2023 - Sept 11 to Oct 7 - France and Ireland trip

We have been looking for a trip to visit France for quite a while. We finally locked in on Trafalgar’s The Best Of France 13 days tour. Originally, we had a back-to-back tour to visit Eastern Europe. However, when we found out that it was pretty difficult to have a reasonable departure flight from Eastern Europe, we changed to visit Ireland with Trafalgar’s Amazing Ireland 14 days tour.  We did all the booking through Vacationstogo tour. The booking experience was pretty smooth.

The itinerary was as following:

Sept 11, 2023 - Bonjour Paris, flight to Paris

Sept 12, 2023 - Arrive to Paris

Sept 13, 2023 - Journey through Burgundy to Lyon 

Sept 14, 2023 - Onwards to Avignon, Monaco, and the French Riviera 

Sept 15, 2023 - The French Riviera Your Way

Sept 16, 2023 - Admire Arles and Continue to Carcassonne 

Sept 17, 2023 - Pilgrimage to Lourdes and on to Biarritz 

Sept 18, 2023 - Venture to Bordeaux 

Sept 19, 2023 - Discover Scenic Dordogne 

Sept 20, 2023 - Explore a Château in the Loire Valley 

Sept 21, 2023 - Off to Mont-Saint-Michel and the Normandy Beaches 

Sept 22, 2023 - Journey to Paris 

Sept 23, 2023 - Discover the Delights of Paris 

Sept 24, 2023 - Farewell Paris, flew to Dublin to join Amazing Ireland tour, had a welcome reception at Emerald Isle

Sept 25, 2023 - Onwards to Beautiful Belfast 

Sept 26, 2023 - A Day at the Giant’s Causeway 

Sept 27, 2023 - Journey to Derry/Londonderry and County Donegal 

Sept 28, 2023 - Admire Belleek’s Famous Pottery 

Sept 29, 2023 - Pilgrimage to Knock and on to Galway 

Sept 30, 2023 - Explore the Cliffs of Moher and Killarney 

Oct 1, 2023 - A Day on the Ring of Kerry 

Oct 2, 2023 - See the Sights in Blarney, Cork and Waterford 

Oct 3, 2023 - Uncover the Treasures of Kilkenny 

Oct 4, 2023 - Venture to Wexford and Return to Dublin 

Oct 5, 2023 - Discover Diverse Dublin 

Oct 6, 2023 - Farewell Ireland 

Oct 7, 2023 - Arrive to Houston

Sept 11, 2023 - Flew to Paris

The flight was uneventful. There were not too many people on the flight. We were able to switch to an empty row for laying down to rest overnight. By the way, Air France’s meals were terrible.

Sept 12, 2023 - Arrive to Paris

When we arrived at Paris, we did have some issues finding the Trafalgar agents at the airport meeting point as described by Trafalgar. The issue was that they don’t have any uniform or clear identification sign to indicate that they were the Trafalgar agents. It took us some texting with tour director to finally find them. Traveling and checking to hotel were uneventful. The tour director set up a communication link via WhatsApp, and we were able to find out all the details for the first day. There was a welcome dinner tonight.  

After 3 1/2 months of drought in Houston, we ran into rain on the 1st day we were in Paris.  We had to use umbrella on our way to dinner at Bistro Des Champs on Avenue des Champs-Elysees.  

After the dinner we had an opportunity to take a photo on Avene de Chaps-Elysees in front of the Arc de Triomphe. They also drove us around to see the Eiffel Tower and area around the District 16 and 17, which are the better and safer districts in Paris. 

Sept 13, 2023 - Visited Beaune and Traveled to Lyon in Burgundy

We got up at 6am and left the hotel at 7:30am. We traveled south to Burgundy area. On the way, our first stop was a medieval town of Beaune. Beaune is a medieval walled town at the center of the Burgundy winemaking region in France. It is famous with Hôtel-Dieu Museum, which has colorful geometric and historical roof tiles. It is a hospices now (the Hospices de Beaune). It is extremely well preserved and they have a nice audio guided tour. However, visiting hospices is not our cup of tea. We only took some photos and admired the beautiful roof tiles, then we ventured out to walk around the town.  

Then we drove to Lyon in rain.  We had plans for a self-walking tour of the famous city of Lyon. However, the rain did not help. We only visited the Basilque Saint-Bonaventure, 2nd Arr. walking area, Fontaine des Jacobins, Pond Lafayette, Pond Wilson, and walked along the River Le Rhone.  

Sept 14, 2023 - Onwards to Avignon, Monaco, and the French Riviera

In the morning we drove to Avignon at the heart of Provence. We saw the Palais des Papes (Papal Palace) and the bridge made famous by the song - Sur le Pont d’Avignon. The tour director gave us free time to wander by ourselves for a couple of hours. Most of our group went to the shopping street, but we went to Papal Palace directly and wandered in the Jardin du Rocher des Doms. From there we had a beautiful view of the Pont Saint-Bénézet, also known as the Pont d’Avignon (a medieval bridge across the Rhône in the town of Avignon). Only four arches survive. When we were there, it just happened a river cruiser passed by and formed a wonderful Kodak moment.

Then we drove all the way past Nice and to Monaco City. On our way to dinner in Monaco City, we passed by Saint-Martin Gardens, Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate (the Monaco Cathedral) where Grace Kelly married Rainier III, Prince of Monaco.  We all went in the cathedral and viewed the famous place in memory of Grace Kelly. We also walked by the Place du Palais and had an outdoor 3 courses meal dinner at I’ Express. 

Sept 15, 2023 - The French Riviera

We attended the optional tour to visit the medieval Saint-Paul-de-Vence, consistently named the most beautiful hilltop town in the region. It is a hilltop walled city with narrow winding streets and a lot of unique shops.  The view of the region from the top of its wall is just breathtaking. A local guide led us through the town, then let us wander around by ourselves. 

Then we went to Eye to visit a traditional French perfumery and finish our excursion at a local restaurant for a delicious meal with wine.

We had free time this afternoon. We visited Notre-Dame due Nice, walking along Avenue Jean Medecin to Cathédrale Sainte-Réparate de Nice. On the way, we walked by the Espace Jacques Medecin with a reflecting pool. It was a Kodak moment for us. 

Then we walked to Castle Hill (Colline du Chateau), which has a park with a lot of green space. From there we saw a beautiful waterfall, a sweeping panorama of Nice and the Baie des Anges (Bay of Angels), and wonderful view of Port De Nice.  

When we walked down from Castle Hill, we had many wonderful views of the Bay of Angels. We walked Quai des Etats Unis, which is a miles long promenade along the Mediterranean. 

Sep 16, 2023 - Admire Arles and Continue to Carcassonne

We arrived at Arles (the city famed for inspiring the paintings of Van Gogh) in the morning.  The local guide showed us the Arles Amphitheater (the Arles Arena), the Van Gogh Cafe (Cafe La Nuit) where he painted The Starry Night (and many other famous paintings), and L'espace Van Gogh where he was treated after mutilating his ear.

Then we traveled to Carcassonne, which is an outstanding example of a medieval fortified town with its massive defensive fortifications encircling the castle and the surrounding buildings, streets, and fine Gothic cathedral. There were a lot of visitors there, and we had to squeeze our way through the crowd. However, it is very impressive medieval town.

 

Sep 17. 2023 - Pilgrimage to Lourdes and on to Biarritz

In the morning, we visited Lourdes, which is a town in southwestern France in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains. It’s known for the Sanctuaries Notre-Dame de Lourdes, or the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, a major Catholic pilgrimage site. It is the site of 70 medical miracles recognized by the Catholic Church. Each year, millions visit the Grotto of Massabielle (Grotto of the Apparitions), the very place where Bernadette Soubirous was said to have witnessed the Virgin Mary in 1858. In the grotto, pilgrims can drink or bathe in water flowing from a spring. They believe that it has healing properties.

The sanctuary itself is huge and very impressive. We also hiked up the nearby trail Chemin de croix des Espélugues (Stations of the Cross of the Espélugues). From this trail, we had the best view of the sanctuary.

We arrived at Biarritz in late afternoon.  After checking into hotel, we ventured out ourselves to visit Richer de la Vierge (Status of the Virgin) which was built in 1865. It has paths that lead through lovely gardens and across the bridge to the Rocher. The story goes that on one particularly stormy evening in the 19th-century, a group of fishermen who were hunting whales were returning towards the port when the seas became particularly rough. Fearing that they were in their last moments, a divine light suddenly appeared at the top of what is now known as the Rocher de la Vierge, leading the fishermen home. Once they were safe and sound, they installed the Virgin Mary statue atop of the rock.

Then we had a nice dinner at Cafe du Commerce.

Sept 18, 2023 - Venture to Bordeau

In the morning, we attended the optional tour to cross the border from France into Spain to discover the charming Basque town of Hondarrabia, which is known for its beautiful Basque houses and colorful wooden balconies. The local guide led us through the winding street and the beautiful houses. Then we had a little bit of free time. We walked over to Marina-Portua to enjoy the beautiful scenery. 

Later we will cross back into France and on to St. Jean de Luz, a fishing town at the mouth of the Nivelle river, in southwest France’s Basque country. It is a wealthy Basque port town with an intriguing past filled with pirates, and a royal marriage. We visited the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church, where King Louis XIV married Marie-Thérèse of Spain in 1660.

We had free time to wander along the beach Plage de Lafitenia and walked all the way to La Colline Sainte-Barbe (the hill of Sainte Barbe) to see some of war time bunkers left by German.  However, there is not much of bunkers that we saw. But the view from the hill of Sainte Barbe is a real postcard of the landscapes of the Basque Country including mountain, ocean, the cliffs along with many sun bathers on the beach and surfers in the ocean.

There was a little accident when we were ready to leave.  One of the tour team mates missed the get together time. Eventually, he had to take a train ride to Bordeaux to meet us.

After we checked in the hotel, we ventured out to see Bordeaux. We walked to Place de la Bourse and Miroir d’Eau next to it. We got some more reflection photos.  

By 7pm, we got to the restaurant (restaurant Melodie) we planned to have dinner .  Unfortunately they were fully booked. Therefore, we had to move to Les Droles.  They were full on the ground level, but they gave us a table in the basement. It has a cave type of setup which provided us a new experience of having dinner in a cave.  

Sept 19, 2023 - Discover Scenic Dordogne

In the morning we traveled to Saint-Emilion. The local guide took us to wandering around this UNESCO World Heritage Site. This picturesque town has been an economic and religious center attracting royals, winegrowers, and pilgrims. Every square in the small village center is packed with history and incredible architecture. Thousands of hectares of vines surround the medieval village, making the landscape an unforgettable scenery. 

We visited Elise Monolithe de Saint-Emilioon which was built by Benedictine monks between the 11th and 12th centuries. It has a maze of tunnels that include vast catacombs. The bell tower sits 53m above the town and offers fantastic views over the area.

Then we had a tour of Chateau Champion in Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes.  The owner of the chateau was the same person who guided us around the town in the morning. She gave us a tour of her vineyard, cellar, and winery. She also hosted a tasteful lunch with local produces and her own wine. It was an enjoyable event.

Then we drove back to Bordeaux and had free time to explore the city ourselves.   We visited Basilique Saint-Seurin, Place des Quinconces, and Pl. de la Bourse.

In the afternoon we made a online dinner reservation for Restaurant Melodie and wanted to try it for dinner again. We got some text for confirming our reservation in French, and of course we did not understand it. So we got there again at 7pm and showed them the text message. Unfortunately, the French message was a “not available” message. However, the waitress was very nice to offer us a table outside if we could use it at 7pm. We did and, as a matter of fact, we preferred the outside seating. We had a wonderful dinner in a nice French style outside seating dinner.

Then we walked by the Grosse Cloche de Bordeaux and St Andre Cathedral on our way back to hotel. It was closed already, so we just took some photos and admired this wonderful cathedral under evening lighting. We also went back to take some night scenes of reflecting photos.

Sept 20, 2023 - Explore a Château in the Loire Valley

On the way to visit the Chateau De Villandry, we had a delightful lunch. Then we travelled to visit the remarkable gardens at Château de Villandry. It is the most amazing garden we have ever seen. It consists of 6 gardens, namely the Ornamental Garden, the Water Garden, the Sun Garden, the Maze, the Herb Garden, and the Ornamental Kitchen Garden. There is also a chateau where one can climb on top to view these beautiful gardens. We had many Kodak moments in this amazing garden. 

Then we drove to Château de Beauvois to stay overnight. It is a 4-star castle hotel with superb views of the outdoor terraces and French gardens. It also has a gourmet French restaurant Le Louis 13. After we arrived, everyone went outside for Kodak moments and we had a wonderful dinner at Le Louis 13.

Sept 21, 2023 - Off to Mont-Saint-Michel and the Normandy Beaches

In the morning we drove to Mont-Saint-Michel and had a couple of hours to explore this magical place ourselves.  We had to take the shuttle to cross the bridge built over the ocean.  It was a amazing sense right after you get off the shuttle on the bridge.  Since it was a low tide when we got there, we were able to walk close to the front of this magnificent island.  Then we wandered around the whole island to visit the winding streets with a lot of shops and the Mont-Saint-Miche Abbey.  Since we did not have enough time there, the tour director recommended us not to visit the inside of the Abbey, we only view it from outside.  We also had magnificent view of the whole area.

Then we traveled to Normandy coast to see the Les Braves Omaha Beach Memorial in Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer.  Then we visited the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer.

We stayed in Hôtel Mercure Omaha Beach and had a wonderful dinner at their golf course restaurant.