Well Viva La France! We are here. Stayed in Lyon for a couple of days. The first day was to recover lost sleep and the second day was to improve the French economy. Somewhat successful on the first, the French were very grateful on the outcome of the second. Nice place, met up with the folks on the boat. About 145 people. Enough to meet new people and listen to their stories, but not so crowded that you can't get around on the boat. Weather is a bit chilly as we sail down the Rhone River. Seems there's a castle on every hillside. Most were in pretty good condition. Others not so much, but...
I thought all were pretty cool and I could see why they were pretty well needed as things could get a little shaky fairly quickly and the associated town didn't provide much protection. A castle with the draw bridge dtawn up was a lot more effective (if somebody was coming to your assistance to break the siege, else....)
 |
Yes, this winery in Beaujolais has been owned and operated by many (many, many) generations. And...The wine is quite excellent |
The other thing we sought out was French Wine. Down in this neck of the woods (AKA France), the two primary wines are Beaujolais and Viognier . Man are they excellent.
This is a "Wine Tour", we've got a Texas Wine Maker on the cruise with us. We've visited a few winery's and have several more to visit in the next few days. Lots of fun and I have found several wines that I hadn't heard of nor tried up to then, but now am very sold on them.
Lots of wow's from the gang.
Stopping in Touron and tried a couple of wine tasting rooms. Excellent! Mouvedre, Sauvignon Blanc and Syrah, oh my goodness! And, paired with French Cooking, out of this world!
Yes, I bought a few bottles and am bringing them home.
On to Arles tomorrow. The gang will then disband and Mrs J and I will jet up to London to visit R3 and his gang. Been a while, looking forward to seeing them again.
Peace out, y'all!
Sounds like a relaxing time especially with so few on the ship, nice. Wine, food and Family Time coming up juvat, you've hit the Trifecta!
ReplyDeleteNylon,
DeleteVery relaxing and as a history buff (not an expert like Sarge) VERY interesting. Castles on virtually every hillside. Fabulous! Old cities that were quite obviously engineered to confuse and confine any invading group. Food....Fabulously excellent. Wine...OMG. Good. The "french' wine I've been able to buy (for less than a $100 or so) hasn't come any where close to the bottles I've consumed in the $30 buck range. People were nice. Met and made a lot of new friends. Got some good sleep. Did I mention Wine?
Yeah, it was/is (we leave day after tomorrow) fabulous. Recommend it for all y'all!
juvat
I am reminded of jokes from French class at school.
ReplyDeleteQ: I say, I say, I say, which cities describe a matelot's trousers?
A: Toulouse and Toulon.
Forgive us, we were young.
Nice! (also a giggle producer)
Deletejuvat
**Seems there's a castle on every hillside**
ReplyDeleteImagine a land where things are like that, where spending the capital & labor to build that many castles is just part of life...
Rob,
DeleteYes, but...If you didn't have one the best outcome you were likely to get is slavery, if not rape and murder by burning. Capital becomes a bit less important under those circumstances. I looked at them from the view of a fighter pilot. They'd have been difficult to capture with anything much less than nukes.
juvat
You encourage me to go to France, Juvat. Although given the amount of wine I already have, I cannot imagine purchasing "a few more bottles...."
ReplyDeleteTHBB,
DeleteWe are bringing back 3 (Fabulous) bottles of French Red for the same reason you're describing. However..........
We did consume a "bit" of wine daily.
Gotta blend in with the natives doncha know?
juvat