Lynn goes to Paris for a five-day solo trip, then we meet in Nice to drive across Southern France to the Atlantic coast town of Hossegor, where we'll stay for 10 days or so, with side trips and cycling adventures, we hope!
Date(s): June 7-June 29, 2007. Album by Lynn and John Phillips. Photos by Lynn and John Phillips. 1 - 154 of 154 Total. 2607 Visits.
1 6-08 2007 Lynn Pont Alexandre III, Eiffel Tower background 5-day solo visit to Paris begins after a long overnight direct flight from Miami. "Hey! I LIKE this one, with t..." View Comments...
2 6-08-2007 Friday - Musee d'Orsay French impressionist art museum...still suffering from jet lag but well aware of the masterpieces surrounding me. "You're pretty with that Mone..." View Comments...
3 Pompidou Center French Museum of Modern Art. There are always interesting displays inside - and tres bizarre activitees dehors :)
4 Schuyler look alike Portrait of one of Napoleon's deputies, at Carnavalet Museum in Paris. "What's Schuyler doing in thi..." "Oh my goodness! That looks E..." "That is hilarious! Schuyler'..." View Comments...
5 6-10-2007 Sunday- Luxembourg Gardens Today Sunday was the best day yet!!! Fantastic I went to the Gardens of Luxembourg this morning and it was just beautiful. I had fun talking with some Parisians there .. After the gardens I went to see the Conciergerie and Saint Chapelle.
6 Medici Fountain Luxembourg Gardens
7 6-10 Sunday - Notre Dame After Luxembourg Gardens, of course had to go back to Notre Dame. I ate lunch at a really cute café before getting back on the subway and heading out to Roland Garros Stadium.
8 Saint Michel Fountain near Latin Quarter
9 6-10 - Roland Garos two hours before THE match sm Roland Garros Stadium: Final day of French Open, Nadal vs. Federer! There were people everywhere trying to buy tickets and none to be had
10 Nadal Poster at Stadium ...but I did get a picture of me standing in front of the famous poster that is only to be found there near the Stadium. I have yet to see it anywhere else in Paris. "You picked the winner!!! I a..." View Comments...
11 Amelie's Cafe Montmartre Sunday night, I went to Montmartre and winded my way around. I had dinner at the Café where Amelie (you know the film "Amelie") worked …. I did the usual wander around the Square by Sacre Coeur and took pics off the steps of Paris below. "Thanks for taking me along o..." View Comments...
12 Mime Montmartre square by Sacre Coeur There are towns where clowns beat up mimes like this
13 6-11- Monday - Louvre Today I visited the Louvre to see those things that I always managed to miss when with a group. I visited Napoleon’s Apartments (really amazing and so much more than just seeing the Napoleon exhibit that came to Memphis!) and saw the Assyrian Bulls (which didn’t impress me so much but the book said they were great!)
14 Napoleons Apartments
15 Musee Picasso I missed the Picasso Museum the other day so caught it on my way back. This afternoon I went to Galleries Lafayette to shop but didn’t buy a thing….the French do NOT know to have a sale! I am off to the Champs Elysees this evening just to walk and have a kir and watch folks walk by….tomorrow is my day for Giverny Thanks for following along with me! "I like the sculpture, it's l..." View Comments...
16 Tuillieries Gardens "I have been following you an..." View Comments...
17 Eiffel Tower The BEST way to get your picture taken when you are by yourself --- is to offer to take a couple's or family's picture...then say "Would you take mine please?" they can never refuse :) but in this case it was a group of Japanese men who were taking pictures of each other with such glee....hahahha just wanted to give them more pleasure!
18 Lilly Pond with japanese bridge Giverny Monday night I walked on the Champs-Elysees and window shopped – actually went in Louis Vuitton yeah right!!!! I had my kir royale in a café and watched the world go by. Tuesday's target: Giverny
19 Japanese Bridge over water lilly pond Giverny Tuesday I woke early and headed for the train station to catch a train to Vernon and nearby Giverny – the wonderful home and gardens of Monet. It was delightful.
20 Lynn on Monet's steps to home in Giverny
21 Monet's Home in Giverny It truly was a wonderful experience to finally make my own visit to see Monet's famous home in Giverny...no pics allowed inside the house too bad :( very interesting with copies of many of his favorite artists' work and some rooms had Oriental artwork displayed prominently...beautiful pastel colors on walls and furniture....
22 The Water Lilly Pond Giverny
23 6-13-07 Wednesday - Valerie Lynn Yann and Vegas Wednesday morning John flew in from the USA, we met at the Paris airport, flew to Nice, and then drove to Roquefort les Pins to stay the night with Yann and Valerie who have made our stay in Hossegor possible. Next day we head for Carcassone, and on to Hossegor for the beginning of our trip together. "Cheers! Hope you had a glass..." View Comments...
24 John and Yann with Valerie's appertif and I was sure I wouldn't like it but hmmmm wow that is good!! Valerie makes it from local sour oranges.
25 Un bon repas chez Bonneteau
26 6-14-07 Thursday - Entry to Medieval City of Carcassone Sure do miss Simba and Newman! "Awww! What cuties! And I kno..." View Comments...
27 Carcassone - Medieval City surrounded by Moat the moat however has never been filled with water...
28 Carcassone - OLD OLD OLD and I don't mean John!!! he is YOUNG YOUNG YOUNG :)))
29 Carcassone near our hotel plaza
30 John Carcassone
31 Crepe Nutella for John I suffered through eating many crepe Nutella's on this trip, all in honor of Liz Woods' chocolate addiction!
32 Canal du Midi in front of our hotel Bristol in Carcassone In the "new town" of Carcassone, we met a British couple that had taken a tour down this canal the year before - takes about a week, stopping at many town on the way down....from what we could see they did alot of drinking and sitting around having fun for sure....seems a very relaxing way to travel...
33 6-15 Friday Driving from Carcassone to Hossegor, we saw this from the highway and flipped, it was so cool, we got off at a little village and just drove right up to the gate
34 Abandoned Chateau built cc 1548 "What a handsome pair! Must b..." View Comments...
35 6-15-07 Friday - Hossegor beach and hmmm they all seem to be fully geared up in bathing suits tops and all....oh no....there is one young lady down there topless :) made John's walk to the beach worthwhile!
36 Hossegor home We are totally blown away by the beauty of the area and this lovely home which has been made available to us by our French friends Valerie (and more specifically her father!) and Yann....they have absolutely done everything to make this trip the BEST for us....
37 Johns puts together bike on patio of Hossegor home 20 mile checkout ride, hope to get in the countryside tomorrow (Saturday)
38 Our bedroom lies within this window in Hossegor
39 Rear view of Hossegor home - which overlooks a beautiful tree-filled back yard and Lake Hossegor, a tidal saltwater lake connected to the Atlantic Ocean by a short canal at its south end
40 6-15-07 Hossegor beach sunset bike, about 8:45pm This one's for you TeaBone, check the shore break, surf-kayakers and oard surfers, and God gleaming down from the clouds! After this short test ride & photo we went to supper at 10 p.m., pizza with fiery hot sauce made from olive oil and peppers "GREAT shot!" "Beautiful picture, but I don..." View Comments...
41 6-16 Saturday, Urt and River Adour 70+ mile ride all over farm country, good hill work and beautiful scenery
42 2 Bardos lunch, pain de chocolat & l'eau
43 3 Bidache main street, just up from Hotel Basque
44 A64 bridge over River Bidouze I saw this bridge or one just like it in Tour de France coverage in past years. A-roads are like superhighways, I don't try to bike em. "Its like your bike is the &q..." View Comments...
45 6 Lynn with our first home-cooked meal! We were both so happy to eat IN for a change. Lynn found all the food in Hossegor shops
46 6-16 Lac d'Hossegor hike, hotel just down from us
47 Lake hike Jack Cook Memorial Moment JC, I'm inspired to start local bird watching, they show you ALL THE BIRDS!
48 8 Birds of Hossegor plaque near lake
49 6-17 Sunday - Hossegor Market day Lynn gets gift from the Florida Sunglasses guy, who also has a shop in Orlando!
50 John Hossegor market day-sm Rainy day, perfect for a market visit. Be sure to take your own bag for carrying purchases.
51 Lynn and tree with huge flower front yard
52 Lynn at Peyrehorad on Gave de Pau We took a random ride in the country during the rainy day, and ended up here at one point
53 Montfort en Chanosse countryside-sm Taken at the roadside cause it was just so pretty
54 Peyrehorad castle midtown-sm
55 Cathedral at Dax-sm Dax was special because we've seen it on TV coverage of a few Tours de France, hosting the beginning or end of several stages over the years.
56 Sunday Supper with Lynn, Rattatouille chef With all the fresh stuff we bought at the market this morning. What a fantastic vegetarian meal, in honor of Angie and Art "Yay ! GO VEG :))" View Comments...
57 St Jean de Luz Morning pic, before we headed to the mountains. By coincidence, the place we ate dinner is across the bay behind Lynn. What a pretty seafront town.
58 6-18 Monday - LUNCH at Sare, Pays Basque Basque Beer! Who knew? Taste is strong but not bitter, I liked it.
59 poor Newman substitute but cute lil beggar! at Sare This little dude was kicked out of the way by the restauranteur, he must hang around for handouts from customers all the time!
60 le Petit Train de La Rhune Lynn rode this to the top of the huge pointy mountain that dominates this region, La Rhune
63 John takes off from Sare in Basque Country Monday frustrating start late in the day, but fantastic ride. Lots of climbing, cautious descending, and I was lost a lot of the time!
64 D4 roadsign I wanted to go to Ainhoa, but ended up a long time in St.Pee sur Neville, which was a fun unexpected detour.
They have these signs at most intersections, good thing too, I can navigate pretty well with em.
65 Ainhoa-the town you can't leave Geez they tore up the streets so you couldn't follow the route on the map, and didn't clearly mark a way to get out of there. This is the part of their main street allowing cars. After an hour of wrong rides in beautiful Basque farmland, I finally asked some guys for directions using the phrase Lynn taught me last night: "Mayday ci vous plait..." it worked. Next stop, Spanish border
66 Dantxarinea at Fr. - Spanish border old customs gatehouse This is where you used to have to show your passport and answer questions before they'd open the gate. No more since the European Union. I rode on into Spain and tried to remember how to say "Where am I" and "Please excuse me..." in Spanish
67 Puerto de Otxonda after long climb That's what they call this col in Spanish. I turned around at the col, and headed for Zugarramundi, thence to France, and met up with Lynn near Sare before supper in St. Jean de Luz
68 Le Reserve - amazing view and meal in St Jean de Luz in St.-Jean-de-Luz, Our favorite meal and scenery so far. We THINK that's Biarritz way off on the coast in the background "awww! who is cuter than my p..." View Comments...
69 Basque country version of Cliffs of Moher -- truly beautiful Looking out into the Atlantic at Le Preserve, St.-Jean-de-Luz, fantastic coast town we used as a base today
70 amazing dog in St Jean de Luz
71 6-19 Tuesday- Lynns private beach at Hossegor She took the picture this direction, because a lady was nude sunbathing on the other side
72 Dune walkover Hossegor beach
73 6-19 Tuesday - Lynn, Hossegor Street After Lynn beached it in the a.m., we headed into town for lunch and found Lynn's favorite parking place was still open.
74 Lunch L'Orange Bleue cafe Plat d'jour, was grilled fish, stuffed tomatoe, potato and moule...mussels! We never ate em before but dived in and they were good
75 UF fans: L'Orange Bleue Cafe We ate under the umbrellas, and took this pic in honor of those who may be Gator fans out there, you know who you are.
Later I got a 41 mile ride in, to Leon. All through controlled farm-forest, on a specially built bike path. "YEAH - GO GATORS!!!!" View Comments...
76 6-20 Wednesday Vieux-Boucau-les-bains hotel ROADTRIP today all over the Landes area north of Hossegor. Mostly flat forest farms, with little towns scattered throughout, and lots of beach access. "Cote D'Argent" means "Money Coast", but is not in lavish display thank goodness
77 Roundabout sculpture Mimizan Lynn took this while I looked out for traffic heading into Centre Ville
78 Church at Uza A pretty surprise tiny place at a crossroads we hit by accident
79 Landes typical timber frame home
80 Levignacq apartments occupied Most of these have residents. LOTS of apartments like this in town but in better repair
81 Levignacq church 13th century tilt steeple We ate lunch behind the church at a shaded table by a creek. Wonder how long the steeple has been tilted. I tried to climb up, but a gate stopped me at the rooftop landing
82 Picnique at Levignacq
83 Picnique at Levignacq-Lynn
84 Levignacq creekfront wash house Creek tumbles over rocks here, and they had this shed for washing, complete with stone scrub boards. This is where you could literally create "stone-washed jeans"
85 Marie, St-Julien-en-Born Town hall, with French national motto on front
86 Messanges post office
87 Moliets-et-Maa town hall On the way home we got fresh melon from a fruitstand girl who really knew her melons, turns out it was a "Luisiane" one.
88 6-21- Thursday - Lynn, Don Quixote, Sancho, & San Sebastian Roadtrip one hour away to San Sebastian, Basque coastal city in Spain. Huge surprise for us, we spent most of the day here!
89 Lynn and San Seb. beach hi-tide Fantastic crescent beach "Playa de la Concha" fronts city
90 Monte Urgull across Concha Bay with fortress and Christ stat Ancient fortress we climbed later
91 John Lynn La Concha 2
92 Backpacking buddy who took our pic
93 Lynn and City Hall San Sebastian On our way to climb around Monte Urgull, where the Old City meets the newer bustling downtown
94 Lynn and John above Old town San Seb. halfway up Monte Urgull trek
95 Lynn and Santa Clara Island, San Seb. From old battlement site Los Damas, Monte Urgull
96 Lynn holds up Sculpture by harbor entrance
97 Lynn View across Concha Bay to Monte Igueldo See Lynn's big sculpture down below?
98 John overlook Monte Urgull
99 JohnLynnSanSebastian La Concha
100 Lynn San Seb. beach low-tide I think the beach gets even broader, as it wasn't really dead low-tide
101 Map Monte Urgull Another use for digital technology, we navigated with this pic while walking
102 Mysterious backalley shop San Seb. They only sold something called "weed" and hippy stuff. We were hungry when we left. "ha ha! That sign is pretty s..." View Comments...
103 Plaza Constitucion San Seb. In the middle of Old Town, they have/had bull fights here, the doors all around are numbered seats for the events
104 Tapas (pintxos) and Sangria snack We tried the whole Tapas thing just in time; in an hour all the bars were closed down 2 hours for siesta "Mmmm! Sangria!" View Comments...
105 Tapas bar and cool beer tap The bar is covered with various tapas, small eats, and you choose what you want, buy them with something to drink, then enjoy
106 Working fishing fleet San Seb. several seafood restaurants right there on the wharf get their stuff from these guys
107 Navigation screen car This dashboard thing has made our trip SOOoooo easy! Visual and verbal directions for almost anyplace we decide to explore, no map arguments, and you can watch the scenery instead of worrying for street signs.
108 John Biarritz cliffs
109 Biarritz from Lighthouse Wow, what a huge display of wealth in a beautiful setting
110 John Lynn Biarritz bay at the Lighthouse
111 Favorite Boulangerie Hossegor bakery where we got our pan chocolat, baguettes, and other starch all week. Lynn found them and says they're the best.
112 Mon ami, le marchand de fruit Hossegor market where I bought all our fruit all week. This guy was great. Rode my bike down, put the melons and stuff in my backpack, got some bread and rode home for fresh berakfast
113 6-22 Friday- Bridge River Adour at Saubusse Wanted one last long bike ride, so headed out SE of Hossegor to see what I could find. We leave Hossegor tomorrow.
114 Bridge over Adour, just as the rain hit Took these pics at noon as the ancient church bells were tolling. Rain hammered and howled for 15-20 minutes, so hid under the bridge with my bike and a Clif bar.
115 Me and my bike hiding under the bridge The bridge and quay had to be hundreds of year's old, but still watertight and the road across was smooth after the rain quit
116 Pouillon centre ville...turnaround for today's trip Destination for today's ride. All closed up for the afternoon lunch break, re-open at 2:30
117 Pouillon church at centre ville
118 Road to Oriest I'd run into these beautiful stretches at random, this one was just after a hard rain
119 Tabac at Tosse THIS is why folks don't eat between meals here! I was starving the whole last half of the ride, and this is all I could find. They don't have Snickers, only Kit-Kat
120 Hossegor view of beach - too rough for surfers today Today is Friday June 22nd and wanted to get a last view of the beaches...too cold and windy to sit at beach - tomorrow we are leaving our beautiful home here in Hossegor and heading to the Caves of Lascaux near Sarlat....we will spend the night on route to be back with Valerie and Yann. John and the kids leave on Monday morning for the States...I will be staying a few extra days with the Bonneteaus in the South of France....hmmm it's a rough life but somebody has to live it!! :)
121 Red flag - baignant interdit!! NO swimming View of Hossegor beachfront. This place is usually hopping with young folks and teens, surfers, etc. Night scene is full of music and people. We ate supper at Hotel de la Plage just opposite these buildings and watched the surf while dining.
122 6-23 Saturday morning - Lascaux II sign We left Hossegor early to drive to Lascaux II to see this prehistoric cave replica, long fascinating story, well worth the journey. No pics were allowed inside tho. We had to pick up our tickets in the pretty village of Montignac, a few kilometers away down the mountain.
123 Lascaux Alvis The driver of this early-1040's British Alvis pulled into the cave parking lot. He's on a Tour of France with a group of Alvis's (see the front tag?), wish I'd asked him about it.
124 6-23 Rocamadour Hospitale overlook Lynn Lynn found this place an hour or two from Lascaux to stay the night, and it soudned fantastic. First view of the cliff-city was from this place across the valley.
125 Road into Rocamadour
126 6-23 Saturday afternoon Rocamadour We stayed all night in this town, after visiting Lasgaux II. What an amazing surprise this town was, carved into this stone cliff wall! Lynn took this from the window of our car.
127 Rocamadour - Hotel Terminus, our hotel We stayed in a room under the dormer roof windows on the opposite side, facing into the City.
128 6-24 Sunday morning Rocamadour balloons and Lynn We were eating breakfast at the hotel terrace, and heard strange blowing noises. We looked down into the valley and saw these hot air balloonists just taking off!
129 Rocamadour steps and steeple from Hotel window Out of our 2d floor room. Pilgrims walk these 200+ steps to the unique chapel. Steeple bells toll loudly for a LONG time at 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. We got to see the bell swinging furiously each time. Parking lot in the next pic is at the bottom of this rock wall.
130 Rocamadour hotel window street scene Out of our 2d floor room. Look how HUGE our black X3 looks parked there, but it DOES fit through the arched gate way down at the end of the street in the pic. See how the buildings are built into the cliff stone.
131 Rocamadour LynnJohn pic after supper This was about 9:00 p.m., we took a long walk after supper to thte pther side of the valley
132 Rocamadour main street The X3 didn't leave much room for pedestrians when we drove down this street to our hotel. The villa atop the cliff is privately owned, so we couldn't peek in.
133 Rocamadour street John Another view of the only street through town late in the evening.
134 Rocamadour shop Lynn This was delightfully eclectic and colorful, with shopkeepers who spoke lots of French to Lynn, and explained the difference between some French plate manufacturers.
135 6-24 Sunday afternoon - Cannes rest stop After a LONG day of driving, we made our last pitstop here, overlooking Cannes and the Mediterranean. What a cool location for a rest stop.
136 6-24 Sunday night Supper Parade torches We ate supper with the Bonneteau's in a small village in the mountains above Nice. Our table was on a terrace, next to the street where this parade was organized and begun. Yann said it's the St. John's celebration.
137 Supper Parade St. John's Festival
138 Supper with Valerie, Yann, Camille and Ben Celebration of our friends, the end of our trip, and the beginning of the trek to USA for John, Camille, Ben, and Killian on Monday. Lynn will stay behind for concentrated French practice until Friday!
139 Avenue des Anglais Nice I spent the last four days of the trip with Valerie and Yann in Roquefort-les-Pins. It was a great experience for me - nothing but French spoken - during the mornings we visited Nice, St Paul de Vence, and St Tropez - during the afternoons we sat by the pool and looked over a beautiful view of the valley. It was a truly wonderful experience that will always be remembered.
140 boat to St Tropez
141 chair sitting dog Old Nice
142 City Hall - Old Nice Valerie
143 famous cafe St Tropez
144 folliage and homes so beautiful - St Paul de Vence or Valbonne hmmm not sure!
145 lunch in Valbonne
146 Negresco Nice
147 Old Nice clock tower
148 Old Nice gazillion flavors of ice cream (gellato) I had a cone of pina colada and peach - fantastique!
149 St Paul de Vence fountain
150 St Tropz harbor - Valerie less than thrilled with rough windy boat ride St Tropez harbor was absoutely gorgeous - full of outrageously extravagent yachts and showoff eating lunch on them for the tourists to gawk at.....but still took my breath away.
151 Valbonne
152 Valbonne trompe d'oeil window in middle not there
153 Valerie and Me St Paul de Vence St Paul de Vence is a quaint little town sitting on the side of a mountain - basically set up for tourists with shops and restaurants - but the beauty of the area cannot be ruined by this capitalism.
154 Dog in Galleries Lafayette Nice and guards unhappy with me! The guards are afraid you're taking spy photos of fashions. Time to go home! I flew back to the USA next day.
Oh la la! Fantastique, ce voyage! Nous avons visite quelques endroits que vous avez visites! Ca sera formidable de discuter nos voyages! Amuse-toi bien en NC. Je t'appelerai en aout. Beaucoup de nouvelles au sujet du "Germinator." J'ai gagne le grand prix a Pittsburg. Alors je suis vraiment occupee avec tout le "red tape" de produire ce truc. Oh la la! Bisous! Glenda - Glenda Sidman, Sat, 14 Jul 2007 7:48AM
Miss you both! Looks like a wonderful vacation. Simon and Nigel send their love!!! :)) - Angie, Wed, 20 Jun 2007 8:08AM
HI, It's Friday evening. I've finally had a minute to look at your photos. Looks like you are having a wonderful time and good weather, too.
Simba and Newman are doing just fine. I'm sure they miss you, but we are giving them lots of love and attention.
Great pictures, I've never travel to Europe, but I feel like this is my first visit. Thanks for that experience. Enjoy every moment. - Tehera, Tue, 12 Jun 2007 12:08PM
Hey! Looks like great weather there, and you're seeing everything! See you in a few days, take lots of pics with you in them. - John, Sun, 10 Jun 2007 9:14AM
You're in Paris, I'm in Iowa...you win. Enjoy enough for both of us. Take care. Gianina - gianina, Sat, 9 Jun 2007 2:41PM
Glad to hear all is well...enjoy your trip! - Tere, Sat, 9 Jun 2007 8:10AM
Technical difficulties have made uploading impossible for the moment ____ will hqve to wait for John to come with right stuff ____am having a great time ____ - Lynn , Sat, 9 Jun 2007 8:05AM
Hi, I hope you are having a great time. - gail, Fri, 8 Jun 2007 6:57PM
