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Published: June 14th 2017
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Geo: 48.1669, 7.29728
It was sad to leave Miranda and Jonathon as they headed off to work – but we'll see them in three weeks at their wedding in Italy. And of course, I am not sure that they were sorry to see the departure of the noisy Perissinotto family – at least one of the cats was quite traumatized by the noise and sudden movements of the kids, and I seemed to give Miranda's washing machine a good workout!
Then we were off again, with bags loaded in the car, on one of our longest driving days. Brussels was an easy city to drive in, and we were quickly on the road and off towards Luxembourg (about 2 hours away). Unfortunately, a 45 minute delay for road works meant that we were all tired and hungry when we arrived in this new country, with not enough time to really see the city. But a walk through the very nice old town, with its wide pedestrian streets and glamorous shops, certainly gave us an impression of a wealthy town (lots of international banking in this tiny Duchy). With our very expensive bread, cheese and ham (and 5 pieces of fruit, which the woman
in the shop couldn't believe we were buying so much!), we returned to the cliffs near where we had parked the car for a picnic. The city of Luxembourg is built on a plateau at the top of a very steep ravine – no wonder it has been able to remain independent for so long! And Steven charmed the traffic inspector out of a ticket when we returned to the car (or maybe she figured that, with French plates and an Aussie at the wheel, the Duchy was never going to see the money anyway!) So we continue to feel we are the luckiest travelers!
Another long drive, about 2 and a half hours, towards the Alsace, but when the sun is shining, the sky is perfect blue and the kids are asleep, the driving is easy. I say this, from the comfort of the passenger seat – the first few times we came to Europe, Steven did all the driving, and I just haven't found the right time or place to start driving, especially with 3 kids in the back and the highways (which I can believe are easier than the little streets) travelling at 130kph. But there are another
2 months for me to get my nerves in! We drove towards the Vosges mountains, then through a tunnel under the mountains (all sing "the Perissinotto's went under the mountain, the Perissinotto's went under the mountain"😉 then up a windy road referred to as the Wood Road (sounds more poetic in French) until we arrived in the foothills of the Vosges in the Alsace at our most perfect village of Riquewihr.
This place is mindblowingly pretty! We almost couldn't believe it when we arrived, at 6pm, as the sun turned the buildings and walls of the town golden. The streets are almost pedestrianised (an occasional car for deliveries and new hotel arrivals) and must be full of tourists in the summer. The Easter decorations are still everywhere – every house, shop and fountain is covered in eggs, bunnies and flowers, and the tourist shops selling toy storks (the symbol of the Alsace), gingerbread, bretzels and koepplhofp (like pannetone) must then be packed! Our little apartment is on the main street, but set back a little (up some stairs near a shopping arcade) so is quiet but overlooks the shops below. We've got 2 bedrooms, a bathroom and a large living area
with kitchen. Only thing is that the cable TV only shows cartoons in German – reckon Matt would be fluent within a month!
The first night we settled in to our apartment, then had a short wander through the town before selecting a restaurant where we discovered tarte flambee (thin crust like a pizza, topped with white cheese, bacon and grated cheese and cooked until very hot) which is an Alsace specialty. G particularly thinks it is perfect – finally, someone else understands her need for pizza without tomato!
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