Au Revior France

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Day 21 (20/07/2012) today was really a transition day. Today was our transfer to Paris so we had the morning to ourselves in Lourdes, but honestly there is only so many times you can walk around the place so I caught up on some emails and did some planning for this rest of my trip. After a some lunch in a quaint little bolongaire we were on a train up to Paris, only 6 hours! Arriving Paris we had some dinner at this cool little restaurant, which turned into a bar as we were leaving, then headed to our hotel. The hotel was only 4 avenues over from Champs Élysées and when I opened my window and looked left I had a spectacular view of the Arc de Triumph about 300m away! We unfortunately didn't get any roadside viewing of the race today but seeing Mark Cavendish win the sprint finish on tv was still super exciting (you could tell he had been patiently waiting for 3 weeks to do that) and the yellow jersey remained with Bradley Wiggins.

Day 22 (21/07) today was going to be a big day, the final time trail, the day that would secure the win and yellow jersey for Bradley Wiggins and we had front row seats to witness it all. We were fortunate enough to have access to the team enclosure at the start in Bonneval. Upon arriving we went into the start village which is really for the VIP's viewing the race, there is food and drink, different sponsorship booths, entertainment and a big screen tv to watch it all. We then headed over to the riders enclosure, which is basically a stretch of road where all the team buses are parked and all the riders bikes are set up out the front, on rollers so the riders can warm up. Each rider has a designated start time for the time trail (starting from the bottom of the general classification to the top) and each rider will warm up for about 30 mins prior to their start time. It was a little strange at first, kind of felt like you were at the zoo, but after seeing how friendly all the riders and staff were it was ok. I saw plenty of riders throughout the day, which was very exciting for me, but I won't bore you all with the details of that because I'm sure you don't care, but the highlight would be seeing Cadel. We waited outside the BMC bus for about 40 mins before he came out, items in hand for signing and he was actually running late for starting his warm up so I didn't actually think he would sign anything. One of the guys in the tour group, was dressed up in his Aussie flag and had Cadel's book, which caught his attention when he stepped out of the bus. He stood there for about a minute signing items for people (including me) and then jumped on his bike for his warm up. He was really friendly and appreciative of all the support and did say at one point it just wasn't his year. After Cadel left for the start we also saw the top 6 ride through to the start line (the riders are crazy, there are people everywhere walking on the road in the enclosure and riders were riding down to the start line at top speed, I'm so surprised someone didn't crash) and then found a bar to watch the end of the stage. Bradley Wiggins had another blinder of a time trail, took 2 mins off the days fastest time and secured himself the yellow jersey for 2012 Tour de France (first British man to do so).

Day 23 (22/07/2012) the race had a late start today so we had the morning free to explore some of Paris. A couple of the guys in the group and I decided that we would do so on the city bikes available to use in Paris. We started off early to avoid crowds and traffic. We started with a loop around Place Charles De Gulle i.e. around the Arc de Triumph (kept to the right and just gunned it!) and then as the Champs Elysses was pretty much closed to cars as they were setting up for the race we took a ride up and down there, that was pretty special (I would not have done that in normal traffic, I value my life too much). From there we went down to the Louvre! then to Notre Dame and finally the Effiel Tower. It was a great morning, our own little tour of Paris. Then it was time for the finish of the Tour de France. We had grand stand seats, which were 150m before the finish line, the finish line being on the opposite side of the road, in the shade and a big screen tv within sight. In a walk that should have taken about 20 mins from the hotel ended up taking 45 mins just due to the number of people around. Every inch of the Champs Élysées was lined with people, lined 3 to 4 deep, it was incredible. The final stage of TDF had about 100km ride into Paris, which is a leisurely ride, somewhat of a procession of the winner and his team, and then a circuit around the city 8 times. This is where the racing for the day really starts, it's a stage for the sprinters, so once they hit Champs Élysées they were flying. Every time they came through everyone was one their feet cheering them on, the atmosphere was electric. By the time they past us for the finish line, Mark Cavendish was well ahead and took win his 3rd stage win for this years tour. It was honestly one of the most exciting things I have ever witnessed. After that there was the presentation for the stage winner and winner each of the different classifications (overall winner of the general classification - Bradley Wiggins, sprinter - Peter Sagan, King of the Mountains - Thomas Vockler and best young rider - Tejay Van Garderan), although we couldn't see that, we saw everything on the big screen. The last thing for the day is a procession of all the teams down the Champs Élysées, which gives all the fans a chance to saw all the riders together and the riders a chance to thank the fans. We didn't get a chance to see all the teams go through as we had a dinner cruise along the Seine river to get too. It was a beautiful, clear, warm night with great food and great company. A lovely way to end not only the Tour de France for 2012 but also our own little tour group.

Day 24 (23/07/2012) I really just took it easy today. First thing I desperately needed to do was wash some clothes, I hadn't really in 3 weeks and was running low on clean clothes! After that I moved into to my next hotel in Paris, and then Went out and very leisurely wonder up the Champs Élysées. I really was a bit lost with what to do, after 3 days of sitting on roadsides, waiting for and watching cycling I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself!

Day 25 (24/07/2012) I found my tourist hat overnight and mapped out my walking tour of Paris and was on my way. I went to Basilique du Sacre Coeur, past Moulin Rogue, the Louvre, Champs Élysées and Arc De Trimuph. I'm sure most of you have been to Paris so I don't really need to go into all the details, but this place is unbelievably busy, there are just people everywhere, it's nuts. Probably pays to be a little more organised than I was too, because there are so many people or should I say tourists, the line to get in anywhere is ridiculously long and also a good idea to check when things are closed (the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays, just an FYI). It's a beautiful city to visit but I was ready to leave all the craziness. Not sure if it's just me, but I found the walk to Sacre Coeur very odd. On my way there I walked past Moulin Rogue and then all the restaurants like it, plus the strip clubs and sex shops, to then take a left hand turn, walk up this small hill to this beautiful religious structure that towers over the city. Maybe it's just me but it seemed a little wrong.

Day 26 to 28 (25/07 - 27/07) since spending 2 nights in Sevier on the tour and loving it, I decided I would come back to Annecy for a couple days. Now this place is more my type of place. Sure there are we're still plenty of people around, it is summer after all, but it's such a relaxing, beautiful town. I could say if there was anywhere else in the world I would live it would be here (of what I have seen of the world so far), just need to learn French first! My couple of days here were very laid back. I explored the old town, with the canals running through the centre, cobbled stone streets, huge old sandstone buildings, many a beautiful church and a museum or two. I rented a bike and took a ride down the bike track alongside the lake (40km) which was just sensational, crystal blue water to one side, the alps on the other. One of the best parts of the ride was riding through a tunnel in a mountain, I'm not sure what it is with those things, it's just so cool, when you can't go around a mountain just go through it, I love it. I also took a boat cruise around the lake, which was great because I was able to see all the other towns around the lake I wouldn't have seen otherwise. The next time you are travelling in France, actually in Europe you need to make sure you come to this place, you will not regret it. For such a small place there is so much to do, bike riding, canoes, paddle boats (that people hire, paddle out to the middle of the lake, drop the anchor and go for a swim), you can hire your own motor boat, or it's just a great place to relax.

So my French adventure has come to an end, now onto Italy. The 4 weeks I have spent here have gone so fast but have been incredible. Here are my 5 favourite things about France.

1. Tour de France - obvious one I know, but I have never experienced anything like it. It is the worlds greatest sporting event, that involves a whole country for 3 straight weeks. In every place you visit where the tour is coming too the atmosphere is electric and even though you may only see a blur of riders for sometimes less than 30 secs, you can feel the energy pulsating through the peleton and it makes you feel alive.

2. Annecy - I think I have gone on enough about it above, on my two visits there I had such a lovely time it definitely warrants a place in my top 5. Beautiful, beautiful place.

3. Stunning scenery - I have now been able to see a lot of France, from the big cities to the tiny town on country roads, and I can honestly say I never once thought that something was ugly. I loved the fact that each of the different regions I visited were different, beautiful in their own way. I loved the sunflower fields, the Alps, the Pryennes, the cobbled stone streets and the building that have been around for centuries.

4. French people - I have found them to be incredibly friendly, helpful and patient especially for those that don't a word of French. Even when they don't speak English they manage to find a way to still help you.

5. Bike culture - everyone rides a bike and no they are not all road racing bikes and they are not all in lycra riding kits. You see men in suits and ladies in dresses and high heels. The bike is a mode of transport and because everyone rides, the bikes and the cars get along. It's great.

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