From Paris to Provence

One last morning in Paris, and then off on the TGV to Provence. We spent the time remaining before our cab ride to the Gare de Lyon station strolling around the immediate area of our hotel. Speaking of which, here’s where we stayed:

Even with the morning fog, it was a pleasant walk, with sights like the Seine, a local brasserie, the nearby fog-shrouded Pantheon, and Notre Dame.

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Kids were rushing off for school. Some were on foot (and being dragged by their mother), and some were traveling on their scooters:

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And then, some of them go all Parisian and take a cigarette break during their commute:

Our “commute” to Provence was a bit longer, but the high speed train took just two hours and 40 minutes to go 428 miles. The train was very comfortable and much preferred to dealing with airports – it’s a great way to travel. I was surprised to realize that we had not taken any pictures on this part of the trip, except for the shop at the train station where we found our “lunch”:

We picked up our rental vehicle at the train station – a compact, standard transmission Nissan SUV with a weird name – Qashqai. It took a while to figure out how reverse worked on this model (it’s been a while, and technology marches on), but we succeeded in navigating to our hotel in Saint Rémy de Provence. The shift from Paris to Provence brought warmer temperatures and a sunny sky – for a couple days, anyway.

Le Mas des Carassins is a comfortable hotel with gorgeous grounds that included statuary and water features:

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After checking in, we took a short walk to the village center. Along the way, we walked past olive groves and through the village’s beautiful cemetery:

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Saint Rémy’s center is small, but historical. It’s the birthplace of Nostradamus, the famous astrologer/seer and author of The Prophesies. His reputed birthplace and a water fountain with his bust were among the sights we caught on our first visit to the center:

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Later in the evening we went back to the center for dinner at a wood-fired pizzeria (“Da Peppe“) where we enjoyed live music and dined out along with the locals.

In the off-season, the village gets quiet early:

Tomorrow: a wine tour.