FRANCE TOUR 2011/ No. 2

By
stevewhysall
-
0

The hard part of doing back-to-back tours is that you have to say goodbye to one group and hello to a new group and show no loss of interest or energy or enthusiasm.

This is, of course, not that hard, since we were in France and we were going to retrace all the steps we did with the first group, visiting all the same places a second time. And what could possibly be wrong with that. Well, nothing, of course.

But in reality, what we didn’t realize was that we would have developed a very close relationship and connection with all the people we had just spent two weeks with and it was never going to be easy to say goodbye to them and start afresh with a new group as if nothing had happened.

With the second France-Loire Tour, we literately went to Charles de Gaulle airport and waved goodbye to the first group and then moved to the other door and welcomed the new group as they arrived, bright-eyed and fresh faced and full of energy and enthusiasm for their French adventure.

What we very quickly discovered was that it could never be the same; this was a completely different time and place and the people were all very different and special and even though we were going to the same places, the time was different and the season had moved on and everything had changed.

It was then that we understood the truth of Heraclitus’s words: “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”

Nevertheless, there were similarities, uncanny similarities, such as when we again arrived at the Bagetelle garden to see the roses.

With baguette lunches in hand, we walked into the Bagetelle complex and lo and behold, one of the women in the group bite into her sandwich and . . .  lost a front tooth. For the second time, we raced to the dentist to get treatment. And, amazingly, it was fixed and the woman was back to normal in the evening and able to go for dinner with the rest of us.

Our time in Paris was again magical. We toured the city, visited Monet’s garden and Versailles a second time and were able to take in some sights that we were not able to see the first time.

By this time, we also knew the neighbourhood and we could advise people about the best store to buy wine. For instance, we had discovered Monoprix and knew how useful the store was for travellers and everyone appreciated this bonus insight.

We also found that we were able to tell them the best way to see gardens when we visited. We could tell them shortcuts and how to find the restaurant and what were the best items to order. It was all appreciated.

We had a new guide for the second tour and she had her own quirky ideas about what we should know about French culture. She was also the one to take us to Le Marais and helped us to discover all the highlights of this special area.

We again visited Vaux-le-Vicomte and Chateau de Courances and Apremont-sur-Allier.

In Paris, we again organized dinner parties each night, going to Montmartre and the Left Bank and Le Marais.

In Loire, we again stayed in Nevers and visited Villandry and the wineries of Vouvray and Sancerre. We again based ourselves in Tours and visited beautiful smaller towns such as Amboise.

In Nevers, the bus broke down and we were delayed an hour in the morning, but this was no big deal because it simply allowed more time for shopping; many of our female travellers took advantage of the wonderful shoe shop located next to the hotel to buy one, two, even three pairs of new shoes.

Villandry was again amazing and the garden show at Chaumont-sur-Loire was just as excellent as it had been two weeks earlier.

However, when we got to Apremont-sur-Allier, the garden had changed. The roses were over and the house in the centre of the garden was not looking as sensational as it did two weeks before.

I was very concerned but then we found the rest of the garden had moved on and more summer flowers were in bloom and more perennials were at their peak and trees were fully leafed out and more beautiful and so there were compensations.

People asked me if it was better the last time, for the last group, but I could honestly say, “No, it was different, but not better or worse, it was just as lovely, only a different time.”

This is a good lesson to learn about wherever we go. It will never be the same as it was the first time but it can be just as good, perhaps better, perhaps worse, but it will most certainly be different.

Back in Paris, the heatwave ended and the rain started. When we got to Versailles this time, it was raining and we had to wear raincoats.

Our time at Monet’s garden was also less sunny and bright, but there was a wonderful atmosphere in the garden and around the lily pond.

Instead of going to Auvers,  we decided to explore the island in the centre of Paris known as Ile de la Cite, which turned out to be great fun. We found lovely restaurants and cafes and we thoroughly enjoyed shopping and walking the cobbled streets.

Both French tours were a delight and I still often go back to look at the images here and to recall those very happy times together.

swhysall@hotmail.com

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR