Category Archives: Accommodation

Accommodation, Buying property in France

Buying Property in France # 1 Finding your dream home

September 28, 2020 Rosemary Kneipp 2 Comments

Even when you speak the language and have lived your whole life in a country, buying a property can be stressful and challenging. Doing so in a foreign country makes it a little more complicated.

I have lived in France for over 40 years and have been directly or indirectly involved in the sale or purchase of a large number of properties. Real estate rules have evolved over the years and regulations are much stricter than before.

There are basically two ways of buying property in France: you can deal directly with the owner or go through a real estate agent or website. In both cases, the final sale will be handled by the notaire. “A Notaire is a legal specialist with a public authority mission who draws up authenticated contracts on behalf of his clients. He is self-employed”. The notaire himself also sells properties on commission.

1/ Buying through a real estate agent or website:

Real estate agents have to have a licence and a diploma, which requires a minimum of 2 years’ training after the end of high school. Those with higher diplomas (bachelor’s or master’s degrees) are entitled to draw up a promise to sell and manage apartment buildings.

In France, the real estate agent’s fees (usually 5 to 7% of the sales price) are nearly always paid by the buyer. The promise to sell agreement is included in the fee but the buyer and seller can choose to go through a notaire. Agent’s fees are different from notaire’s fees and taxes.

2/ Buying directly from the owner:

With the many possibilities offered by the Internet, more and more people want to avoid the real estate agent’s commission and buy directly, through French websites such as LeBoncoin, SeLoger, Logic-Immo, pap (particulier à particulier), Superimmo, Figaro Immo, SeLoger Neuf (new homes) and Superimmoneuf (also new homes). There are other international websites such as Greenacres.

The buyer can deal directly with the owner and can even sign a promise to sell with going through a notaire if they wish.

3/ Buying through a notaire:

The notaire is often approached by local people when buying or selling as they feel they have a better legal guarantee.

4/ Real estate agents vs private sales

Which should you choose? A real estate agency or a private sale?

If you don’t speak French or have little legal knowledge, a private sale will be more complicated unless you are really sure of the person you are buying from. Despite the fact that there is no commission, it might be more difficult to bring down the price with a private owner who often overvalues their property for sentimental reasons.

For the buyer, it is important not to let the personality of the owner cloud their judgement, even if they speak English.

In the more popular areas of France, real estate agents often speak English themselves which can make life much easier for buyers. They will often take you to view several properties just to get a good understanding of what you are looking for. It is easier for a buyer to say “no” to a real estate agent than to a private owner. Also, it is the agent who negotiates the price, not the buyer. However, some agents are very persuasive. You should make sure you feel comfortable with the person showing you around and don’t feel bullied into buying something you don’t want!

Real estate agencies can be nationwide such as La Foret, Square Habitat, Century 21 or Orpi, which will give you access to all their properties in France, or independant, in which case they may be a member of the real estate agency federation, FNAIM, which will provide you with a better guarantee than a small agency working on its own.

The agency will usually ask you to sign an agreement under which you cannot deal directly with the owner of a property you have viewed.

5/ The next thing is to draw up your criteria, the things that you absolutely must respect such as price, amount of work to be done, location in an urban or rural area, size, aspect, type of flooring, type of heating, etc. Having to replace the roof or put in a new heating system can be very expensive.

Other factors to look out for are the land tax (taxe foncière) which can be quite expensive in some areas, rates (taxe d’habitation, which are being phased out but still applicable for people in higher income brackets), cost of heating (you’ll need to see the actual bills), shared expenses and the financial health of the joint owners if it’s an apartment building (if there is a swimming pool, lift, caretaker, extensive grounds, it will cost more to run).

6/ It can also be helpful to use the services of a person who speaks your language and knows the area, especially if you live far away or are dealing with private owners. This is a service I am happy to offer.

Next step – viewing and signing the promise to sell.

Rosemary Kneipp, sworn translator with the Orléans Court of Appeal. www.kneipp-traduction.com kneipp@kneipp-traduction.com or 06 76 41 99 43

Accommodation, City breaks, Loire Valley, Loire Valley châteaux

FRENCH CHÂTEAU COUNTRY IN THE WINTER – THE LOIRE VALLEY

December 4, 2019 Rosemary Kneipp 12 Comments

Not everyone can choose to come to France during the warmer months. Australians in particular often come at Christmas time during their summer holidays, willing to trade over-30-degree temperatures for under ten degrees. Many hope to find snow.

Snow falls in the Loire Valley are highly variable. They rarely arrive for Christmas but there are exceptions such as in 2015. The most likely month for snow is February.

While spring, summer and autumn may be more pleasant seasons to travel in, they do have the major drawback of being full of tourists and accommodation is usually more expensive and harder to come by.

The main Loire Valley Châteaux are all open in the winter, but with shorter opening hours (usually 10 am to about 5 pm rather than 9 am to 6 pm). The wonderful thing is that you can visit without the crowds! The “four C’s” – Chenonceau, Chambord, Chaumont and Cheverny – as well as the royal castles of Blois and Amboise usually have Christmas decorations which adds to their magic. All are open on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day with the notable exception of Chambord and Chaumont.

Although you’ll need to dress warmly, you can still walk around the gardens which are designed to be attractive all year round. Villandry is closed from mid-November to mid-February with the exception of the two-week period surrounding Christmas and New Year which corresponds to the school holidays in France.

They may not have the proportions of the markets in Alsace, but the Christmas markets throughout December in Blois and Orléans (which includes a carrousel, big wheel and skating rink), those on weekdays in Tours in December and in Amboise on the 3 days leading up to Christmas are full of hand-made objects and seasonal food and drink.

Other traditional visits in the area include its many vineyards, a chocolate factory in Bracieux which also has workshops and troglodyte mushroom caves in Bourré.

Although temperatures can go below zero, especially at night, they are typically between 4 or 5 and 9 or 10° C during the day. December and January are the darkest months, which means the sun rises between 8.30 and 9 and sets between 4.30 and 5 pm. Shops and restaurants are always heated and some of the châteaux have wood fires. All are sufficiently heated for comfortable visiting.

My advice is to find warm cosy accommodation that is close to shops and restaurants and plan a visit in the morning, followed by lunch indoors next to a fire if possible, then a second visit in the afternoon. You can then warm up and relax before venturing out again for dinner.

The Loire is an easy 2 or 3-day visit from Paris. It is simplest by car (about 2 ½ hours) with convenient parking at all the main venues. However, Blois, Amboise, Tours and Orleans can be accessed by direct train and there are either trains or buses to Chambord, Chenonceau and Chaumont although the service is more restricted in winter.

See my post on visiting the Loire without a car based in Blois http://www.aussieinfrance.com/2015/10/visit-the-loire-without-a-car-based-in-blois/ and Ten Top Châteaux in the Loire Valley http://www.aussieinfrance.com/2013/04/top-ten-chateaux-in-the-loire-valley/ for further information.

And stay at Châtel Rose, my extremely comfortable self-catering studio in the oldest part of Blois, close to everything you could possibly need! http://www.loirevalleyholidayrental.com/puits-chatel-apartment/

Accommodation, Malta, Mat, Sightseeing

The Akubra Saviour

February 19, 2018 Rosemary Kneipp 11 Comments

We’ve just arrived in Malta for a week of sun and exploring. It is 1°C when we leave Blois at 5.20 am and 15°C when we arrive in Valetta at 1 pm. After checking out our rental apartment, Marina View, with its stunning view of Vittoriosa across the other side of the Marina, we have an excellent meal at the Enchanté Restaurant on the waterside.

After lunch we walk down the other side of marina and over the footbridge to Vittoriosa. It’s quite windy and my trusty Australian Akubra Traveller* hat blows off my head and into the marina. Oh no!

We watch as it makes its way down the marina, hoping it won’t sink. I see a man with a little boat who ferries people across to the other side so I go down to see if he can save my hat.

He very nicely manoeuvres under the rope with his passengers on board until he is close enough to swoop down and retrieve the hat. When he hands it up to me I tell him it’s an Australian hat. “From Sydney?”, he asks. “I’ve been to Sydney!”

The hat stands up surprisingly well to its dunking but I get sick of carrying a soppy hat after a while and strap it to the back of Jean Michel’s back pack. I won’t be wearing it near the marina again!

Accommodation, Architecture, Cycling, Italy

Cycling from Breschia to Lake Iseo

June 4, 2017 Rosemary Kneipp 6 Comments

We are on our way from Blois to Romania and Jean Michel has chosen Lake Iseo as our first stopover. We’ve booked an apartment for two nights in Cazzago San Martino 2 km from the Turin-Trieste motorway. By 5 pm, we are on our bikes and ready to begin our holiday.

The scenery is delightful as we wind our way along small country roads through the vineyards of the Francia Corta region. This is our first “real” ride with our new electrically-assisted bikes and we are more than convinced! The itinerary is graded as “easy, family” but the Italians are used to hills and bad roads I guess. I would hardly think that loose gravel, occasional main roads and quite steep descents are suitable for children. With our power bikes though, it’s a breeze!

We join the bike itinerary at Monterotondo where there is a local fête in full swing. Throughout the evening we hear a lot of music and later learn it is Italy’s national day, festa della Repubblica.

A dirt path takes us through a natural peat bog reserve and we glimpse tiny lakes surrounded by vineyards and cane fields. We meet many other cyclists and joggers.

The next village is Cremignane and we have our first view of the lake, followed by a quiet road to Clusane sul Lago. We are attracted by a lakeside restaurant called Rosmundo. It’s still early so we book for 7.30 pm which will give us time to reach the end of the itinerary at Paratico. The last 5 K are not very interesting. The bike path runs along one side of the main road.

We arrive back at the restaurant in plenty of time, ready to sample the local specialities. Jean Michel has fried fish from the lake while I have an excellent scallopina al limone. We have a carafe of frizzante and I finish off with tiramisu.

It’s 8.30 pm by now and we have a 15 K ride home. We have the bike paths to ourselves now and the light over the little lakes is lovely.

After Monterotondo, we have a a bit of trouble finding our way back to our apartment and it’s nearly dark when we get back at 9.45 pm. We’ve done a round trip of 43 K which we could never have done with our previous bikes.

Next morning, the sky is clear and blue and we set out for Breschia at 10 am. Once again we join the itinerary at Monterotondo and head in the opposite direction. The castle of Dosso rises majestically from the surrounding vineyards.

We have a cappuccino break in Paderno Franciacorta along with the locals. Jean Michel reads the Brescia Times in Italian, seated in front of a poster of the Empire State Building while drinking a cappuccino and eating a pain aux raisins. It’s 11 am and a group of men are already drinking Campari.

We pass a square with a mediaeval castle and an angel of mercy. A local comes up to talk to us (in Italian) and tells us Breschia is 13 k away. It’s getting hotter by the minute. We have trouble finding our way out of town – the bike signs are not very visible – but ask some cyclists who reassure us we are in the right direction. All we usually get is that little green squiggle on the signpost below. This is the only time we see one that shows distances.

At Rodengo-Saiano, we stop to visit San Nicola’s but it’s already closed for lunch. We will stop on the way back. The bike sign says that Breschia is 9.70 k away. In fact it is 12 K. We pass through Gussago and see a beautiful private home with stunning frescoes.

It’s the end of the Saturday market in Breschia. It’s also steaming hot and we are thirsty and hungry as it’s nearly 1.30 pm. We find a rstaurant in a shady street off Piazza Paolo VI and sit down without even looking at the menu. It turns out to be a “bistrot” with salads and pasta. It’s called Dei Notte di Calabria. We order pasta al ragù and a glass of chardonnay. Jean Michel goes into mild depression when he sees the small plate of pasta (what did he expect for 8 euro?) but I reassure him that he can order something else if he’s still hungry. We then order focaccia stuffed with steak tartare and patatine which I can’t finish but Jean Michel is looking happy again. We have a cold glass of rosato to go with it.

In the meantime, the piazza has filled up with people obviously dressed for a wedding. At first we think they are Jewish but more turn up and the Catholic church is chock-a-block by the time we visit. It’s an interesting piazza, with a round Romanesque church from the 12^th century over an 8^th century crypt, next to a 17^th century Baroque cathedral and a typical Lombardian palazzo and tower.

Next is piazza della Loggia, with its 15th century Venetian palace and monumental clock.

After visiting the vestiges of a Roman forum, it’s 3.30 pm and 34°C so we decide that the World Heritage monastery of Santa Giulia will have to wait for another time. We still have a 2-hour ride home.

This time, having finished all our water, we stop for a cold Coke at another bar in Paderno Franciacorte. We are next to a group of 4 teenage boys. It’s very amusing to listen to their antics in a language we can’t understand.

By the time we get back to our apartment after stopping on the way to buy fruit, vegetables, cheese and yoghurt for an at-home dinner, it’s 6 pm and we have clocked up 65 K. Our total riding time is 4 hours which means an average of 16 K which is pretty good going and certainly better than the 12 K we did with our other bikes.

We can highly recommend the Breschia–Paratico bike itinerary for its great variety, lovely scenery and interesting architecture. However, I would not say it’s easy riding! The instructions given by the iseolake.info website are essential if you are to find your way. Our choice of Apartamento Franciacorte in Cazzago San Martino, found on booking.com, was excellent. It was very comfortable and the owner was friendly and helpful. At 180 euro for two nights, it was very good value for money.

Accommodation, Architecture, City breaks, France

A City Break in Angoulême

February 16, 2017 Rosemary Kneipp 8 Comments

We haven’t had a break since we went to New York in September what with having to fill the coffers again after our three months’ holiday in 2016, digging the trenches for the automatic watering system and Jean Michel’s varicose vein operation but he’s now up and about again so we’ve chosen to spend two nights in Angoulême, which is 280 K south-west of Blois. Sunny weather is predicted with temperatures around 11 or 12°C during the day.

L'Embarcadère where we had lunch — L’Embarcadère in Rochecorbon

By the time we leave it’s nearly midday so we plan lunch at L’Embarcadère in the troglodyte village of Rochecorbon, not far from Vouvray. We’ve been there twice before and enjoyed it. I book a table but needn’t have bothered as there are very few people. The February “ski” holidays are in full swing which means that local tourism is down. We have a pleasant lunch with real chip potatoes, always a good way to start a little holiday.

After another couple of hours’ driving, we arrive at our apartment-hotel in Angoulême at 5.30 pm. We nearly had to give up the idea of Angoulême altogether as the local hotels were either too expensive or too “modern” with garish coulours that I could never have slept with. Angoulême is the “comic book” capital of France and a lot of the interior decor caters for the annual comic book festival held at the end of January each year.

The old abbey of which are hotel is one of the remaining buildings

In the end, we decided to try Appart’City at the bottom of the hill leading up to the old town. The building, which we later discover is an old abbey, is not very attractive, but the one-bedroom apartment, with a separate kitchen and bathroom, is excellent value for money at 70 euro a night (optional 8.50 for breakfast). It’s clean, with white walls and sober colours, the bed is comfortable, the kitchen has everything we need, even a mini dishwasher, it has a decent shower and it’s not noisy. Excellent choice.

The Charente seen as we walk up the hill to the old town

After a short rest, we take the zigzag path up to the old town, with sweeping views across the newer part of the city which has a total population of 42,000, much less than I would have imagined, but “greater Angoulême”, created in 1989, has 141,000 inhabitants. The Charente River is below us.

We wander through the old town which is surrounded by ramparts. All the streets have paving stones. We find it quite animated with many shops and bars. The comic book influence is everywhere but we are also surprisesd by the large number of beautiful old façades.

Our first glimpse of the cathedral town and dome

The sun is starting to set over Angoulême’s main monument, the Romanesque Cathedral of Saint Peter, built in the 12th century and renovated several times since then.

Saint Peter's Cathedral — Saint Peter’s Cathedral

After a glass of wine on one of the town’s many squares we walk back down to our hotel, taking the direct route this time. On the way, I am intrigued by a building which has a comic strip projected onto it, one panel at a time. Not being an adult comic fan, I don’t know who the characters are, but the result is very effective and there are several sequences.

Comic strips at night on an otherwise blank wall

We are perfectly happy with a platter of bread and cheese with a good glass of red wine in our little apartment.

The law courts with a combination of old and new — The law courts with a local producer to remind us that we are in Limousin, famous for its beef

Next day is sunny and not too cold. We walk up the hill again and have a cappuccino at the François I opposite the impressive-looking Law Courts built in 1826 in the neo-Classical style by the architect Paul Abadie who seems to have been involved in the construction or reconstruction of most of the main buildings in Angoulême.

Two of the beautiful façades in the centre of Angoulême — Two of the beautifully sculpted façades in the centre of Angoulême

We continue our walk through the city in search of the “last haberdasher’s shop” in Angoulême. This is a dying race in most towns in France these days. A little chat with the owner confirms this. She will be retiring in three years’ time. The shop belonged to her parents. She explains why the shank buttons keep coming off my jacket. It’s their concave shape, it seems, so I buy some straight ones.

Roman-tiled rooftops and the rcently built church of Sainte Aubézine — Roman-tiled rooftops and the recently built neo-gothic church of Sainte Aubézine completed in 1960

Our path takes us around the ramparts until we reach the cathedral whose dome and bell-tower we keep seeing in the distance.

Walking along the ramparts towards the cathedral. You can see the dome.

The inside is somewhat disappointing, mainly due to all the reconstructions that have taken place.

The back of the cathedral, which offers the best view — The back of the cathedral showing all the different influences

By now it’s nearly lunchtime so we wander back to Le Saint André which I reserved when we went past earlier. As n° 1 out of 176 restaurants on TripAdvisor, I thought I should. It quickly fills up. At 14.90 euro for a three-course set menu, it’s good value for money. The leek and conté cheese tart is excellent, the kefta meatballs aren’t bad and the apple and pineapple tatin tart is very good. Jean Michel has the pork mignon and moka and praliné sponge roll. He says they are simple but refined. The restaurant is obviously a favourite with the locals and the two owners explain the menu and chat with their regular patrons.

Church of Saint André after which the restaurant is named

After coffee, we walk back down the hill for an after-lunch siesta. We would like to visit the paper museum across the other side of the Charente in the afternoon. There are many old water mills and reconverted factories along the banks of the river, including the international comic book centre in a series of old wine and spirit stores.

The Paper Museum on the banks of the Charente, next to the Ecole Supérieure européenne de l'image — The Paper Museum on the banks of the Charente, next to the Ecole Supérieure européenne de l’image

Only the bottom floor of the paper museum is open. The museography is not very good and gives little idea of what was once a huge industry.

We take a different path up to the old town. Jean Michel takes me straight to a Salon de thé he noticed during our morning walk – Parfums Sucrés Daniel Hue. The cakes and tea are both good.

We finish our rampart walk in the other direction and return to our hotel from the other side as the sun sets over the city. We settle for yoghurt and salad in our apartment. We rarely eat out at night when we’re on holidays. You can have too much of a good thing!

Lower Angoulême with our Appart'City hotel in the middle — Lower Angoulême with our Appart’City hotel in the middle

Next day, it’s cold and overcast. We chose our two days well! More photos below if you’d like to have a more complete idea of Angoulême.

Another typical building in the historical part of the city

A modern façade looking up towards the old town – our hotel is on the right

Looking down at our Appart'City hotel and the Charente — Looking down at our Appart’City hotel and the Charente

Le Saint André where we had an enjoyable lunch

Joan of Arc in Angoulême Cathedral. They are all different!

The cathedral spires are on the left and xxx on the right — The cathedral spires are on the left and Notre Dame d’Obézine on the right

The church of Saint Martial in the centre of the city where we had our apéritif

Hôtel Saint Simon built in — Hôtel Saint Simon built by the Dussouchet family in 1530 to 1550

Accommodation, Blogging, Flowers & gardens, Food

Happy New Year for 2017

January 2, 2017 Rosemary Kneipp 13 Comments

And there you go – another year has just flipped by. Admittedly, we did spend a whole three months travelling – first to Australia and India in the winter, then to Italy, Austria and Germany on a cycling holiday in the summer, especially the Romantic Road, and finally New York and Boston in the autumn. As usual we are starting the year in front of the fire at Closerie Falaiseau but with below zero temperatures outside.

The iconic photo in front of the Taj Mahal

Jean Michel is halfway through installing an automatic watering system so we can create a mini-Giverny. However, everything is taking longer than it should and the cold weather has come too soon. The back garden is full of clay which makes digging trenches deep enough to stop the pipes freezing is a complicated busines. We’re hoping it will be ready to go by spring.

The current state of the garden while the watering installation is in progress.

I have just bought a studio flat in the historical quarter of Blois to rent as holiday accommodation to overseas visitors. It’s wonderfully situated and there is even access to a little garden to relax in after an exhausting day visiting the Loire Valley châteaux. Another project to keep us busy!

The view from the shared garden of the studio flat in Blois

Our travel plans this year are a week in Cyprus in the spring (any suggestions about accommodation and places to see are very welcome), our usual month’s cycling in June (the destination will depend on the weather) and hopefully a week in Istanbul in the autumn (provided things have quietened down by then and our home exchange still exists).

Giant holly bush in Molineuf during one of our walks

The world situation is not very inspiring at the present but we believe the best remedy is to remain positive and enjoy life to the fullest. We are lucky enough to live in a beautiful region that is a constant source of discovery by bike or on foot.

Crossing the Loire with our bikes to go to Chambord

On the professional front, as well as being a sworn translator for the Blois Tribunal de Grande Instance, I am now an expect sworn translator for the Orléans Court of Appeal. I’m still freelancing as a legal and technical translator full time, with another two and a half years to go before retirement. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to leave me much time to do much apart from cycling, gardening and travelling which explains why I don’t blog a lot these days.

Standing in front of the Appeal Court of Orléans before being sworn in as an expert translator

My second blog, Loire Daily Photo, gets a bit more attention because it only takes about 10 minutes a day to post a photo and a short text in French and English. It also continues to get me out and about on days when I might tend to stay inside too much.

Homemade foie gras and champagne in front of the 400-year old fireplace

We are continuing our intermittent fasting twice a week and it is very much a part of our normal routine. With our homemade foie gras on the menu every evening from Christmas to New Year, our fast days brought welcome respite! We certainly feel it helps our general state of health.

We have definitely shelved our “little house” project and have received our demolition permit. Now we just have to move every thing out of it that we have been storing since we bought Closerie Falaiseau. But the second barn needs to be fixed up first :). A lot of things will be going to the next garage sale.

In the meantime, I’d like to wish all my readers a very happy and fulfilling 2017. Thank you for following me and sharing through your comments.

Accommodation, Architecture, Cycling, France, Home exchange, Paris, Sightseeing

Discovering Canal Saint Martin in Paris

October 25, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 9 Comments

We’ve come to Paris for a long week-end to celebrate a friend’s 60^th birthday, organised by her daughter as a surprise. As usual, we’ve fitted in a few medical appointments, as there is a severe lack of specialists in Blois, and some pleasure time with friends. I have found a home exchange with an Australian/French couple like us who live in a house in the west of Paris and exchange a two-room flat near Canal Saint Martin on the 5^th floor. It’s not an area we know very well but our friends Susan and Simon from Days on the Claise always stay in this part of Paris when they come.

A tempting little restaurant on Rue des Vinaigriers

From what we can see, the area is very trendy. When we arrived last night, there were bars and restaurants open everywhere with people milling around the streets and pavements.

The spiral staircase in our apartment building

We’re in Rue des Vinaigriers just a short distance by foot from the canal so we set off to walk along it to the Bastille market where we’re going to buy oysters to take back to the flat for our traditional Sunday lunch.

We arrive just as a barge is passing through the lock at the end of our street. There is also a swing-bridge for vehicles that opens to let the barge through. We’re not the only people watching. Several locals are enjoying the scene and there is a group of seniors on a walking tour.

View of the canal from one of the humpback bridges

There are several humpback pedestrian bridges that give us a bird’s eye view of the canal.

We pass the statue of “Frédérick Lemaître, Comédien, 1800 – 1876”. The French actor and playwright was one of the most famous actors on the celebrated Boulevard du Crime, the nickname given to nearby Boulevard du Temple because of the many crime melodramas staged every night. It is notorious in Paris for having lost so many theatres during the rebuilding of Paris by Baron Haussmann in 1862.

Just one of the beautiful buildings along the canal

We have already noticed the many beautiful Haussmann buildings with their finely sculpted doors and windows that line the street along the canal.

The next statue is La Grisette de 1830, sculpted in 1909 by Jean-Bernard Desomps. In the vocabulary of the 19th century, a grisette was a young seamstress who worked in soft furnishings and fashion, a flirt and coquette who occasionally sold her charms due to poverty rather than vice, so it would seem.

Richard Lenoir promenade above the canal

After a while, the canal goes underground and becomes a planted walkway called Promenade Richard-Lenoir. One of the four squares, Jules Ferry, is named after a French politician who drafted the 3^rd Republic bills that made lay education compulsory in France. Many schools in France are called Jules Ferry.

Bouly Ceramics — The former P. Bouly ceramic manufacture

P. Bouly, Carreaux de Faïence (ceramic tiles), on the left hand side is a reminder of the many factories that once flourished in the area.

Le Bataclan concert venue — Le Bataclan concert hall

On the right is a colourfully trimmed building surrounded by a fence – Le Bataclan, sadly famous for the terrorist attacks that led to the killing of 90 people in the concert hall on Friday 13th November 2015.

As we get closer to Bastille, we see a church in the distance on the left that we’ve never noticed before. Just in front is a sort of fenced-in area with small wooden huts. A sign on the gate says “La Friche Richard-Lenoir”. (Friche means “wasteland”). When I check it out later I learn it is a pop-up bar and open-air entertainment area with refreshment stalls, games and music that appeared in Septeember this year.

The memorial plaque to Merabet — The memorial plaque to Ahmed Merabet

A sobering sign on the promenade fence has a bouquet on top: “In memory of police officer Ahmed Merabet killee here on 7 January 2015 in the line of duty, a victim of terrorism. He was shot after firing at the gunmen’s car during the Charlie Hebdo shootings during which 11 people were killed.

The Bastille market on a Sunday morning — The busy Bastille market on a Sunday morning

After more Haussmann buildings on the left and more modern constructions on the right, we come to the bustling market which is very colourful and pleasant under the trees along the promenade.

Buying oysters at the market. Jean MIchel watches as the man with the cigarette hand-picks the fattest oysters!

We find our oysters (from the same supplier as those we used to buy when we lived in the Palais Royal in the centre of Paris) and pick up some butter and baguette from two other stalls (we brought our Sancerre wine with us from Blois).

Vélib' and baguette — Vélib’ and baguette

Now for the Vélib’ city bikes. We’ve only ridden them once before but after cycling in New York City, we figure we are experts. Although Jean Michel assures me they are exactly the same bikes, I don’t find them as comfortable. They are infinitely cheaper though. As an occasional user, you pay 1.70 euro for a one-day ticket (8 euro for 7 days). The first 30 minutes are always free (you can swap your bike at a Vélib’ station every 30 minutes or pay 1 euro for every additional half hour). (More information here). Three-quarters of an hour’s cycling in NYC (with Black Cat’s City Bike subscription) cost us near 20 dollars each!

More buildings along Richard Lenoir promenade

We follow the canal back up as far as Hôpital Saint Louis. As we walk back to our flat, I try the baguette and decide it’s not very tasty so we go looking for a traditional bakery called Du pain et des idées recommended by our home exchange hosts on Rue Yves Toudic. Unfortunately it’s closed on Saturday, like many of the other shops around us, most of which were open late last night.

The highly recommended bakery on rue Yves Toudic — The highly recommended Du Pain et des Idées bakery on rue Yves Toudic

On the way we pass a building with Douches (showers) written on the front. I don’t know whether these particular ones are still in operation but there are still a half a dozen free public shower establishments scattered throughout Paris. You can find the list here. Take your own towel and soap :).

We go back to our flat, past Café Craft, a co-working space. I later learn that it caters to people without offices who need a space to work. It has fast internet, a comfortable working atmosphere and healthy food and drink and you can spend the entire day there if you want. What a great idea! Next time I’ll check it out.

But for now, we are going to climb our five flights of stairs, open our oysters and our bottle of sancerre and enjoy our favourite Sunday brunch!

Accommodation, Travelling, United States

Getting to NYC from Blois

September 25, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 4 Comments

My children, Black Cat and Leonardo, live and work in New York or NYC as they say and are keen for me to visit but I’m a little reluctant as I was not impressed on my last trip (admittedly in 1980).

The shuttle stop for the Ibis Hotel at Orly Airport

We’ve chosen to leave from Orly which is only two hours by car from Blois so we park in the Ibis Hotel’s long-term parking lot in Rungis (near Orly Airport) at 72 euro for 12 days, which isn’t bad and certainly better than taking the train and metro. We don’t need to stay at the Ibis Hotel to park there. We organize it on-line with One Park.

We arrive at the hotel car park just before 11 am and by 11.30 am we are in the departure hall of Orly Ouest. There is a big sign saying navette (shuttle) outside the Ibis hotel but we first have to get (free) bus tickets from the supercilious hostess at the desk inside the hotel.

As usual, we have bought our plane tickets through Opodo. Most of the flights between Orly and NYC go to Newark airport but Leonardo has reassured me that it’s quite convenient and Black Cat is ordering an Uber car on arrival. We’re flying economy with British Airways and the tickets were 525 euro return each.

When we get to the counter, we discover we haven’t reserved our seats and are in different rows. The somewhat flegmatic man behind the desk says he should be able to do something about it but we won’t know until we board to plane. In the end, it works out and we are able to sit together but right at the back of the aircraft where the engine noise is loudest.

Inside the aircraft - NO screens of any sort — Inside the aircraft – NO screens of any sort

The first ten rows of our 757 are “biz bed” seats, with two recliner seats on each side of the aisle that look very comfy. Our economy seats are three to a side and not very roomy. What alarms me most is that there are no video screens in sight and it’s an 8-hour flight!

After take-off, the steward comes around with his trolley and hands out iPads and earphones! What an excellent idea – not to mention a great relief!

After our usual gin & tonic, a light meal, a couple of movies, a snack I could have done without and three episodes of Friends, we arrive at Newark Airport at 4 pm. It takes a while to go through police control because our finger and thumb prints have to be checked and our photos taken. We are travelling with our French electronic passports and an “authorization” obtained on-line in lieu of an entry visa. The officer checks the address I have written on the form. “Number 255, right?” he says, without looking at me. “Yes” I reply and his head shoots up. “But you’re not French, are you?” I laugh. “No, I also have an Australian passport.” Just one word and he knows I can’t possibly be French!

First view of New York from our Uber car

Our luggage is waiting for us so I log onto the free airport wifi and text Black Cat. She orders an Uber car and tells us where to meet him. It turns out we’re on the wrong level – we need to be downstairs on departure level. We soon find our car with Black Cat’s help. She has an Uber account so we don’t even have to worry about getting dollars to pay!

She is waiting for us at the other end of our journey, having organised for us to rent a friend’s flat just near Union Square while her friend is away. It turns out to be a perfect location, just 10 minutes’ walk from her own flat-share.

Our temporary apartment building near Union Square

At 7.30 pm we meet up with Leonardo at Burger & Lobster where we each eat a whole steamed lobster, coleslaw and French fries for 20 dollars! The noise level is pretty high but the food is delicious. What a great way to begin our visit to New York City!

Accommodation, Architecture, Cycling, France, Sightseeing

Troyes – A Taste of Late Mediaeval France

August 4, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 7 Comments

We are on our way back to Blois from our cycling holiday in Germany and are looking for a stopover in France. There is nothing interesting midway but Troyes is about 3/5 of the way which is fine. We book a hotel that is a bit higher than German prices but seems to be well located.

The rood-screen in the church of Saint Madeleine as you enter the church

We have been to Troyes already several times and I particularly want to go back to see the rood screen in one of the churches, after seeing one recently in Tübingen in Germany. Much of the city’s architecture also corresponds to more or less the same period of history that dominates the towns in Germany that we have just visited.

The parking lot in front of Conforama with our hotel on the right (white building)

I’m a little nonplussed when I see the hotel, which is a Kyriad, a chain we have never used before. It’s three stars so I figured it would be like a Mercure. It looks very modern and ugly. Still, we only want a bed. It’s next to Conforama, a furniture chain. There is a bike path just in front of the hotel so we can’t even pull up there. Jean Michel waits in the Conforama parking lot while I go in. The girl at reception is friendly enough but does not seem to have learned to rules of polite conversation. “Do you want a bill or what?” she asks the person before me in French.

There is an extra charge for underground parking which I didn’t see on booking.com. The receptionist tells me we can park for free at Conforama which has cameras operating all night so I choose that. When we get up to the room, I decide I am striking Kyriad off my list forever. It is just too ugly and shoddy.

Some beautifully renovated half-timber houses in Troyes

After resting from the 5-hour drive, we walk into the old town, which really is only 10 minutes away. The first thing we see is a set of beautifully renovated half-timbered houses that we don’t remember seeing before. Troyes, with its rich history, has a large number of 16th and 17th century Renaissance-style half-timbered houses that have gradually been restored since the 1990s, especially in rue Passerat.

Next, the cathedral, which I certainly don’t remember.

The main square at 5 pm on a Saturday in summer

I do remember the main square, Place Maréchal Foch, but it was not this animated on our previous visits. We don’t think we’ve ever been here during the summer. Everybody looks are though they are enjoying themselves.

Saint Madeleine's from the outside — Saint Madeleine’s from the outside

We head down the main street which is full of restaurants until we find Ruelle aux Chats on the right, which leads to Saint Madeleine’s church which has the rood-screen. The nave of this gothic church, which claims to be the oldest in Troyes, was built in the 13^th century, while the chancel and apse were built in the 16^th century and the tower in the 17^th century. It is one of the rare churches to have preserved its Renaissance stone rood-screen finely sculpted by Jehan Gailde.

The rood-screen from the back — The rood-screen from the chancel

It is as magnificent as I remember. There is only one person in the church so we are able to take plenty of photos.

The painted wood calvary in Saint Madeleine church probably dates from the mid 16th century

I particularly like the gold-painted calvary on one side of the rood-screen.

Stained glass window in the church of Saint Madeleine — Early 16th century stained glass window in the church of Saint Madeleine

The ambulatory has a magnificent set of beautifully-coloured stained glass windows from the same period (around 1500) that show considerable technical skill.

The view from the terrace of the restaurant — The view of Saint John’s church from the terrace of the restaurant taken earlier

After visiting the church we join the throng on the main square for an aperitif. We then have dinner in a street parallel to the main restaurant street. What I didn’t see is that our restaurant has a terrace on the other side which means that there are a lot of customers and obviously not enough kitchen staff! Our meal takes a very long time to come. But it doesn’t matter – we’re not in a hurry.

Saint Rémi, rebuilt in the 14th century is thought to be one of the oldest churches in Troyes, despite its more modern look. The fresco was painted in 1772.

Next morning, after a good night’s sleep (at least the beds are comfortable), we leave our ugly hotel (the man on reception has more personal skills than the girl yesterday) and walk into the centre for breakfast as neither of us wants to have it at the hotel.

The main square on a Sunday morning with not a soul in sight

Visiting Troyes on a Sunday morning is a different experience. There is practically no one around and I am able to take more photographs. It’s even quite difficult to find somewhere for breakfast.

Half-timbered houses on the other side of the square from Saint John's — Half-timbered houses on the other side of the square from Saint John’s

We go past the church of Saint Jean in front of which there is plaque dedicated to Marguerite Boureoys, the founder of public schooling in Montreal and “apostle of French culture in Canada” born on 17 April 1620 in one of the nearby houses and baptized the same day in the church. She died in Quebec in 1700, was beatified in 1950 and canonized in 1982 as the first female saint of Canada. If you would like to know more about her very interesting life, click here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marguerite_Bourgeoys

Troyes City Hall built during the second half of the 17th century

We finally have breakfast looking out onto the main square, with the Town Hall on the left and some of Troyes’ colourful old half-timbered houses on the left.

Our breakfast view of typical painted half-timbered houses in Troyes

Our return to the car takes us past the Haute-Seine canal next to the 27-km long 3-meter wide asphalt bike path joining up nine of the surrounding villages. It’s part of a route that will eventually take cyclists to Paris. We regret that we didn’t try it out the previous day.

We discover the very attractive fountain in front of the Préfecture (Troyes is the “capital” of the Aube département, one of France’s 96 administrative divisions).

Oh, and I nearly forgot to say that the old town of Troyes, which is part of the Champagne region, is in the shape of a champagne cork!

Troyes, once a thriving drapery centre, is also known for its outlet stores – McArthur Glen, Marques Avenue and Marques City http://www.troyesmagusine.com/ – which we visited many times in the past until they were developed in the Paris region. However, now that we no longer live in Paris and Jean Michel is retired, our vestimentary requirements have changed and we do our clothes shopping during the sales in nearby Tours.

This post is my August contribution to Lou Messugo’s All About France link-up. For other posts about France, click here.

Accommodation, Cycling, Dieting, Germany

Cycling along the Neckar in Germany #2 – Horb – Rottenburg – Türbingen – Bebenhausen

July 25, 2016 Rosemary Kneipp 14 Comments

We seem to have scored with our hotel at last. It is well-located, right on the bike path, the room is spacious with a sofa, two chairs and a desk, the bed is comfortable (and there is even a double bed unlike most accommodation in Germany where two single beds are usually pushed together), it has black-out curtains, the floor doesn’t creak, the shower doesn’t have water spiking out every which way, it has real towels, the breakfast is excellent and the staff is friendly and accommodating. It’s called Martinshof in Rottenburg am Neckar and I can recommend it! We are staying four nights.

The Martinshof Hotel in Rottenburg am Neckar

The little town of Rottenburg am Neckar has a marktplatz with several historical buildings and a path along the Neckar where we go to have our picnic dinner each evening as we don’t have a terrace. The light is perfect the first time we go there and I manage to take several stunning photos. It also has one of the best ice-cream parlours we’ve been to in Germany. The dark chocolate is to die for.

The weather prediction for the three days we are staying here is warm and sunny, even very hot the first day. We make the effort to get up early (8 am) and are on our way by 9.30.

The Neckartal-Radweg path takes us through pretty countryside and is mostly flat. We look for a café in the first village, Obernau, to no avail, so push on to Bieringen which has a seemingly non-descript bakery/open air café that is obviously known for miles around as people keep pulling up in their cars and dashing in to pick up boxes and packets.

We enjoy our cappuccino but aren’t hungry enough for cake. By now it must be about 28°C.

A golf course literally in the middle of nowhare — A golf course literally in the middle of nowhere

To our immense surprise, we go past a golf course. You’d wonder where the people come from. It’s getting hotter and hotter and we are positively sweltering by the time we reach Eutingen Im Gäu. From then on, we spend most of our time going up and down hills. When we see the motorway bridge above us, we’re not surprised.

Fortunately, we then go through a wooded area or we may not have survived! We keep stopping to drink water which we keep chilled with our Aussie stubbie coolers.

Our destination, Horb, is not exactly what we expected. First, it is on top of a VERY HIGH HILL which we walk up, of course. At the top, we see the painted rathaus and church but no restaurants so we go back down the hill.

I suggest we ride along the river in the opposite direction to see what we can find. Jean Michel is very dubious but I insist. Suddenly we come across an outdoor Italian restaurant under shady trees. It has a very basic menu but we don’t care.

There is a high school just behind and the students are all cooling themselves off in the river a hundred metres on. We order wiener schnitzel to be on the safe side with French fries and they are excellent. Jean Michel tells me everyone is calling them “pommice”. We later learn it is the German pronunciation of pommes short for pommes frites, which means French fries in French. I feel sorry for the Italian mamma who’s cooking today. We are reasonably cool in the shade.

I am dreading the ride back because of all those hills but in fact, they are not so steep in this direction. After an hour, though, I am happy to stretch out on a conveniently located wooden bench to recuperate.

We call in again at the bakery in Bieringen. By now it is 32°C in the shade and we need to cool off again. Business continues to be brisk but we still don’t feel like eating cream cakes and my dictionary does not tell me what holzofen brot is.

All we want when we get back after cycling 55 km in 4 hours is a cold shower. Our room does not have air-conditioning but we cool off along the river with an ice-cream. On the way home, we hear an impromptu concert in one of the squares.

It’s next morning and an intermittent fast day. Fortunately, it isn’t as hot and the temperature is only expected to get to 28°C. We shall have to drink a lot of water though.

The beautifully painted rathaus in Tübingen – unfortunately it’s delivery time

We pack our picnic lunch and set out at 9.30 am. Initially, the route is not very exciting, but at least it’s flat. Tübingen, our main destination, is only 12 km away. Since it was not bombed during World War II, most of the houses are very old, many are half-timbered and some are painted.

The rathaus with its oriel window is particularly attractive.

We have an espresso next to a little canal to the accompaniment of live music from Budapest and watch two enormous trucks try to get past each other.

After visiting the main sights in the upper part of the town, we cycle down to the tourist office just next to the Neckar Bridge. Tübingen has a population of 66,000 people, one third of whom are university students. They seem to be everywhere!

We see gondola-like boats on the river which apparently are the local tourist attraction.

A biergarten along the Neckar. What a pity it's an intermittent fast day! — A biergarten along the Neckar. What a pity it’s an intermittent fast day!

As we haven’t determined where we are going next, I ask the man in the tourist office to suggest something to visit within a radius of 10 km. He gives me a brochure on Bebenhausen monastery and castle which is 6 km out of town.

On the way, we come across a little café on the bike path and have an espresso. Dark rain clouds are threatening and I haven’t packed our rain capes. In the little wood just after the café, there are definite signs that a shower that has already taken place. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

One of the houses in the village of Bebenhausen

When we reach Bebenhausen, we are enchanted. I don’t understand why the brochure only shows the rather drab inside of the castle and church when the village itself is so pretty.

Although it is not teeming with tourists we are not on our own. There are two groups of schoolchildren and two groups of adults which makes it difficult to take photographs!

We stop off at Tübigen on the way back to visit the cathedral because it has a flamboyant gothic jubé. There are some interesting wooden statues at the end of some of the pews.

We’re back at our hotel by 4 pm, having cycled 42 km in 3 hours 20 minutes in near-perfect weather.

Traditional music in Rottenburg am Neckar

We have dinner along the river as usual, but no ice-cream because it’s an intermittent fast day. As we reach the marktplatz we can hear music. We’ve arrived at the tail end of some sort of organised event but it’s good to know that our little town is so active.

Aussie in France