France

  • France

    The French Riviera

    May 12, 2016 - By 

    Funny how this region sees on average 300 days of sunshine per year, because we saw plenty of clouds and rain during our visit.  But even with the less than stellar weather, even with my California-spoiled eyes, and even with my unfavorable opinion of beach resorts and glamor, I still found this place to be too beautiful for words. The Côte d’Azur (or French Riviera in English) has attracted celebrities and the filthy rich for quite some time now, making it a tourist magnet.  Private yachts larger than military ships proudly bob in the marinas, grandmothers dressed like teenagers confidently strut…

  • France

    Les Calanques

    May 10, 2016 - By 

    Just before reaching the notorious French Riviera, we spent time hiking in one of France’s relatively new national parks, Les Calanques.  According to Wikipedia, a calanque is a narrow, steep-walled inlet found along the Meditteranean coast.  Five calanques make up this national park between the port city of Marseille and the resort town of Cassis, and the beaches at the end of each calanque were pristine and breathtakingly beautiful.  It is said to avoid weekends in order to escape the worst of the crowds, so we thought arriving on a Thursday would be fine. Ha. Little did we know that…

  • France

    Nimes

    May 9, 2016 - By 

    Nimes and its surrounding area has some of the best-preserved Roman sites in the world, including an arena, a temple, and a spectacular aqueduct. Due to its convenient location between Spain and The French Riviera, we made the detour to view these stunning yet seldom visited sites.  At the time of writing, the arena is awaiting UNSECO site status; I do wonder if the ruins will be tainted by tourists in the future. It is not recommended at all to drive into the city center.  We parked in one of the many giant parking lots not far from the arena, and took…

  • France

    Carcassonne

    May 8, 2016 - By 

    The medieval, walled city of Carcassonne is exactly what comes to mind when you think of classic fairytales.  With its crenellations, cone-shaped roof tops, and spiky turrets, Carcassonne poses dramatically for the classic panoramic shot from a distance.  Films have been shot in this fortified city, and even a popular board game bases itself in the setting of Carcassonne.  However, everyone knows about Carcassonne.  Reviewers and guidebooks warn that Carcassonne can be a tourist hell, as it attracts an annual 4+ million visitors!  I stressed over whether or not we should see Carcassonne on our way from Barcelona to The…

  • France

    Bordeaux

    April 3, 2016 - By 

    Contrary to many people may think, I lack cultural and geographical knowledge of most parts of the world.  “You’ve never heard of Bordeaux?” Chris asked me.  Nope.  Perhaps that was why I enjoyed Bordeaux and its surroundings. Unlike Paris, this large city did not reek of tourists and ridiculously long lines. Instead it was simply a beautiful and enjoyable city that had all the pleasures of France: quaint cobblestone streets, lovely bakeries and patisseries, and well-preserved architecture.  In addition there were an abundance of young adults from the University of Bordeaux (one of the largest campuses in Europe), and no end to fancy restaurants as…

  • France

    Tours

    April 1, 2016 - By 

    Rugged and striking Brittany might have dampened our quick stop in Tours, the staging area for the Loire Valley. This countryside valley was once the region where princes, dukes, and nobles erected chateau after chateau as their getaways, and as a result, there are now far too many chateaus to see within a single visit. Within the city of Tours, there appeared to be a strong white wine making industry, as seen by the number of signs for wine cellars and tastings along the roads. In fact, we even ended up spending a night for free on the property of a…

  • France

    Brittany

    March 31, 2016 - By 

    “You have to make it to Brittany,” a friend told me. Even my relatives in Lille highly recommended it. So I did a little reading and off we went to the Atlantic coast! And to our convenience, the highlights of Brittany happened to be not far from Lower Normandy. We toured a cluster of beautiful towns within the same area: the fortified town of Saint Malo, the fishing village of Cancale, and the medieval town of Dinan. Little did we know that we would end up being completely enamored by this northwestern region of France. Of the three, we spent…

  • France

    Normandy

    March 26, 2016 - By 

    I remember watching Saving Private Ryan when I was a 13-year-old kid, unaware of the significance and meaning of D-Day, June 6, 1944, on the German-occupied French shores. I also never imagined that I would ever visit that same cemetery in the opening scene of the film. More than double my lifetime later, I found myself sauntering along the once blood-stained beaches and gazing over the largest American cemetery in Europe with a better understanding of why thousands of young American 20-somethings sacrificed their lives for freedom. Last month when we traveled around Germany, we visited the Tower of Terror in…

  • France

    Paris, The Overrated City

    March 25, 2016 - By 

    I don’t know, maybe everyone hyped it up too much for me. Maybe my expectations were too high. Maybe spending time in Prague, Munich, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, and London in the past 1.5 months prior to arriving to Paris spoiled the splendor of European cities for me. Whatever the case, I know I’ve already upset plenty of people by saying it, but I’ll say it again: Paris is an overrated city. Everyone raves about Paris, presenting it as a unique city incomparable to any other city in the world. However, it is comparable to other major cities such as Copenhagen or London,…

  • France

    Lille

    March 25, 2016 - By 

    With the city of Lille’s proximity to the Belgian border, I wouldn’t be surprised if the locals of Lille had a closer connection to Belgium than France. Either way, the stereotypical scenes of charming France awaited us for our first day to the country: numerous aromatic patisseries and boulangeres lined the cobblestone streets, boutique chocolate and macaron shops continuously beckoned us to its storefronts, and the lack of English speaking patrons and shopkeepers left me dependent on Chris’ smidgen of the French language. Lille’s lovely town square: Adorable shops with plenty of French delicacies proudly displayed in windows: The best…