Since we've been here we have headed out of town only a few times, but never 'just outside' Paris. We had our trips to England, Nice-Monaco and Prague. So it was time for a little road trip. Add the facts I hadn't driven in 6 months (yes I know, can you imagine the pain I've been suffering) and that my mum and Erik are on their third visit to Paris since we've moved here, it makes a perfect reason to get out of dodge for a day.
We rented a car in Paris and made our way along the Seine. Empty roads on a Saturday morning in August in Paris. Phew! The destination was Monet's garden and house in Giverny, about 80 kms west of Paris. As any road trip with my mum, you don't just take the autoroute to get there. You have to take some small side roads, just to see what you find. My mum had been in this area previously so she knew what to expect. Little French villages, along rivers and up against white chalk cliff banks. Quite picturesque indeed.
Once we arrived at Giverny we met up with a friend of Mack's who is doing a 6 month intership at Monet's garden during his horticulture schooling in NYC. Talk about a change from NYC to the little village of Giverny. We had met Chris the weekend before at Les Grandes Eaux de Versailles. He also spends time working near Versailles and Jardin des Plantes in Paris. Chris showed us around a bit then left us to explore Monet's house and garden. Even though it was quite busy it was amazingly relaxing. No wonder Monet's paintings are so are inspiring. I won't try and put words to it, I will just let the pictures do the talking.
After the house and garden tour, we met up for lunch with Chris at the Hotel Aubry just down the street: huge salads and good wine were enjoyed by all. We strolled the rest of the village and came across a small little museum: basically a bunch of old guys repairing old industrial equipment.
After Giverny we headed west along the Seine through the town of Vernonnet where we 'stumbled upon' an old mill, still clinging on to the remnants of a medieval bridge and tower.
The town of Les Andelys, is home to Chateau Gaillard, a castle built in the 1100's, that has seen it's days of action. Once it was no longer required, it was systematically pulled town to prevent it from being used as hiding and gathering spot for groups of thieves or rebels to plot against the kings of the day.
On the way back to our place in Paris, we stopped for an apero at Mack and Petra's place. Bread, cheese and wine of course.
Our next trip out of town will be at the end of September when Rob and Cynthia come to visit. We are going to meet them in Belgium on their way into Paris from Germany, so stay tuned.
Every Saturday night in the summer the Château de Versailles closes early, and hosts a special event called Les Grandes Eaux Noctures, which is a 2 hour spectacle from 9 until 11pm. The evening starts with everyone culminating at the top of the stairs that lead into the fabulous and famous gardens. This is when you see that the design and placement of Versailles was not by accident. In the beautiful month of August, the sun sets nearly perfectly over the end of the canal. Simply amazing.
Then, for the following 2 hours you get to walk the garden grounds: all the fountains are running and are illuminated, classical music is playing in the background.
The evening finishes with a fireworks display above the Bassin du Char d'Apollon
At the end of the night, it's a mad rush out of Versailles. Just make sure you make it to the RER (Metro) station right away: there is only 1 train going into Paris. I guess the cabbies make a mint on these 10 or so Saturday nights............
We spent 5 great days in Prague and stayed with my friend Paula and her 2 year old daughter Maia. Paula's parents escaped from Czechoslovakia in the sixties and came to Canada. Paula moved into the house at the bottom of our street in West Vancouver when she was 5, so we've known each other a very long time. Her family still has a place in Prague and we timed our trip so we could spend some time with her and Maia.
The family apartment is in one of the suburbs of Prague and is on the second floor. The main floor has a bar/pub in it, perfect for great food and cheap beer. Eating in Prague is still cheap: 1-1.50euro for a pint of draft. Meals were hearty and large; made of mostly meat, and always accompanied with potatoes and/or bread dumplings, and gravy, yum! France has a reputation of being a meat eating country, but the Czech Republic (and probably all the Eastern European countries) can take that title in my book. Barely a vegetable in sight; most definitely NOT a country for vegetarians. Vegan? Forget about it, I would be surprised if there is even a Czech word for it. They would probably run them out of town like they did to the Russians in 1989!
Typical Czech breakfast: bread, cheese and deli meats. And probably beer, but we didn't have any. Those bananas are not from the Czech Republic, and shouldn't be in the photo.
Lunch and dinner: meat, carbs and beer. Does cabbage count as a veggie?
We barely spent 200euros in the five days we were there. Of course 'western' items are the same price, but we didn't go to Prague to buy a pair of shoes or clothes. Go anywhere in Europe at the end of July and you are bound to be in a sea of tourists. Prague was no different!
One of the most interesting things we did, was the Communism Museum. Very ironically located between the bastion of capitalism: a McDonald's, and a Casino. This is a must see in any visit to Prague. Make sure to spend the time to watch the video's (english subtitles) including footage of the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Being in Europe and seeing all the century old historical sites, castles, palaces etc is great. However seeing amazing footage and reading articles from a major event that has happened in our lifetime is simply amazing.
Most of our time was simply spent exploring different areas of Prague including Vysehrad, Mala Stranka, Charles Bridge and Prague Castle. Walking a city like Prague is a good way to burn off all the beer calories. Saturday was Maia's second birthday, so we had a little party and her grandmothers house.
Prague Castle and Charles Bridge
Apparently the Czech's drink the most beer per capita (although I'm sure the Germans would dispute that). After our first sip we understood why. This stuff just goes down so easily, is so good and so cheap. Of course like the rest of Europe you can drink and buy it anywhere. When will North America wake up. I can't believe we are so anal about beer and wine in Canada. It's absurd - end rant!
