Let me stoke your travel dreams for 2009 by sharing some of my favorite European experiences, roughly from northwest to southeast. Maximizing the experience is a dimension of smart budget travel that’s just as important in challenging times as saving money. Imagine these…
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Many abhor the French passion for la gavage — the force-feeding of their geese. To learn about the tradition, walk through the idyllic French farmland with a Dordogne farmer, surrounded by a hundred happy geese, dragging their enlarged livers like loaded diapers. On a visit to a gavagefarm, feel the rhythm of life for a goose…taste a slice of that glorious foie gras…and be thankful you’re tops on the food chain.
People visit Paris’ St. Sulpice Cathedral to worship, to track down a scene from Da Vinci Codelegend, and to climb into the loft to see perhaps Europe’s greatest pipe organ played by Europe’s greatest pipe organist. After Mass, a tiny green door in the back pops open. Join a gang of organ aficionados and scamper like sixteenth notes up a tight spiral staircase to the dusty loft. Pass 19th-century Stairmasters upon which men once tread — filling the billows that powered the mighty organ — and enter the ramshackle loft where a venerable lineage of world-class organists have performed. The current organist, Daniel Roth, graciously welcomes visitors each Sunday. Rest your chin on the historic organ, and watch as Mssr. Roth powers an entire church with his mastery of the mighty bank of keyboards.
You can read about the carnage as German and French soldiers slaughtered each other day after day on the Western Front. Or you can wander silently through fields of white crosses at the vast World War I cemetery at Verdun — realizing that less than a century ago, that horrific battle of attrition left half of all the men in France between the ages of 15 and 30 as casualties. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding of why, to this day, France is reluctant to go to war.
In Beaune, surrounded by the hallowed vineyards of Burgundy, the venerable Marche aux Vins (wine market) welcomes serious wine buyers and tourists in a subterranean, candlelit world, where fine wines sit seductively on old oak kegs, just waiting to be tasted. Pick up a tastevin(shallow stainless steel tasting dish) and a shopping basket, descend into dimly lit caverns, and work your way through the proud selection. Sampling a world of $100 bottles in the company of people who live for their fine wine can be both inspirational and intoxicating.
Summit the Rock of Gibraltar by taxi or cable car to find yourself at a unique perch: the only place on earth where you can see two continents and two seas come together. Gaze out at Africa and notice the energy in the straits. Ponder the action where two bodies of water meet, creating choppy riptides where little fish gather, attracting big fish, who attract fishermen. Consider the action at this meeting point of two great civilizations — Islam and Christendom — rubbing like cultural tectonic plates for 1,300 years. Then ape with the monkeys who call the Rock home and couldn’t care less.
In Santiago de Compostela, in the northwest corner of Spain, stand in front of the cathedral at mid-morning to greet the daily batch of well-worn pilgrims completing the Camino de Santiago. For centuries, humble seekers have hiked from Pairs and points all over Europe to this spot. With leathery faces, tattered pants, and frayed walking sticks, they plant their hiking boots victoriously on the scallop shell symbol of St. James imbedded in the square, look up at the cathedral that marks the end of their journey, and are overcome with jubilation.
Beautifully stated, Rick — thanks for the uplifting entry!
In Algeciras, Spain, I pointed out a broken water pipe I could see through a window in a closed Government office, to a man in a Custom’s uniform. He thanked me and ran for help. We then rode a ferry across the Strait of Gibraltar to Cueta, Spain, on the coast of Africa. As we drove toward Teutonia there just happened to be a camel driver with a couple of large camels to ride and some small ones to pet, and right where there was room to park the bus! Sweetie decided to ride a big camel, and pet a small one, and liked the experience. There was a large tour-group on our boat returning to Spain from Africa, a couple of days later. I strongly suggested to Sweetie that we be among the first off the boat, to beat the crowd. “Strongly†you can believe, but the word “suggested†might be a little hard to accept. By high-speed Hydrofoil we returned halfway across the Strait of Gibraltar, after an engine failure, by slow-speed Hydrofoil we completed the twelve mile trip to Spain. We were very late but a place to dock was finally found, but now we had to undergo what we had been assured would be a very detailed inspection of our passports, and of the rug and the copper trays we had purchased in Tangiers. We ran and got near the front of the line, so we wouldn’t have to wait for the large tour group to be processed. As we entered the temporary customs building in Algeciras, who do we see but the uniformed (customs) man from the “leaky ceiling episode†of a couple of days ago! He recognized us, smiled, saluted, shook our hands, and took us past the others, through the gate without even a glance at our passports or packages. A perfect end to a less than perfect day!
MMMMMM Foie Gras is so good. Had some on my birthday a couple of weeks ago. I still haven’t been anywhere fancy in Paris to sample it, yet.
My first experience of fine French cuisine was at L’Aubergine outside Washington, DC. The meal began with foie gras–superb! A few years ago my sister and her husband were living temporarily in France near Dijon and took the entire family (who of course came for Christmas) to Beaune. Over the 18 months she and her husband lived there, they took so many visiting friends and business collegues to the Cave des Cordeliers that my sister became good friends with the manager and earned several free bottles of wine. While in Beaune do not miss the wine making museum or the display of old wooden wine presses (ask around as I cannot remember where it is in relation to the Marche aux Vins and the Cave des Cordeliers). You will marvel at the massive timbers the likes of which will likely never be seen again with the loss of old-growth forests worldwide.
After WWI France had the largest and best equiped army in Europe. They built the Maginot line in the false belief it would protect them from Germany, their arch enemy. Their reluctance to stop Hitler early in his adminstration led to WWII and cost the many millions of lives that could have been avoided. When Germany was still weak, the Generals feared a French invasion,and even Hitler could not understand French reluctance but revelled in it. Early in the war the US had many battles with the Vichy French forces that cost innumerable American lives. You can still find claims that DeGaul won the freedom of France. Yes, there are many lessons to be learned from history. I just hope appeasement is not one of them.
French reluctance to go to war led directly to WWII. When they had the opportunity to stop Hitler they chose appeasement instead. Yes, there are lessons to be learned but what the French learned is not one of them.
The French reluctance to go to war led directly to WWII. Hitler was weak in the early stages and could have been defeated without heavy cost. This failure led to WWII. The lesson should be that appeasement will not work.
Why not a RS tour of France and Spain including Gibraltar? This reads like the beginning of an itinerary for a wonderful tour. Thanks for a beautiful entry!
Having lived in the south of France — Brive-la-Gaillarde, Périgueux, Bergerac, and Limoges — these are places of wonder, simplicity, and beauty. To me it is the true France that makes me yearn to return. Also, I will never forget Pau or Tarbes in the south; wonderful cities. The south of France is certainly my preferred area to visit. Give it a try and you will find a much warmer people, the French has a sing-song quality completely missing in the north. Thank you for mentioning the Dordogne region. Flights are becoming affordable again for Europe. It is time for me to plan another trip anew.
Nice post, Rick. We are going to rent a house near Beaune with friends for Easter week. I took down some notes from Nancy’s comments, above, thanks! I’m looking forward to introducing my kids to escargot and the whole French Countryside experience. –Also got a good laugh outa how “The Power of Nope” gang are trying to shift the cause of the current financial downturn to Obama. What a crack up!
Thanks for such a great reminder how beautiful Europe is. Time to think about Spring/Summer travel. I see that airlines are really slashing their prices, this may be more affordable for many this year. Seems great that you have written a book about Politics and travel, because somehow no matter what you say this blog always ends up in a political fight. There should be lots to talk about when the book comes out in May!
My Granddaughter is attending college in London this year. She spends every 3 day weekend, and her spring break, traveling throughout Europe. She just sent her mother a 6 or 8 page Email about her travels last week in Krakow, Auschwitz, Birkenau, Wieliczka, Poland’s, Salt Mine with Last Supper Bas-relief, Budapest, Vienna, Prague, Berlin, then home to London. It is quite a trip, and I guess she is the Group Leader. Her Email includes this statement: “Oh and thank you SOOO much for that Rick Steve’s Eastern Europe book! I’ve been reading it like the Bible this entire trip and its helped us out SO much.†So you see that even with Grandpa’s Web Site, and all the stories she has been told of Grandma and Grandpa’s travels, she still loves the help she got from Rick’s books.
I think the consequences France suffered in WWI are great reasons to be more thoughtful about war. I certainly applaud their courage in standing up to bullying in the Iraq war. I’m pretty sure the brutal Versailles Treaty was far more responsible for WWII and certainly earlier than any French appeasement. Appeasement in this context is I think largely misunderstood. All parties to the treaty knew at the time the treaty was unfair and unworkable even the near term. For this reason, there was greater flexibility and less oversight by the allies. I think another lesson is not to be overly harsh in victory (whatever that is)or it may come back to bite you.
All of Europe offers opportunties for experiences guaranteed to change your life.
Rick, I have a wish to give a dream to “the smartist guy in the room” better know as jim, (not humbard). Rick, a quote of yours taken from mark twain said traveloften makes you wiser, but less happy. For jim, who may be a historian, perhaps travel did make him the way he appears in his blog responses. But let me wish him the epiphany travel gave to this traveler. It saved my life, and made me reflective, wiser, and thankfully, far happier. Explaining the how and why would take more words then available on this space. But my wish remains the same. Larry from springfield.
Great advice, Larry. As I explained here one time about a year ago, travel also changed me from the bitter warrior I once was. I once thought I didn’t deserve forgiveness, no matter the price I paid. Every day I silently thank all who crossed my path with their patience and understanding.
Please, America gave many lives in defence of France during WWI and WWII, but lets remember they were an important ally during our revolution.