While I have been back in Houston for a couple of weeks now, I have not forgotten about the last part of my European odyssey. The three week trip started in Paris for a couple of days, followed by four days in Annecy, then another three in Lausanne, Switzerland. The four of us then spent two days in Lyon, France where my wife and younger son, Sebastian left us and returned home so that he could start school.
Nathan and I soldiered on, however, and we left the same morning on a five-train trek to Como, Italy. Two days there and we were off on a much shorter trip to Lugano, Switzerland for another couple of days, then four more trains to get up to Zermatt before we finally took another three trains to get back to Lyon. I was there for four nights, helping him get acclimated to the city where he is studying this fall.
I was not quite done as I drove up to Beaujolais with a good friend and then we headed south to Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Vaison-la-Romaine. My last day in France started early with an hour-long drive to Avignon and a TGV up to Charles de Gaulle airport for the flight home.
When I last posted about the trip, we were in Zermatt, a town that I visited at least a dozen times while leading bike trips in Europe, but it had been a good 15 years since the last time I was there.
Let’s pick back up in Lyon…
Lyon is known as the “gastronomical capital of France” (and thus the world for many) and at the heart of Lyonnaise cuisine is the Lyonnais Bistrot. There are a ton of them in town but perhaps the most famous is Le Bistrot de Lyon where we ate on our first night in town.
Our hotel was right on the Place de la République, with a tiny balcony overlooking the square.
As I mentioned, I had only been to Lyon once before, but the town quickly reveals its charm and allure.
One of the cool and unique aspects of the city is its hidden passageways or traboules. We found a few and the Renaissance courtyards are captivating.
La Tour Rose (the pink tower) might be the most famous of all the traboules.
On the second night in Lyon, I chose the restaurant solely due to the fact that they had this on the wine list, perhaps my favorite rosé champagne. The fact that the restaurant did not have air conditioning was not important to me. It turned out to be very important to the rest of the family.
On one sweltering afternoon, my wife and I decided to hike up to The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière. These photos do not do the climb justice–it was rough.
But we both agreed it was worth it.
At least I think my wife agreed.
When Nathan and I returned to Lyon at the end of my trip, his bag, which had been lost for three weeks until found in Manila (yes, the capital of the Philippines) was waiting for us at the hotel. He was happy.
I was also able to meet up with my old friend, Romain, who was thrilled to show off his new wines.
The following day, I met up with my buddy Christophe and we headed north to Beaujolais. The first stop was Maison Piron, where we tasted several wines and had an amazing lunch, concluding with cheese, of course.
We then headed to Château de Courcelles…
…for a tasting in the Cave.
And then on to Château des Tours in Brouilly for another tasting.
That night, Christophe took us to 33 Cité, Chef Frédéric Berthod’s wonderful restaurant. Chef is also one of the foremost experts on Chartreuse. We tasted a dozen different blends of the enchanting elixir. Oof.
Alas, I finally had to bid au revoir to Lyon and my son.
The following morning, it was off to Châteauneuf-du-Pape for a tour and tasting at Château la Nerthe, the oldest winery in the region.
Then, it was on to Vaison la Romaine, Christophe’s home, and a stroll around the medieval town.
Alas, my three week mini-tour of Europe ended in Vaison, as I took an early morning train up to Paris for my flight home.
the drunken cyclist 