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So have been in Venice for 2 1/2  full days, the most I can say is that no sane person can read the maps you can buy and no matter how hard you try you never take the same route to any one place.  I have loved getting lost though as there is always something new to see.  Today I took one of the public transportation boats to Murano.  I got on the wrong boat, I was on the boat 4.2 which stops several times instead of taking boat 3 which does not stop.  By the time I arrived at Murano I was literally almost sick to my stomach as the boat was overloaded with people and I believe was dragging on the bottom of the canals.  Although it was stopping in six different ports in Murano I jumped off on the first one that said Murano.  I did not care how far I needed to walk I just wanted off so my head did not have to hear the grinding of the engines any longer.  As soon as I got off there was a person directing people to the glass blowing factory – of course I followed the directions.  There was no demonstration in progress as whatever the artist was working on was a secret and it was just a ploy to direct you to their showroom.  I walked around about an hour after that and ended at at showroom at the end of the street that was recommended to me by Rocky from Culture Discovery.  The showroom was pretty small and the artist did have some great pieces but a little higher priced that what I had seen.  If you love cats then this is the place for you.  He had started doing some interesting pieces with birds which I bought two.

I headed back to the Doge’s Palace – for the laymen that is Ducal Palace – I only mention it because I spent 1 1/2 days looking for it in Venice until I read a book about Venice.  I spent over an hour in there which was fabulous!  The paintings and golden staircase were incredible.  Didn’t much like the whole winding through the prison part – another couple got lost and headed back my direction I told them the arrows were pointing in the opposite direction and they said “well we just came from there and ended here” – “you don’t think someone closed one of the doors do you?”

As soon as I got out of the Doges Palace the San Marcos Square was still pretty full but it was starting to rain.  I had decided not to carry my umbrella in my bag because you can always buy a cheap one for 3 euros.  Well the cheap one cost me 5 euros and when I opened it up it sliced my thumb.  So I stood in line for the Campanile for about 10 minutes trying to stop my thumb from bleeding while holding my umbrella.  Finally I decided I could go early in the morning and be one of the first in line for the Campanile so I left to find a pharmacy to buy a bandaid.  I walked for about 30 minutes with no luck other than seeing a lot of high priced jewelry stores and ended up back in San Marcos plaza which seemed very very empty because several people scattered with the rain.  I noticed the line for the Campanile was short so I decided to go ahead to ride to the top.  While I was at the top of the Campanile which by the way is everything they say with wonderful views of all of Venice.  The bells started to ring.  Let me tell you first hand if you have ever wondered what is sounds like to be in a bell tower when the bells start to ring it is VERY VERY VERY LOUD.  It has been at least 4 hours and my brain is still feeling the effects.

Dinner tonight looked beautiful – however the spiny lobster was cooked past the point of no return.  I literally took two bites, ate the mussels and tomatoes around the lobster, finished off the bread basket and drank a small bottle of Chianti.  It was nice of the waiter to discount the meal but he should have taken the lobster off the charge completely.

Headed to Florence and Tuscany tomorrow.  I am really excited about Florence because Venice had several shops with leather goods from Florence.  I decided to wait until I get there to purchase.  On Saturday I join Culture Discovery for Chianti Wine in Tuscany – I can’t wait!!!!

So I arrived in Nice on Wednesday and had big plans for Thursday and Friday.  I was going to take a tour to Grasse and the Fragonard factory with a tour group on Thursday.  I received a message Wednesday that I was the only one signed up for the tour and therefore they would have to cancel because they required at least two people for the tour.  So while on the train from Marseille to Nice I found out that the Cannes film festival had started.  I then planned to go to Cannes to do some possible star watching.  However, when I went to the tram station to take the tram to the train station it showed a message that the trains were once again on strike and not even the trams were running.  Since I had not been to Nice before and I needed to be back to the apartment for a conference call at 5 pm I decided to walk following the tram line for an hour or two and turn around to come back to the apartment.  So Thursday was a basically a bust in Nice because I realized on Friday that I stopped only a quarter mile from the coastline.

Then on Thursday night I received several messages about the tour group I scheduled for Friday morning.  I was to go on a 3 hour bike tour of Nice with several scenic spots to take pictures.  The messages were from a different tour company stating that I was the only one signed up for that tour and therefore they would have to cancel.  They however offered to allow me to join a wine tasting tour that evening.  I ended up going to the center of Nice, enjoyed the beach and the parks around the Opera de Ville.

Friday night I met with a woman who was introduced to me by a former colleague.  I met her Monaco for drinks and dinner.  However, Monaco was pretty much unaccessible due to the Gran Prix Historical Race that was being run this weekend beginning yesterday.  As I got off the train from Nice I could hear the race cars going by but I ended up missing the actual action because not only was I late it took a few extra minutes to meet up with my contact.  She was great and introduced me to several of her very good friends and we shared some laughs and gawked at the all of the huge yachts in the Monaco Yacht club.

This morning I went back down to the beach to listen to the waves and take a few more pictures.  I was enjoying my quiet time until some kid from Tunisia decided to intrude on my solitude and then an Akita puppy made a beeline for my purse and lap because he could smell breakfast in the form of a pain au chocolat.  I didn’t mind the puppy but the young kid had several opinions about US politics that I did not want to discuss.  I ended up leaving my spot and headed back to the apartment to wait for my ride to the airport.  I am sure there are many, many wonderful spots in Nice I missed but frankly I was anxious to get to Italy.

I arrived in Venice today and the place I am staying is in a great location, just 4 tram stops from Palazzo de Roma.  I ended up there late this afternoon and spent two hours just walking around and getting lost in the center.  On the way home it began to rain so by the time I walked back to the apartment from the tram stop I was soaked.  The host for this apartment left me a list of local restaurants that were just three blocks away.  I changed into a warmer shirt, put on the dreaded raincoat and grabbed my umbrella.  Within a couple of minutes of leaving the apartment the heavens opened and it began to rain in earnest.  Then as I was dodging puddles walking to the restaurant a car drove by and it was scene from the movies where the wave just consumes the person walking.  It soaked through my raincoat and my shirt along with  my pants, shoes and socks.  I got to the restaurant 10 minutes later and ate pizza while trying to keep my teeth from chattering I was so cold.

I am going to enjoy tomorrow as it is supposed to be partly cloudy with only a 20 percent chance of rain.  Wish me luck!!  I am looking forward to taking lots and lots of pictures.

Last night before I went to bed I realized I had not purchased a bottle of water so I went to the local market to buy one.  On the way back while waiting for a traffic light I felt something fall down the front of my coat.  It had been raining earlier so I thought perhaps it was a raindrop from the tree.  No such luck, I realized something was crawling on my chest under my shirt.  So as I was crossing the street I look down and realize it is a wasp.  I yank my coat open and pull down the neckline of my shirt and try to brush it off without getting bit.  Please keep in mind I am using the headlights of the driver stopped for me to cross.  I’m pretty sure he thought I was demented and of course not speaking French there was no way for me to explain.  So after I did my dance and flashed my chest and was somewhat convinced I had gotten rid of it I practically ran back to the apartment.  I stripped my coat off in the hallway and shook it out over the railing, stepped into the apartment and stripped naked.  At least I remembered to close the shutters before I left because giving one show a night was more than enough.  As a result, I did not sleep very well last night (still had that feeling of something crawling) and woke up very tired.

Today I left Marseille and took a train to Nice.  Before I left I walked to the Office Depot to find out if they could mail a package for me to the US.  Then I walked back to the apartment, packed the computer bag with the extra items adding weight to my luggage and back to the Office Depot a total of 6 miles for the two trips.  As I stated before the nearest Federal Express office was 30 miles away.  After much pointing, hand gestures and finally finding someone who spoke English I was able to purchase a box, shipping tape and mail it back to the US – the cost was more than the Eurostar train ticket from Paris to London.

The train to Nice was no reservation required and I was able to use my France Rail Pass for the first time.  After finding an empty compartment I had a woman from Paris and a gentlemen join me.  The woman said she worked in cinema so I asked if she traveled a lot in her job.  She said no but she was on her way to Cannes for the film festival.  It evidently started today and will last 12 days.  The great thing about Nice is it is a 20 minute train ride to Cannes so I will have an opportunity to go people watch there over the next couple of days.

My AirBNB host picked me up from the train station and drove me to the apartment  He showed me the hill which leads to the entry of the steps for the complex and the steps to the tram station.  After explaining the two key fobs, three keys and showing me the place he explained the best way to get around would be the tram.  Just down the steps, across the street and go straight.  Sounds easy enough, until I got to the steps.  There are 240 steps down from the apartment complex, another 30 steps across the street to the lower street, all of which does not include the curved hill you have to go down between the two sets of steps which takes 138 steps to go uphill.  Remember the other day when I mentioned the issue with all the steps leading to the cathedrals?  I am pretty sure this is my answer.  The best views are from high above – if I leave the apartment only once a day and return it is a total of 826 steps (half dow and half up).  I believe I will be planning my next three days very carefully.

I went on my first group tour today to Provence.  We toured Les Baux de Provence, Le Pont de Gard, Avignon and finished the day with a tour of the museum at Chateauneuf du Pape and wine tasting.  It was a full day, leaving at 8:00 am and returning at 6:45 pm.  I truly enjoyed the village at Les Baux de Provence – great place for pictures and wonderful historic buildings.  Our guide was very knowledgeable and added to the overall experience.  The museum there was small but worth the stop and entry fee if you like Bayer and Chagall.

I also toured the Palais des Papes in Avignon which was incredible, at the end of the tour you walk down these stone steps into the souvenir shop.  The stone steps stop about 15-20 feet from the floor and the shop had a rolled staircase attached to the end of them.  At first I wondered what happened to the rest of the stairs and then looking around the room I realized they were the stone steps of a window sill which most likely had been reached by ladders back in the day.  They were also working on the inner courtyard of the palace and under the risers where they were removing the grass  above you could see part of the old well.

Time was limited at each stop so I did not tour the castle at Les Baux de Provence or the museum at Le Pont de Gard.  I would recommend allocating at least 2 hours at Les Baux de Provence and 3 hours at Le Pont de Gard.  Avignon is easily a half day or more depending on the amount of shopping you wish to do.  The hour allocated to Chateauneuf du Pape was appropriate – the wine was very good and I only wish they were able to ship to the US.  Unfortunately with 5 more weeks of travel to do, I was unable to make a purchase.

I am headed to Nice tomorrow and then onto to Italy on Saturday.  I am looking forward to Italy as I have held off sampling any Italian food other than gelato in France.  I still don’t understand why the restaurants have chicken liver and gizzards on most menus but very rarely have a chicken dish.  The one restaurant I found that offered chicken had it served in a casserole.  The boulangeries or bakeries in France are magnificent.  I have enjoyed going into them not only to grab a croissant or baguette but also just to see their displays.  I wish I was not allergic to berries because some of the items topped with raspberries and strawberries are works of art.

 

 

 

 

It was very windy today in Marseille but according to the owner of the apartment I am staying in this is normal on a daily basis.  In addition, it was cloudy all day with a few scattered sprinkles.  Due to the high winds, I was unable to do the boat trip to Calanques with the stop at the Chateau d’Ilf but I was able to take the boat to Frioul which is a string of islands that you can see from Notre Dame de Gard.

I started my day with visiting Notre Dame, naturally I walked instead of taking the bus to the Cathedral.  There must be some sort of special number associated with the steps to a Cathedral built high above a city in France.  So far, every one that is built on a cliff has over 300 stairs to the top.  Every time I make one of those climbs I think about the era in which the cathedral was built and how there were no cars, buses or trams.

I also went to the Museum and Fort Saint Jean.  The museum had a special Picasso exhibition.  The building itself was reached through Fort Saint Jean which had it own special set of stairs and high connecting bridges.  The building was very modern in design and beautiful.  On the way to the museum there was a commotion on the corner by the port.  Several policemen, two ambulances and spectators.  I noticed one young man on the ground, not sure if he was hit by a car or not.  After I left the museum to walk back to the apartment, the policemen were still there and had been joined by what I assume was the special crimes unit.  Two officers dressed in white from head to toe – even their faces were covered.  They were taking pictures and asking questions of the other officers who I assumed were first on the scene.

I walked around Marseille looking for the post office and stopped at the Prefecture to ask a guard.  Most of the people here do not speak English so it was a challenge to find the post office and then even more of a challenge to buy stamps.  Although there are three Starbucks in Marseille which are within walking distance to the place I am staying, the nearest Federal Express office is 24 miles away.  The post office has a standard rate to the US not to exceed 7 kilograms which is approximately 15 pounds and costs 55 euros.  The post office also has special stamps depending on which country you are sending a letter to – for example if you are using the regular France stamp then two of them are required for the US; however they have a special stamp just for the US which obviously costs more.

Marseille has what I would equate to New York’s Fifth Avenue or London’s Bond Street – very high end specialty shops.

I checked my walking progress towards my goal of 400 miles today.  So far I have walked 206.10 total miles.  My chart showed 60 floors climbed today.

I arrived in Marseille late this afternoon.  The train I was on went through Avignon and Aix en Provence.  There was a lot of land approaching Avignon with grapes and the water in the streams and rivers was turquoise in color, truly beautiful but I was unable to get a picture.  I noticed lavender growing wild around Aix en Provence but the stocks were small, I did not see any fields like the pictures on the internet.  I plan on taking a boat ride to Calanques tomorrow and a full day excursion to Avignon, Chateaneuf-du-Pape and Les Baux de Provence on Tuesday.  I have also booked two  excursions from Nice, one to Grasse and the Fragonard perfumery with a wine tasting to end the day and the second one for the following day as an electric bike tour.  I hope I can keep from crashing on the bike.  Good thing it is electric and won’t take too much energy considering the hills I will most likely encounter.

To all of my friends and family who are mothers – I hope you had a wonderful Mother’s Day.  My son sent me a picture of his fabulous blue eyes.

On Thursday I was hoping to travel to Labouhyre to where my grandparents were married, unfortunately there was not a rental car to be found in all of Bordeaux due to the recent rail strikes.  Additionally, an international tennis tournament begins on Monday so all cars were spoken for and the train to Labouhyre would arrive after the registrar office would be closed.  Instead I spent the day touring more areas of Bordeaux, visiting St. Michel area and their open market.  Also walking along St. Catherine street which is basically a very very long shopping district with every store imaginable.  On Friday, I packed my bags and spent 3 hours in the Bordeaux airport waiting for my flight to Lyon.

I arrived in Lyon around 7 last night so I spent the day today touring as many sites as I could.  I visited 4 churches, 2 open markets, the public square of Bellecour and climbed over 380 stairs.  I also toured Lyon’s Opera House which was an ordeal due to a special day the Opera company was hosting.  I stood in line longer there than any other location I have visited so far in my travels.

Old Lyon has a wealth of history and is built on a hill.  As you walk down from Fourviere hill from the Notre Dame Basilica there is the old roman sites with the theatres and then the Renaissance area with the cobbled streets and buildings.  I am staying in one of the buildings in the heart of old Lyon.  There are passageways called traboules that you can move through during the day.  I went through one area which was where I encountered the steps.

The people in Bordeaux were much more relaxed, laid back and friendly than I have found in Lyon.  The people in Lyon are a little less tolerant of someone who does not speak French and who would rather eat fish or chicken as opposed to beef, sausage or pork.

One thing I have noticed about both Bordeaux and Lyon – dinner is an occasion and the local women forgo tennis shoes.  I honestly do not know how they balance in heels on the cobble stone streets.  I know if I had heels or wedges on I would either break my ankle or backside.  I have a hard enough time walking in flat shoes.  The cobble stones are not only uneven but in all the streets in old town Lyon they slant to a gutter down the middle for drainage purposes.  On top of that the streets are literally only 6-7 feet wide with clearance in most instances of less than 2 feet on either side of the cars that drive through.  In the areas where there is more clearance the local shops set up table and chairs for serving.

Tomorrow I am leaving for Marseille but I should have enough time to visit the Park de la Tete d’Or, St. Just and 2 museums I missed today.

 

Yesterday I left London with a lot of sites unseen so I will have to visit there again in the future.  Today I spent the first full day in Bordeaux France.  I viewed 8 of the 10 top Unesco sites listed on Bordeaux’s city map.  Their tram system is great and very easy to maneuver.  I was able to view 1 museum which was housed in three locations the Musee Arts d’ Beaux.  It had several wonder paintings and some great sculptures.  Upon leaving there I went to the St. Catherine’s Cathedral which was one of the most beautiful I have seen so far in my travel.  They are in the process of cleaning the stone on the outside very much like several buildings in Bordeaux.  The same can be said about the Notre Dame Cathedral in Bordeaux.

Last night went to a very crowded restaurant that has been in business for 50 years.  They serve one meal to everyone, your only choice is how you would like your beef cooked.  Salad, fries and tenderloin – they serve the meal with Le Cote wine.  It was great, no decisions to be made.

Bordeaux is a beautiful city, but tomorrow I am headed outside the city to go to Labouheyre, France which is where my grandparents were married on May 14, 1919.  I am hoping to discover more about my grandmother.

The weather here has been beautiful and I am looking forward to more good weather in the future.

I spent my 2nd and 3rd days in London trying to see as many of the sites as possible.  As a result I walked a combined 26.14 miles while using the underground as much as possible.  I crossed over 5 bridges including the Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Southwark Bridge, Milennium Foot Bridge and Westminster Bridge.  The parks in London are beautiful with such a flair for color combinations it was hard not to spend all day Sunday in the parks as many people were doing.  I was able to seeing the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace – Constable Andrews who was posted at the crosswalk was very friendly and pleasant to talk with while I awaited the marching procession.  I also spoke with a lovely couple from Malta who were on vacation.

I was also able to see the changing of the guard at Tower Hill right after partaking in a tour with Yeoman Warder Steven.  Excellent tour guide with a great sense of humor – if you can join his group do so.  I knew being an Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) was a privilege but I did not realize until the group tour the level of respect these people deserve.  They faithfully served their country (England) for a minimum of 22 years in the service and reached a high rank with flawless record before applying for the position of Yeoman Warder.  These men and women are dedicated to their country and Queen and are to be commended for all they have done through their service.  While at the Tower I was able to see the Crown jewels which are spectacular.

I was able to see several churches including St. Paul’s Cathedral, Southwark Cathedral, St. Luke’s Church, All Hallows, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret’s.  All of them wonderful places with incredible architecture.

Other sites included the Guards Museum, the Horse Guards and Household Calvary Museum, the British Museum with the Elgin marbles among other artifacts, the National Gallery, Churchill War Rooms, St. James Park, St. Regent’s Park, Hyde Park, Wellington Arch, and The Monument.  I earned my certificate for climbing the 311 stairs at The Monument to the top and took several pictures.  While walking down New Bond Street I came across a very busy intersection with several photographers on all sides of the street.  Some of them had jackets that said “Gumball Racing” and several high end vehicles came through while I was there.  When I asked at the pub last night what “Gumball Racing” was the owner stated it is the ‘rich kids’ showing off their vehicles because they have nothing better to do.  There is no racing involved just a lot of noise with the car engines.  I had to laugh because it was true, the drivers could not have gone in such short spurts with the traffic at that hour.

Overall it was a very busy two days and there was a lot I missed but will definitely come back to visit again in the future.