Saturday, April 13th, 2019

I got up early today and headed to the train station for a train to St. Emilion. I had booked a half day electric bicycle tour. Ended up being a lot of fun. Basically rode through the vineyards to a chateau where we had a tour and then a picnic lunch. From there we rode back to St. Emilion and then did some more tasting and had a quick tour of the village. After a bus and train ride home, it turned out that protests were going on so all transit was stopped. Did some serious walking, and came upon the protests, which I avoided but it didn’t seem like they were particularly out of control. Anyway here are pictures from the tour:

Main square in St.Emilion.

Friday, April 12th, 2019

Today’s first project was to pack up and change apartments. LM had met me in San Sebastián on the tail end of a long trip to Spain, came up to Bordeaux and then took off to Venice today. Not without a certain drama, as her cellphone was lifted from her pocket last night and the case had some credit cards in it, so she had to scramble to get things cancelled. Luckily she got it done, and we got her to a cell phone store where she picked up a new SIM and a new iphone on the way to the airport, and she was back in business. The apartment we had through AirBnb was funky but cool 2 bedroom, I’ve now moved to another AirBnb place closer to the center, studio of the plain executive apartment type, but brand new and clean. After getting the move done, I headed out to use some of the remaining museum admissions on my Bordeaux pass, good for 72 hrs. So got up the St. Michel tower, a big arrow of a tower with many steps and great views. Then went to the Musee D’Aquitaine and then to the Musee de Beaux Artes. So that was three admissions just today! Some disruption to Tram service as apparently demonstrations going on. We’ll see what tomorrow brings on the Gilet Jaune front. I’m scheduled on a morning train to St. Emilion where I’ll do a half day electric bicycle tour of various wineries.

Thursday, April 11th, 2019

Started out tracking down another well recommended coffee place called L’Alchemiste. They did a good job making the coffee, but definitely a bitter blend overall. Then, a zipper had blown out on my REI convertible pants. After a few tries, I found a alteration shop, “Retouche” in French, that was willing to replace it and have it done by Monday. I’m scheduled to head out on Tuesday, so this was critical. The big museum, the Cite de Vin, is out of the downtown area, so I took a tram to it and the Museum card got me in. All kinds of cool tech to talk about the history of wine, but interestingly didn’t seem to have a big Bordeaux focus. Anyway, across the street was an excellent covered market that served all kinds of food, so I dug into that for lunch. A half dozen oysters and then a duck burger with no bun, but it did have a little dab of foie gras. Then I took the bus over to Darwin, the warehouse event space that is kind of the talk of the town. Sort of Burning Man type space. Bus and tram back to the apartment for some down time, and then back out to find a wine bar that got top reviews. Bar a Vin du CIVB The place is in a school for wine, and had some excellent choices although a very French attitude to service. They kept people waiting at the door substantially longer than necessary. Particularly since I was alone and could see there was a seat at the bar, it was frustrating. Then, they refused to serve flights of any sort, so you really couldn’t do a comparative tasting. This was perhaps the one place in France where they pour a big glass, it was good, but one was enough before hunting up dinner. Ended up with a steak frites at Bistro Aurelie, surrounded by French people so at least not a tourist joint. Decent but not great.

Wednesday, April 10th, 2019

Just a brief update as I’m quite tired from running around all day. Found a good coffee shop, Sip, to start the day with. Then booked a half day electric bike tour for St. Emilion on Saturday. After that, the reservation on my current lodgings runs out on Friday, so found another place so that I can stay in Bordeaux until Tuesday. Then off to the train station to get a ticket to St. Emilion on Saturday to do the tour. A stop in Bordeaux’s Marche des Capucins, the local covered market. A lovely lunch of rotisserie chicken at La Rotisserie de St. Michel. After that it was off to the museum of Wine and Negociants, underwhelming but in the Chartron district where all the wine was handled. Then a boat ride back to the Apartment (part of the transit system is shuttle boats on the river). After that out to find some wine bars and a little charcuterie for dinner. Nice and warm all day, but very chilly once the sun goes down.

This is a wine merchant or Negociants house. Downstairs the big opening were for the wine, and then the balcony and first floor quarters were the living quarters. Chartron district in Bordeaux.

Place de la Bourse, with mirror pool

Tuesday, April 9th, 2019

Started today extricating from the lovely AirBnB in San Sebastián and heading for the bus station. Bus actually left 6 minutes early, so good thing we were there in time. Uneventful ride to Bordeaux, about 3:50 arriving at 12:50pm. Hopped the tram and found the next AirBnb. Unfortunately the poor host didn’t have her cleaning lady show up, so she came herself to do the job. In any case, we were just glad to be able to leave our stuff and head out to lunch. This one is on a cute square with restaurants and cafes all around. Bordeaux definitely has an up and coming, young, energy that I haven’t found elsewhere in France. Tons of restaurants, lots of ethnic food, lots of little plazas, gorgeous grand buildings, and sunny weather. Did the big bus drive around tour, for orientation. Generally there is a light rail, at grade tram system that goes everywhere, runs frequently and is super easy to use. Went to recommended wine tasting bar which operated on the Italian system, you’re given a smart card and there are bottles in a machine, you can choose tastes. Got to say Barrel Thief has a much better selection. Found a traditional French restaurant to have dinner, a menu was 19 euros, 6 snails. Duck with pepper sauce and a cheese plate, can’t argue with that.

Monday, April 8th, 2019

I woke up quite early today, a nice change as I get on the right time zone. After some clean up at the apartment I headed out to Sakona, the coffee shop from yesterday that was willing to make me a breakfast I could eat. (They also had excellent coffee and 200+mbps wifi!). Today was guacamole and turkey with an excellent cafe con leche. From there I walked over to find the bus station and explore the Tabakalera cultural center. Neither particularly exciting but I’ll know where to go tomorrow for the bus to Bordeaux. After that I decided to climb up Mount Urgull, the hill just above the old town. It actually turned out to be a pretty good hike. Still raining… Then met Lori for lunch in old town and did in a large piece of roast lamb. Excellent! After a nap and some logistical stuff, it was off the the aquarium. They have a super cool plexiglass tunnel, it so transparent when a shark swims by you can see the detail of the teeth. Tomorrow, we head to Bordeaux on a 9:30am bus.

Sunday, April 7 2019

I definitely can see why this is viewed as a foodie heaven. Wall to wall Tapas joints with super friendly and helpful service. Prices are below reasonable. The standard order is to pick a place that looks good, pick a thing or two off the counter, order a glass of wine. Then, examine the hot tapas menu. These are items custom made when you order them. After this feast, you pay up and head down the street for the next round. Last night was a sea urchin mixed with some cod, served in its own shell, then a little cappuccino cup full of foie gras, then off to the next place for a lamb brochette and a steak kabob. There seems to be no end to combinations. So, that was last night. Today, got up to grey skies and went and found an amazing coffee roaster. They were even willing to make me a custom breakfast including mashed avocado and a lot smoked salmon. Then, we took the bus to the nearby town of Pasaia with the intention of hiking back to San Sebastián via the Camino trail. Unfortunately it was more challenging that we wanted as it was pouring rain the whole time. A few hours later we returned to the apartment and hot showers and dry clothes. Lori M. Found a vegetarian place where she would eat something and we decamped to Mapa Verde for an excellent veggie lunch. Of course now that the hiking is done the sun has come out and it is a very pleasant afternoon. I’m siting on Constitucion Plaza as I type this, a town square that used to host bullfights and still has numbers on all of the surround balconies as the town used to sell tickets for spectators.

04/06/19 Friday and Saturday

I left Paris at an early 7:52am from Gare Montparnasse on a train for Hendaye. This turns out to be a much easier way to get to San Sebastián than trying to book all the way through on SNCF. After a little over 4 hours there is a local, Eusoktren from Hendaye to San Sebastián, takes about 33 minutes and runs every hour. My AirBnB host met me shortly after arrival and gave me the keys to a two bedroom apartment just a few blocks from the old town area. San Sebastián is known for being the foodie center of Spain, and that is saying something! It is wall to wall Tapas bars in the old town, and prices are very reasonable. For example, last night I had a piece of Steak, some foie gras, and two glasses of Crianza for 12.70 euro, just under $15. The standard situation here is a bar piled high with the cold tapas, or Pinxtos as they are called in this part of Spain. Then there will be a list of the hot offerings, which are custom made per order. Wine is very inexpensive although the glass pours are quite minuscule. Normally you have a glass of wine and something to eat and maybe a second something and then pay up and move to the next place. This morning I found a breakfast place that made a plate of bacon, then walked all the way down the beach and took the funicular up Mount Igueldo at the far end of the beach. Terrific view and a vintage entertainment park at the top. Then back to the apartment followed by a minor tapas crawl for lunch.

04/04/2019

Managed a very busy and social day for my first day in Paris. Christian came by my hotel first thing in the morning and we had a coffee and a nice chat. He’s off for a ski trip when I’ll be back in Paris at the end of the month, so won’t get to see him again. After that headed for a walk past St. Sulpice and through the Jardin du Luxembourg, where I sat and absorbed some of the morning sun. From there a stroll to Pl. Contrescarpe, and then down Rue Mouffetard. Then off to meet Atsuko and her father. I met Atsuko at Mt. St. Michelle a few years ago when we shared a taxi to St. Malo. She just happened to be in town for a few days and staying right near where I am. We had a lovely lunch at Cafe Breizh, famed for their crepes which come in Buckwheat and are GF. After a quick nap and a meeting with a lady who rents some apartments to give her a deposit on one for the end of my trip, it was off to meet John and Atsu to go to dinner. I had found a potential interesting restaurant called Pierre Sang in the Oberkampf area. Well, it turned out to be a fantastic 6 course Prix Fixe (39euro), and the food was terrific. We all enjoyed it, and the waiter was also fun. Photos to follow.

I’m back in Paris for a few days, and then headed to San Sebastián. After that, planning to spend sometime in Bordeaux. As soon as I get un jet lagged I’ll update this. I had a nice easy, not crowded flight to Paris from Seattle. Got through immigration quickly and then got stuck trying to buy an RER ticket. The machine wouldn’t take an American credit card and the cash option was not obvious. By this time there was huge line to buy tickets at the counter. I decided that rather than wait an hour in line I’d take a taxi, which FYI is 55 euro flat rate. Good thing it was because it took about an hour and a half. I definitely prefer the train. New hotel seems nice, I have a 6th floor room, with elevator, at Grand Hotel Univers St. Germain. Roughly the same price as my favorite Welcome Hotel, but has an extra star and slightly better reviews. Had a good walk over to Notre Dame and down through Isle St. Louis. Jet lag was leaving me pretty tired this afternoon but now waking up!

After a good solid walk to Notre dame and then across the Isle St. Louis and back to St. Germain, I tracked down an interesting Cocktail place for an Apero. The place is called the Prescription Cocktail bar and apparently launched a movement and interest in cocktails. Turned out to be an unlabeled store front a few blocks from my hotel. Tried a Negroni, which they did well. Then a quick bite at L’Avant Comptoir de la Terre, the land based version of the tapas place next door by a similar name. Then it was off to the Bastille to find a speakeasy called “The Moonshiner”. It’s a pizza parlor, but you walk through the door of what looks like the walk in refrigerator and there is a whole bar hidden in the back! Very cool!

Lunch at Danton, Odeon.

Bastille

St. Paul

Pizza parlor frontBehind the cooler is a whole separate bar.