Happy Halloween.....from Paris

                                                            HAPPY HALLOWEEN!


Bonjour from Paris!  We've decided to end our trip back in the romantic "City of Light."
My favorite city.  We have already stopped by our local fromagerie, boulangerie and cave de vin and now ready to settle in and enjoy the city.

                                                                    Oh.....the baguette!

                                                                       Palais Royale

                                                         It's the marzipan pigs again!

Beautiful Burgundy

We luckily arrive in Burgundy in the nick of time to catch the beautiful fall color of the vineyards because during our first night a frost blows in and wipes it all out!  Everything now is rust and brown.  Brrrr... for us!  We finally have to bust out some of the sweaters and scarves we had packed for the trip. I think I miss Provence!  We bundle up and head out to see the sights.
 We are based in the town of Nuit -St-George, just south of Dijon and north of Beaune.   We are literally surrounded by grapevines.  There are vineyards as far as I can see.  It's really an amazing sight.
We head on past the vineyards to do a little castle and chateaux viewing.   I love this part of the adventure.  As we are driving through one of the small villages we have to stop and let a pig walk by!  Crazy!  We do make our way back from the countryside and fit in a little tasting. Perfect. We have had a great time in Burgundy. 

                   We made our way to a marktet in a nearby town to see what goes on in Burgundy.

                                                                         Chickens at the market.

                            The butcher is cleaning a duck that has just been purchased for dinner!

     Lapin (rabbit) for sale at the market.  They leave the feet fury to show the freshness of the meat.

                                               Rotisserie chicken at the market. A very "hot" item!

                                                                 Village in Burgundy

                                                        A burgundy Duex Chevaux in Burgundy!

                                                                     downtown Nuits -St-George

       Vineyards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pig in the Road!

 

another cool Deux Chevaux

 

 

 

 

The hefty Charolais cows are reknown in this area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

beautiful Burgundy countryside

 

end of the day sampling

Provence in the fall

 

 

Our last days in Provence have been really beautiful.  The vineyards are all glowing in a hundred different colors.  The rains are setting in but it mostly falls during the night. 

 We stumbled upon the village of Lacoste the other day and felt we were on a movie set.  A spectacular village full of amazing medieval architecture.  It also hosts a fantastic school of the arts, started by the designer Pierre Cardin, and now operated by the Savannah College of Art and Design. 

We  make our way to our last village market in Cucuron.  It is set around a beautiful pool of water in the main square.  The markets are getting alot smaller this time of year but they still bring out the best of the local products.

And finally, a tasting in Chateauneuf du Pape.  What a treat.  It is one of the most renowned appellations of the southern part of the Rhone Valley. The wine in the region was referred to as "Vin du Pape" in the early 1300's because of the improved viticultural practices incorporated from the then Pope, John XXII, where the papacy moved from Rome for around 100 years.  A unique terroir characteristic of Chateauneuf du Pape is the layering of large stones called galets in the vineyards that help quicken the ripening process of the grapes.

 Look for us heading north to Burgundy!

 

 

Lacoste village

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

view from Lacoste village

 

 

The village of Cucuron on market day

 

Cucuron market around pond

 

I bought this piece of squash and roasted it up for dinner!

                                                                 love the local honey!

                                                                       colorful market

Lunch after the market!

 

Deux Chevaux!

 

gargouille on side of church in town (has a funny face)

 

village of Cucuron

 

 

 

Chateau in Chateauneuf du Pape

 

in the village

 

stones in the vineyards

 

 

 

A tasting!

 

a great simple dinner at home of moules marinaries

 

beautiful Provence in the fall