1985 3 of 4
WEDNESDAY, JULY 17: Up at 7, insisting on getting out maps and itinerary and planning next three days. Neil grumbling, and he gives them to lady who turns out to OWN the place (Sylvia Leiser-like) to phone for FIVE reservations. And she DOES! Lovely toasts (prune in one and nuts from last night in another) and back to brush and pack shirts NEATLY and everything FITS! Leave Savignac-les- Eglises at 9:40 at km 2862. Down to Perigueux past Renault place AGAIN to museum at 10:05, and it's JAMMED with things. It leaves me with some feelings of lassitude and sadness. So MUCH would be MORE appreciated if MORE TIME were spent, yet most of the objects are do DEGRADED it's sad to see that THESE are displayed for appreciation where there are much MORE beautiful objects scattered ELSEWHERE that MERIT much more appreciation. And then there's the question of CONTEXT "so SAD to see" fragments of statues from a chapel destroyed in Savignac-les-Eglises, where we SAW no churches. Should church have been SAVED as museum? Redone? More to see? More to regret having not enough time to see? Then the WALLS (3 and 4 high) of awful paintings FILLING rooms. Given by loving wives and sons and daughters. Not even KEPT. "We've GOT to get rid of this." But how does a MUSEUM "get rid of things?" What styles might come BACK, even the awful pictorial Beaux Arts style? What to(FRANCE-BY-CAR - 22) save? What to dismiss? What to photograph? What cards and guides to buy? How to remember THIS museum versus OTHER museums like this? How sad it all seems. Out at 11 and through town again and south along LOVELY forest roads to Bergerac at 12:05, and it's only as we stroll toward MARKET that I remember the fame is not from JACQUES Bergerac but CYRANO (our LUNCH-ROOM) de Bergerac! Walk clothing (and some Middle Eastern velours and gold fabrics) and junk stalls, church closed, and past food and fruit and flower stalls to restaurant at 12:30. Spectacular glass wall behind with a FIRE blazes, and Neil turns fan off because he fears he's catching a summer cold---after opening WINDOWS every chilly night! Menu is quite limited, and I take 1/2 bottle Bergerac Rouge Chateau la Jaubertie, then Ragout de queues de langoustine au Monbazillac et au gingembre, not bad; then their special Roulé de lapereau sauce rouilleus, which isn't terribly good at all, so much for THIS Michelin listing. Fromages: Bleu d'Auvergne is VERY mild, Reblochon is good, and vache aux fines herbes is mild. Dessert (there is no Gratin de fraises, there aren't ENOUGH of them!) is les fraises de Michoux, COLD and good and BIG, and Neil's Perigordin aux Noix is DELICIOUS. And sugared red currants are a TASTE BLAST! Food's NOT that great, but am I getting spoiled? Out TOTALLY stuffed at 2:30 and Neil drives tiny roads to Monbazillac, impressive before copse of trees on hill, and park in shaded grove (hippies have LEFT by the time we get back) and go to LOVELY clear view (of five parachutists!) over countryside and towns. We're in from 3 to 4 through crowded rooms with Protestant Bibles and Calvin's and Erasmus's notations. TIRED as we drive one-lane road to photograph stunning Bridoire at 4:20. Stop at Moulin for a second, then back through Perigueux to east road to Lalinde and LOVELY river at 5:15. Around not-so-special Cingle de Tremolat for four-man scull, and down to moss-roofed Vieux Logis at 6. Neil roams town and I walk HOT road to river to moon over crowded degraded land, sweating campers, get rates for boats (30F for kayak, 50F for canoe/hour/boat, and 20F for 1/2 hour in a Pedallo.) Back to shower and look at town and go to St. Hilaire's chapel, where I meet Neil at 7. Back to change and have aperitif of GOOD champagne and Monbazillac and into lovely former-barn dining room. Lovely German men sitting BEHIND me, so I can't stare as I did over long-alone aperitif til Neil joined me. I have ONLY eggs scrambled with truffles and a red wine, both delicious, then surrender to the kiwi and strawberry soup for large dessert. Out along dark road to look at stars and listen to noise from trailer park and people loud at bars before back in open-windowed room to bed at 11. I'd debated attending the "Fete Champetre" which is tonight, but decided not to go, and when I LATER went to peek in the door of the rough Salle where it was being held, it was a punk-jazz group dancing listlessly, UGH.
THURSDAY, JULY 18: Wake early, morose, and give excuse of "not wanting to get out of comfortable bed." Brush teeth at 7:50 and decide to tell Neil at 8 that I'm having NO breakfast. Carry roquefort and apple and toast "in case." Out at 8:30 at km 2999, turning to 3000 as we round bend to Limeuil. To Les Ezyies at 9:05 and write til tickets gotten for Font-de-Gaume for 4:30 at 9:50. Cloudy, sadly, contrasting with BRIGHT and CLEAR day yesterday. We feel we're up before anyone else. See a sign to Chateau de Fages and drive up to a private place selling lamps. Photo through barbed window at 10. See spectacular Chateau Beynac at 10:30 and get up at 10:35 to be told we can join the 10:30 tour. Woman talks AND talks of complicated history of place---on French battleline, mainly, but large room is nice (as is tall sexy tourist) and view from TOP, straight DOWN, is GREAT! LOTS of pictures til 11:20, then out and back through St. Cyprien for Les Ezyies again at Hotel Centenaire, in at 12:10 for good books and menu and told we must wait. In about 12:45 for GREAT MEAL til 2:45. Petite entrée chaud de fois gras very good, Sandre aux pleurotes fabulous, blanc de pintade au brou de noix great; cheeses: Brillat- Savarin is GREAT, Tete de moine is cheddar and soft, and Tomme murol is like Swiss. Dessert and mignardises are great, too. FABULOUS meal. We stroll town
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to LARGE DETAILED museum and Neil walks out and I REEL through rooms SOLID with bones and rocks and LOVELY carvings and many MODELS of FAMOUS pieces. Buy a book and find that tour to Magdelenian works ONLY at 5PM. Out and see Neil in town and to car for slownorth to Grand Roc, but I stupidly think it's a 3 km WALK and then we stop at Gisement de Laugeries Haute, and it's a TRENCH and very academic, except all 14000 years ago in GREAT cold as river rose and fell maybe from nearby glaciers. Out quickly at 4:20 and guy has to unlock our key by shifting into neutral! Dash to Font-de-Gaume and up path and meticulous-voiced English-speaking Frenchwoman shows five bison on right, two deer on left, four bison high over left side found in 1966 and then she TELLS us of bison and MAN at end we can't see, and we're in at 4:45 and out at 5:40. Down to GOOD fast Panache and then to Sarlat to park by phonebooth at 6 and wander through NARROW West Quarter and to Pieton main street and down Rue de la Boetie to ELABORATE Italian Renaissance building and LOUD band and octet playing in cold Cathedral. Agree to meet at 7, so I wander central corridors and galleries and unfurnished ground floor and find SAME places again and again. It's SMALL. Try to wander West Quarter but get too directly to back highway. Search to WC at the south end but find only traffic. More picture-taking and to SI and wander UPPER east rim for quieter streets, and real MUSEUM-city feeling. Then I'm exhausted with people and heat and noise and photographing; see Neil and we go for car. Traffic jam to edge of town and then clear to small roads to river crossing and sharp climb to Domme at 8:15. Drive fabulous cliff-top town to VERY end to Hotel Esplanade, and he comes with girl (I pass on a comment to THAT one) who says "Follow me with car." I do and I BLOCK someone. She suggests I park in the park under the tree. Great! Back and through gate and enter LIVING room and climb two narrow flights of stairs to wood-raftered room with felt-covered beds and corner toilet with light INSIDE for JOHN and on TOP for indirect lighting for the room. Neil was leaving with key and I say, uh, where are you going? To see city. I thought I'd stay here. Here's key. OK. We're not communicating. Couple times in last few days I suggested "Better photo here," or "You can pass, a car AHEAD is passing," and he retorts, "I'll do it when I want, Robert!" All right! Shower with LOVELY three-headed shower, dress and down to Neil and to restaurant for LOVELY Paté mosaic (and Neil's SAME soup de legumes)(on half pension of 256F each for room and GOOD menu and BREAKFAST), then large egg omelette aux cepes (and some AWFUL LARGE CHEWY cepe-meats), and the underdone lamb with girolles, GOOD mushrooms, but I'm STUFFED again. Out at 10 to see last purple over lit Roque-Gageac and castle across from it, and chat with Berkeley-couple next to us on an auto-race tour, and three mousses with ACID Cassis-currant finale. Neil's to room and I'm to terrace to brood over town 11:15-11:30. Two-bitch waiter taut drama with red-coated eyebrow-plucked one and hard-working butch gal and matron over all, telling us of our house in the blacksmith's house across from the summer palace of the bishop. To bed under covers from Neil's open windows again.
FRIDAY, JULY 19: Up at 6:45 to shit lots from last night and swat four mosquitoes. Nap til 7:30 and up to dress and out saying I'll be in breakfast room. Out to terrace, CLOUDY today, and down to NEXT promenade, then NEXT one, then BELOW public park as woman says, "OK, little Place beyond," and to some edges and beyond more and see LOVELY turreted roof of "my house" and photo it at 8:20 and start back by 8:30. Neil started breakfast, worried about me. Quick chocolate and back to brush and pack and into car to leave at 9:15AM at km 3116. Down to take picture of place while showing Neil, who walks into front yard to see tiny Renault parked inside at 9:25. Change film and start reel by taking pictures of LOVELY countryside, and at 9:35 of spectacular Roque-Gageac. Walk up old street to decayed stairs up to cave dwellings, and back to car to pass Chateau Montfort (though Cingle de Montfort isn't much) and GREAT shots in scratchy bushes. Through Carsac and another chateau, and stop in Souillac at 11 after passing impressive Fenelon on hill (bypassing blocked
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main road for an endaround successful traffic-feint) and Neil cashes checks for 8:45F! I buy map 76 and hear brass band and photo market and flower stalls and belfry. Abbey slides of portal better than I could have gotten. Past Belcastel sur Dordogne and miss road in Lacave; over tiny road past Cantaloube to l'Hospitalet for GREAT panorama of Rocamadour at 12:10. Drive down and find no parking place in town (again, Neil asks someone where to park---guy says "Arriere," and we pass wherever it was because no one asked "Ou EXACTMENT?" Park illegally just outside bottom gate and walk up road to get elevator tickets and up to START of tough stations to religious city, and THEN up steps to chateau ramparts for FABULOUS views over town. Down to churches and "disrobed" Virgin of Miracles and frescoes high on what turns out to be St. MIchael's chapel. I spot Neil and say I'm going down for lunch, and we're down to Hotel Ste-Marie for GOOD charcuterie on assiette and I get peas with my veal chops and Neil gets boiled potatoes and wine is not bad and view is fabulous. I get up to town at 1:55 and race up from Amadour's crypt to get Neil at 2:05. Tiny chapels undecorated but for 13th Century frescoes INTACT in St. Michael's at 3PM. Then pay for museum and take some shots of better things, but "national monument" becomes VERY overused for dank dark paintings and awful 16th Century carvings. Out at 3:30 to descend the monumental "kneeling" staircase and we get to car ALONE and ticketless in its illegality. Around bottom of hill and double back to main gate to wait for one-way cop to give us the OK. To Padirac and Gouffre for LONG line about 4PM, writing some, but it goes fast and Neil phones our lateness to hotel and gets our jackets and we ride DOWN elevator from 4:30 to 4:35, and then we go around corner and Neil leads us to jump into the next elevator, which goes back UP, and we laugh, then WALK down two levels into spectacularly sun-topped, tree-rimmed, moss-sided HOLE to huge entrance, long echoing walk to boats, and get to BOAT LINE at 4:55. Onto boat at 5:15 and SPECTACULAR high ceilings to High Dome room and GOOD lighting on stairways, in IMMENSE SPACE. Great 40 meter column, double-level lakes, neat dams, INCREDIBLE place! Get to UP elevator at 6:10, buy stuff, and out rushing at 6:20 and look across at ENORMOUS Castelnau, and ONTO tiny road around Mon and Poujade and Loubressac with its cliff-edge site, and then Germanic Autoire nestled below peaks that we soon ascend to glorious Cirque d'Autoire, dashing dashing, then HE drives SO slow across to St. Céré and down to Lacapelle-Marioual, and down to Figeac, and across to Pennsylvania- coal-town ugly Decazeville, whose open-pit mining operation probably caused the fire-damage on the hills! NO sign to Conques until after Firmi and Plateau d'Himes. Up TINY road along Dourdou and shoot RED village at 9PM and GASP into Conques at 9:10, ALMOST dark enough for lights, and up road, shocked to see two tour busses above. Up quaint streets to hotel, and owner's husband (?) tells him where to park as I get room. Neil wants to do SOMETHING and then eat, and I'm down to get jacket and hear MUSIC from church. Into square at 9:20 and it started JUST then, only 30F seats left. Dash back to tell Neil, but hostess, who dismissed cook at 8PM, had done a quiche for us, and we gulp down charcuterie and salad and rosé wine and down at 9:50 to sit on edges til intermission at 10:05, then in GOOD seats for grand finale til 11PM, GREAT church and organ (not organ-player) and dual trumpets. Exhausted back to eat creme caramel, SOAK in suds from 11:20 to 11:55, and BED in damnably lit room at 12.
SATURDAY, JULY 20: Up at 6:30 in light, cursing Neil, and starting to worry about FLIGHT! Plan next few days of trip through St. Nectaire and breakfast 8:30 to 9, matron too busy to phone our three reservations. Out to photo tympanum at 9:30 and it starts to RAIN! Go to the treasury and blown away by gold St. Foy icon. Again a sure image-worship. Lots of good stuff with whispering Germans detracting. Out to buy a guide and slides and back a SECOND time, then meet Neil and he wants MORE time to wrap packages and talk with shopkeeper, so I climb small streets and snap photos in rain, and BACK to FRANCE-BY-CAR - 25
treasury and take photos, and Neil is still wrapping, so I'm into treasury II (which STILL doesn't have a program from last night's "swept-clean church" concert). Lots of nice pieces and out of town dazzled at 11AM at 3327 km. Drive north with Neil taking 130 minutes to go 95 km through pleasant territory, and it WAS raining, but Neil's self-described "defensive driving" is just plain SLOW and SILLY and DANGEROUS, and I saw NO indication that the road was slippery, as he said. And the LIMIT was letting EVERYONE pass him (trucks, cars, motorcycles) at the red light for the TINY construction site (though we THOUGHT it was longer). So we DON'T have time for route of the craters OR teleferique or ANYTHING in Lioran, even getting in at 1:10! Actually, it was too CLOUDY to bother about the Route des Cretes. Pass THROUGH Lioran before noting that Hotel Anglard et du Cerf is in Super Lioran. Up steep road and VERY steep (one-way) climax to hotel-type room with hotel-types. Ask for the menu and get it, but it was NOT a one-star meal, though it tried. The salmon mousse was an awful pink BRICK. Leave Neil, who wants to read, hating teleferiques, at 2:35 and drive down to tourist office and pay 26F for a two-way ticket and get gate opened for ME and then a ten-minute wait to a flattish ride up to cloud-topped teeth in distance and a COLD wind blowing that goes right THROUGH my jacket. Few people around and gelid hikers plod unhappily by in shorts. Down in next 15 minutes, having taken two pictures, and back to Neil at 3:25. Drive shortish way to St. Flour and Neil doesn't bring the Michelin! Wander city to find SQUARE cathedral and photo SEXY Christ inside and out to find museum of region closed except on the hour for tours and wander to parapet for look onto industrial town. Back slantwise to find car and drive to St. Nectaire over larger road and find Hotel Savoy and Thermal and park in last space across street. At 7:25 we're sipping kir in the salon with old Clermont-Ferrand piano when we hear TRUMPETS, HUNTING HORNS to be exact, and rush out to see a crew of ten at the next hotel playing with a LOVELY fruity, ripping sound. Then back to dine in UPPER dining room with GOOD assiette and filling omelette and Neil's GREAT fries. Cordes DO seem to be his "cardoons" and they're too-well cooked and mushy, insipid taste. People at end turn on TV and there's been an earthquake somewhere and it's hard to avoid the picture and sound (turned out later to be the burst dam in northern Italy). Finish and out toward cathedral, which is a LONG way away, for the trumpet concert, and gasp up stairs by 9:30 and listen to end of first set right IN their trumpet-bells, photos against cathedral (up which a RAT ran!), marred by OPERA music I ASSUMED came from a nearby apartment and I find it's from a RADIO in a grotty CAR. I pull up grass and earth and put it onto the radio, TWICE, and this blind-eyed old fart, with a dog that yaps a few times and then stops, jumps out and screams at me to clean it up. I shout back "first clean the music that you dirtied," and he shouts, "I was here FIRST." He threatens me with a sock (dismayed at my glasses?), tries to break my fingers, and kicks me a good one on the right shin, since I didn't clean out his car, which is LOADED with junk and TOTALLY filthy. Others try to separate us (one saying "Don't think all France is like him.") and again asking if I'm English or Dutch. I move aside, hoping he doesn't follow, and he doesn't. It begins to be repetitive and I recall I wanted to get to bed at 10 (Neil left at pause) and I leave at 9:45 and walk down fearing to be ambushed by dirty white car. Bed at 10:15.
SUNDAY, JULY 21. Up at 7 and down to first breakfast at 7:30 and Neil dashes off to church at 8. I debate jerking off but just don't FEEL like it, so at last I don't. Lay and think and count days left and try to do a session but don't get very far. Out at 9:25 to car at 3569 km and DRIVE up to Cathedral at 9:30 and see Neil at market and treasury is open at 10. Wander up to cemetery for photos and back to door, still closed at 10. I TRY door and it OPENS! St. Nectaire treasury is 1F EACH window: first of XII Century gold bust of saint and arm reliquary (still arm in) of St. Nectaire. Short light. Longer light FRANCE-BY-CAR - 26
on right for XIV Century wooden virgin and child (nice faces) and two lovely enamel plaques and some smaller things there's no time to see. NO photos allowed ANYWHERE in cathedral and ONLY 25F POSTERS of capitals, windows, and icons. NO postcards on sale either. "How CATHOLIC," says Neil, and so say I! Leave 10:20AM, depressed. Neil wants to see the SI in town and he buys posters and gets a TUBE, too! I pass the "glass carousel" again, thinking it must be a sandpile, carousel, or swimming pool, then see WATER running from faucets and connect that this is a SPA so these must be the WATERS. Down to drink St. Cezaire, which is strong; Bo#ette, which is milder (both GURGLE a lot as they come out hotter than hot-air temperature), and Source Rouge "has problems" is is OFF. Down to Issoire again, and great divided N9, and long road to Le Puy, but GREAT first view of Polignac chateau at 12:15 hardly prepares us for NEEDLE of St. Michael and HUGE virgin at 12:25. Stop in "wrong" place by Hotel de Ville and walk to tourist office to find lots open all day. To dark cathedral (and even onto ALTAR before guy closed "interdite" gate) and small treasury and buy book of place. Wander around and find that cloisters aren't open until 2, and I see shops and think they may offer food and get entry to statue on Rocher Corneille (Statue and Pedestal is 22m 70, or 67 feet) (for 5.2F for 4.7F and ALMOST getting 1.5F in change!) and climb up BEFORE others and up to CROWN to talk English with (tipped 5F) guide about our trip and "closed when rains" and "lunch below" and "good it's clear," and "oven when it's crowded." Lots of photos and down to plain cloister and up to be told I MISSED Salle Capitulaire and see sexy Vanneau dark-carved wood slaves and emperors, all quite fey at 2:35. Out and across town to museum (trying to phone Pyramide in other department and losing 1F three times and 2F won't go and 5F RETURNED and shout with operator THREE times to NO success), and AGAIN it's a lot with no time to ABSORB: ecology and prehistory and LOADS of clocks and HUGE paintings and three floors of STUFF: lace and furniture and GREAT mechanical motion displays turning eccentrically and elliptically. Out about 3:15, sated yet hardly SEEN it, and with NO hunger at all onto road for Vienne, finally stopping for gas and letting Neil call ahead on a PRIVATE phone for CONFIRMATION of Pyramide and the last double, WITHOUT shower, in RESIDENCE de la Pyramide. DEcide to cross river FIRST at some town and then a HUGE canal. Good road north to pass industrial outskirts (and WHAT is "Rhone-Poulenc?) Into town and strain for Pyramide and there's a SMALL sign and we turn past high pyramid from a Roman circus! Past Carroserie de la Pyramide and Gallerie de la Pyramide and past white gate labeled F. Point and around corner---to alley---I'm out and see inner court and wave Neil in and we get room 5 and there's no shower in HALL, either! In at 7 and shower in BIDET, nursing cut on right shin from last night, taking care not to slip on soapy wet floor, and Neil finds suit has been stained by spilled Woolite! Wrinkled jacket comes out. Tie and belt feel TIGHT for first time in ages, and we stroll up street to already half-full restaurant---all AMERICANS! Except two loud French with a dog and LOUD laughter with American friends. Loud table behind, too, and couple sits across to complete surround, including blonde and daughter across way, but hardly Japanese couple. Neil sadly decides he can put up with the sweetbreads rather than shrimp (forgot his comic HORROR at a whole langustine at Lioran!) and langustines. NO amuse-bouches at start and they DON'T replace his bread, but butter in shape of the Pyramide lasts through the meal and gets VERY soft. Ask for copy of the menu and finally get it, and the mousse of with truffles is THE hit of the evening, going from one-star start, two-star riz, and THIS. White Condrieu-Viognier (which is on MENU) 1984 is GREAT. Pain du Paté presented ON ASPIC of paté petals! Cheeses are Fourme d'Ambert (pallid ---Neil says "the WAITER;" Pont l'Eveque (tasteless), St. Marcellin is STRONG and ????, Reblochon needs aging, and Brie de Meux is GOOD. Secret de la Baronne is THICK CREAM, while the Camembert is bland. Desserts included their special (that didn't impress me) of the Marjolaine, tarte fruité de frais de bois, citron tart, poire frangipani (with almonds), frambois coulis, a bavarois
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cassis with cassis coulis, chocolate gateau with creme anglais and arome orange. FULL, but not STUFFED, and it goes VERY fast and Neil's Condrieu is VERY good. Among last out at 11, they DON'T take Visa, and I wave the 1F "tip" from 1100 paying for 1099 bill. Worth it, but hardly again. The COOK hosted a CIRCUS of 13 Italians of all colors in the side room, two male lovers leading the line, and Madame Point, old bitch, greeted ONLY them. Otherwise we dealt with nice Maitre'd and a hostess who's no relation. Stuffed to lie in SAME bed, having put shutters down to TRY to keep out noise and light from highway along Rhone outside. Thick loud traffic not stopped by tree-lined street. Sleep on PILLOW at 11PM.
MONDAY, JULY 22: Wake at 7:30 and down to breakfast at 8. Brush and pack and to car at 8:40 at km 3818, and photo pyramid at 8:45. To cathedral, change film, photo Temple of Augustus and Livia, then to St. Andrew's cloister and buy ticket to ALL museums AFTER saying I wanted to go to car and REST! Up to huge (too-new) theater with sexy workers, and down past Cybele temple to Beaux Arts museum, sexy Paradise Lost, some GOOD stuff including IVORY head. Neil buys film, we change money, I buy LARGE Michelin map for 16F of ALL Alps, and we're down to old church for archeological museum, which has some REMARKABLE mosaics and inscriptions and Christian sarcophagi from 4th Century and MOULAGES of things ending in the Louvre but found HERE. We're both VERY impressed by the town when we leave at 11. Get lost in northern suburb trying to get on main road, then decide we have to go in the direction of Grenoble and L'Isle d'Abon. Stop at a tiny town and phone one-star Gourmand in Megeve and spend TEN francs to find 1:30 is LATEST they'll take us. So I start driving at local km 36 at 11:38 and get onto good N6 and then to better A34, tooling along at 120 for a half-hour until Chambery, then off onto TINY road with stoplights and LOSE lots of time. Sixty kilometers in sixty minutes looks OK as we speed to Albertville, but then I'd gotten wrong distance and it's 20 km MORE and we're behind slow TRUCKS. Whizzing around steep curves on rocky rivers in sight of FABULOUS snowpeaks makes Neil gasp and clutch door, but then there's a passing lane and some plains and I make UP time until we reach Megeve city-line at 1:29. Zip around pleasant chalet-village and park IN FRONT of place at 1:35 at 209 km, and Neil runs in to save table. VERY nice lunch, starting with "free" mousse au turbot, then Le Flan de Foie de Volaille et de foie gras sauce bacon, which is ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL with the elusive smoked-bacon taste in the sauce; then Le Sauté de riz de veau aux cr!etes et rognons de coq---and the CRESTS, or combs, are just well-cooked SKIN, but Neil makes a BIG DEAL over them. Then two TINY cheeses: tomme de chevre, cheddary, Tomme des moilles, yeasty, and St. Marcellin chaud, GOOD. Sherbets were cassis, poire, fraise, and orange, all great, and the Seyssel wine was WONDERFUL. Out VERY pleased about 3 and up to teleferique to Mt. Arbois to find it CLOSED for repairs. Ask guy at desk and he says we can go up at Bettaz. Zip around SPECTACULAR paved roads to 6.8 km of hairpin curves to hilltop Bettaz, where Neil decides to WALK down and I pay 30F to go UP to Mont d'Arbois at 4:15, GOOD views of LOTS of people trekking here and there. Down at 5:05 after taking FIRST photos of Aiguille du Midi, though they say it "burned 7/26." Blond ADONIS going down as I come up. Light-headed and slowly down road to meet Neil about at bottom, and cruise more roads til BUSY Chamonix. He suggests the Hotel Park at "e" on map, so we drive and drive and end at La Frasses. Back to L'Hermitage at AY and it's full (thank God, the other's in a MUCH sexier place) and he's back to car to be told to PHONE "real" Park at AX "e", as I find out next morning. Into town to Rond Point and go off TWICE before a SIGN to Park HOtel puts us there, and we pay 1F for 7-8PM at 6:50 and into room to SIT on balcony WALL for GREAT view of Mt. Blanc. Out to sit at Chamougny (I only get connection NEXT day) for two panachés and LOVELY guys clad ONLY in shorts, and long-nosed fellow in brushed -forward mustache and lovely legs, and sexy hustlers who come back AGAIN and again, and sweet innocent military types, and humpy DADDIES. Neil's off to
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walk and I sit and get back to hotel to watch sunset on Mt. Blanc til 9:20, at which time he's NOT in cafeteria (which is closed) or restaurant. I go across to l'M and have AWFUL veal and good fries and poor red wine. Back at 10:30 and he'd had poor chicken at La Flambee. Watch end of magnificent Bayreuth "Rheingold" til 11 and then to sleep.
TUESDAY, JULY 23: Wake at 6 in light, doze, down to breakfast by 8, and walk to station for Montenvers for 9AM train. GREAT ride up 9:05-9:25. Listed that there were three Chamonix three-star sights: Montenvers and Mer de Glace, Aiguille du Midi, and Brevent via Planpraz. Enormous views over mountains FACING valley and over Chamonix. Not-so-large expanse of dirty rocky flaking ice, but cloud-patterns in blue-sky ice in grotto were breathtaking. 37.5F UP, 6.25F funicular DOWN, and 6.75F for grotto entry, or a neat 50.50F for entire business. Five or six waterfalls in shadow of hill-sun hard to capture (though some of the actual sun-effects are nice, too). Would be a better trip in PM, but hills across VALLEY would be in shadow. CUTE guy descending. At ll:10 the teleferique for Aiguille DOES say there was a fire "at one location" at Aiguille and it's closed until maybe Friday. DAMN! Heilbrunner of course closed, so it's ONLY to Plan d'Aiguille round trip for 31F available. Since I'm ON line I just go ANYWAY. Write a bit and into cabin at 11:45, and they're bringing down BURNT railings from Aiguille and taking up OXYGEN tanks. Off instantly! Out at 11:52 at 2317 meters. Hardly a BREATH of wind! It's HOT! Leave 12:15 for bottom. Down 12:25, off to Brevent! Start UP alone in six-seater at 12:40! Planpraz at 12:50, and LONG line to Brevent! Planpraz 2000 meters. We FINALLY move to platform at 1:35. Car arrives at 1:40, Brevent 2525 meters. In GASPING at 1:49, what a TRIP. Bounce around top, gazing and taking pictures, and finally have ENOUGH at 2:25. Down to GROUND by 2:45, and pay 26F for La Tour bus, leaving at 3:05! Snap pictures and get six stamps on my ticket and write this in La Tour at 3:35, OK ride! Back to office at 4:05 on the dot and down to a pizza place on main square for AWFUL 40F "pizza maison" with TOUGH crust and GREASY taste from "lard." Two panaches and I'm SLEEPY by 5PM. Back to room and DOZE, Neil in and out, and I'm finally up for TV 8:30-9:30 for "Sa" Terre, Haroun Tazieff, "his" earth, with Music by Robert Viger, on TF1 Telefrance, made in 1984, on channel 1. GOOD show, should be picked up, revoiced, and shown on Channel 13! Then decide I MUST eat, so out to look for restaurant in view of mountains and go WAY to east of city, to suburbs, and get asked by sexy boy for Rond Point Bar. Gay? Down side road when I see sign for EXACTLY what I want: an omelette maison, WITHOUT tomatoes, and butter for 2.4F and TWO glasses of white wine (not GOOD, but WINE) for 7.4F! Sit next to NICE quiet Americans (I TELL them so) from New Jersey! Back to room and bed VERY contented!
WEDNESDAY, JULY 24: Wake at 6AM (in Neil's Chamonix light and cold) with vivid dream memory. "As before" (so it seemed to me in the DREAM) I had to clean the decorations on an elaborate gate, so I had to climb one leg and make my way across to rickety foot-passage, relying mainly on handholds in the scrolls and filigrees of the decoration-top (probably based on the fragile-looking floor in the Brevent teleferique and my thought to hold onto the WINDOWS in case the FLOOR fell out), and wondering if these faded yellow stones (and my arms) could actually HOLD me if the foot-stones gave way. The plaster COVERING was flaking, but the underneath seemed solid. At the center I had to dislodge filmy undershirts and slips from the decorations. As I came DOWN, I noticed about 30-40 OTHER female garments that had been draped or blown across the ledges BELOW the gate. I went inside the "office" of the castle I worked for to report to the Overseer, who distractedly asked his secretary "If there was REALLY going to be a war?" She smiled sarcastically on her bright green telephone and said she didn't even think the politicians and diplomats knew for sure. "Oh, well," he said indecisively, "put a couple of boxes of disinfectant FRANCE-BY-CAR - 29
with the dresses. We might as WELL store them since we have the room." I wake to write this to 6:20 and ask Neil if we can't have the door and blinds closed now please? No, I close the blinds and actually get BACK to sleep, so when Neil OPENS shades again I'm surprised to see it's 7:45! "I'll be on the 6th floor," he says. Surprised, I say "What's on the 6th floor?" "A place to sit," he says with asperity. "Are we going to breakfast?" "I've had mine already. I'll check out, too." If THAT'S not a failure of communication, I don't know what IS! So I breakfast and pack and fetch him on 6 and we leave at 8:35 at km 4065. Leisurely drive down behind trucks and slowpokes, to Megeve for self-service gas (tank drips again) and down to Ugine (Neil directing every turn) and to Faugeres and hills around Lake Annecy. Park car second sous-sol after well-constructed lakefronts that don't really challenge Lake Lugano, and to crooked-naved eglise and skeleton-fresco, then to old city (LOTS of restaurants and souvenir shops) and then for 360F we get 12:15 - 2PM tour of the lake on the Libellule, sitting right in front for melon and TINY shrimp and Neil's GOOD ham, his veal and mushrooms and my sole and two vegetable mousses, and lovely misted view over lake and chateaux and scantily-clad bathers and sailboards. Sit on chair RIGHT in front (rosé de Savoie working on me!) and gaze idly out as Neil goes up top. Start walking hot but tree-shaded Avenue Marigny and Neil wants to go ALL the way, but I stop at 2:20 and write this. Enough is ENOUGH, though I WILL need exercise before three-star dinner tonight! He's STILL not back by 3PM! Back just after three, we retrieve car and I direct HIM out of town to give ME a chance to ogle the beauties using the lake! Suburbs all blend into one until we're halfway down the lake, passing beautiful flower-decked Mairie, into Talloires NOT seeing sign for the Auberge, turning back once, then FINALLY we see it, parking RIGHT outside our to-be-entrance! NO sign of entrance (poorly designed) from where WE are, but later I see large sign across OTHER part of parking lot. Someone tells Neil from a window to go to the front. After a slight pause she finds our room, a nice balcony over the harbor, and Neil goes for a haircut!! Total madness!! I change to bathing suit, check that the chairs and beach are ours, that they don't have a second key (and the daughter annoyedly says NO), and I'm out to slowly dip into the aquamarine waters (cooling, hard rocks underfoot) and swim about for a bit, then sun, then walk to see the sights, returning for my camera to take pictures in the 6PM good sunlight, swim again (in somewhat quicker), then back to laze in bubble-bath for another half hour, then shower (three forms of water- treatment!) in time for him to return at 7:30. I'm to shore at 7:45 o order a kir, but the waiter waits til NEIL arrives (who orders nothing) at 8:10 to bring MY drink. Snotty maitre'd takes our order, and Neil won't have PIGEON so I can't have the large menu. Then we wait, and wait, and at 8:45 I start walking around looking at roses and Neil goes to see the waiter, who WAVES him to a table. Service is STILL slow, food isn't THAT great, though ONE dish is total heaven! Lots of good desserts, but the slow service isn't stomachable with the great food. Out to stroll the waterfront in the dark (oh, I'd picked up brochures from two other beach-front places), and back to bed about 11:30.
THURSDAY, JULY 25: Wake at 5:55 with awful dream of looking at my shoulders at scab-like round spots slightly smaller than a dime and take off shirt to realize these may be signs of AIDS with a rush of fear and anguish. Then BACK to sleep and wake at 7:35 with two MORE dreams: first I'm hugging a somewhat unpleasant-looking friend in a Village grocery store while he tries to convince a handsome clerk he'd MET him before. The clerk has BEAUTIFUL clear green eyes and FLAWLESSLY smooth skin, but the skin is painted with same LIGHT GREEN his HAIR is dyed, and his two FRONT teeth are painted RED, like an ungulate's incisors, while the rest are painted SILVER for effect with the green, but in BACK, when he smiles, they're dark and the roots are purple and rotting. THEN I'm in bed with this unpleasant person who has green fuzz-flecks around his uncut cockhead, and I brush them away in annoyance as he begins to suck my cock
FRANCE-BY-CAR - 30
AND balls, and I clasp his twisting head to my crotch and begin to moan "Oh, my GOD" in excitement and give one HUGE thrust and wake with an ENORMOUS erection. Go to shit in SEPARATE john and write this. Up leisurely and to lakeside for first chocolate SYRUP in a pitcher to be added to milk! Fresh nectarines, too. Up to pack wrongly and CAN'T close bag even with Neil's help, so despair this ONCE and take it to car at 9:30 and pay 957 bill, so big I think they did NOT include my deposit, which they did. Pay and ask for a menu and get FREE one. Just another big thing to pack. Neil said some lady in town where he'd gone for a haircut (which was closed) said it was 42S yesterday, a record, and I said it must be wrong since 42SC is 107XSF. It was HOT, but not THAT hot! Leave Talloires 9:45AM at km 4174. Drive directly to Bourg-en-Bresse, after phoning ahead for lunch at Auberge Bressane at 1:15, and he drives slowly enough so we're THERE at 1PM. Beautiful girl in long white dress over white BOOTS takes us to corner table, then seats HANDSOME one-eyed self-conscious beauty with pretty wife and HUGE quiet panting dog next to us. GREAT meal, even with a SHRIMP base to Neil's horror in the "free" gazpacho of great good taste, then Le Terrine de Canard et Foie de Volaille aux Pistaches is wonderful, and La Poularde de Bresse demi-deuil sauce supreme Bouillé has truffles under the skin and is gloriously delicious. It gets hotter and hotter! Ask waitress and she suggests 35SC (95SF) and puts round gold-piece thermometer on pink tablecloth IN sun and it registers 49SC! 120SF!! Out at 2:30 to SPECTACULAR Abbey de Brou from 3 to 4:15, and I buy slides AND book to make up for my not really SEEING it, with all two museums, all three cloisters, all great tombs in MINT condition with MIRROR before a 6-inch mourner to show BEAUTIFUL facial details inside. Just ANOTHER staggering spot! Across to information at 4:30 for brochures and gapes at tanned shirtless German boys cavorting off their bus. SUCH beauties! Up to Tournus at 5:15 for St. Philibert Abbey, Neil collecting the bones "seen" in various reliquaries, and he gallops off to see some Roman towers as I debate seeing the "art" collection in the old 12th Century refectory, and buy a book to assuage my guilt at not absorbing all the "important" history. Up through Chalons-sur-Saone to Autun and stay in the St. Louis (where Napoleon and Josephine stayed!) when the Ursulines has closed. In about 7:30 for a quick jaunt up to cathedral in twilight and then to buffet dinner WITH wine for 69F in the restaurant annex with an attractive waiter. Then up at 9:45 to sit in square while kids rollick about the 45-minute sound and light starting with Janus and ending with Autun. Down tired to hotel to sleep in our cold one-bed room.
FRIDAY, JULY 26: Wake at 6:10 and count days and think about getting home, all without TOO much angst. Doze on and off, surprised that it's as late as 7:50 when Neil goes into bathroom. Up at 8 to repack and it WORKS; won't even have to WEAR black shoes on plane and throw away ratty sneakers. Get ready for bathroom at 8:20 and write this. Tap-colors REVERSED makes me think there's no hot water for a bit. Shower and down to breakfast of chocolate in POWDER this time. Out and up to cathedral and lots of bones and capitals and cards, then to Musée Rolin for NICE pieces of stone and wood and SEXY big-cocked Mercury. Down to good Gallo-Roman exhibition in town hall. Leave Autun 11AM at km 4450. To antique theater, only lower part rebuilt, and out to Port St-André. Then out of Autun to Sully Chateau to pay 5F to walk around the moat til 12. Shirtless workers, girl bicycling across moat-bridge, and owner driving up made it interesting. Back through Nolay to Rochepot, closed, and up and down and around and photo and to Arnaz-le-Duc for lunch at trying-for-a-star Chez Camille. Epoisse cheese is smooth, Fleur de Morven is GREAT, LOVELY CHEESE! And Citeau is real ROTTEN taste, TANGY and GOOD. Very good salad and dressing and LOTS of GOOD duck maigret, sauce surrounded by potato borders, in peaches and then after the cheeses a lovely assortment of desserts and HUGE BURNT TUILES and fruit and sherbet. Out at 3 and drive through hotel-lined Vallée du Cousin to get lost a few times and get to St. Pere at 4:15 and Esperance,
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where we're whisked around corners to little cottage (of Americans) and shown path for 300 meters walk to restaurant. Settle in and out for a walk to Eglise St-Pere, then Neil walks to town and I take twenty minutes to fill LARGE tub and get COMPLETELY immersed for first time in ages. Out relaxed and read the VERY pretentious "Liner's," which I take for $18 cover price and bad English, and across at 7:45 to be seated first at the tables. Loud group of eight comes in later, so we enjoy silence at first except for loud couple from Chicago obviously enjoying FIRST deluxe French restaurant. "Oh, all the CHEESE, to a mediocre tray that to our disappointment did NOT include Citau OR Fleur de Morvan. The Graves is OD with VERY soft liver for appetizer, and Neil had to be TOLD that the white stripes below were POTATOES lightly cooked and SUGARED. We get asked for choice of "pain complet" which they call BROWN bread (it's white) of "five types of farine," or regular. It's OK, not super. MY fish tastes nice but it's BONY, too bad. The main course (check menu) is nice with Graves; we have no cheese, and the desserts are assorted and FABULOUS, starting with a SUPERNAL gateau de chocolate with cake outside and soft inside for THE BEST chocolate taste of trip! We both want MORE. Then assortments of "ordinary" berries and mignardises and sugared currants for real ZAP of taste are followed by CHOCOLATE BONBONS of various bittersweet flavors I don't like, marzipan I nibble one of, with walnuts, airy nougat we both avoid, but the MAGNIFICENT homemade CARAMELS of endearing soft chewiness and PERFECT sweetness are one of the high points of the trip. Take three HOME with me. We're served VERY fast, from 7:45 to 9:45, and it's still LIGHT out as we walk BACK along path to "main street" and pass trio of girls at bar outside and groups of villagers obviously bored by now with fly-by-night foreigners brought by Marc Meneau and his blue bat-winged wife. To lovely lights of Vezelay on the hill and back to hotel for Neil to read with BOTH windows open. It's clammy COLD in the air and stickily DAMP under the covers, and I debate asking him PLEASE to close the bathroom window, but fall asleep just before 11 before I can get too upset about it. Not a great PLACE but a fabulous MEAL.
SATURDAY, JULY 27: Leave hotel at Esperance at 9:15 at km 4616. Wake with light at 5:55 and feel completely exhausted by lack of sleep and concern about flight. Nap and out about 8 to meet Neil in restaurant. He asks, "How did you sleep?" and I confess we should get separate rooms tonight. He storms out, back to ROOM, and then has to return 600 meters for the KEY. He's nice as we pack, and we're up to Vezelay by 9:40, braving "No" signs to park right at cathedral. I buy book and look through camera-lens in LIGHT AM at noted capitals. Out at 10:30 to nice ramparts and out to Avallon at 11, parking at church and going out to low ramparts and back to nice rug exhibit in a fun show of metal sculptures. Across to Semur-en-Auxois and have to go around TWICE to get correct turn to Pont de Joly. Park in town and see church and walk ramparts (even lower than Avalon) and watch setup for rock concert and piss in bushes outside Ecole Maternal. Have HORRIBLE time getting out of town because of a badly placed (2) on BOTH Michelin maps and a LUDICROUS sign for le Laumes. Up tiny road (and miss Calvary) and FINALLY get back to main road for Alise-Ste-Marie for a neat museum with cabinets from Napoleon III and then drive up Mt. Auxois for dilapidated park around huge Vercingetorix. Photos and then around to fouilles and GOOD English guide pages describing numbered ruins. Would GLANUM have been as guided! A bit much of Roman history, however, so that I'm actually jolted a bit by the tricolor reminding me I'm actually in FRANCE. Down to Flavigny-sur-Ozeran, but nothing merits a photo---too new or too restored or too far. See "Camp de Cesar" on map and follow road WRONG way then RIGHT way to wait for stocky father to pull tractor off center of road indicated by rusting "Touring Club de France" sign to camps
from 1.6 to 2.9 km away. Drive rutted grass-centered road 1.8 km and see nothing of first one but VERY hard track off to one side. Come to ANOTHER track with the sign "Camp de Mincey 1.010 km; Camp de Queuil 0.270 km." We
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WALK more than 300 meters and see nothing (could AT LEAST find a fragment of a mother-goddess, I fret), so we're back to car and surly farmers. Back to main road and up to Abbey of Fontenay at 4:25, but 4:30 tour doesn't leave til 4:40 and the guide is plummy and accented so I take English brochure and bop through floorless cold church, groined reading and copying rooms, reconstructed forge, and nice trout hatchery, and walk garden past chain for nice photo back. Out at 5:30 after nice exhibit in welcoming area. Neil talks of Treasure of Vix in Chatillon, so we're up there at 6:15 and luckily the museum IS open til 7 (closed as we leave at 6:45!) and we're in to ordinary stuff on first floor then the STAGGERING man-sized (yet only 208 kg!) bronze urn and the over ONE-POUND gold crown found on the skull of a "princess" who had ONLY a FEW OTHER BONES present in her "Literie" part of the chariot "made for her ONLY" as the helpful girl at the desk insisted. Buy slides and ALMOST the story of the FINDING of it in 1966. Extraordinary, and only two or three like it found in Yugoslavia and Greece. To pretty (though over-mossed) Source of the Douix and then up to Troyes, VERY well marked roads through Aube to its capital. Called ONE place's number which wasn't in service, then the Poste gives 98F bathless room to saving Neil and 207F douche to me. In at 8:15 (I change room from next to MOTOR on second floor) and out to La Bourgogne for German-neighborhood dinner: Terrine de riz de Veau, Mouselline de Brochet aux epinards, and half a bottle of Sancerre, and out at 10 to wander VERY colorful streets of old buildings in old city. Bed in warm room in DARK at 10:55, at LAST!
SUNDAY, JULY 28: Up at 2:30(!) with dream fragment (HA) about a FRAGMENT missing---the tongue of some medieval creature, and I suggest it MIGHT have been used in a LOWER FRAME. Then up at 5:10 after dream of being "softened up" for some "consciousness raising" workshop with three others, and when we get to "main room," Matt Carnicelli stretches and lays on his back in SUCH luxury that I MUST grasp his waist and put my head on his crotch (inspired by two horses standing head to flank yesterday?). Then up at 6:40 with a dream of me staying in a new top-floor apartment, trying to jerk off, and woman across way comes in with a tiny photograph of family I "replaced," maybe her son and his wife and child, and I say "That's what life IS." Then I try to find PRIVACY to jerk off. Then someone's designing a HUGE miniature village as my apartment decor. I say "Yosemite Park came out FINE with red-rock hills and green trees on "horizon," but the VILLAGE BELOW is poor because I stepped on a STREET with wet feet and the colors ran, and here are the houses , duplexes with garaged with two cars each, but they ACCORDION floor-by- floor, and the SETTEES are bigger than the HOUSES. Write til 6:55 and doze and worry and feel tired and a little depressed. Just want to be HOME. Then at last (after uncompleted sensory-mental lifebelt) up at 9 to shower and shave and breakfast at 9:55, getting ready for Neil to get back from church around 10. Not REALLY concerned about the flight, but about $18 in US dollars, not enough for the cab home, and 60F, or 40F after the hotel. Leave hotel 10:15 at km 4843. He comes in at 10:05 and my bag won't close AGAIN. I get car and we check out and go to Cathedral, but treasury's closed til 12. Visit St. Urbain and there's NOTHING to photo, inside OR out. To Madeleine, CLOSED, and photo Ruelle des Chats and St. Jean, by which time Madeleine is open for the 11:30 Mass. Lovely Jubé! Drive WAY around aWFUL one-way streets to cathedral again for so-so Modern Art museum, except for one sexy 1937 male bronze torso. Neil's not there at 12:05 so I dash to cathedral in impending rain to find (I thought) that treasry opens at 1PM. To car to write. We decide to wait til 1 after driving around to see that the Beaux-Arts Museum is closed til 2. Have tart and eclair for lunch. Then we find the treasury is open at 2! Write more to catch up with it ALL to date NOW at 2:03PM. THEN the guy has the NERVE to say 2:30! I'm about to PROTEST and "keeper" comes in and opens at 2:10. Some nice enamels and a red cope and some LOVELY Turkish intaglio gems from 1204. Out to Beaux Arts and take LOTS of sexy male bodies: NICE museum. To car at 3:25 and decide to go to
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Paris, starting at 3:30. Rain lets up and beautiful clouds form, but at 4 we're HAPPY (I look ahead to Nogent-sur-Seine and see La Chapelle Goudefroy with two forks. Stop and she says "Not dinner hour," but I say "Nous avons faim," and she asks how many. Two. Terrine, salad, peut-!etre? Oui. OK! In at 4:25 to LOVELY half-bottle of Brouilly (1st Prize Macon 1985, Silver medal Paris 1985, from Voujon), but the meal turns out to be VERY expensive, so we BOTH got what we wanted. The lovely cheese was Bleu de Gri@ege which is equal to Bleu de Bresse. We continue driving west, getting smoothly INTO Paris on the N19 but then getting slightly lost, but traffic moves well so that we're parked in front of the bar next to Jean-Jacques' at 7:15, and he's not there yet. I sit and read while Neil goes to the park, and JJ comes in at 7:50, welcoming us. Upstairs to chat about the trip, then out about 9 to stop at Laxant (?) for more Brouilly (after walking around town to give them time to seat us), Neil gets more or less the SAME soup, JJ gets raie, and I get the liver that's one of the specialties of the place---and they have Profiterolles for dessert, the first time of the trip! Getting VERY tired, back about midnight for JJ to sleep downstairs at his brother's and Neil to sleep in the window-open shade-open living room and me to bed down in the warm dark bedroom.
MONDAY, JULY 29: Wake at 5:10 and again at 7:10 and Neil's up already. JJ comes up about 7:45 to make orange juice and toast bread and serve yogurt and coffee and tea. I feel full, so return to packing, throwing away SHOES to make lots of room in bag and giving large Relais et Chateaux soapbox to Neil for room in the dop kit. Shave and brush teeth and leave at 9:30, km 5007, taking ONE HOUR to 10:30 to drive 11 km through Paris to checkout point. FINISH signing papers at 10:40 and to bank for LONG exchange (Neil owes me $169) til 11:10. Then walk LONG walk to Gard du Nord in RAIN to get in at 11:45! Pay 22F for ticket and downstairs to get on train at 12 for Charles de Gaulle and onto bus for Terminal 1 at 12:30, SWEATING OUT these last hours. My bag weighs 14.9 kg; shoulderbag 3.2 kg at checkin time, 18.1 kg = about 40 pounds in all! See by instructions that cabin bag cannot be over 45 x 35 x 20 cm. Over LONG moving walkway after walking LONG way to Satellite 1 from 12:50 to 12:56. Write this and they announce MY boarding (pink tickets INDEED) at 1PM, which is NOW! Start moving from dock at 1:37, taking off at 1:50, for a 7 hours 40 minutes flight, so I set my watch back 6 hours to 8AM and prepare for 3:30 landing. Takeoff fine until we hit "uncharted clear-air turbulence" at 9:25 that even has the captain announcing that the flight attendants should buckle in, and from then on I'm VERY nervous. "Micki and Maude" could have been good, but toward the end there's a lurch of the plane, a SUDDEN blast of cold, a QUICK pressure-change in the ears, and I'm SURE we've lost cabin pressure. In such a panic that I actually FEEL short of breath! But no one says anything (though one stewardess dons a blanket around shoulders). Chat with woman beside me, who noticed "depressurization" too. Good views over Nantucket and Block Island and Long Island, then swing around to land at 3:30 with GREAT relief. Sail through check-out procedures with customs cop who asks me about indexing and grab a cab at 4, insisting on North Conduit, and he swings on and off, saying I won't have to pay if he "makes a mistake." (I note that St. Rita's has BINGO around 3100 Atlantic Avenue, for Mom's next trip.) He doesn't, getting me home about 4:30 for $16.50 + $2.25 tip for $18.75. Lug stuff upstairs and mail's waiting for me on bodytable: HOME at last! I phone Dennis (who has AIDS!) and get off to class, home at 10:30 to talk to Mom, and bed about 11:30 completely exhausted. Finally finish typing this journal at 4:40PM on August 10, less than two weeks after getting back, finally having talked to everyone, phoned everyone, paid all the bills, done two indexes, and STILL there are lots of things left to do, but it's gotten toward the "effortless" end of it, though I STILL don't know how I'm going to arrange the slides for showing (got back all but one roll by today), and the summary sheets HAVE to be more than just lists of names of totally unknown French villages!
FRANCE-BY-CAR - 34 KILOMETERS AND ITINERARY (spending $120/day)
Sun,Jun30: 000 to 0000; Rome, Nice: (D) La Coupole 53F, (H) Savoie 160F
Mon,Jul 1: 115 to 0115; (M) Chagall, Roquette-sur-Var, Levens:(L)Les Roses 100F
Utelle: (DH) Bellevue (D) 86F, (H) 75F
Tue,Jul 2: 240 to 0355; La Tour, Bairols, Roubion, (L)Auberge du Neige Azur 80F
Gorges du Cian et Rioulan, Grasse, Mougins: (DH)Moulin *** (D)715F, (H)313F
Wed,Jul 3: 160 to 0515; Grasse, Balcons de la Mescla, Aix: (M) Granet,
Cathedral, (D) Cave Henri IV * 320F, Cour Mirabeau, (H) Moderne 114F
Thu,Jul 4: 164 to 0679; Cour Mirabeau, Madeleine,Silvacane Abbey,Goiron chapel,
Les Baux: (L) Riboto de Taven * 288F, (DH) Baumaniere *** (D) 362F,(H) 523F
Fri,Jul 5:129-808;St.Remy,Glanum,Arles:Theater,Arena,Cathedral,(M),Reattu, Baths Cloister,(M)Lapidary,(M)Arlesinat,PontDuGard,Nimes:(DH)Alexandre*(H)149F,(D)234F
Sat,Jul 6: 214 to 1022; Nimes: Tower, Park, Aigue-Morts, Montpellier, Agde
Cathedral, Pezenas, Beziers: (D) L'Olivier ** 228F, (H) Imperator 117F
Sun,Jul 7: 195 to 1217; Cathedral, Pic de Canigou, St.Michel-de-Cuxa, St.Martin
-de-Canigou, Casteil: (DH) Relais St. Martin (D) 97F, (H) 76F
Mon,Jul 8: 229 to 1446; Villefranche-de-Conflent, Bourg-Madame, Foix Chateau,
Labouiche caves (L) 18F, St.Girons: (DH) Eychenne * (D) 175F, (H) 175F
Tue,Jul 9: 263 to 1709; St.Bertrand-de-Comminges, Valcabrere, Bagnieres de
Luchon, Auch: (D) Hotel de France ** 294F, (H) Relais de Gascogne 140F
Wed,Jul10:140-1849;Cathedral,MaisonDeGascogne,St.Flour,Condom:(L)TableCordeliers *170F,Larresingle,Seviac mosaics,la Romieu,Barbaste forLaurent's family(DH)000F
Thu,Jul11: 191 to 2040; Vianne, Nerac, Agen Museum, Puymirol (L) L'Aubergade **
375F, Valence, Moissac, Cordes: (DH) Grand Ecuyer * (D) 365F, (H) 253F
Fri,Jul12: 101 to 2141; Notre-Dame-de-la-Dreche, Albi Cathedral, (M) Toulouse-
Lautrec, Realmont: (DH) Noel * (D) 211F, (H) 143F
Sat,Jul13: 154 to 2295; Castres, Museum, Sidobre, (L) Robinson Lake 40F,
Carcassone: (DH) Cité, (D) 228F, (H) 330F, Berlioz "Requiem"
Sun,Jul14: 000 to 2295; Carcassone: (L) square 23F, (D) Donjon 130F, FIREWORKS!
Mon,Jul15: 403 to 2698; Roquefort: (L) Grand Hotel * 132F, tour, Rodez, Cahors:
(D) La Taverne * 105F, (H) Hotel de France 115F
Tue,Jul16: 164 to 2862; Perigueux: Cathedral, St. Etienne, (L) L'Ousin * 225F,
(DH) Savignac-les-Eglises ** (D) 285F, (H) 265F, walk fields
Wed,Jul17: 137 to 2999; Perigueux Museum, Bergerac: (L) Cyrano * 166F, Chateau
Monbazillac, Cingle de Tremolat, Tremolat:(DH)Vieux Logis (D) 198F,(H) 140F
Thu,Jul18: 117 to 3116; Les Ezyies, Fages & Beynac Chateaux, (L) Centenaire **
257F, Museum, Gisement, Font-de-Gaume, Sarlat, Domme: Esplanade (DHB) 257F
Fri,Jul19: 211 to 3327; Domme, Roque-Gageac, Souillac, Rocamadour: (L) Hotel
Ste-Marie 57F, Padirac, Loubressac, Autoire,Conques:(DH)StFoy(D)74F,(H)165F
Sat,Jul20: 242 to 3569; Treasuries, Lioran: (L) Hotel Anglard et du Cerf * 129F
teleferique, St. Flour, St. Nectaire: (DH) Savoy et Thermal (D)61F, (H)110F
Sun,Jul21: 249 to 3818; Cathedral treasure, Le Puy, Statue, Cathedral, Museum,
Vienne: (D) La Pyramide *** 550F, (H) Residence de la Pyramide 96F
Mon,Jul22: 247 to 4065; Vienne: Cathedral, Roman ruins, Theater, All Museums,
Megeve: (L) Le Capucin Gourmand * 210F, Bettaz teleferique to Mt. Arbois,
Chamonix: (D) l'M 80F, (H) Park 118F
Tue,Jul23: 000 to 4065; Chamonix: Montenvers, Plan du Midi, Planpraz & Brevent,
(L) Pizza 40F, nap, (D) Omelette 60F
Wed,Jul24: 109 to 4174; Annecy, (L) Libellule boat 180F, Talloires: (DH)Auberge
de Pere Bise ***, (D) 430F, (H) 430F, walk harbor
Thu,Jul25: 276 to 4450; Bourg-en-Bresse: (L) Auberge Bressane ** 374F, Abbey de
Brou, St. Philibert Abbey, Autun: (DH) St. Louis (D) 69F, (H) 160F
Fri,Jul26: 166 to 4616; (M) Rolin, Roman, Sully Chateau, (L) Chez Camille 140F,
St-Pere-sous-Vezelay: (DH) Esperance *** (D) 376F, (H) 450F
Sat,Jul27: 227 to 4843; Vezelay, Avallon, Semur-en-Auxois, Alise-Ste-Marie, Mt.
Auxois, Vercingetorix, Camp de Cesar, Fontenay Abbey, Vix, Troyes: (D) La
Bourgogne * 169F, wander streets, (H) Poste 207F
Sun,Jul28: 164 to 5007; Troyes churches, Museum, Nogent-sur-Seine: (L) La
Chapelle Goudefroy 182F, Paris, (H) Jean-Jacques, (D) bistro 000F (JJ pays)
Mon,Jul29: 011 to 5018; Return car,Charles de Gaulle airport: Paris to New York
FRANCE-BY-CAR - 35 1985
Restaurants and hotels in order of EXPENSE: approximately $20 and up, based on the average French franc [through the period 6/30 (9.23), 7/7 (9.1275), 7/14 (8.745), 7/21 (8.81), and 7/28 (8.735)] of 8.93, which is about 11% below the HIGH of 10.08 earlier in the year, but it's about 14% (service charge!) ABOVE the 7.7 which was reported on 12/8. So $10.00 = 89.3F and $100.00 = 893F.
RESTAURANTS HOTELS
$$$$$ FFF DATE PLACE MCH ME $$$$$ FFF DATE PLACE MCH ME
80.07 715 7/2 Moulin de Mougins *** G 58.57 523 7/4 Baumaniere: Baux S
61.59 550 7/21 Pyramide: Vienne *** VG 50.39 450 7/26 Esperance: Vezelay OK
48.15 430 7/24 Auberge dePereBise*** P 48.15 430 7/24 Auberge PereBiseVVVV OK
42.11 376 7/26 Esperance:Vezelay *** G 36.95 330 7/13 Cité:Carcassone VVV OK
41.99 375 7/11L'Aubergade:Puymirol** S 36.95 330 7/14 Cité:Carcassone VVV OK
41.88 374 7/25 Auberge Bressane ** S 35.05 313 7/2 Moulin de Mougins P
40.87 365 7/11 Grand Ecuyer:Cordes * S 29.68 265 7/16 Parc:Savignac-EglVVV OK
40.54 362 7/4 Baumaniere: Baux *** P 28.33 253 7/11 GrandEcuyr:CordesVVV VG
35.83 320 7/3 Cave Henri IV: Aix * VG 23.18 207 7/27 Poste: Troyes VV OK
32.92 294 7/9 Hotel deFrance:Auch** P 19.60 175 7/8 Eychenne:StGironsVVV OK
32.25 288 7/4 Riboto da Taven:Baux* S
31.91 285 7/16 Parc:Savignac-Eglis** P
28.78 257 7/18 CentenaireLesEzyies** VG CODES
26.20 234 7/5 Alexander: Nimes * S S = Superb
25.53 228 7/6 L'Olivier: Beziers ** G VG= Very Good
25.53 228 7/13 Cité: Carcassone OK G = Good
25.20 225 7/16 L'Ousin: Perigueux * G OK= OK
23.63 211 7/12 Noel: Realmont * P P = Poor
23.52 210 7/22 Capucin Gourmand:Mgv* S
22.17 198 7/17 Vieux Logis:Tremolat OK MCH = Michelin Guide Rating
20.38 182 7/28 La Chapelle Goudefroy OK
20.16 180 7/24 Libellule (incl.boat) OK L = Lunch
19.60 175 7/8 Eychenne:St.Girons * OK D = Dinner
H = Hotel
MOST EXPENSIVE DAYS: $100 and up
7/4 288F Riboto da Taven L
1173F 362F Baumaniere D
$131.35 523F Baumaniere H
7/2 80F AubergeNeigeAzurL
1108F 715F Moulin deMouginsD
$124.08 313F Moulin deMouginsH
7/24 180F Libellule Boat L
1040F 430F AubergePereBise D
$116.46 430F AubergePereBise H
7/11 375F L'Aubergade L
993F 365F Grand Ecuyer D
$111.20 253F Grand Ecuyer H
7/26 140F Chez Camille L
966F 376F Esperance D
$108.17 450F Esperance H
7/16 225F L'Ousin L
775F 265F Parc:Savignac-EgD
$86.79 285F Parc:Savignac-EgH
FRANCE-BY-CAR - 36 1985 TRIP SUMMARY PAGE
It's hard to summarize a trip that goes to places that most people (even FRENCH people) have never heard about. I could say that Conques looked like a magical place in a fairy tale with its morning mists and shiny-wet slate roofs. The treasuries of the cathedral boasted the baby-sized gold skull-reliquary of St. Foy, but where is Conques and who was St. Foy? Part of the charm of the town was that there were few tourists there, so we could park the car in front of the hotel, grab a quick dinner, and run down the steps to the newly restored cathedral in time for an ecstatic trumpet and organ concert.
Or I could say that if you wanted to see the Gorge du Cian, to which the Michelin guide gives its highest-attraction rating ("worth a journey", which is more interesting than "worth a detour"), be sure you don't travel down to Grasse via the Gorge du Rioulan, since it takes forever and isn't worth the detour. But who's about to put the Gorge du Cian on their next trip-itinerary?
One of the main reasons I love France is the food---as you may have noticed. Neil came up with the place-itinerary and I dotted the itinerary with nearby super-restaurants, relying on the Michelin guide which named 19 three-star restaurants in 1985. I've been to four of them already (and two which have since been downgraded), and managed to squeeze in five more this trip---that leaves only ten to go: two more trips??
Everyone thinks that traveling on an individual itinerary has to be very expensive, but I find that I'm not interested in groups OR in the American- style hotels in which groups stay. Since we stayed in smaller towns, however, there was little chance of running into a Sheraton or Holiday Inn-type hotel. $120/day sounds fairly expensive, but when that factors in a fairly expensive round-trip flight at $806 (since I flew to Nice and flew back from Paris) AND an automatic-shift car-rental for a whole month at $802 (not to mention around $300 in gas!), it's not such a lot of money. Naturally, staying in small towns automatically made hotel and restaurant prices less expensive than in Paris or New York.
I was particularly interested in my disappointment in a lot of the very highly rated places (expectations may have been too high, also) and in my delight in a lot of "found" places (though the intrinsic added pleasure of in fact finding a good place is hard to discount). I rated the $80 dinner at Moulin de Mougins as "good" (even though the food was VERY good) because at $80 I expect superb food. The food at the Capucin Gourmand in Megeve was undoubtedly inferior to the food at the Moulin, but costing $23 it deserves to be rated as superb. Then, being a thorough compulsive, I wanted to see which days were most expensive, which produced another lovely list.
This summary page is even more difficult since I know that I'll be sending it out with my Christmas greetings (NOT what I wanted, but I didn't get copies of the receipts from Neil, who kept them for tax purposes and promised to send me copies right after he got to North Dakota in the middle of August, until a few weeks ago) and my "year sheet." But I dearly love my travels and greatly want to let you know about them, even though a mere listing of the place names overshadows my reactions to all the ruins, cathedrals, museums, villages, and mountains. I'd love to do EXACTLY the same type of trip in northern France, or Italy, or Scotland, or West Germany, or Austria, or Switzerland. Anyone want to come with me? Even Chamonix will have to be repeated, because there had been a fire at Aiguille de Midi which prevented tourists taking the cablecar to the Italian border, and I certainly want to take that cablecar. I'm even looking forward to returning to the "superb" restaurants that I've been to once before. Not to mention all the added museums and restaurants that always make travel more interesting than any guidebook (or guide) can communicate.
FRANCE-BY-CAR - 38 SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 1
1. Nice coast & airport(flying to Rome)
2. Northern Corsica (Bastia)
3. Nice from Mt. Alban
4. Chagall Museum: Expulsion fmParadise
5. Chagall Museum: Stained Glass
6. Nice: Roman baths
7. Var River from Roquette-sur-Var
8. Roquette-sur-Var (normal lens)
9. Roquette-sur-Var (telephoto lens)
10. Saut des Francais
11. Road at bottom of Saut
12. Utelle church
13. Swiss-influenced Crucifixion
14. Utelle from road to Madonna
15. La Tour: Chapel of White Penitents
16. La Tour: Altarpiece in church
17. La Tour: Last Judgment fresco Chapel
18. Bairols: Main Street
19. Bairols: View down upon
20. Roubion: View down from
21. Falls in Gorge du Cian
22. Rooms in Oustau de Baumaniere
23. Les Baux: Caves under
24. Les Baux: Caves north of
25. St. Remy: Mausoleum and arch
26. Glanum: Roman ruins
27. Arles: St.Trophime facade
28. Arles: St.Trophime tympanum
29. Arles: Graffiti on cloister-statue
30. Arles: Arena ready for bullfight
31. Reattu museum: Jacob's Vision
32. Constantine's public baths
33. St.Trophime steeple from cloister
34. St.Trophime cloister
35. Capital of Massacre of Innocents
36. Capitular room modern-art exhibit
37. Lapidary Museum of Christian Art
38. Pont du Gard built by the Romans
39. Aquelduct took water 30 km to Nimes
40. Gard River 155 feet below
41. View from Pont to the east
42. Nimes: Tour Magno (man on top)
43. Nimes: View from Tour Magno
44. St.Gilles: church facade
45. Detail of above
46. Aigues-Mortes: Outer wall and towers
47. Aigues-Mortes: Walls & Mediterranean
48. Aigues-Mortes: 1150 Constance Tower
49. Up the Pyrenees to Pic de Canigou
50. Pic de Canigou and cow SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 2
1. St.Michel-de-Cuxa monastery
2. Repro of cloisters at The Cloisters
3. St.Martin-de-Canigou from above
4. Inside cloister
5. Capital
6. Chapel (reconstructed post-1920)
7. Relais St.Martin in Casteil
8. Pont de Sejourné
9. Foix: chateau
10. Chateau tower; note HOLES on sides
11. View from roof
12. Foix: distant view
13. St.Bertrand-de-Comminges
14. Carved choir stalls
15. Adam-and-Eve detail + snake
16. Teacher spanking student
17. Buffet-organ
18. 12th Century golden cope
19. Valcabrere church
20. Saints on church facade
21. Path out of Bagnieres de Luchon
22. Budding azaleas on July 9
23. Lac d'O#o and picnickers
24. Portion of multitudinous flowers
25. Halfway up Mont Né
26. Summit: looking DOWN over snow
27. Traffic hazard
28. Goats
29. "My" car outside St. Flour
30. Fountain at Table des Cordeliers
31. 13th Century chapel-window setting
32. Dry moat around Larresingle
33. Seviac mosaics; Roman 3rd Century
34. Still-filled moat and pierced walls
35. "Tourist-filled" inside-moat
36. La Romieu raised-roof
37. Lead+wood above; plaster below
38. Neat southern French towns
39. Half-chateau at Nerac art galleries
40. L'Aubergade in Puymirol: lunch
41. Moissac cathedral
42. Moissac portico
43. Moissac tympanum
44. Inside-pillar view
45. Cordes from a distance
46. Hotel Grand Ecuyer and car
47. Our room in Grand Ecuyer
48. Albi: Ste-Cecile Basilica
49. Choir from above
50. Choir from withinFRANCE-BY-CAR - 40 SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 3
1. Painting on brick: Last Judgment
2. Triptych (Sienese 1345)
3. Choir screen: Jubé
4. Prophet Jeremiah (XV Cent)
5. Impressionism out museum window
6. Formal garden out museum window
7. Wooden chest inside museum
8. Sidobre: Neil holding up a balanced
9. Rock named Peyro Clabado
10. Now-tethered rocking rock
11. Carcassone: walls from bridge
12. Closer, our hotel-top to right
13. Carcassone: town plan
14. Car entering outer walls
15. Car passing through inner walls
16. Pedestrian-lined streets
17. Garage-entry;our hotel room;church
18. Wedding from our hotel room
19. Path outside walls
20. Breakfast terrace from dining room
21. Crowd for Berlioz: "Requiem"
22. 500-choir and orchestra; 10:45PM
23. Walls lit on July 14
24. Bastille Day fireworks
25. Flares
26. More flares
27. Fire-fall
28. Fire in central castle
29. Cahors: Pont Valentré over Lot
30. Ruined cloister or cathedral
31. Perigueux: arena-ruin park
32. St.Front cathedral
33. Perigord Museum
34. Restaurant Cyrano in Bergerac
35. Chateau Monbazillac
36. Duckweed on Dordogne River
37. Cingle de Tremolat
38. Stream through Tremolat Vieux Logis
39. Beynac Chateau
40. View down to Castelnaud Chateau
41. Straight down to Dordogne River
42. Beautiful countryside after warfare
43. Sheer walls
44. Les Ezyies: museum under cliffside
45. 30,000-year-old man; offices
46. Sarlat Italian Renaissance house
47. "My" house in outskirts of Domme
48. Our hotel under rafters in Domme
49. Domme from camping grounds
50. Streetless Roque-Gageac SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 4
1. Souillac:inner door,12th CentChurch
2. Rocamadour: overall view
3. Rocamadour: castle
4. Rocamadour: St. Michael's chapel
5. Rocamadour: Annunciation&Visitation
6. Rocamadour: Bishop's garden
7. Down to Hotel Ste-Marie lunchplace
8. Down to restaurants and churchsquare
9. Gouffre de Padirac: entry-hole
10. Elevator from top
11. Entrance-way far below
12. Lake with natural limestone steps
13. Boat in Lake of Tears
14. Herd and milkmaid on road
15. Autoire: "Cottage" and canal
16. Conques: Church and Hotel St.Foy
17. Conques: St.Foy church west portal
18. Conques: View from breakfast table
19. Conques: View down to breakfast
20. Conques: Misty gardens and roofs
21. Conques: Fairy-tale land
22. Gold Majesté of St. Foy
23. Copper and enamel box, early 1100's
24. Reliquary of Pepin, 1000's
25. Charles Laughton and dog: keystones
26. Le Lioran:view from Anglard et Cerf
27. Plomb du Cantal by teleferique
28. St.Flour: dead Christ
29. St.Flour: View over town & clouds
30. St.Nectaire: Hotel concert
31. Hunting-horn concert invitation
32. Hunting-horn concert at church
33. St.Nectaire church in AM
34. Ruins of chateau of Polignac
35. Le Puy: St-Michel & RocherCorneille
36. Le Puy: St-Michel d'Aiguilhe
37. Le Puy: Hollow virgin on Corneille
38. Down from star to church and museum
39. Up from cloister to virgin
40. Vienne: La Pyramide of Roman circus
41. Vienne: St-Maurice Cathedral facade
42. Vienne: Temple of Augustus & Livia
43. Vienne: Largest Roman Theatre
44. Vienne: Paradise Lost in museum
45. Gallo-Roman ivory head 6" high
46. Bettaz: Mt. Blanc from teleferique
47. Bettaz: Hotel on Mt. Arbois
48. Aiguille du midi in side view
49. Aiguille du midi from front view
50. Mountain spires from Mt. ArboisFRANCE-BY-CAR - 42 SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 5
1. Chamonix:Mt.Blanc at sunset:hotelvue
2. Chamonix: View from Montenvers:train
3. Mer de glace: tunnel into glacier
5. "Clouds" in wall of ice: life size
6. "Ice living room" in mer de glace
7. Two hikers coming down glacier
8. Looking up to restaurant
9. Down onto restaurant and glacier
10. Contrails and streams in sunlight
11. Fantastically jagged peaks
12. Contrail and glacier to west
13. Les Bossons and Les Houches(towns)
14. Aiguille du Midi: closeup(incl car)
15. Contrail from mountain-top
16. Descending from Plan d'Aiguille
17. Waiting to ascend to le Brevent
18. Glaciers flowing from Mt. Blanc
19. Snowpeak from Brevent
20. Peaks to north of Brevent
21. Glaciers flowing to valley
22. Closeup of above
23. Glacier above Argentiere
24. Closeup of above
25. Annecy: tiny castle on Thiou River
26. From Lake Annecy: castles in Thones
27. From Libellule: parasail & house
28. From Lake: Talloires & Pere Bise
29. Annecy: boat-dock after lunch
30. Auberge du Pere Bise across harbor
31. Bourg-en-Bresse: Abbey of Brou
32. Tomb of Philibert the Handsome
33. Closeup of one of the Virtues
34. Altarpiece of 7 Joys of the Virgin
35. Autun: tympanum of Cathedral
36. Autun: Eve from Musée Rolin
37. Autun: Nativity from Musée Rolin
38. "Tintinnabulum" from Gallo-Roman exb
39. Ivory disk from Town Hall exhibit
40. Autun: Roman theatre
41. Autun: Porte St-André
42. Beaune: Chateau of Rochepot
43. St-Pere-sous Vezelay: church facade
44. Vezelay: ruined church portal
45. Avallon: Square Houdaille&"my"house
46. Semur-en-Auxois: Pont Joly
47. S-e-A: Pieta in Notre Dame Church
48. S-e-A: Saints to assholes on church
49. Mt.Auxois: Vercingetorix and Neil
50. Mt.Auxois: Vercingetorix Apotheosis
SLIDE-SUMMARY PAGE - 6
1. Alise-Ste-Marie: Caesar'sRoman ruins
2. Fontenay Abbey from air(iron-making)
3. Monks' Dormitory above monastery
4. Chatillon-sur-Seine:Vix tresor(1965)
5. Bronze urn from 600BC Greece:Gorgon
6. Warriors in quadriga
7. Greco-Sythian diadem: gold:one pound
8. Detail of winged horse
9. Source of the Douix River
10. Troyes: Cathedral
11. Troyes: Ruelle des Chats entry
12. Exit from Ruelle des Chats
13. 1500's houses &Place AlexandreIsrael
14. Jubé in Ste-Madeleine
15. Library in Beaux-Arts Museum
16. Capitals in Beaux-Arts Museum
17. Grounded gargoyle
18. Faun and Dryad by Valtat (d.1871)
19. Martyrdom of St. Edmond:Merson 1900
20. Cain kills Abel: Brune 1871
21. Farewell to car 7/29/85
22. Paris: Gare de l'Est tracks
23. New York: Celebrating my return