Savoring France: Paris, Lyon, & Provence Sep. 21, 2024

We are underway. Dinner at Fouquet’s this evening. There should be 87 of us if all show up. The trip was sold out so there must be a fare number of solo travelers. The Intercontinental Le Grand is really nice. The hotel is very old so the ‘Classic’ rooms are not large, but they are very well done. We are having a little bit of fall weather with a few showers in the morning. The hotel has an unusually late check-in time of five PM, but we managed to get a room around three. They comped us a couple drinks while we waited in the ‘lounge’. The hotel is triangular in shape, so navigating around in the upper floors can be a challenge. The room numbering system is from a bygone era. We have room 1105, which of course is on the first floor, which is one floor above floor zero, and two floors above ‘minus one’. We spend two more nights here, then take the TGV to Lyon where we board the boat. We are dining mostly at neighborhood restaurants, as the prices at the hotel will bring tears to your eyes. It makes the price of laundry to be of little consequence. We have noticed that the French women in the hotel who are mostly dressed to the nines, carry not one purse but two.

Comments

  • This tour was tied with our Douro River cruise as the best—two (2) very different experiences, however. Busy, fun-filled days but we never felt overwhelmed. Enjoy.

  • I loved this cruise and would certainly do it again.

  • Sealord, ENJOY! We loved this cruise and tour. Wait until you go to Cordon Bleu, it is so much fun. Also, if you have some free time, be sure to go in to the Paris Opera, if you have not done so in the past. Before you board the train for Lyon, you will have time to grab some goodies for the trip…. We went right down the street to the Galleries Lafayette gourmet store. It’s opposite the store itself, and on the opposite side of the street from the hotel. You can pick up cheese, bread, fresh fruit etc, and a bottle of wine for the train. Have fun and enjoy all the fabulous food and wine!

  • Sealord have a great time, food is fabulous on this tour

  • I just returned from this trip last week and it was truly amazing! Our Tauck hotel was Hôtel Lutetia which was phenomenal! I think they lost the Intercontinental to the Paralympics athletes/families. We had a really wonderful time on the ship - the tour directors were fantastic! The excursions were fantastic. All the staff on board were top notch! Enjoy every minute!

  • edited September 29

  • edited September 29

  • Look for the tasty foie gras macarons in Lyon...honest. Enjoy!

  • Getting ready to go to lunch at Agastache. Spending the night at the IC Dieu before going home tomorrow.

  • Brings back such wonderful memories. Thanks.

  • That first horse on the right loved me. I petted her and she gave me a ‘hug’.

  • Mr. Ed!

  • edited October 2

    This is a horse hug:






  • The luncheon at the ranch was so very enjoyable and delicious. So many vegetables!

  • Sealord
    October 1
    That first horse on the right loved me. I petted her and she gave me a ‘hug’.

    It was probably your aftershave! :D:D

  • edited October 3

    Probably not my aftershave … don’t have any. More likely because I smell like an animal … they all love me. That’s a good thing when you are walking with lions. (;-). Horses do know if you like them or fear them, and react to that understanding.

  • SeaLord, I know you are only joking, but we’ve been stuck in several safari vehicles with awful BO enough to make you nauseous .

  • edited October 3

    I have a problem with people (mostly women) who wear very strong scents, especially in a closed environment. Luckly, it's not that common any more.

    Many physicians ask their patients to not use any scent when they come to an appointment, for example. Symphony orchestras prohibit use of any type of scent because it can affect the wind players.

  • edited October 3

    Don’t worry British. People around me are more likely to sense Tommy Bahama St. Barts. Dogs have a sense of smell five thousand times as sensitive as a human. If they can’t smell it it doesn’t exist. Our dog becomes alert when she hears my wife’s car, but she doesn’t get excited until she picks up her scent from about forty feet away when she gets out of the car. The dog can also find the car in a parking lot by smell.

    Two labs searching for truffles:

  • I just watched a show about modern Italian Artisans and also a family that specializes in Truffle hunting. A wonderful recipe made with olive oil, truffles and garlic over pasta was shown.

  • edited October 3

    The people in your pictures look like the same ones that ran a truffle farm that we visited. Someone asked them why they used yellow labs instead of the black or chocolate ones. Their reply was, "They're easeir to see when it's dark."

    That was back in 2014 and everyone has gotten older.

    The dogs love the truffles and mooch a piece from the tourist.

  • I remember how kind the couple who runs the farm was (same couple as shown in photos.) They welcomed us into their home and served us a light snack—truffles of course. It was a very enjoyable afternoon.

  • On my recent Croatia land trip, we visited a truffle farm - met the dogs and had a wonderful 4 course truffle lunch…the final course was vanilla ice cream with a drizzle of truffle infused honey. Memorable!!

  • edited October 3

    The visit to the truffle farm we found very interesting, and we enjoyed watching the dogs work. Our hosts were wonderful, and we enjoyed the wine and the wonderful French bread under the truffles. Beyond that I would say for us that truffles must be an acquired taste that we are unlikely to pursue any further. We did have a lot of very good mushrooms at breakfast. (;-) Our traveling companions really enjoyed the truffles and said they were truly outstanding. We will take their word for it that they were indeed wonderful. We on the other hand will use our delicacy ‘mad’ money to buy caviar.

  • Sealord - How did you enjoy your baking class at Le Cordon Bleu? Does Tauck still visit Les Halles de Lyon?

  • edited October 3

    We made ‘cookies’ at Le Cordon Bleu. I did my part beating the egg whites, and doing the pouring, but I’m not much of a bakery chef. When we were leaving a chef student had noticed the wings on the ‘tailhook’ shirt I was wearing and asked if I was a Naval Aviator. I was a bit surprised and even more surprised when she said she had been a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter pilot. But, what she really wanted to be was a chef. So there she was at Le Cordon Bleu studying cooking. My wife did the Les Halles tour, but I was having trouble with one of my knees so I went into the hot tub. The ‘cookies’ were chocolate which I should not eat, so we gave them to the bartender to share with the crew. They were gone in a very few minutes.




  • Thanks for the reply. We, too, made the chocolate macarons and left them in the lounge after conferring first with the cruise director. Many others had the same idea. May I ask who your tour directors were?

  • It is amazing how many things you did on this cruise that we did on the French Escapade cruise!

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