Jun 19
The last two days of our trip were spent in Lyon, the third largest city in France. Unlike the bastides, the architecture of Lyon dates to the Renaissance and later. Unlike in Paris, more modern skyscrapers have encroached closer to the center city. However, it’s a vary charming town. We stayed in a hotel on …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/19/final-stop/
Jun 19
Bastide #5 was Cordes-Sur-Ciel. As with the other towns we visited, tourism is the main industry. The city was much more touristy than the other bastides. However, our accommodations here were probably the best of those outside Paris. We stayed at a delightful bed and breakfast called Le Secret du Chat. Alain and Marie are …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/19/to-the-bastides-parte-deux/
Jun 17
We visited several hilltop villages in southern France called bastides. The peasants could retreat behind their walls when under attack during the Hundred Years’ War. The walls have crumbled, but the towns have survived. Accessing these towns is not easy for modern tourists, even though nobody’s pouring boiling oil on you from the ramparts. The …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/17/to-the-bastides/
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/17/man-at-work/
Jun 15
The trains in Europe are great. However, they don’t serve some of the smallest towns in France. To visit those, you’ll need to rent a car. We’ve rented cars to travel around Europe twice, and here is our collective wisdom: Rent the smallest model that will fit you, your traveling companions, and your luggage. If …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/15/words-from-the-wiseacres/
Jun 13
“Why a duck? Why a no chicken?” (Chico Marx, The Cocoanuts) The Millau Viaduct is the highest bridge in the world, and the tallest structure of any kind in France. It opened for traffic in 2005. It’s an amazing bit of engineering and good-looking to boot. We had lunch at the rest stop/visitors’ center just …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/13/more-on-rest-stops-the-millau-viaduct/
Jun 11
It’s hard to think of a culture more gluten-centered than the French. Baguettes are a daily tradition, as are pastries, croissants, cakes, biscuits (cookies in the US), and tarts. Then you have flour-thickened sauces such as bêchamel and velouté. So it was a bit of a surprise to find a selection of gluten-free fad diet …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/11/glutenous-maximus/
Jun 11
Sometimes you drive past an establishment and you have to think twice about what they’re selling…
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/11/double-take-time/
Jun 04
Corn is not a major ingredient in French cuisine except in the Basque country. So how come we saw corn fields in the Dordogne Valley? Two words: Foie gras. Corn is a key component of overfeeding ducks and geese to produce the fatty liver that’s such a delicacy in the region. Julian had some duck …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/04/cornfields-in-france/
Jun 04
It’s a good thing we came here during the age of the digital camera. Julian would have gone broke with all the pictures he’s taken on this trip if he still used film. Photoshop has also saved him from over- or underexposed shots. He’ll be spending many hours after we get home tweaking his photos …
Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2015/06/04/pictorial-observations/
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