Karen & Steve's 14-Day Tour
Europe Through The Back Door
- 2008 -
The bus ride to Beaune took us past pastures and vineyards that decorated the landscape with absolutely stunning shades of green. It was hard not to get caught up in the beauty of the countryside. While we traveled we learned that the road we were traveling was once an old Roman trade route.
Entering the quaint little town of Beaune (pronounced "bone") felt like stepping onto the set of the movie "Chocolat". The little buildings were almost cartoonish in colors and shapes. From the bus we walked cobbled streets to the 17th century
Hotel des Remparts. We we're loving every minute.
We gathered in the hotel courtyard where we were warmly greeted by owner Elyane Epailly before being shown to our rooms.
Our room had a view of a little courtyard that was perfect.
Colors, colors and more colors of a shop store - - -
From the hotel, our tour guide Dave took us on an orientation walk through town. We meandered through narrow
streets enjoying the colors and shapes of the buildings all around us.
Cobblestone streets, stone covered buildings, oddly-pitched roof peaks, colorful flowers and ceramic sidewalks all added charm to
this laid-back French country town.
In the cellers of Beaune's oldest convent there is stored a treasure of fine wines. Dave escorted us into the Couvent de
Cordeliers for a group wine tasting. We made our way down the stairs to find each bottle tastefully displayed
next to a candle on a barrel. We were given a special tasting glass and we learned the differences among all of the
wines we tasted.
Here we had the opportunity to enjoy beef bourgogne, a favorite local dish.
The Hotel Dieu (House of God) with its glazed tile roof was once a hospital for the poor and needy and is now a museum.
It provided an interesting look back to how health care was administered during the middle ages.
Karen and tour buddy Pete on a carousel in town
French Countryside
