France: Well.... we rented a car and travelled all over.
Paris puts tremendous physical demands on you as it is so big and there is so much to see. My favourite art gallery turned out to be the Pomedeau (modern art, for all you that haven't been). Actually, the one place we didn't feel totally at ease in was Provence, since it was so full of tourists, even in May. We loved Les Beax, St. Remis, Pont du Gard and the hill towns, despite that. Where do you stay?
Amboise, Sarlat, the French Pyrenees, Colmar, Annecy, the Luberon, and on and on, were all great. It's a wonderful country. Loved the cathedrals, caverns, chateaus and mostly the pleasure people taking in just living. I was very moved by Peyrepertuse (a Cathar castle, very wild and untouristy), and oddly enough, loved Nancy, even though it isn't in most of the guide books. The only place I didn't like was the palace at Versailles. Worth seeing, but a monument to one man's ego. The weather was just getting warm in the soutth, so the beaches had a few people. The Camargue was an unexpected pleasure.
I found the food in the Dordogne and Loire very tasty but a little heavy. They give you duck confit like table crackers, and we loved the cheese trays, of course. They do such wonderful things with mushrooms. In Versailles, I had this avocado mousse stuffed with wild mushrooms in some kind of vinegrette. Fabulous, but I'd have to rate the seafood in Port Vendres (along the coast near Spain) and Sete the best. The fish chowder was very delicate and the seafood platters were both artful and well balanced. Loved those breakfasts of juice, good (I mean really good) bread, and coffee au lait. The best lunch we had was at the revolving restaurant on top of the Shilthorn in Switzerland (spent 4 days in Switzerland). It's an unbelievable view and not that expensive.
Well! Guess I should get back to trading. Lost a little on a quick JNPR flip. Let's see if I can make it back.
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