Diane's Travels: 2022

Saturday, August 13, 2022

2022 Georgetown

Day 1: August 6, 2022 (Saturday): On the road again

I am here in Maine with my artist friend Martha, we come every year to paint and make art. We are in a little village called Five Islands on the island of Georgetown. Five Islands is one of six small villages on Georgetown Island, the villages are Five Islands, Georgetown, Bay Point, Marrtown, West Georgetown and Robinhood. The village of Five Islands gets its name from being on Five Islands Harbor which gets its name from being surrounded by five islands. We will be here 7 nights.

I was up at 6:00 Saturday morning, caught an Uber at 7:30 to Grand Central and met Martha at the Stamford, Connecticut train station at 8:56 for our drive to Five Islands at Georgetown. The first stop in our drive is always Donut Delite for breakfast food. Mine was a yummy cranberry walnut chicken salad on WW toast.

Second routine stop is the Ruby Road TA stop for gas. Martha loves laughing at me and I do my best to keep her chuckling. The next photo shows me and a Shell oil membership card that gave me a 5 cent per gallon discount. Martha just goes Pffft when I do things like that, not realizing that it is for her entertainment.

Above: Diane at Ruby Road AT.

Third stop the New Hampshire liquor store for you guessed it, gin. And some carbordeaux wine, aka wine in boxes. The drive was long and hot.

Sometimes the car said the outdoor temp was 98F degrees. Inside we were comfy. Love Martha's Subaru Forester. One of the traffic back-ups was in Maine, when there were firefighters and trucks extinguishing a brush fire on the embankment of an overpass, the rubbernecking was nuts.

Fourth stop the Circle K gas station at Topsham, ME, where we leave the Interstate to go to Bath and on to Georgetown, and our home at Five Islands. At the pump I got another Pffft from Martha, when I said I was going to apply for a membership card to get a discount on gas there too.

We are staying at the same VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) at Five Islands as last year, but in a different cabin. Last year we were on the hill, this year we are on the water. See the following two photos These are markups from photos I found on the Internet, I forget the source and would credit the photographers if I could remember the source.

Above: Aerial view showing out cottage location this year.

Above: Another aerial view showing our cottage location this year.

After we unloaded the car, we sat on our porch to have gin and tonics and look at the view. Some boaters came by and asked to take a short cut across our lawn (all big rocks) and we watched as they partied and took off for Boothbay for dinner. Then we walked to the Five Islands lobster company (on the dock) for dinner. We were sort of late after the gin and tonics so they were out of a lot of stuff, Martha had scallops and I had haddock. YUM. We’ll go earlier tomorrow so we can have clams or lobster.

Following are 3 photos that show our cottage, the Five Islands Harbor as viewed from our porch, and the dock area where the Five Islands Lobster Company is located, also as viewed from our porch.

Above: Our cottage on the harbor.

Above: The harbor from our porch.

Above: Five Islands Lobster Company, photo from our porch.

Day 2: August 7, 2022 (Sunday)

Sunday was a laid-back day. I didn’t realize how weary I was coming back from my Florida visit, then my Indianapolis visit, then packing to come to this part of heaven. I spent most of Sunday on the porch watching the boats, the waves and the folks that came for the lobsters.

I took more photos of the harbor and the Sheepscot River and read a new-to-me book called “Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes” by Jack Hamm. I tried some of his exercises whilst sitting on the porch, looking at the scenery. It was so exhausting, I had to take a nap.

For dinner, Martha and I went back to the Five Islands Lobster company and stood in line forever, then abandoned the idea of getting the lobster dinner and went to the shorter line and had the best lobster roll ever. Just as we brought our suppers home, a boat with 100 or more people showed up and got in line for their lobster delights. Whew, we made it just in time. I wonder how long they had to stand there for their food. Martha laughed when I explained how I would organize the tour for their pleasure by ordering the lobsters ahead. She just said, “Diane, this is Maine!”

Attached are a few photos from Sunday.

Above: The harbor and Sheepscot River.

Above: The harbor and Sheepscot River (Maiden Island in background).

Above: Front of the Five Islands Lobster Company where we had dinner.

Above: Some boats at the Five Islands Lobster Company dock.

Above: Other side of the Five Islands Lobster Company of just the red building.


Above: Looking across the Five Islands harbor towards Maiden Island.

Above: View showing three of the five islands that make the Five Islands Harbor. I forget where I got this photo or I would give credit. I added the names of the islands.

Day 3: August 8, 2022 (Monday

Sunday night I went to bed early and Monday morning when I woke up, it was foggy and fabulous. All photographers dream about fog.

The harbor was busy, it was cacophony with all the lobster boats loading up and taking off to mind their traps. Many of the rather portly “lobstah men” wore waders in their boats. It is a messy business.

After I wrote some and ate breakfast, I went on a long walk to get more fog photos. I was too late as most of it was gone, but did get a few, but the reflections in the water were beautiful. I spoke with a “down east” lady (that’s a Maine term) who was sitting on her porch while the roof of her house was noisily being torn off, to be replaced. It had been 80+ degrees on Sunday and was in the mid 70’s yesterday. I commented to her that it was a better day for the roofers to be working like that. She responded, “It’s too hot today too, it’s not supposed to be like that here.”

By the time I finished my 4-mile walk, Martha was up; I reported on my trip over a toasted bagel. We painted in the afternoon. Her paintings were lovely, mine were torn up by me. I’ll do better today. Mr. Jack Hamm and his “Drawing Scenery: Landscapes and Seascapes” book didn’t help me enough. Maybe it made me worse.

It rained and cooled way down in the lower 60’s, so we had to close all the windows and get out our woolies. Martha brought a puffy poncho in camo and even ate dinner in it. The lobster house had a limited menu so we ate steak at home, it was good too.

Attached are a few photos from Monday. The first four were taken early in the morning of some foggy landscape.

Above: Two boats on a foggy morning.

Above: Foggy morning.

Above: Two youths fishing.

The next photo is another early foggy morning photo, of one of the “lobstah men.”

Above: "Lobstah" men.

Next are 4 photos I made on my morning walk, notice the reflection in the water in the first photo.

Above: Reflection in the water.

Above: South side of the Five Islands Lobster Company red building.

Above: Flowers in a garden. Hydrangeas?

Above: Small cabin on a trail on my morning walk.

The next and last photo for this morning is of Martha in camo and her morning coffee.

Above: Martha in camo and her morning coffee.

Day 4: August 9, 2022, Tuesday

It was a dark and stormy night on the Maine coast. When I woke up the rain had departed briefly and in its place on the rooftop by my window sat 8 small birds that looked like mini robins. I couldn’t get my phone or camera out fast enough to capture it. It rained off and on all day, causing Martha great consternation. She was worried that the Lobster company would close and we couldn’t get our lobster dinners. More on that later.

There was no fog so the photos don’t really look as good. The following photo I call "Surfs up. Well not so much,” and was taken standing outside our cottage looking out on the harbor.

Above "Surfs Up. Well not so much."

We didn’t plan on painting plein air as we have this wonderful porch looking over the harbor, so we didn’t bring our little painting tables. The next photo is of the outside of our back porch, I was standing down by the water to get this photo.

Above: Our back porch.

As far as my painting goes, the next photo shows how I coped. This is my less than ideal painting studio. What you can’t see is the twisty and the tape I had to use to make the rack stand up. Note the improvised table.

Above: My painting studio.

The following photo shows the entertainment of the day, the lobstah men. We watched them come and go and unload their catch. What interested me was how back breaking the work is with no winches or other assists with the boxes of lobsters. They moved them a few at a time from a box on the ship to a box to be used on the dock. After they filled the dock boxes they floated them in the water keeping the catch alive until time to be sold, cooked and eaten.

Above: "Lobstah" men.

Between rain showers, I took my exploratory walk along a road more traveled by cars than my ideal. It was curious. From porches with no houses, to gingerbread houses that looked more like Martha’s Vineyard than Maine and then the junky house with a front yard that made me laugh out loud. See the next photo.

Above: Junky yard.

Martha was so concerned about the rain that she went and asked if they would be open later. They told her to check at 3 p.m. They said they’d be open but then….. about 4:30 there was no line and no one ordering so Martha panicked and we went early to order our dinners. I had to ask about the difference between a Hard Shell Lobster and a New Shell Lobster other than the obvious; the obvious was the answer. When the lobster sheds its shell, it grows a new one; and it takes awhile for it to harden. They looked the same to us, but the lobstah men knew the difference. The lady said that with the New Shell Lobster there isn’t as much meat but it is easier to get and sweeter, so I ordered a New Shell Lobster. (Mine was bigger than Martha’s and cheaper too). Even though we waited a while to eat; they were kept warm in special bags so the butter didn’t even harden. Martha wrestled with hers and even got shell chips on the floor. She complained and complained. Friday when we go back, she’s getting a New Shell Lobster too.

Day 5: August 10, 2022, Wednesday

I woke up to no fog this morning, but there was a high tide which was nice. The tide must be about 10 feet which makes for good photos. It was cloudy all day too. The first 2 attached photos are a couple of high-tide photos.

Above: High tide photo.

Above: Hide tide photo (love this little blue boat).

Today was an artsy-fartsy day. I did an acrylic pour, this is the messiest thing I've ever attempted. I had a construction bag, cups and plastic knives and Elmer's glue and Floetrol (a pouring medium) and well a big mess as you can see in the following photo. I was hoping to get results sort of Paul Jenkins-ish (an American abstract expressionist painter). I think he had more practice before he got into museums. I got mixed results.

Above: Acrylic pour process. Photo by Martha.

Above: One of my acrylic pours.

Under Martha's influence, I did some J.M.W. Turner (an English Romantic painter, printmaker and watercolourist) reproductions. The next photo is a Turner original (“Stormy Sea Breaking on a Shore").

Above: Original by J.M.W. Turner.

The following photo is my reproduction.

Above: My reproduction of the J.M.W. Turner painting.

Thursday, I plan on doing one of my photos from yesterday (the “Surf's Up” photo) in Turner's style.

I also spent time working on a personal commission.

The Five Islands Lobster Company was closed so Martha cooked a sumptuous dinner and I went to bed early. Being creative takes a lot of energy I guess.

Day 6: August 11, 2022 (Thursday)

Not much happened Thursday. It was gray when I woke up and gray when I went to bed. Mostly I worked on paintings although I have nothing to share in photos yet. The dismalness of the day completely discouraged my normal exciting walk, and avoided the omnipresence of the goldenrod that exacerbated my sneezing attacks.

Above: Goldenrod blooming.

I’ve always thought the goldenrod was the most highly allergic weed in the East, but a friend just told me that it was a myth that goldenrods cause allergy symptoms.

Anyway I spent the day inside our cottage except for a visit to Bath. There was no big ship to ooh and aah over, but the big crane was in full view. We went to Highbrow, a recreational pot store, for Martha to get some sleep aids and to the grocery for tonic, so much for the vices.

Then we painted, Martha has done some very nice watercolor views and I keep painting and washing it off.

At about 6 pm, we saw the long line for the lobster dinners at the Five Islands Lobster Company but undeterred we joined the line. It took a long time but it was successful and we enjoyed our fine, red repast. See the next two photos.

Above: Line for dinner at the Lobster Company.

Above: Mr. Lobster.

Speaking of lobsters I saw in the news today where a Red Lobster restaurant in Mississippi recently found an orange lobster among the others — just a few weeks after another Red Lobster location in Florida also found an orange lobster.

The next photo is of Martha and one of her watercolors.

Above: Martha and one of her water paintings.

The next photo is just a crop of the first photo, Martha does excellent work as you can see.

Above: Crop of Martha's water color.

Martha and I were disappointed that we didn't get to see the last supermoon of the year Thursday, the Sturgeon Moon, due to the clouds. Maybe Friday.

Maybe tomorrow will be sunny and more active and I'll have something more interesting to share. I did get some personal insights during the day so it wasn't a total loss.

Day 7: August 12, 2022 (Friday)

Friday was the very nicest day of the entire stay. Sunny, dry breezes. Half the boaters in Maine took the day off. It was a parade in front of our porch. It was so nice I was either on the porch or on the rocks all day. Just like you imagine it to be.

No photos from Friday until the most gorgeous sunset. It was pinker, or better said more pink, than the 2 photos below show.

Above: Friday sunset.

I was sad Thursday night because I missed the supermoon due to the clouds. Living in Greenwich Village I never get to see astronomical events. Well I got to see this supermoon (known as the Sturgeon Supermoon) on Friday night. So exciting. See photo below.

Above: Friday's supermoon.

Then off to bed Friday night for a 6:00 am wake up alarm Saturday morning for the long ride home.

Day 8: August 13, 2022 (Saturday): Heading home.

Martha and I were so efficient that we left 28 minutes earlier than planned. As we drove over the Sagadahoc Bridge on US1 over the Kennebec River, we waved goodbye to “our” big crane at the Bath Iron Works (photo below) and headed to our homes.

Above: Landmark Bath Iron Works crane that towers over the city that we waved goodbye to.

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PS: About whether goldenrods cause allergies, I did a little googling on the Internet Saturday morning and found that "Ragweed triggers allergies; in most cases, goldenrod doesn’t.”

One source stated “So why does goldenrod get blamed for causing our allergies when it’s really ragweed? Ragweed blooms at the same time as goldenrod (between July and October). Unlike goldenrod, which is much showier and more conspicuous with its bright yellow flowers, ragweed has nondescript flowers like most wind-pollinated plants that most people don’t notice. So when people start sneezing and they see the blooming goldenrod, they assume that’s the plant that’s responsible. The inconspicuous ragweed flies under the radar and the goldenrod inaccurately gets the blame, and that has gotten passed on through word of mouth to the point where it’s a widespread, but incorrect, belief.”

PS #2: Also, I am grateful to my friend Lowell in Scottsdale, Arizona for helping me put my emails of this trip together as it is tough for me to do by myself when on a trip. I text and/or email photos and words to Lowell as I have the time, and he gathers them and puts them all in one Gmail for daily mailing to friends and relatives.

A big thank you to Lowell!

PS #3: Attached is a photo of me taken by Martha that Lowell altered with an app called Prisma (transforms your images into “paintings"). Isn’t it fabulous? Makes me look good too. Thanks again Lowell, and Martha also of course since she made the original photo.

Above: Prisma "artwork."

All of the above photos can also be found in my Google Photos album at https://photos.app.goo.gl/ivFGaZe6PXfBm2co6.

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

2022 France

This entry is about Scott and I going to France on a 7-day driving tour from Paris to Bordeaux, followed by a 7-day river cruise tour called “Bordeaux to Bordeaux." We left on 3-27-22 (a Sunday) from the US and flew all night, me from New York and Scott from Los Angeles, we both arrived at the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport Monday (3-28-22) morning. It took a long time finding each other at the airport as both of us had cell phone issues and our planes arrived at different times.

We finally solved our phone problem and rented a small Fiat car. When I say small, let's just say only our backpacks fit in the back seat. We began the ostensible 4-hour drive to Mont Saint Michel (a city island), which took closer to 6 hours.

The photo below had me puzzled. With the rotating brushes I thought it was a vertical car wash, then I saw it working. It was slowly going down the road washing the street signs. Only the French! It also caused traffic to slow down.

Above: Street sign washing vehicle.

On our drive the countryside and villages were charming but we didn’t stop for photos, maybe we'll get some countryside photos later, in Brittany or the Loire Valley.

We finally got to Mont Saint-Michel and found the parking on the mainland and the shuttle bus. The following photo is our first view of Mont Saint-Michel. Wow!

Above: Mont Saint-Michel.

Then we walked on the boardwalk to our hotel, the Auberge Saint Pierre, where we stayed two nights (Monday & Tuesday nights, France time). The Auberge Saint Pierre is a 14th-century half-timbered house located on Mont Saint-Michel island. We have one of the smaller rooms so we are saying to each other “excuse me” a lot, or in French, "excusez-moi.”

The photo below shows the route from the mainland parking lot to the island, you can see the route the shuttle buses take and the walking route. To think this place was surrounded by water not that long ago and could only be accessed at low tide.

Above: A view of the route from the parking lot.

The next photo shows some seagulls, they are “dangerous" here, they attack tourists for their food. Reminded me of the Alfred Hitchcock movie, “The Birds!”

Above: Seagulls looking for an easy meal.

The photo below is of yours truly, I just can’t get away from mudflats. First Panama City earlier this year, now France. These are only submerged about 12 times a year. They bring in silt (not mud) to add 3 inches to the land every year.

Above: Looking at the mudflats.

The next photo was taken inside Mont Saint-Michel, one of the old dining halls.

Above: Old dining hall at Mont Saint-Michel.

The following photo is again of yours truly with a view of the Mont Saint-Michel Abbey, photo taken from the ramparts around the island.

Above: A view of the Abbey (background) at Mont Saint-Michel.

Wednesday (30th): Cancale and Saint-Malo and Côte de granite rose

After the 2 nights at Mont Saint-Michael, we left in our luxury limo (see photo below) and headed to Cancale.

Above: Our rental car.

On our drive into Cancale we saw lots of oyster men going out with their gear. Once in Cancale we did the perfunctory task of having white wine and oysters as shown in the next photo.

Above: Wine and Oysters.

You can see the oyster beds behind me in the above photo. The cars behind me are oyster beds also, the oysters are not growing there, they are "resting." Actually they are in storage. Who knew they stored oysters before they sold them? We had 2 kinds of oyster for breakfast with our wine, the usual kind and the local kind with flatter shells, more solid and less salty.

After Cancale we drove to Saint-Malo, a place totally destroyed in WWII and rebuilt to look like it did before the bombing. It looked old to me but the books all say it was totally rebuilt. We went to the Cathedral of St Vincent and walked the rampart.. See next two photos.

Above: Window at St. Vincent Cathedral.

Above: Diane on the rampart at Saint-Malo

In St. Malo we learned about the Corsairs in France, pirates in the name of their respective kings. One Pirate, Rene Duguay-Trouin, was so successful he captured 3500 commercial vessels in the name of his king. He was made an officer in the French royal navy. He is buried in the Cathedral of St. Vincent in a crypt next to Jacques Cartier, who discovered Canada. Isn't that amazing?

After Saint-Malo we drove to see the Côte de granite rose (or Pink Granite Coast in English). The sun came out for a nano second but it was cold-d-d-d-d and windy-y-y-y and we had a hard time finding the coast. There were some great rock formations (see next 2 photos but not what I expected, like the Maine coast only pinkish.

Above: Côte de granite rose rock formation.

After the Côte de granite rose Wednesday we stayed at a hotel ibis in Lannion, just outside of Côte de granite rose, ibis is a French brand of economy hotels. Scott and I had dinner at a good place next door called Breizh Shelter. Scott had the duck.

Thursday (31st): Carnac

At Côte de granite rose we got off to a late start for Carnac because the Internet was good, we finally got to Carnac about 2:30 pm. It was cold and sleeting one minutes and sunny and cold but not so bad the next.

We went to Carnac to see the famous Carnac stones, which are the largest collection of megalithic standing stones in the world. See the next 5 photos The stone in the last photo with me is called the "Manio Giant,” or “Géant du Manio” in French. I was overwhelmed at this site. How did they do this in the neolithic times without machinery? The next to the last photo is a tomb, the "Dolmen de Kermario.” The stones are 7000 years old. There are several theories why these stones were placed here, but nobody really knows for certain.

Above: Aerial view of the Carnac stones. This photo from the Internet, https://www.ancient-origins.net/sites/default/files/field/image/The-Carnac-Stones--.jpg

Above: A tomb, the "Dolmen de Kermario.”

Above: The "Manio Giant"

The Carnac stones are in what they call alignments (rows). Around 3000 stones in several fields. The youngest stone is 2600 BC, and comes from the Neolithic period. I suggested to myself that maybe this is the origin of tombstones as we know them today.

When we were trying to find the stone known as the Manio Giant, we got lost because the sign was facing the other direction and we missed it. We were walking back when Scott twisted his ankle. He felt it start to go so he fell down on purpose to take the weight off and not make it worse. I was way ahead of him looking for a trail. A car pulled up beside me and told me “my husband” had fallen down and I’d better go back to help him. I did and we finally found someone to direct us to the sign we missed so we found the Manio Giant. I’ve forgotten how high, I think maybe over 20 feet. After all of that it was a bit of an anticlimax. I said to Scott, I think I’ll sing that Peggy Lee song “Is That All There Is?"

Friday (April 1st): Chateau Chenonceaux

Today was a visit to the Chateau Chenonceaux. Don’t ask me to pronounce it, but it was rated a "don’t miss by 4 guidebooks" and was magnificent. Built and added onto and remodeled by a lot of French Royalty after salacious affairs, murders and deaths by war. A lot of folks to keep track of. Fascinating who did what to it and why. Built over the River Cher it was useful many times especially in WWII as an escape route from occupied France to free France.

The chateau has beautiful fresh flower arrangements in every room, I tested them because I couldn’t believe it. The chateau was used as a hospital in WWI to care for the soldiers. Lots of famous artists represented. Murillo and believe it or not Peter Paul Rubens were my faves.

Attached are a few photos from the chateau. The kitchen was very interesting, see the picture of the stove.

It was 34F degrees outside and close to that inside. A good day for an inside event.

Above: Chateau Chenonceaux.

Above: Inside Chateau Chenonceaux.

Above: Kitchen at Chateau Chenonceaux.

Above: Chateau Chenonceaux

After leaving the chateau, we were driving in snow (see next 3 photos) on the way to Sarlat to see the cave paintings on Saturday. Maybe, if we can make it through the snowy driving. Welcome to Spring in France!

Above: It’s beautiful and scary.

Above: Hazardous driving. We have 71 miles to go.

Saturday (April 2nd) Lascaux International Center of Parietal Art.

Today we went to see the prehistoric cave paintings at the Lascaux International Center of Parietal Art. The cave was discovered in 1940 by four teenagers. In 1963, the French government closed the cave and tourists now see a near perfect replica, located right next door to the original cave. The actual cave was closed due to fear of being damaged by human sweat and breath. It was an amazing introduction with a lovely, mostly English speaking guide. The reproduction process of the replicate was interesting as well.

The art is estimated to be about 20,000 years old. The big takeaway for me was how similar the people’s lives were to today. They painted the animals they saw as exotic and not as the animals they ate. There were no human remains, they buried their dead elsewhere. And the people were as tall as we are today, and not stooped over. No photos were allowed so you’ll have to go to the Lascaux website to see the images of the cave paintings.

Later we drove back to Sarlat-la-Canéda, went to Le Pub Sarlat for a bite, then to the tourist office for a walking tour map. I must say this is a really good looking town! I could paint in a different spot for a year if I lived here. If I could speak French even with an accent I’d love to come to this town and do just that.

After our walking tour, we had our first nap of the whole trip. NICE!

I’ve had enough entrecôte and frites for a lifetime. Everything else on the menu was tripe, sheep’s head, lamb heart, etc. Not for me!

Below are a few photos from Saturday, two from Lascaux International Center of Parietal Art (no photos allowed inside remember) and five from our walking tour of Sarlat-la-Canéda.

Above: Lascaux International Center of Parietal Art.

Above: Sarlat-la-Canéda.

Above: Sarlat-la-Canéda, the Lanterne des Morts (background) stands just behind the Cathédrale of St-Sacerdos

Above: Sarlat-la-Canéda.

Above: Sarlat-la-Canéda, the Tower of St-Sacerdos in the background.

The photo below is of a poster I saw on a wall on the start of our above walking tour. I loved the image so made this photo and plan to send a printed copy to a motorcycle friend of mine after I return to the US, as some sort of wall art work, perhaps one of those canvas prints.

Above: Poster I saw on our walking tour.

After Sarlat-la-Canéda we drove to Les Eyzies, where we got to go to a cave with real cave paintings. The guide spoke French, so it was a little difficult to understand. To preserve the paintings only 80 people a day are allowed in the caves in very small groups. These cave paintings are only 15,000 years old. The paintings were less spectacular than what we saw at Lascaux, but had many things in common, bison, stags, no landscape, no people really. No photos allowed again.

After Les Eyzies we headed for Bordeaux to meet up with the river cruise ship. It was tricky to get to the Quai des Chartrons (a stretch along the Garonne river), but we made it and then discovered that we couldn't drop off the car at the train station, we had to take it to the airport, which was another adventure, but we made it after circling and Uber got us back to the ship in time for drinks, orientation and dinner.

Sunday (April 3rd)

The cruise we were on was through the Uniworld Boutique River Cruise and the ship was the S.S. Bon Voyage, 362 feet in length and holds 124 guests (62 cabins) plus a staff of about 50.

Below is a photo of the ship taken from the Internet, plus an illustration showing the deck plan. We were in cabin 227 on the Medoc deck.

Above: Our ship, the S.S. Bon Voyage, photo from the Internet

Above: Deck plan of our ship, the S.S. Bon Voyage.

Monday (April 4th): Blaye & Bourg

Monday was great, we sailed Sunday night on the Garonne River to a small town called Blaye, located on the Gironde estuary (where the two rivers Dordogne and Garonne meet). Even though Blaye is a small town, they were cleaning the streets (See next photo). I can't get over the cleaning they do. unlike NYC.

Above: Street cleaning in Blaye.

Blaye has a fortress, but we opted not to tour the fortress, instead to go to a wine cellar ( La Petite Cave) and artist studio. The owners were charming and 3 glasses of wine at 10 a.m. was crazy. See next two photos.

Above: Art studio in Blaye.

Above: Wine cellar in Blaye.

The next photo was taken at the dock where our ship was. That’s me doing my best Captain Morgan pose, that's our ship, the SS BonVoyage, in the background.

Above: Dock at Blaye, and the SS Bon Voyage.

Then we left Blaye and went to another town, Bourg, about 9 miles south of Blaye. Also a lovely town. See the following photo.

Above: From the town of Bourg.

After touring Bourg, we headed back to our ship. Back on the ship we had a short lecture about French bistro and a demonstration by a can-can dancer. She was very cute, well spoken and fun. Can-can dancers take 5-10 years of ballet and jazz. The places like the Moulin Rouge only hire tall women, so our dancer worked in other places. She brought extra can-can skirts with her so the audience could try it. Someone had to break the ice so I said, I'd try it. A new friend from England decided to join me. We laughed so much and tried some of the moves, like the corkscrew. All of the moves had names that represented what they looked like, cannon, etc. It was fun and a nice man took our photos. See the following photo.

Above: Doing the can-can.

I did that same high kick earlier this year in the clear waters of the gorgeous Golfo Dulce when Scott and I were in Costa Rica.

Scott is doing fine with his ankle, he’s doing a lot better now but wisely opted to not put on a skirt and do the can-can high-kick with us.

The food and wine on the ship is great, one of the many reasons I like to travel by ship. I’ll write a little more about the ship and our cruise later.

Tuesday (5th)

Tuesday we made a trip to the famous Medoc region to visit several chateaus and see the wine making process. There are over 10,000 chateaus in the Bordeaux area. We didn’t get to visit all of them of course.

The following photo shows a view taken from the top of the new tower built recently at the Saint-Julien-Beychevelle chateau to keep watch over the vineyards.

Above: Saint-Julien-Beychevelle chateau

The next two photos were taken inside the Saint-Julien-Beychevelle chateau, showing the big vats where the pressed wines ferment and the oak barrels where the wine is aged. There was a huge computer screen that showed the temp and humidity in each of the vats. Interesting and very specific and scientific.

Above: Vats of wine fermenting.

Above: Barrels of wine aging.

The next photo shows some wine bottles at the Saint-Julien-Beychevelle chateau.

Above: Wine at Saint-Julien-Beychevelle chateau

The next two photos were taken at the Château Cos d’Estournel.

Above: Château Cos d’Estournel.

Above: Vinyard.

The following photo was taken at the Chateau Lafite Rothschild.

Above: Chateau Lafite Rothschild.

We returned to Fort Medoc for raw oysters and white wine. We were so busy enjoying the refreshments we forgot to take photos.

Scott's ankle is about 80% back to normal. Being injured or ill is never fun, especially on a vacation. Friends Dayle and Larry are currently on a cruise from Miami to Lisbon and other destinations. On their 4th day Larry started feeling badly, tested positive for Covid and was isolated in a special cabin for 7 days until he tested negative.

I’m reminded of my own experience in 2014 when I was hiking the Camino de Santiago. On day 7, walking out of Irache, Spain I had an issue with my left leg, a hamstring pull. I had to take a few days off from hiking and spent a few hours in the emergency room in the hospital at Logroño. But I was eventually able to complete my walking journey (with my leg taped up) and received my Compostela (the certificate you receive at the end of your walk). Wow! Has that really been 8 years ago?

Wednesday (6th): Cadillac, France

Our 3rd stop on the Bordeaux-to-Bordeaux cruise was at Cadillac (pronounced cady yak), France. The photo below is the view when I woke up Wednesday morning. The day cruising on the rivers had this Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot type sense, except his skies were more interesting than the gray, misty-to-rainy skies we saw.

Above: View from the ship.

The next photo is the Château Malromé, home of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s mother where he died at the age of 37. It is located in the Saint-André-du-Bois village.

Above: Château Malromé.

The following photo is one of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s early portraits of a horse, his father was a horseman and Toulouse-Lautrec started sketching and painting horses when he was 8 years old.

The next photo is a portrait of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec by someone else.

Above: Portrait of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

The photo below is the lawn of the Château Malromé, this photo taken from inside through a window.

Above: Lwn of the Château Malromé.

The following photo is a copy of a painting by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, of the Paris cabaret scene. Toulouse-Lautrec is in the painting toward the back. The woman at the table may be Jane Avril, a French can-can dancer made famous by Toulouse-Lautrec through his paintings.

Above: Painting by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

The photo below is a sketch by Toulouse-Lautrec. When the Frenchman who tried to build the Panama Canal failed and millions of people lost their savings by investing with Ferdinand de Lesseps. It was an enormous political scandal and Lesseps and others went to trial. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec went and sketched the proceedings. It was so interesting to me because it was something I’d read about prior to my Panama Canal crossing in January of this year.

Above: Sketch by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

The following photo is an original sketch of a red haired woman by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

Above: Sketch by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

After the Château Malromé we went to the bar Les Pellerins in Verdelais, France to learn about Absinthe (next 3 photos), the beverage that drove 1000 Frenchmen crazy. The table in the photo shows the tools for the ritual. There is absinthe in the glass. You put the slotted spoon on top of the glass with a cube of sugar, then put that under the fountain with a very slow drip of water to dissolve the sugar. You can add more water if you like. It tastes like ouzo.

Above: Les Pellerins bar in Verdelais

Above: Table for Absinthe.

Above: Diane and Scott drinking Absinthe.

The next 2 photos show Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s grave and plaque, and the Tombe de Toulouse Lautrec, at Verdelais.

Above: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s grave and plaque

Above: Tombe de Toulouse Lautrec

The last photo below is of a new plaque in the Cathedral a Virgin Maria in gratitude for saving some from the pandemic.

Above: Plaque in the Cathedral a Virgin Maria.

Thursday (4-7-22): Saint-Émilion

This day we visited the village of Saint-Émilion, France, a world heritage site, known for its world-famous wineries, fine wine, beautiful architecture and great monuments.

The photo below shows my view when I work up Thursday morning, an arch bridge over the Dordogne river.

Above: An arch bridge over the Dordogne river.

The next photo shows part of the city wall in Saint-Émilion, from the 12th century I think.

Above: Part of the city wall in Saint-Émilion.

The following photo shows an aerial view of the Saint-Émilion village square where all the markets and politics took place and still do.

Above: Aerial view of the Saint-Émilion village square.

Below is a photo that shows the church and town bell tower that is weighing down the underground church established by a monk named Emilion.

Above: Church and town bell tower.

The photo below shows the former entrance to the subterranean church where the bell tower is collapsing. Because this is all limestone and soft and when it rains it is porous and gets weakened.

Above: Former entrance to the subterranean church where the bell tower is collapsing.

The next photo shows a vineyard in the middle of the medieval town of Saint-Émilion.

Above: A vineyard

Below is a photo that shows a local wine, I loved the label.

Above: A local wine

After Medoc, who would have thought another wine region would be interesting; this was the best. Saint-Émilion was nothing until this guy named Emilion got caught stealing bread to give to the poor. He was allowed to take wood home from his job with a rich guy, but got caught with bread under his coat. The rich guy forced Emilion to show him the wood and when Emilion opened his coat the bread had turned to wood and when he got home it was bread again for him to give away. (I thought this seemed like the basis for Jean Val Jean in Les Miserables) So Emilion left and went someplace else and some other miracle happened, he walked into a fire and came out unscathed or something. This happens so often in these saints' lives. So Emilion fled again and joined a monastery, then left and came and lived in this grotto for 13 years when some of the monks came and started the church. Lots of folk lore.

After the town tour which you can see in the attached photos, we went to a winery located in town. It was the best tour, small group so I asked a lot of questions, like about the French oak barrels and the corks. It was fascinating. When you think about all they have to do to send bottles around the world in addition to making the wine. We were over 30 feet underground where they store the barrels, the whole area is filled with these underground caves. At one point the guide said we are under the actual vineyards. I said well then where are the roots, so she took us to a very dark unlit area and there were roots coming into the ceiling of the cave. We didn't buy any of their wine, that 's the point of the show, but lots of people did.

Scott and I went to a local place for lunch with wine and charcuterie (a French term for a branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products). It was great. Then back to the ship. Rainy and windy by the way.

This was Thursday. Wonderful cold and dreary day!

Friday (4-8-22): Libourne, sailing to Bordeaux

Libourne is a large city close to Bordeaux (20+ miles), many people live in Libourne and commute to Bordeaux to work. It was another lovely day, we went on a city walking tour and the open-air farmers’ market in the town square called Abel Surchamp Square. The market sells fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, flowers, cooked food like roasted chicken, paella, sausages, couscous, etc.

The photo below was taken from inside a supermarket called Carrefour Contact, looking out towards the open-air farmers’ market at the central square. The market is open only 3 days of the week (Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays).

Above: Looking out towards the open-air farmers’ market.

The next photo shows a snapshot of one section of the market, showing some nice looking vegetables.

Above: One section of the market.

Below is a photo shows asparagus in the market, famous in the area for white asparagus, very tasty with olive oil. I had some for lunch.

Above: Asparagus in the market.

Following is a photo showing yours truly at the market selecting scarves.

Above: Diane at the market.

On our walking tour we had a lovely guide who had patience with everyone stopping to shop or ogle stuff, including yours truly. After herding us together we went to a fabulous gallery called Maison Galerie Laurence Pustetto (Laurence Pustetto Gallery House), owned by a woman named Laurence Pustetto, who had lived in Paris and done famous brand label marketing. She had exquisite taste; the items in her gallery were very exciting. She opened this gallery in 2020. She was taller than me and had feet bigger than Scott’s, with fabulous shoes, black and white loafers with very thick soles. I intend to look her up on the Internet once I get back to New York. The following two photos tell some of the story, it was a wonderful stop.

The photo below shows some artwork I especially liked at the Maison Galerie.

Above: Artwork at the Maison Galerie.

The next photo is of a concrete light at the Maison Galerie that also caught my eye.

Above: Artwork at the Maison Galerie.

Then a new friend from England and I went to the Fine Arts Museum. The artists for the most part were French, duh? Many of them were dead but local. Not as exciting as the Maison Galerie. Then back to the ship for lunch, the white asparagus. YUM! And then our ship headed back to Bordeaux, where our river cruise originally started.

At 3:00 pm we had an opportunity to paint and drink Medoc white wine on the ship. My painting process was taking too long so I won't finish it until I get home.

This was in a room on top of the ship that is usually open-air for drinks, but because of the lousy weather wasn’t open-air. Well, the wind was so strong, anyone that went had a bodyguard. The guy leading the group was used to normal watercolor painters that do very specific detailed drawings etc. Not for me. We talked for a while and he moved on.

On the way back to Bordeaux we had the Farewell dinner on the ship, with everyone dressed up, a lovely dinner and a Great Gatsby entertainment evening. It was so much fun.

The next photo is of Scott and me on the ship during the Farewell dinner, we were back in Bordeaux when this photo was taken.

Above: Scott and Diane on the ship during the Farewell dinner.

The following is another photo from the Farewell dinner, another passenger.

Above: Another photo from the Farewell dinner, another passenger.

By the way, our guide we had in Saint-Émilion lives in Libourne and has a wicked sense of humor. We chose her whenever we could. her name was "NAT a ly," that's how they say it.

Saturday (9th)-Monday (11th): Bordeaux, France

After sailing from Libourne to Bordeaux Friday and having our Farewell dinner on the ship, Saturday morning we had a wonderful tram ride and walking tour with our favorite guide "NAT a ly.” She grew up in Bordeaux and told us many special things. After the tour and lunch on the ship, we had to take our COVID-19 test to be able to fly home, scheduled for Sunday, April 10th.

It was very stressful thinking about this test and sure enough, all that anxiety was not for naught. Both Scott and I tested positive, without symptoms. I'd said to Scott what if one of us tests positive and he said, the other one goes home. Well, we were both sent to our rooms and were not allowed to leave until noon on Sunday. It felt like a very tiny room since it was for 22 hours. The ship personnel brought us drinks and food and were very nice. They found us a hotel (far away from the ship, true but kidding) at the Hilton Garden Inn close to the train station. It is interesting that quarantine here allows you to go outside but not dine inside. They don't seem to check up on you nor do you have a Scarlet Letter “C" on your forehead. We had a Thai dinner at The La Boca food court next to the hotel and will no doubt eat there a lot until we can come home.

The weather is warming up so maybe an outdoor cafe will be on our path for a different dining delight.

I'm happy I get to wear a short sleeved shirt and not all my layers. The weather on this trip has been so variable

Well, this is the end of our 2022 France journey. Not sure when I'll be able to report that we are on our way home. We have COVID-19 self tests to use until they are negative, then we go to a pharmacy for an official document. The airfares home are now higher than the round trips when we booked. We hope some of our travel insurance covers this.

I keep thinking a forced stay in Bordeaux shouldn't be considered awful, so I keep looking for the gift. I'm ready to resume my life in NYC, but there's a message here. Thankfully, we are not really ill.

Below are a few photos from the last few days, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

The photo below is of a plaque we saw on a building Saturday, of the Spanish artist Francisco Goya. He came to France to escape troubles in Spain and died in Bordeaux. There is a statue of Goya a few blocks away, The story goes that Spain eventually wanted his remains to come home, so they exhumed him only to find his head was missing.

Above: Plaque of the Spanish artist Francisco Goya.

The next photo is of the Plaza Gambetta. In 1883, its current name was adopted to honor Léon Gambetta, a republican statesman who defended France during the Franco-German war of 1870. During the French Revolution, Place Gambetta was the location of the city’s guillotine.

Above: Plaza Gambetta.

Below is a photo that shows some funny looking baskets hanging over the tables in an outdoor cafe where we ate, and the cafe next door has different ones. I asked what they were and no one knew so the guide went in and found out they are bird cages, eww! Would you want a bird cage over your cafe table?

Above: Bird cages.

Following is a photo that shows a couple of symbols we saw on our tour Saturday. The upper symbol in this photo is for the Camino de Santiago Frances (aka The French Way), which I did in 2014. The main starting point of the French Way is Saint-Jean Pied-de-Port in France but you can start the walk basically from any place on the Camino. Some people fly into Bordeaux and then take the train from Bordeaux to Saint-Jean Pied-de-Port, but a few hardy souls will walk to Saint-Jean Pied-de-Port from Bordeaux, about 140 miles. Others, like myself, fly into Madrid, Spain and then go to Saint-Jean Pied-de-Port by train/bus/taxi.

The bottom symbol is for the Bordeaux Patrimoine Mondial (Bordeaux World Heritage).

Above: Symbols on s buildng.

The next photo shows yours truly at the Plaza de Parliament, a beautiful square. Its name is due to the fact the city's first Parliament was situated here from the mid-15th century until it was abolished, towards the end of the 18th century. The entire square is surrounded by buildings that conform to a plan set out for the whole city. It is beautiful and calm. It seems that when the city was rebuilt after some war, they used the same city planners that planned Paris, so the cities are very similar in layout. N-S, E-W grid etc.

Above: Diane at the Plaza de Parliament.

Below is a photo showing the inside of the La Boca food court Sunday night where we ate.

Above: Inside of the La Boca food court.

Following is a photo that shows my view Monday morning from the Hilton hotel, the black thing in the front is the top outside of the La Boca food court.

Above: Morning from the Hilton hotel.

Tuesday (4-12-22): Bordeaux, France

On Tuesday, the sights we saw included (1) La Cité du Vin (The City of Wine), (2) an interesting sculpture called the Spaceship of Bordeaux, and (3) Les Bassins de Lumières (The Pools of Lights).

The photo below shows the La Cité du Vin (The City of Wine) building, this tour of this museum was interesting, lots to learn, an educational tour through the world of wine, from 6,000BC to today.

Above: The City of Wine

The next photo shows the Spaceship of Bordeaux which we saw on our walk after La Cité du Vin. The Spaceship is a sculpture by British artist Suzanne Treister and part of Bordeaux’s public art. The massive 55-foot in diameter spaceship sits in the Bassin à Flot district of Bordeaux.

Above: Spaceship of Bordeaux

We then took the tram and met some friends from our ship and went to Bar Vin for Foie Gras and wine between our La Cité du Vin and Les Bassins de Lumières tours.

The next two photos are a couple of snapshots from Les Bassins de Lumières (The Pools of Lights). This place was awesome. There are quite a few YouTube videos available on this place, it is the world’s largest digital arts centre in a former submarine base, and has dazzling visual effects. The main exhibit was about Venice but the one I was most impressed with was titled “Cell Immersion,” about the microscopic world of Humans. It blew me away. Blood, sinew. neurons etc. amazing. These two iPhone photos from the “Cell Immersion” show don't do it justice of course, but the show was amazing, note the people in the photos to get a sense of the size of the videos.

Above: iPhone photo from the “Cell Immersion” show.

The show about Venice was also excellent, about the artistic and architectural treasures of the city of Venice. See a 37 second YouTube video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XMuL1GjVy8 if interested

Wednesday (4-13-22)

On Wednesday we walked by the "Monument aux Girondins," an impressive monument to the Resistance during the French Revolution, the monument is an angel breaking her chains. The Girondins were members of a political faction during the Revolution. See the photo below for a photo of the "Monument aux Girondins."

Above: Monument aux Girondins.

The next photo shows the Basilique Saint-Michel with its incredible tower of 276 steps which the pilgrims used to climb but is no longer open to climbing. The Basilique Saint-Michel is on the pilgrim's path to many places including the Camino de Santiago. We sat in an outdoor cafe for a French beer, YUM.

Above: Basilique Saint-Michel

After the Basilique Saint-Michel we went to the Thelonious Jazz Club, the most amazing harmonica I’ve ever heard. The group called themselves Jangles as in Bo. But the guitar players kept changing. And in one set there was a guy playing something like an accordion except it only had buttons, no keys. See the following photo from the Thelonious Jazz Club.

Above: Thelonious Jazz Club.

We are planning to take the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse, the high speed train) from Bordeaux to the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and spend the night there. That’s so we don't have to get up at O-dawn-30 to get there for our flight. They say to get there 4 hours ahead of time. AARGH!!! The airport is short staffed because of COVID-19, so everything is in a queue. And some friends who are now at the airport are confirming the length of the lines.

Makes you wonder about international travel until this all pandemic stuff calms down, which it will.

Thursday (4-14-22): Bordeaux, France

I'm testing negative as of now with my self test kit but Scott is still positive as of today, but he feels ok.

I just learned we can get more self test kits for 6 Euros (about $6.50 US dollars), so we'll test again before tomorrow (Friday), we both have to test negative from a pharmacy to fly home on Saturday, which is our current plan. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Although we are forced to stay here, France is loose about quarantine and masks in general, so we can move about somewhat. We are dutifully wearing masks and are frequently the only ones.

Last Entry (Written on Tuesday the 19th after arriving home on Sunday)

This is the Final Chapter in the saga of our French road trip, our river cruise and our COVID-19 quarantine.

Both Scott and I made it home on Sunday (17th). I was really kind of out of it most of Monday. Then my refrigerator died, and I had to work through the mental haze to buy a new one. I'm waiting for the delivery as I write this.

So here is a brief description of the travails of travel during the time of COVID-19. After a nice Thursday in Bordeaux with our friends from England, we had an interruption in our stay at the Bordeaux Hilton Garden Inn hotel Friday morning. At 3:24 am the fire alarm went off. I looked out the window and there were lots of people milling about most with jeans and sneakers on, so we did the same. We stood outside until 7:03 waiting for the French fire department and police to declare it was safe to go inside. It was 50F degrees, so chilly isn't the word for it.

We decided that we wanted to be closer to the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport (CDG), so we bought tickets on the TGV (the high-speed rail line) from Bordeaux to Paris, we didn't have to test negative for COVID-19 to go on the TGV. The room at the Paris Holiday Inn Express Paris at the airport was ok, bigger than the ship's cabin that we did the river cruise on, but without the nice wine deliveries. Scott still tested positive for COVID-19 Sunday morning, so we decided we'd go and see if we could get regular tests and not the home fast tests. The pharmacist at the airport was very nice. He said if you are getting positives on the home tests, for sure you'll get a positive on a regular test.

We told him about testing a week earlier, etc. He suggested we go to the clinic at gate 17 and see if they would give us a "get out of jail" letter. We'd heard that if the onset of symptoms was 10 days earlier, and you have no further symptoms, that it was a possibility. Off we went and found the clinic. The doctor completely understood and gave us the letters because our symptoms were more like 14 days earlier. He was by the way an anti-vaxxer. Go figure. So we made our flights.

It was an 8-hour flight home plus the 6-hour time change, plus all the stress, oh by the way the Paris hotel had no hot water for 2 days, so it was cold showers or as I call it splash-a-roos.

I slept most of Saturday on the flight home, so couldn't sleep Sunday, hence being a zombie on Monday.

Below are a few photos from Friday and Saturday while still in France.

The two photos below are from Friday morning from the Bordeaux hotel showing the crowd outside the hotel, and one of the many fire engines.

Above: Friday morning from the Bordeaux hotel.

Below is a view of the Arc de Triomphe as we drove down Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris Friday afternoon, the photo taken from inside the Uber as we drove to the hotel at the Paris airport.

Above: Arc de Triomphe in background.

Below is my view Saturday morning from my room at the Paris Holiday Hotel. The tower in the foreground is the Terminal 1 control tower at the CDG airport. The tower in the background is the Terminal 3 control tower. CDG has 3 control towers.

Above: my view Saturday morning from my room at the Paris Holiday Hotel.

The next and last photo is yours truly in the Paris hotel room Saturday night, doing an email before our flight on Sunday.

Above: Diane at the Paris hotel room.

Once home that first hot shower sure felt good. All's well that ends well, now if only that refrigerator would come. Or as they would say in France, Tout est bien qui finit bien, maintenant si seulement ce réfrigérateur arrivait.

Note: All of the photos in this journal can also be found at my Google Photos site, at https://photos.app.goo.gl/M1U6VrgMaVLXVK3g7