Friday 19th November – Sunday 28th November 2010
We had an excellent journey out to Chalon Sur Saone with afternoon flights from Glasgow on time, a bus waiting going straight to the Gare De Lyon and then the 19.58 train from the Gare to Chalon, and we arrived at 22.30 at the Port de Plaisance.
We were shocked at the water levels in the marina when we arrived, with the fuel pontoon being under water, so there must have been huge amounts of rain in recent weeks. Fortunately, GGII was just as we left her and it felt good to be back on board in a place we have grown so very fond of.
On Saturday, we filled the fridge full of some of our favourite French food, stocked up on some great wines including a bottle of Beaujolais Nouveau which was released last week, and then headed off to the pub and watched Scotland hammer South Africa at Rugby! Pan fried chicken and pesto went down well on board to celebrate the win.
On Sunday, we had a lie in and a delicious curry at the Indian Restaurant in the evening. Yum Yum.
On Monday, with the weather turning colder, we travelled to Louhans, a pretty market town half an hour away and then had our Ostrich Steaks for dinner on board.
On Tuesday, we hired a car and visited Geugnon which is about 1 hour south west, another pretty market town, unfortunately the mist and rain came in and it spoilt the views! We then headed north to Pouilly en Auxois for some lunch, before dropping the car off at Europcar about 16.30. If only we would be in control over the weather…..As it had been such a miserably cold and wet day, we treated ourselves to dinner at Le Normandie of Moules Frites – the best we had both ever tasted .
On Wednesday, we had another relaxed start and then we headed into Chalon for a bit of shopping for the boat and managed to find a thick needle and thread we needed to repair part of our canopy. We also managed to find a small excellent heater for the engine compartment, to stop anything freezing through the winter months. In the afternoon, we relaxed on board with our books and had some lovely pan fried duck breast for dinner, followed by some crossword puzzles and music.
On Thursday, we walked to the train station and took the train the short 20 minute journey to Beaune, for our exciting Gastronomic overnight stay at the ****Hostellerie de Levernois which is part of the Relais & Chateaux group. What a luxurious place this in. Our deluxe room was in the Pavillion in the heart of the gardens with beautiful rustic furniture and French doors leading out onto a private terrace. We will now bore you with the details of one of the most amazing dinners we have ever had. We had 2 glasses of Tattinger Rose champagne as aperitifs along with a tray of appetizers. We then were brought some sea bass and goats cheese amouse bouche which were beautifully presented on porcelain spoons. After that, we were shown to our table. The restaurant was absolutely stunningly furnished in reds and oranges and because we had the Gastronomic Package, we had no idea what the chef had decided to cook for us, so that added to the fun. We chose a lovely 1er Cru white wine from Beaune and it was so good we ended up having 2 bottles, and then we started our marathon journey of food. To start, we were served a warm lobster salad with vegetables and a shellfish dressing which was magnificent. Then it was snails and frogs legs done in a green carnaroli risotto with parmesan cheese and a garlic cream sauce – again fab. We then had sea bass with roasted whicory and braised salsify which was done to perfection and then thankfully we had a break…..After 30 minutes, we started again, this time we had pigeon breast with potatoes millefeuille and salmis sauce and then they brought us the most amazing cheeses to choose from – 3trolleys full, and all excellent, served with some walnut and grape bread. A pre-dessert came next which was a lovely lime sorbet with mango, and then the maitre’d came with a beautiful chocolate birthday cake for me – thankfully with only 1 candle! We asked them to send it to our room, and then some soufflé with grand marnier arrived, just when we thought it was all over! What an experience, the food and service were first class.
We finished off with some fresh minted tea and coffee, and a cognac and then headed for our visit around the kitchens. It was well past midnight by now and the restaurant was still finishing off and the chef was still there. We were shown around all the stations and the wine cellar which contained a Romany Conte wine at 5100 euros per bottle.
We then headed to bed, through the courtyard and into heavy snow, just as well our room was only a short walk away.
After a good night’s sleep, we had breakfast in our room, checked out where we were presented with a lovely miniature menu signed by the Chef, and then headed by taxi into Beaune to visit this beautiful village. We went to the Hospices of Beaune where they helped the poor and sick, and it is now a retirement home. After a late lunch of a very light croque monsieur, we headed back to the train station and to the boat in Chalon, to get ready to go to La Table de Fanny for dinner at 8pm – more food! Again, they presented us with a lovely meal, but by this time, I think we were both so tired, we just wanted to lie down……..We won’t bore you with the fine details, but needless to say it was again excellent. This has been one of the best birthday’s ever.
We finished off winterizing the boat on Saturday and relaxed for most of the day afterwards with some music and crosswords aboard, before heading on Sunday afternoon to the station for the TGV direct to the Airport, for our flight home to Glasgow late evening.
We will not likely be back now in France until March/April time, to get the boat ready for the spring/summer holidays on the canals.
See you in 2011, Bon Annee when it comes!
No comments:
Post a Comment