Monday, January 6, 2014

Our Tour de France

This is an account of our river cruise in southern France, August 2013 aboard Viking River Cruises, "Europe."

When making arrangements for the trip, I thought it would be a good idea to book our flights as well as the cruise through Viking. They provide transportation to and from the airports to the boat and I felt that would make the trip less taxing even though it cost a little more to do it that way. I was wrong. It was not less taxing. Apparently, the rule for international travel is that as long as you have forty five minutes between connecting flights, it's okay. Of course, even though you book your flights months in advance, you don't actually find out what arrangements have been made until a couple of weeks before departure. We flew from Newark to Frankfurt and then connected with a flight to Marseille with a little less than an hour to spare. Despite assurances to the contrary from Viking, we had to go through passport control and customs in Frankfurt, each of which involved lines. We made our connection, but with only a few minutes to spare.

On the way home, the boat docked in Chalon sur Saone which was forty five minutes from Lyon where we had to catch a flight to Munich and then our flight to Newark. Anne and I were driven in a private "taxi" (sleek, black Mercedes with leather seats and no taxi markings) to Lyon airport. That part was fine. . When we got to Lyon we went into the airport to find it jammed with people and closed because of a "lost baggage situation." The military was there and fire brigades and no one could tell us how long with would last. Our non-English speaking driver spoke to a woman with a clipboard who communicated this to us and then he left.

It turned out that our flight was only delayed about fifteen minutes, but again, our connecting time in Munich was only about an hour.

I had been questioning our travel agent and Viking about these arrangement since we learned of them and was assured that if we missed our flight to Newark, Viking would put us up in a hotel in Munich overnight. Having read the transport contract, I'm not so sure they had to do that, but, in any event, we wanted to go home, not spend a night in Munich. When we visited Anne's cousin, Eileen, in Germany, a few years ago, she took us on a grand tour of Munich and we stayed overnight in a hotel near the airport then. It was a very nice trip and maybe we'll do it again some day, but it wasn't in our plans for this trip.

Before we left the boat, Viking said that we could change our flights at a cost of about $2,000, or, they suggested that if one of us were handicapped, they could order a wheelchair and that would get us through the airport quicker. This is apparently now becoming a trend and it no longer works as well as it used to. So, Anne agreed to be the handicapped person and when we got on the plane in Lyon, I asked the stewardess about this and she said that Anne was on the list for a wheelchair and that someone would meet us inside the terminal.

European, or at least German, handicapped people must be made of strong stock indeed, for when our plane landed, it didn't pull up to a gate, but parked on the tarmac. They rolled up one of those tall stairways by which passengers, both handicapped and normal deplaned. Then we had to walk to a bus and stand until we got to the terminal. Meanwhile, time is ticking away.If a person had a serious disability, I don't know what they would do, maybe slide them down a chute.

We got into the terminal, along with hundreds of other people and looked around for some sign of officialdom, but saw none. We must have looked bewildered because a Lufthansa agent materialized from the crowd and asked if we were looking for a wheelchair. We showed him our boarding pass. He looked at his watch and his eyebrows raised as he told us it was quite foolish to make flight arrangements with such a short connecting time. I politely told him that we had not made the arrangements and that I had been complaining to Viking about it. He said to follow him and he led us to an elevator which took us to the second floor where there was waiting a golf cart type of conveyance. Anne sat in the front next to him and I rode in the back, facing the rear, holding our luggage. We went careening through the airport, the driver beeping his horn, people scattering and mothers pulling children to safety. We arrived at a passport control with a long line. Our driver stopped at a gate and motioned to an immigration agent inside a glass booth who checked our documents and allowed us to proceed ahead of the other waiting travelers (how embarrassing). We then scooted through baggage check where nothing appeared to get checked and then proceeded to the airplane gate. The plane was delayed a few minutes and we made it with only ten minutes to spare. We would not have made it had it not been for the cooperative agent and our rollicking ride through the huge Munich airport.

Sunday (August 25, 2013)  ARRIVAL IN AVIGNON

Now, let's see. I was going to write about a river cruise. We were met at the airport in Marseilles and driven by bus to our boat which was docked on the Rhone River in Avignon.





 There was a buffet luncheon awaiting us on arrival. We found our friend, Mike Kehoe and decided to take a short walking tour of the city. Avignon is known as the City of the Popes because from 1309 to 1377, seven Popes resided there because of turmoil in Rome.



One of the interesting sites is the Pont d'Avignon (Bridge of Avignon). According to legend, heavenly voices told a young shepherd, Benedict, where a bridge should be built. The authorities resisted, but Benedict persisted and with a superhuman show of strength, marked the location with gigantic rocks earning him the respect and support of the common people. He then founded a society of bridge builders who completed the structure in eight years. Benedict, unfortunately, did not live to see it finished. He was buried in one of two bridge chapels. Also, unfortunately, floods and wars took their toll on the bridge which now only extends to the middle of the river. It is immortalized in a 15th century children's song, Sur le Pont d'Avignon.






The Papal Palace is huge and next to it stands the Cathedral Notre-Dame-des Doms from the 12th century. In the 19th century a golden figure of the Madonna was erected on top of its tower.




I don't know. They're French.


After lunch there was a short walking tour of Avignon with a guide, but this tour didn't climb up the hill behind the Papal Palace. Following the tour there was a cocktail hour, dinner and then music and dancing in the lounge.






Our stateroom had twin beds, a small bathroom with a shower and a water level window. It was comfortable enough, more comfortable and larger than the room we had on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship out of San Pedro a few years ago, but not as nice as other hotel beds I have been in.





Monday (August 26, 2013)  ARLES

We sailed early morning, going South and arrived in Arles about 9:30 in the morning.

Arles is seven times the geographic size of Paris, yet its population is a mere 50,000. The city, or commune, its official designation, dwarfs the French capital thanks to the Carmargue Delta, an untouched nature reserve that reaches from the Rhone to the  Mediterranean Sea.

Vincent Van Gogh moved to Arles in 1888 and painted 300 works there including "Cafe de Nuit," "The Yellow House," and "Starry Night Over the Rhone."









Our walking tour included the above sites along with Les Arenas, an amphitheater that could seat 20,000. It is still used today for public events.








At 6:15 PM we cast off from Arles to return to Avignon and arrived there about 10:00 PM accompanied by accordion tunes.




Tuesday (August 27, 2013)  AVIGNON

After breakfast today we took a longer walking tour of Avignon along a warren of cobbled streets, shops, lantern-lit passageways and architectural treasures, not the least of which is the 14th century Papal Palace (Palais des Papes). Competing with rival Popes in Rome, the Popes of Avignon spared very little in establishing themselves as superior. Built in 1335, the Papal Palace is the size of four cathedrals and is the largest gothic palace in the world with walls eighteen feet thick. Today it houses a museum, but contains only a very few pieces of furniture.



Wine, beer and soda (pop for our Rochester friends) were complimentary and served freely with lunch and dinner. At other times, you could buy wine for 7 or 8 Euros a glass. On our return from every excursion or walking tour, we were greeted on board with a glass of lavender water into which would be poured, if you wanted it, a large helping of vodka. Also, there were two visits to wine cellars for wine tastings. I was not greatly impressed with the selected wines. Therefore, being well lubricated, we saw no need to buy wine in any of the towns that we toured.

At 3:00 PM we departed Avignon for Viviers. We enjoyed a tea hour with French pastries in the lounge.

We arrived in Viviers about 10:00 PM and there was a night walking tour. I don't remember very much about it and I doubt I took any pictures, but I'm sure it was a very nice place.

Wednesday (August 28, 2013)  TOURNON

The Viking Europe cast off from Viviers at 5:00 AM and arrived at Tournon at 1:30 PM. We took a bus tour to Tain L'hermitage, visited the Musee Pierre Palue, Valrhona's chocolate factory and boutique and tasted some wine at Murinais in the Crozes Hermitage wine region. The museum of Pierre Palue is run by his daughter, Marie, and devoted to the works of the artist and other artists of the Paris New School. Marie is a delightful person who actually lives in the museum, a 16th century tower. She narrated a slide show for us and was willing to answer any questions we might have.  Being cuisine challenged, I had never heard of Valrhona chocolate, but the French think it's the official chocolate of heaven. At the winery, we had some more tastings (good thing we weren't driving), had a tour of the winery and rummaged about in the vineyards.





Mike (right) and Joe Kehoe



Because of heavy traffic (small town roads not designed for 21st century auto traffic), we were late getting back to the boat which was to cast off at 7:00 PM for Vienne. Dinner was scheduled for 7:15, b ut they had to wait for us because we were all on busses stuck in traffic. At 9:30 PM we had a lesson on cheese and a cheese tasting after which there was music and dancing in the lounge. The ship arrived in Vienne at 12:00 midnight. I know that because it says so in the "Viking Daily," not because we were awake to witness our arrival.

Thursday (August 29, 2013)  VIENNE / LYON

In the morning we took a walking tour of Vienne and a mini train ride to Mont Pipet. You could walk up to the chapel, but after the twisting, narrow and steep road that our mini train took, I'm glad we rode. At the top of the mount it was discovered that the "train" had a flat tire on the engine. We rode down the hill on it anyway. I don't know what happened to the next group riding up.





One of the attractions of Vienne is the temple of Augustus and Livia, which looks like, well, a Roman temple. It is surrounded by narrow streets with many small shops and cafes.





Lyon's location, where the waters of the Rhone and Saone meet, has been appreciated since at least Roman Times. In 43 B.C. a lieutenant of Caesar, seeing the two-river vantage point that today's Fourviere Hill would command, founded the fort of Lyon. The city grew and became the starting point of the entire Roman road system ensuring that all roads would lead there. As a result, Lyon became the capital of Gaul and has been a place for trade and cultural exchange ever since.

Lyon is France's second city by size. It is a clean, prosperous, cosmopolitan city and is often considered to surpass Paris in terms of lifestyle. It is one of Europe's foremost publishing centers and by the mid 18th century became the silk weaving capital of Europe.






A large, impressive, series of swimming pools were built for the summer olympics to be held in Lyon. Do you remember when that was? It didn't happen, but not the citizens of Lyon have a very beautiful place to recreate right along the river.




Courtyards and traboules (secret alleyways) were the meeting places for the silk weavers and provided safe passage for them to carry their wares to and from market without being accosted.




Recognized also as the food capital of France, Lyon has almost 2,000 restaurants, none of which we entered.


Sailing on the Rhone and Saone rivers requires going through sixteen locks and many low bridges. As a result, the sun deck on the boat was closed more than we would have liked. They lowered the canopies and even the wheelhouse. There is an area in front of the wheelhouse which was open through most of the bridges and surprisingly, when the sun deck was open, it could never be said to be crowded.




Wheelhouse with top removed


In a couple of towns we took night walks, either alone, or with a couple of other people. We were assured that it was perfectly safe and it was. We never felt uneasy. In one town we walked past some restaurants, outdoor vendors and outdoor musical performances, populated by a mixed age group, but, it seemed, mostly young people (or is it simply that all groups of people are getting younger, in my view). The French like to eat outdoors and there were a number of streets with tables set outside of small shops and many people eating there. The food smelled good, but, sadly, we never had the urge to eat there because of all the food available to us on the boat.



Friday (August 30, 2013)  LEAVE LYON, AFTERNOON SAIL TO MACON

At 1:00 PM the Europe cast off from Lyon for Macon and arrived there about 7:15 PM. While we were sailing we took a tour of the galley (kitchen, but we saw only a small part of it). They offered free wine, but I declined. I don't recall if Anne had some.

In the lounge there was a question and answer session at which we could ask any questions we had about the boat or anything else about the tour. I learned that the boat is 33 feet wide, 77 feet long and draws six feet of water, which I found kind of remarkable. It is designed for the shallow rivers with many low bridges and, of course, has to fit through the locks. It can turn in its own length with the aid of water jets in the front and a propeller in the rear that can swivel from side to side. There is not a lot of dock space in most of the towns making it necessary for the boats to tie up next to each other. From time to time we had to walk through another boat to get to our own, or passengers from other boats had to walk through our to get to theirs. The crews of all the boats were very coordinated and worked together when a boat closest to shore had to leave and the others had to shift to allow this. The crew of our boat consisted of a captain, an assistant captain and two deck hands, all of whom spoke French and not much else. The restaurant / kitchen staff and the hotel staff were mostly from European countries other than France which is why is was easier for them to converse in English with us instead of French.



Saturday (August 31, 2013)  TOURNUS / CLUNY / BEAUNE

Macon must have been one of those towns that we walked through at night because we arrived there at 7:00 PM on Friday and left at 5:00 AM on Saturday. Did I take notes? I think I did, but where are they?

We arose early on Saturday to join a bus excursion to Cluny, the famous Benedictine Abbey that was established in the 10th century and had a tremendous influence on the church and hence European history for almost a thousand years. Eight hundred abbeys throughout Europe and as far away as Poland were founded or influenced by the abbot of Cluny.






The monks were driven out and the building destroyed during the French Revolution. Restoration efforts began in 1873 and are still ongoing. I'm not going to write about the history of the abbey. Books have already been written. The place is quite a lot to take in on a half-day tour. You can learn more here. There are better pictures than I got at this site.



While we were on the bus tour, the boat left Tournus and sailed to Chalon-sur-Saone where we rejoined it for lunch.

A word about the meals on board seems appropriate. Breakfast was in the dining room and there was always a buffet, or you could order from a menu, or ask for just about anything you wanted and it would be prepared. Lunch was in the dining room, or there was an alternate buffet in the lounge. Several days we opted for the lounge because the offerings seemed more attractive to us. Dinner was in the dining room. There were no seat assignments, so you could sit with whomever you chose. In addition to the regular meals, throughout the day there was a station near the lounge with pastries or cookies and coffee and several varieties of tea, all of which was complimentary. I use the word complimentary or free sometimes, but, of course, you are paying for all of this in the cost of passage. Oh, the cuisine also represented local fare. One night we had frog legs as an appetizer.



We were now in the Burgundy region of France. Every day on board, the wines served were representative of the particular region that we were visiting. Did you know that there is more white wine produced in Burgundy than red? I didn't either, but that's what we were told.

Our afternoon excursion was to Beaune, a town rich in art history, narrow, cobbled streets and half-timbered medieval buildings. Again, outdoor dining was de riguore along with expensive cars. We walked next to one sleek, low, black car that said Lamborghini on the rear.




One of the attractions of Beaune is the Hospices de Beaune, a hospital for the poor of the city founded in 1442. The poor of Beaune were guaranteed bread and free medical (hospice?) care in perpetuity. Not only the poor were cared for there, although wealthier patients had their own ward. From the time that the first patient was accepted in 1452 to this day there has been a functioning hospital at the site.  From their beds in the paupers' ward, the sick could admire the Last Judgment polyptych above the altar in the chapel. They might have also contemplated their own mortality. The first patient was accepted in 1452 on January 1st. The first deceased was buried on January 10th.








By the end of saturday we were pretty tired. We did a lot of walking at Cluny in the morning and again in Beaune in the afternoon. When you take a trip such as this, you have to get up and go in order to experience the history and culture of the land you are in, but I was glad for the vodka whatever when we returned to the ship and to relax in the lounge after dinner.

I forgot what times are bags had to be put out for departure, but they were there on time and so were we after an early breakfast. I described our trip to Lyon and then home at the beginning of this narrative, so I won't relive it again here.

I highlighted some of the excursions that we took, but a large part of the enjoyment of the cruise was the cruising itself along the two rivers. Most of the landscape was pastoral with some small town and a few cities along the way. I don';t recall seeing anyplace that was rundown. We were free to get off the boat anyplace we docked and explore at will. All of the places we visited were clean and welcoming. The French are health conscious with many of them bicycling or jogging and, for the most part, they all looked to be in pretty good physical shape.






The river cruise was a nice way to experience the areas through which we traveled. The land excursions provided an additional dimension. Life on board the boat was pleasant. There were only about 180 other souls sharing the cruise with us and we got to meet some very nice people. I hope I got the pictures under the correct dates, but I guess it doesn't really matter. It all took place on our river cruise in Southern France. I hope that you found this enjoyable, assuming that you got to this point. I wanted to finally get this done because things have happened since the cruise of which I want to write also, so, after you have read this, I will write something else.