OUR FINAL DAY

Our luck finally ran out with the wether as we drove into Paris in heavy rain. We arrived in the Bastille at about noon and found a car park that was about two inches longer than the car, thank God for parking sensors. Having skipped breakfast, we walked quickly to L’Ebauchoir to secure a table. We were seated and ordered our final meals and a full-bodied Provisional red. Soon after, our lamb, pork and juicy rare steaks arrived and were devoured. It was all divine as we slowly finished the wine and agreed that L’Ebauchoir was our favourite restaurant and we would return one day. After lunch, we drove the short distance to the Marais and secured a fortuitous park a block away from our destination. We then wandered the back streets, making a few more purchases from the areas vintage shops before a final coffee at Le Rosiers.  We arrived at our airport hotel at 5pm for an uneventful night.  We will return the car this morning at 9am and make our way to CDG for our midday flight. We are due to arrive in Sydney at 8pm Monday night and should be walking through our back door by about 10.30pm. Our main goal on return is to get into the ocean as soon as possible. Our trip has again reminded us of how lucky we are. To have pristine beaches on our doorstep is a good as it gets, for us anyway.

BURGUNDY

We have now settled into our cottage in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain and absolutely love it. The cottage is beautiful and has all the mod cons to make us feel at home.  We arrived late in the afternoon after driving from Tuscany. We dropped off our bags and walked around to get our bearings in the late afternoon sun before driving into Venarey les Laumes to stock up. This is our final stop before returning to Australia and we could not have hoped for a better end to our trip. After the hustle and bustle of the major cities over the last six weeks, this place is ideal. The late autumn colours and weather are beautiful. We have spent our time exploring the town in detail, and it constantly amazes us. It is set atop a hill in the middle of Burgundy, with an ancient church at its centre. It is a medieval town full of 14^th and 15^th century buildings. It also has an ancient Roman Crypt at its entrance. Being here is like travelling back in time. But we are back to the modern world tomorrow and leave for Paris in the morning. We plan to visit L’Ebauchoir for a final lunch before wandering the Marais during the afternoon. Whilst we have loved every single destination of our trip over the last six weeks, we are ready to come home. We fly out of Paris on Sunday and will be home on Monday night.  C'est la vie

San Gimignano & Siena

We are into our final night in Tuscany and have packed in as much as possible. We left early this morning for San Gimignano, taking the back roads through beautiful landscapes. We spent the next few hours exploring the small medieval hill town that Dante supposedly used as inspiration for his Inferno. We snacked on pastries and coffee before pizza and beer for an early lunch. We then drove onto Monteriggioni and found it almost empty. It is a very pretty town, surrounded by parapet walls, and can be circled in about 5 minutes. We then decided to drive into Siena to see the Piazza del Campo. We wandered slowly down through the town into the Piazza before stopping for another lunch in the sun at one of the restaurants overlooking the square. We ordered risotto, pizza and pappardelle with wild boar ragu and sipped slowly on a bottle of light-bodied Chianti as the sun set over the Piazza. Late in the afternoon, we walked back up to our car via the Duomo before more coffee and gelato for the drive home. We leave Italy early tomorrow morning for our final destination in Burgundy and have booked a country house in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, with a population of 323. We will use it as a base to sample the local produce, both red and white.

  

PISA AND THE COAST

After the huge day yesterday, we decided to take it easy today. We ate a late home-cooked breakfast before driving the short distance to Pisa and the Coast. As we drove over the hilly back roads, we saw the ‘Leaning Tower’ from a distance, sticking out like a wobbly tooth. Pisa is an unusual town, small but with a very big landmark. Apparently, the Tower is one of Italy’s main tourist attractions (it attracted us), with loads of travellers lining up to have their photos taken holding it up. In a country so full of amazing sights, without its Tower, Pisa would be a very quiet town. After coffee and gelato, we drove on to the coast, which was completely empty. It is no doubt a major attraction in season, but a ghost town now. The water is crystal clear with frequent marble break walls calming the sea. They have also trucked in round white rocks to pass as sand. Maybe in a few million years, it will begin to resemble the real thing, but not any time soon. We returned for a late lunch in the sun at our local restaurant before a siesta and then a walk around the wall at dusk. Tomorrow, for our last day in Tuscany, we plan to head out early to San Gimignano. And if time and aching limbs permit, maybe a quick look at Siena’s Piazza del Campo and Duomo. If not, maybe next time.

FLORENCE POSTCARDS