travel planning, cleaning and storing the bikes and trying to help around the house. Their visit gave us the kick in our pants to rent a car and actually get out and see some of the alps. We joke that for folks who have spent so much time in the area we hadn’t seen many of the local sights.
A rock star hairdo horse.
The best way we know to get over jet lag is physical activity in the sunshine. Thankfully the weather cooperated for our first hike, Plaine Joux up to Pointe de Miribel.
Blast the jet lag hike!Up we go.Remember to turn around to see the high alps playing peek a boo through the clouds.The last super steep bit. The summit! Photo credit to the nice Australian lady hiking with her dog.I can never get enough of the views – those huge clouds.And the wonderful friends.
The nice hiker with the dog warned us there was a herd of goats with their guard dog on our chosen route down. The dog barked at her and her dog, just so we knew. My sister in Colorado has had these big white guard dogs for her livestock for years so I assured everyone that they aren’t dangerous, just protective. Well, the big white dog did indeed bark at us, but calmed down after we greeted them with good doggie voices.
I’m just protecting my flock.And I will escort you out of my territory.If we had done our hike in reverse we would have seen this information sign before meeting the big dog.The fall colors were changing every day. For jet lag busting hike number two Rich and Cecily both had their fall appropriate colors on.Lac Léman under the fog.
After a day just hiking from the house, we headed by car to Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval. The weather was rainy but we all just suited up in our rain gear and headed out on a fantastic waterfall loop.
Cheryl and Christine. Friends for 42 years.It was hard to know if it was rain or mist from the waterfall. Whatever- it was wet.A wet day meant we had the trails almost to ourselves.Cecily and Christine enjoying the break in the rain and the fall colors.The mix of trees makes for dramatic vistas. As did all the uphill hiking.Framed waterfall. It was all downhill after this point.
The next day our destination was Chambéry, which is south of Lac du Bourget. A nice walk around the old town, a visit to the Musée Savoisien and lunch.
Musée Savoisien had a great exhibit on houses of the Savoie region, and how and why they were constructed as they were.Really detailed architectural models of the different house types.The museum also celebrated one of the region’s most famous dishes. Tartiflette– potatoes, lardon, onions and reblochon cheese.
At a traditional Savoie restaurant for lunch, Christine had the tartiflette, which was delicious but rich. We all agreed it is not an everyday meal. But so luscious.
Rich captured what we called “our album cover shot”.
We learned a good lesson about renting cars, always add the second driver even though it costs more. Since Rich did all the driving he didn’t get to enjoy the scenery as much as the rest of us. We’re spoiled from California where the rule is that the spouse is always covered when it comes to rental cars. We should have added me as a driver so Rich could relax and enjoy the scenery too. So, with that in mind we took the train the next day. Rich still had to drive us to the train station but then we all got to admire the scenery from La Roche-sur-Foron to Annecy.
Train station usie.First stop in Annecy, where it was market day, a coffee cart.Fueled up to walk around town.One of Annecy’s beautiful rivers, Le Thiou. With fun and impressively sited fish graffiti.Cecily and Christine in the old town.Such a picturesque place. The water is crystal clear.Can’t stop taking photos!We weren’t the only tourists in town, but it wasn’t super busy. Just pleasantly hopping.The perfect case for retirement, lounging in chairs by the lake.
After a day at home, shopping and doing an airport run to pick up Hannah, we headed off the next day to Chamonix, a new place for the four Americans. The very impressive roadway leading to Chamonix and the Mont Blanc tunnel was mostly empty since the tunnel is closed for works until December 16, 2024. That made for a lovely traffic free drive along the impressive viaduct roads.
The top of Mont Blanc was shrouded in clouds, but we now had Hannah with us! Even with the peak covered the view is impressive.Another potential album cover.A glacial river and a glacier. Oh, and Cecily and Christine! Hannah and Cheryl, friends for 40 years. I do love being able to say that. Long term friends are so wonderful.Rich in front of a mural of famous mountain climbers.
Sadly we had to say to goodbye to Cecily and Christine as they were off by train to Italy for another friend’s 70th birthday party. We dropped them at Annemasse train station, they took the local Léman Express to Geneva, and then trains to Turin. Such a fantastic way to travel.
See you soon!
When we made our nomadic decision it was our hope that we would have friends meet up with us in various places. This visit by Cecily and Christine was so energizing and wonderful. To get to share one of our favorite places, the Vallée Verte, with two of our favorite people was fantastic. The biggest downside to our life as nomads is missing friends and family.
We also had bonus time with Hannah our wonderful host, and some lovely weather to enjoy.We got in some more good hiking.And got high enough to catch a glimpse of the reclusive top of Mont Blanc.Framed by fall color.That might look like a dry field, it was actually wet and swampy.The sign for the cooperative cheese monger in Boëge.Which has a fantastic cheese vending machine with curated selections, open 24/7. For those cheese emergencies.Calf in the mist.
Too soon it was time for Rich and I to shoulder our backpacks and head off ourselves. Hannah’s family had arrived so we left them in good spirts and got a lift to the train station in Annemasse.
After our challenging trains with bikes time the previous few weeks we were giddy to have only backpacks. This is so easy! We kept saying to each other.The travel planner enjoying his stress free train ride.
We were working our way to Paris for a month stay and more visits from friends, but first we had a few stays along the way. More on that in the next post.
The happy travelers in Chamonix. Life is even better when shared with friends.
Less Car, More Life 