Rhine River tour October 2018.
We booked our Rhine River tour with Gate 1 Travel. We had used them before when we went to Peru in 2017 and they were very good so we were happy to go with them again.
We flew out of Sydney bound for Paris via Doha on Qatar Airlines. The plane for the Sydney Doha was comfortable and the 14 hours only felt like 14 hours. The leg room was adequate, the food OK and the entertainment very good. A 2 hour layer over in Doha and then on to Paris. The 8 hour flight felt like 14 hours. Less leg room, food very average and entertainment novelty waning. Got into CDG Paris at about 6.30am and surprisingly went through customs and baggage collection within about half an hour. Great time of day to fly into Paris apparently!
Then onto the subway/train into Paris central. That took about 1 hour. Changed trains at Gare de Nore and then onto Galienni station. Our accommodation was at the top of the stairs at Gallieni. It was called Hotel Reseda and is something like an Ibis Budget. Basic but comfortable. We then let Greg and Kristine Horan know we were in town and arranged to meet up at Republique metro station at about 11.00am. Greg met us there, we then onto St Michele where we met up with Krissy and Catherine. We booked on to a free walking tour at 2.00pm with an English speaking guide (from Kiwiland) This started with Notre Dame Cathedral (all good tours start there apparently) also il de cite and both banks of the Seine which included and outside view of many sites including The Louvre. So must history in such a confined area. We needed some sleep so then back to Reseda and we didn’t feel like a sit down meal so it was a quick French Kebab (exactly the same as a Lebanese one although they also make something called a Taco that is nothing like a Mexican Taco, more like a kebab with chips and wrap)
Friday 12th October – in the Bagnolet area where we stayed, they have some small fresh fruit and vegetables and this stall that was selling fresh fish out in the open sun. Café’s didn’t open early and when they did (at say 9.00am) they only wanted to serve coffee.
The local little supermarket opened at 10.00am! We met the Horans at about 11.00am and first stop was The Musee D’orsay – a marvellous exhibition of sculpture and art. Too much to take in in one veiwing.
We went through the Picasso Exhibition. Spent about 2 hours meandering thru Musee D’Orsay but got cultural overload. Need another visit at another time.
Had a light lunch and toddled of to the Eiffel Tower. We didn’t go up.
It’s somewhat uninspiring during daylight. Walked the Champs Elysees which is obviously the place to be seen when in Paris. It was well populated.
That evening our next adventure was the evening Seine River boat cruise. The Eiffel Tower much more impressive at night.
The cruise was nice and peaceful with all the boats and barges along the banks well-lit as well as all the well-known sights. It was late when we got back to Bagnolet and the hotel.
Saturday 13th October – took the train to Versailles. We didn’t go through the palace we decided to take in the local markets. Bought some Charcuterie style items for our lunch which we had in the park. Tasted some marvelous oysters from the local providore. Tried to buy a bottle of bubbles to have with lunch but lack of glasses made it difficult. Walked the back streets and markets in Versailles then back to Paris on the train. (we will go into the Palace on our next trip to Paris)
That evening we did a walking tour of Montmartre. It was great history. The tour started at the bottom of the hill and meandered past local attractions. There were LOTS of people.
The Sacré Cœur (Basilica of the Sacred Heart) was having celebrations that evening and we were fairly sure 75% of Paris locals were there.
The Basilica of the Sacré Cœur is located at the summit of the hill of Montmartre, on the right bank of the Seine.
To reach the Basilica one must climb 270 steps, from the top of which there is a magnificent panoramic view of Paris including Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, the Pantheon, the Opera house, Montparnasse Tower and the Pompidou Centre. On this spot, at the beginning of the 3rd century, the first Christians of Paris with their bishop Saint Denis, the priest Saint Rusticus and the deacon Saint Eleutherius were martyred, giving the hill its name “Mount of Martyrs”.
At one stage in the madding crowd, we lost sight of Greg, Kris and Catherine. Eventually got back together and decided to have a better look at Sacre Coeur another day. We fought our way to the nearest Metro station, got on a train that was filled like sardines and made our way back to our respective accommodation.
Sunday 14th October – all 5 of us boarded the very fast train from Gare De l’est to Reims. Less than an hour trip. My attempt to pronounce Reims is like this; Hrance with your best French nasal accent…..
We had a short walk from the station to our hotel (as did Greg and Kris) We were a 10 minute walk from the city. A short walk around. A glass of bubbles and a local beer to get into the Reims spirit (Reims is the capital of the Champagne region) Made some plans for the next couple of days.
Monday 15th October – Met up with our partners in crime. Unfortunately our cultural walk around Reims didn’t take into account it was a Monday and lots of tourist things were closed. Of course we did see another Notre dame Cathedral, The fine Art Gallery and walked to The Basilica. There was a funeral happening at the Basilica so we didn’t intrude (Allan was happy). We then decided to do a tour of Taittinger Champagne House.
Very interesting and informative on the making of Champagne (especially how they remove the sediment after fermenting in the bottle) the caves, the history and the product were very impressive.
Tuesday 16th October – Krissy had booked on line thru Air BnB a half day private Champagne Tour of vineyards and cooperative with Marie Senellart https://www.champagnemariesenellart.fr/
We were collected at the Railway station by Sophie and driven into the Reims countryside to the site of Mont Saint Lie to look at the vines, how they are planted and tended and how they cater to the whims of nature.
Sophie is one the new generation of wine maker who looks toward sustainable viticulture with a more environmentally friendly farming approach. Limitation of treatments, practice of total grassing (ie under row and in row) to promote biodiversity and to fight against artificialisation of the soil.
We learnt to tell the difference between Pinot Noir, Pinot Meuniere and Chardonnay by looking at the leaves. She showed us how to tie the vine to the horizontal and allowed us to have a go. She then took us to a private visit to the Cooperative she and over 150 other growers use to produce their wines.
The Winegrowers Producers’ cooperative is attached to the slopes of a harmonious slope of the Montagne de Reims, located on the Route Touristique du Champagne, between Reims and Epernay.
Composed of different slopes, its vineyard, classified Premier Cru extends over forty municipalities, Villedommange representing the majority of the grapes delivered to the harvest.
The three grape varieties are represented, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The vines are worked with care and respect by the members who deliver healthy and mature grapes.
The Wine Producers’ Society is administered by a 14-member council, elected by the General Assembly of Cooperating Associates. Directors are appointed for three years and renewable by one third each year.
The cooperative has 156 harvesters; it cultivates its particularism in its mode of operation very atypical.
The administrative management, the service to the members, the elaboration of the wines, the maintenance and the cleaning of the premises are ensured by the whole of the members of the Board of directors and the members, as well as a secretary.
After the harvest, each member participates in the cleaning of the cooperative. On the occasion of the draw, each handler participates again for the bottling.
At the end of the tour Marie, being the perfect host, gave us a tasting of her Brut Reserve, Champagne Rose Sec and Cuvee Isid’or.
Wednesday 17th October. –did a short walking tour of Reims backstreets. Found a memorial garden about the size of a tennis court that was dedicated to the heroes of Reims who sacrificed themselves and were victims of the Nazi’s. Back to check out of the hotel and catch the train to Dijon. Turns out the first part of the trip was by coach to St Dizier then by train to Dijon. It was a great trip. The coach went via the quaint countryside towns and farms/fields. The train from St Dizier to Dijon was tremendous. Good modern carriages, very clean and toilets that worked well. Arrived on time in Dijon and found our Air BnB host Vincent waiting there to take us to his place.
The accommodation was everything we could have hoped for. Modern well equipped apartment with excellent facilities. Even a pod coffee maker. After settling in we did as well always do – went for a stroll around the neighbourhood and back to the train station where be bought tickets from a machine for our trip from Dijon to Basel in 3 days’ time. On our way back to the apartment we called in and bought provisions from the market for the next few days.
Thursday 18th October – Had a cultural day in Dijon.
Getting a feel for the place and the people. We seem to be attracted to museums and art galleries no matter where we go. Dijon was no different. The Musee des Beaux arts was brilliant. Wonderful artworks and sculpture and the history of the Ducs de Bourgogne. Musee Rude (Francis Rude the Sculpture) was interesting.
Had lunch sitting in front of Palais de Bourgogne. The architecture shows off the village lifestyle – very quaint. Wendy also visited another Notre Dame Cathedral.
Allan window shopped. Went back for a nano nap then reconnoitred the neighbourhood looking for a Café for the next night’s dinner.
Friday 19th October – We booked on line the night before, a ½ day wine tour. Dijon is in the heart of the Bourgogne Region in south east France. They produce about 6% of Frances wines (around 183 million bottles each year. The wines of Bourgogne are 50% Chardonnay, 41% Pinot Noir, 3% Aligote with Gamay and Sauvignon making up the rest. We had a small group of 8. Four yanks and a young Australian couple. We were picked up near the middle of town by Stephen who turned out to be a very knowledgeable and likeable guide. We visited two places for tastings and education. The first at Fixin (pron fishin) was in a cellar in the heart of the little town. It was a place where local wine makers could put their wines for display and sale and the owner of the cellar took a percentage of sales. We tasted one which was Chablis and the rest were Pinot Noir. Good quality wines at inflated prices.
We then travelled on to Gevrey-Chambertin which is a commune in the Côte-d’Or department of France in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It is 15 km South of Dijon. This touristy, winemaking village is situated on the Route des Grands Crus in the Côte de Nuits. The wine tasting was in a cellar that was all timber and very rustic. The wines were first class and again very expensive. The cheapest being about $50AUD bottle. Back to Dijon on the mini bus. Stephens poor attempt at humour was highlighted when he kept referring to Frances Killer French Cuisine. He kept expounding the virtues of this cuisine and was chuffed when he showed it to us as we drove past KFC. It was a morning well spent. Afternoon nap and then off to what turned out to be a very pleasurable meal at La Brasserie du Marais where Allan had Beef Bourgogne and we shared something new to us – Eoufs en Murette (poached eggs in red wine).
Wendy struck up aninstant friendship with the 2 owners.
Saturday 20th October 2018 – Caught the fast train from Dijon to Basel (Switz). 290-300kph. only took 1.25m. Taxi to Pullman in centre of town and then out walking. When you book into a Hotel in Basel, everyone receives free Public Transport for the duration of their stay. It’s a Saturday afternoon so everything is buzzing in Basel. We looked for Roger!
Switzerland is an expensive country. Your normal coffee which should cost about $4aud actually cost about $9aud and the rest of the economy followed. Had some supermarket food that night and slept well.
Sunday 21st October – SWITZERLAND IS CLOSED. We decided to look for a local café or eatery for breakfast as opposed to paying $38aud each for breakfast in the hotel. Nothing was open. We found a small shop who sold exorbitantly expensive snacks and bland black coffee – that was it. We then decided to use our free pass on the public transport and did some local sightseeing. Basel is certainly a lovely place. At lunch time we checked out of the Pullman and caught the tram to the Radisson Blu Hotel where Gate 1 had booked us in for the night.
The Rhine River was also closed. Our boat was stuck at Koblenz Germany and we had to make our way there by road. But we met Gate1 Travel people at the motel and had an excellent lunch and got allocated a room for the night. The afternoon was free so we again used the free LIGHT RAIL that is on offer in Basel and had a lovely afternoon taking in the sights. That night had dinner at the Hotel. 146 people sitting in a large dining room. Under the circumstances the caterers did very well.
Monday 22nd October – We were loaded onto four bus loads to go to Breisach on the Rhine (Germany) A local guide took us on a walking tour. Unfortunately she wasn’t a very good guide. Apparently she didn’t take us on the whole tour and seemed disinterested in her job. Lunch was at our discretion (they gave us 15E each for this. This was adequate.) We had a very large Schnitzel and salad each. We then then went back to the coach to head toward Titisee. This is a very touristy area of the Black Forrest. There were plenty of places trying to sell something called Black Forrest Cake – but we resisted.
Lake Tittasee – view from our room – Black Forest in the background.
Our motel in Titisee see was excellent. From the loo you can look out over Lake Titisee and up into the Black Forrest. We did the usual walk around the town looking at the local attractions and tourist haunts. Of course the main item for sale was Cuckoo Clocks. Wendy wasted about 15 minutes of the precious time of one of the store owners who thought he was going to make a $1000 sale, only to be disappointed when she walked away wondering what might have been. Allan bought a black Stetson type Hat to replace the one he bought in Paris but somehow lost in Dijon. The latter was a far better quality and far better fitting and appropriately priced.
Dinner that night was nice and met some interesting Yanks. Also met a couple of Aussies but they turned out to be ‘not our cup of tea’.
Tuesday 23rd October – left Titisee and travelled to Strasbourg. Toured with a local guide. First by bus then a walking tour of Petit France. Fascinating the colours of the houses dependant on your profession. All the provedore/cellaring was done on the top of the house to prevent moisture in the goods. Our guide was good but she was an Italian, speaking English doing a guided tour of Strasbourg! A couple of hours free time to look at the local sites and have lunch. Found another Notre dame Cathedral. Back to the bus and onto to Koblenz and the first night in ‘our’ boat. The Monarch Queen. Hooray. A welcome drink and a few speeches. Dinner and bed.
Wednesday 24rd October – 7.00am and Wendy decided to do a stretching class (Yoga) which she thought would be ½ an hour but turned out to be a full hour. Good quality food on board The Monarch Queen. Had breakfast and onto a coach for a ½ day trip/tour of Bonn. This tour was not originally on our itinerary but due to the low water and a need to compensate and fill in time, we were given a free tour of Bonn.
Bonn is the birthplace of Beethoven and of course much is made of this fact for us tourists. The main square in Bonn is your typical cobblestone pavements and the tourist activity was full on. There are numerous brass bricks with the names of books that were burnt by the Nazis. The old part of the town is very quaint and picturesque. Very German.
Coach back to Koblenz for an afternoon off. Had a good walk around the shopping areas and the backstreets.
hat night there was dinner and then a free night on the house and a Karaoke night with a young guide called Amin. He was very good although he wasn’t able to get much crowd involvement. Something strange happened that evening. Wendy called it a night at about 10.00pm but Allan stayed back with Charles, Peter and Irena to talk some more and enjoy the party atmosphere. Allan got on the dance floor and tried to act 30 years younger.
Had a good time and made it to bed at about 11.00pm. Several days later, when he put on the pants he wore that night, he found $16Us in his pocket. To this day it is unexplained. US$ is not used. Euro is basically the only currency. Maybe Charles, Peter or Irena put it there although none of them would admit to it. Peter was the most honest; he said I wasn’t worth $16US anyway.
Allan’s hat made it around the boys that night.
Thursday 25th October – Wendy woossed out on the Yoga class. We joined the walking tour of Koblenz. One point of interest was where the river side that had been flooded out so many times the insurance companies refused to insure them so they engineered a raised barricade system to protect.
Koblenz hosts quite a few monuments but none grander than Kaiser Wilhelm on horseback which is on the point where the Rhine and Moselle Rivers join.
After lunch we were coached from Koblenz to Boppard where we treated to a 3 ½ hour river cruise on a boat that had a shallow draft and we were able pass numerous castles and Rhine river features.
Friday 26th October 2018 we were coached to Cologne for a walking tour of about 2 hours. The local guide was very good. He had a great sense of humour and made it very informative. The Cologne Cathedral is apparently 650 years old. Didn’t look a day over 600. ABC. After the tour we visited the Romanisch-Germanisches Museum Ruins that were found when they were digging a bomb shelter. Back to Koblenz and a night on the boat.
Saturday 27th October, we left the Monarch Queen and Koblenz by coach bound for Amsterdam. It was a leisurely trip. The local guides took us on a mini tour of Amsterdam with the obligatory stop at a windmill. Felt sorry for the people who actually live in the windmills – having tourists gawk at their home every day. There are very few operational wind mills in Holland.
After the coach tour we went into town for the obligatory boat tour on the canals.
It was very good and interesting. The guide very informative. Very relaxing on the boat for a couple of hours. Then onto the Hotel for the evening. We decided we needed to go for a walk in the evening before dinner so we went outside, turned right and walked for about 10 before we found some street life. Plenty of bars and Café’s open. Stopped in one bar for medicinal purposes. Only had boutique craft beer….didn’t like it much.
Sunday 28th October – early start, we were then coached to Brussels. Again met by the local guides for short city tour by bus then a walking tour in the old part of the city. All very interesting but we were nearly touristed out by this time. We left the touring party early and wandered around by ourselves and had lunch. Back on the coach and headed for Brugges. Our Hotel was in the old part of town and we walked to the Church of Our Lady (Museum) which houses Michelangelo’s Madonna and Child statue. Like Brussels, lots of chocolate shops. The town square was very quaint, at this stage it hadn’t been painted and gilded in gold paint. Went to a lace shop and bought a small piece of Belgium lace – not sure it was handmade but at least it was from Belgium. Dinner that night in and it was nice to be able to order your own dinner. Our dining companions were Peter and Elena along with Charles and Lyn.. The interesting part was what the Belgian people call salad. In Oz a salad consists of probably 4 or five different salad vegetables. Not in Brugges – it was a bowl of lettuce. Non the less we enjoyed the meal and the company.
Monday 29th October. – up early for our coach trip from Brugges to Paris. Uneventful trip except for the traffic. Arrived Parris Marriot Hotel in Haussman Boulevarde In the Opera district. Booked in and went for a walk as we always do. That afternoon did grandkid shopping and just generally took in the opera district. Found an Indian Restaurant for dinner (sick of European food and needed a change so we went back to our favourite cuisine)
Its impossible to have a cup of coffee outside a café in Paris without being suffocated by cigarette smoke. For a supposedly progressive culture, the French are a long way behind in their consideration of others. They don’t care when or where they smoke and it seemed like 2 of 5 smoked.
Tuesday 30th October – decided we needed to see some French history and went to the Armu Musee instead of the bus tour organised by Gate 1. Turned out to be a great move. The Musee was fascinating. All eras of the French wars and their armaments and clothing. The tomb of Napoleon etc. Had a late lunch and did some more walking the opera district. That night we met up with Charles, Lyn Peter and Elena in the ground floor reception room with a bottle of Marie Sellenart Rose Brut we had been carrying with us since Reims waiting for a special occasion.
It was a special little gathering to say goodbye to special people we were lucky enough to meet.
Champagne in plastic glasses – wonderful.
Wednesday 31st October – lots of time to ourselves today before we fly out of CDG at 9.45pm. Se we tramped the beat of Galleries LaFayette. It was in the epicurean section we found some tasty morsels of which we couldn’t afford. The smoked salmon was $285E per kilo or about $450AUD.
Lots more walking and just taking in the ‘feeling’ of Paris. Caught the bus to the airport at about 3.00pm. It was disappointing when after waiting for so long at the terminal, after going through the check in etc we found there was only 2 places to eat. Both serving crap fast food. Unlike Sydney where it is a veritable smorgasbord of choice of food. Flew home without incident. Decided another trip to Paris would be worthwhile for the cultural aspects but that’s about it. We really liked the French country side and the smaller places like Reims and Dijon and would like to spend some more time visiting the more rural places. Brugges was the pick of the other places visited. Will go back for another look one day.
Goodmans Travels 