Our final stop before getting on the plane home is London. The airfare to fly round trip Boston/London is so much cheaper than flying direct to Paris, or in October Barcelona, that just makes London a stop on any trip to Europe. While our last night in Paris the hotel was paid with IHG points, our night in London is paid with Hilton Honors points. So, we are at the Waldorf Astoria. Both hotels are 5 star, but the difference between the two our extreme. The Hotel in Pairs, upgraded us to a better room, included breakfast, had fresh strawberries upon arrival, and at check in explained everything, welcomed us and IHG premier members and made you feel special. At the Waldorf, barely got the room let alone any welcome, put us in a Handicap room, ... read more

The breakfast room was pretty empty but also fully stocked, except my three-minute egg machine was not working, or it was working there were just no eggs. We had already taken showers so after breakfast it was just a quick finish packing and we were off. It rained pretty hard overnight and was still raining when we left. Its Monday and Victory day here in France, there was a bit gathering of French Naval personnel, in full uniform just up the street from our hotel having some type of ceremony to honor the day. This was not a long driving day, a little over 2 hours to Dinan, our first stop. Would have been quicker but we had a bit of trouble finding a gas station. If you really want to experience France, buy gas in ... read more

It rained overnight and the air was fresh smelling when we woke up. The rain did not do anything to remove the humidity as it was still at 80%, but humidity on the ocean is different than humidity inland, the breeze keeps it more bearable. The alarm went off at 7:30 and instead of getting ready, we again, just chose to splash water in our face and go down to breakfast. This gives us more time to just relax when we come back up and not hurry to get ready. The breakfast room was less frantic than yesterday so a bit more enjoyable. The concept of them actually cooking your eggs anyway you want is pretty novel. I just cannot imagine a Hampton Inns cooking to order eggs. As I write this post, Jerry is out ... read more

Today we head to the Coast. La Rochelle is in Charente-Maritime on the Bay of Biscay. Since Millau, we have been in uncharted territory (except Saint-Emilion) so everything is new to us. While Jarnac may not be our dream home for retirement, it is important to experience as much of France and all corners, if you plan on living there someday. La Rochelle has been on our list of potential retirement homes for a few reasons: 1) it is on the coast and deep down I am very much tied to the water; 2) there is a train station with a TGV to Paris; and 3) the weather appears to be very similar to Portland, meaning low humidity. We are close to starting our third week, and since we are in La Rochelle for three nights ... read more

May Day in France Growing up, the first of May was celebrated by placing bouquets of flowers on people’s doors, well the neighbors we liked. I don’t really know where this tradition came from, but that is what we did. I do know that its origins date back to Roman and Celtic times and was a celebration of the beginning of the growing season. Now in Europe it is Labor Day and a national holiday in most countries celebrating the rights of workers and the 8-hour workday. We are headed to the heart of the Bordeaux wine region today and will not be impacted by the holiday, both lunch and dinner reservations are secured. Today also marks the halfway point of our trip. We will shortly be in Brittany and the primary focus of ... read more