Friday, September 16. Opted for a third party full day tour, split between a trip to the coast and another tour of the Left Bank. (I had not expected yesterday’s excursion to be so thorough.) With six others, we climbed into a van and took off at the speed of rush hour traffic. Our tour guide was 10% guide and 90% driver, and that’s being generous. Spend 90 minutes getting to our first stop: the largest sand dune in Europe. It was indeed very impressive, with a fantastic view of the Ocean. My dislike of sand was reinforced, though it was a good lesson on the variety of the world’s sand. This was finely ground, where my feet sank inches in. Yearned for the Sahara’s firmness. Thankfully they had stairs for most of the climb. The guide carried up some good wine and very old plastic wine glasses. Buying new cheap glasses every year would have killed him?

Next up was billed to be a trip to an oyster farm, where we’d learn from a farmer. Instead it was a visit to one of dozens of little cafes along the harbor and a serving of four oysters each, plus non-bordeaux white wine (i.e., from the sea of non-descript French wine). I learned nothing about their farming. I was very disappointed. Yoriko enjoyed the oysters, but they weren’t mind-bendingly memorable.

Before the tour continued to the St. Estephe area, we returned to Bordeaux for a picnic lunch, which was in the guide’s dining room. A store-bought sandwich and brownie, with more non-descript wine. At this point we bailed on the remainder of the tour. We walked back towards the ship and stopped at an Irish bar for snacks and a last-chance opportunity to people-watch. It was more satisfying than driving in circles for what would probably be more poor wine and worse guiding.

Following dinner back on board we were entertained by a really fun music group. (Happily, we weren’t among those who had a 4 AM wake up call for their next day departure.) It was a good ending to our trip.

Thursday, September 15. Busy day. Winds blew away the haze, so it was an excellent clear day. Not too hot for once.

We began with an amusing morning, guided by what must be the town’s leading entrepreneur, Les. His base camp is a narrow but deep wine shop which, as with all wine shops I’ve seen, have a good assortment of whiskies too. Les is a Character of the best sort. Very funny and relaxed. (He made it clear in a polite way that he has a dim view of American wines.)

We had with two wine tastings (the obligatory white, then red), along with the inevitable advice on how to taste wine. Then, wine glass in hand, Les gave us a tour of his “empire”. His winery was situated in a little courtyard and was no bigger than a three car garage. It had a unique feature: wine barrels that can be spun. Rather than pushing down the grapeskins in vats, he simply spins the barrels every few hours.

We then visited his wife’s art gallery, studio and antique shop (some items weren’t that old, but everything was interesting to look at). Very eclectic. Next was his house, which he now rents out to travelers. (He lives out of town.) Wonderfully full of antiques and memories. The town doesn’t let him alter the exterior, which is viewed as a good thing since it removes any temptation to spend money on it.

Next was his, for lack of a better term, MANsion. The front was a garage with a ’56 Porsche and three old 2HP Citroens. All were in perfect condition. Les also has an extenive inventory of old bikes and motorcycles, including an antique battery-powered version that still works. Behind the garage was a small garden with very high stone walls. (One ubiquitous comment all week was that the stones one sees in Bordeaux are mostly from England. Ships would carry stones as ballast to Bordeaux, then leave with barrels of wine.)

Last to visit was his claustrophobic cave, complete with wine cells and little tasting room. He even has some cells rented out to a few “special” people. Dark and mysterious. Les bragged a bit about his favorite wine purchases (“700 bottles of this”, etc). It was clear that he didn’t need the tour guide gig to pay his rent.

We ended the tour in the shop for a few last tastings. A thoroughly entertaining morning. Bought a case of wine, composed chiefly of Cabernet Sauvignon .

We returned to the ship for lunch, during which we crossed from the Right Bank to the Left for the “Highlight of the Included Tours”. The scope of this Excursion had essentially been hidden from the passengers. First was the standard bus drive, going past the most famous and beautiful of Left Bank châteaus in St. Estephe and Paulliac. Rothschild, LeTour, etc. There were a few photo stops, but I was getting a little inured to beautiful châteaus. We stopped for an exhaustive tour at Château Giscours (shortened due to an incredibly slow bathroom break). Once again learned how to taste wine, though to be fair this one was very entertaining and actually gave new insights. The wine’s taste was such that I was happy that I’d bought wine in the morning. Wonderfully, each bus visited a different château, so we had the place to ourselves.

The evening closed with a fancy dinner at Château Kirwan. Candelabras with real candles, high ceilings, excellent food presentations, great patio to step out to. The food was prepared and served by the ship’s crew. Sadly, the food did not reach the opulence of the room. I suspect that we had arrived later than expected. What should have been hot was warm, what should have been medium rare was medium well. But it was all fun anyway. Endless wine.

Our return to the ship was a crazy song-fest. The driver knew what rocked. (I heard later that there were complaints by the less boisterous passengers. Nuts to that.)

A long but thoroughly exciting day.

Wednesday, September 14. A leisurely day, mostly composed of sailing. Nice views of the shoreline. Hazy day due to fires.

In the afternoon we toured the Citadel in Blaye. Built by Vauban (a legendary engineer), it protected Bordeaux against invasion. Very large fort surrounding an old castle. The most unique feature was the absence of any tower, to prevent ships from getting targeting clues for the rest of the fort. The citadel is well preserved owing to its continued utilization as a military/police facility until the mid 1900s.

In the evening crewmembers joined us in the Bar for a “What are the Most Fun Songs to Dance To” Contest. (“The Chicken Dance” was in the top 3. Ugh.) I took photos and gave out the printed results. Very popular.

Tuesday, September 13. The ship got underway briefly and moved downriver to view a Tidal Bore, which I’d seen before in Canada. There was a surfer on the wave, but it died out well before reaching the ship. Not much to see. Only a handful of passengers got up to watch.

Short walk through Libourne. Nothing special.

Drove to Historic Saint-Émilion, which was more interesting. Surrounded by vineyards. Gorgeous views. Old city wall. Church and Monastery. Very nice standalone steeple. Beautiful wine shops. Spent time in one shop, tasting 8 wines. Memorable salesman. Bought some wine.

Had lunch at a winery restaurant, again with great views of vineyards. Got what I thought was a fine photo of our guide.

Visited a Chateau with a nice looking mansion and garden. Tasted three wines. (I am getting very tired of being instructed on how to taste wine.)

Monday, September 12. Tour of Bordeaux again, this time in daylight. Traffic was intense. The bus spent twenty minutes making three lefts and a right just to turn around. The lights seemed to be timed to litterally discourage people to use cars.

Visited an incredible wine shop that spiraled up several floors with an open center and outer wall filled with wines.

After lunch we departed on a cruise to Libourne. Involved sailing downriver, then taking another river up. Interesting sights on both sides. A WWII shipwreck still exists.

Sunday, September 11. Slow day. Toured Cadillac, south of Bordeaux on the Right Bank. But we first strolled through the Sunday market, just next to the ship. Huge stalls, mostly on wheels. Fresh-squeezed orange juice truck. Oysters, bagged for later or shelled as you watch. Bought some French sparkling wine from Bordeaux.

Cadillac was a typical town, famously with an original wall from the 14th century. Being Sunday, its streets were empty. Everyone was indoors eating Sunday dinner (chicken is the tradition). Very hot, which is going to be a theme all week I fear.

Roads have a nauseating number of small circles, which aren’t a problem for cars but forces the bus to slow down to nothing. Very time consuming navigation.

Sauternes winery. All they make. Owned by two sisters. It was unclear how involved they were in production. It’s odd how little is said about the people who manage the winemaking. Tradition dictates a process; people seem to just follow the recipe. Tasted one year, ten year, and twenty year sauternes. Progressively darker, with more intense flavors. Neither of us could tolerate the oldest.

Saturday, September 10. No photos. An uneventful transfer. Train hit 307kph. As seen on Google Maps, the river is brown. The tide is a surprise. Wine and cheese tasting served three whites and three reds. Evening tour by a very enthusiastic guide. Very pretty river view. Wild, very crowded tram ride back at 11. Party animals were GOING to clubs, not from.

Friday, September 9. Discovered our train tickets to Bordeaux tomorrow were cancelled. Told that I’d cancelled them. I butt-dialed the cancellation? I doubt it. I rebooked, for twice the price. Sounds like a scam.

Took subway to Montmartre, the highest point in Paris. Apparently subways can’t go up, because the station’s exit was an endless spiral staircase. To get to Sacre-Coeur basilica we took a very short funicular that rose less than the climb out of the subway station. Basilica is new, relatively speaking (1917). It is the only church I’ve ever seen with a clock inside. In the back. I can imagine small children repeatedly turning around to check the time during services. The view outside is a sweeping panorama of Paris.

The neighborhood is a tourist haven. Disguised water tower, Irish bar, windmill, Moulin Rouge, artists, and souvenir shops X 100.

Next was the Arc de Triomphe. Very imposing. Crazy driving. Lane lines would just be a distraction. Paid to climb a spiral staircase to the top. Another great view. Had lunch (fish and chips, plus Salmon tartare), then visited Angelina’s, a well known pastry dining stop. Yoriko bought something that was prettier than it was tasty.

Wandered through streets of wall-to-wall cafes. A few butcher and fish shops. Many more chocolate and wine shops. Why everyone in France isn’t overweight is a mystery. Had Italian for dinner again. Walked out to the Point Neuf Bridge for sunset. Nice way to cap off our visit.

Thursday, September 8. The Louvre. Easy entry. Got listening devices but didn’t turn them on until after our dash to the Mona Lisa. The museum provided signage pointing the way. The room was not too crowded. Had sufficient time for photos and quiet contemplation without a bustling mob. (These were the only photos I took inside the museum. I left my big camera at the hotel.)

We turned on our devices and choose the “Tour of the Masters”, a 90 minute walkthrough, addressing a selection of key items. But to start, we had to return to the entrance. The devices still need some work. They “lost” our location several times and we had to wait to be “found”. But overall, the devices were excellent assistants. Sadly, once we completed the Tour we realized that the devices held only a few other descriptions. I found the wall labels both too small and too low on the wall. The devices we had yesterday would have been much better. Point it at a painting and get a description.

Unfortunately, the one section I was most interested in visiting (Egypt) was closed on Thursday. (They had a set schedule for closures.) After four hours, we’d become overwhelmed and called it a day. The museum is crazy huge and was becoming very crowded plus noisy.

After lunch and a return to the hotel to regroup, we went out to walk the park fronting the Louvre, up to the obelisk. So many people just sitting or lying around. It’s true; Parisians know how to relax.

Dinner was intended to be at a genuine French food restaurant recommended by the hotel, but it appeared that everyone else wanted to eat there. We found another location that seemed less touristy than most. (Learned during the meal that the Queen had died.) Onion soup and escargot, then steak (with the special sauce) and duck, plus the seemingly obligatory fries. Good food.

Wednesday, September 7. Point Neuf Bridge. Walked towards the justice Ministry and discovered a substantial police/military presence. Had to detour to get past and reach the Conciergerie (historic palace and prison). Interesting tour, using newfangled devices which display on screen what we would be seeing centuries ago. New tech, old minds.

Next was the Saint-Chapelle (after more detouring). Amazing stain glass. As the “alternate” religious place to visit, very crowded.

Lunch within sight of Notre Dame. (I’m not sure which is more dangerous to pedestrians. Cars, which are big but makes a noise, or bikes/scooters, which are small but, with electrification, are silent and now move like bats out of Hell.)

Proceeded on a walking tour of significant sights and less significant life on the streets. Both extremes were fun to see. Began to rain, off and on. Wandered through parks which, for a Wednesday, seemed more busy than American equivalents. I had this thought that, centuries from now when Paris is in its cyclical decline, there will be more statues of people than actual people.

The Tower is the Tower. View not ideal due to clouds. More security than when I was here in 2018. We walked down. Strolled along the river (rain stopped). Walked down “Gucci/Armani/Dior” street. Got a subway ride back to the hotel. Had dinner at the same Italian restaurant we’d had lunch at yesterday. 26,000 steps.