We (myself, my wife, 9 year old daughter and 5 year old daughter) just returned from our trip and wanted to thank everyone on this board and at RS headquarters for their insights and helpful advice along the way. I've included a listing of our activities below for your interest. The starred (*) items are those that we found to be exceptionally fantastic for every member of our family.
It was very hot for most of our trip, which caused us to do more swimming than expected, which was fun for everybody. We missed out on touring Sarlat, Les Baux and Nimes because of the heat, but otherwise things went as planned! We cooked just about every meal and enjoyed getting to know the butchers and small shop owners along the way, particularly in Beynac.
Thanks Again!
-Matt and family
Wednesday July 8
• Swimming in the pool in the morning
• Toured Arles after lunch
• Attended the Course Camarguaise bull games in the evening in Arles*
• Dinner of steak Provencal with mashed potatoes*
Thursday July 9
• Drove to Gordes and the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Senanque in the morning
o Abbaye Notre-Dame de Senanque was too crowded – no room to park – so we moved on
• Stopped at a lavender field on the side of the road en route to Joucas*
• Toured Joucas, lunch at a café*
• Kids played at the very nice playground in Joucas after lunch
• Hiked Le Sentier des Ocres in Roussillon*
• Dinner of fish and seafood soup Provencal*
• Evening walk in Tarascon
• Swimming in the pool
Friday July 10
• Toured the Pont du Gard in the morning
• Toured the Musee du Bonbon Haribo after lunch
• Swimming in the pool
• Dinner of steak Provencal with mashed potatoes
Saturday July 11
• Drove from Tarascon to Annecy (360 km)
• Settled into gite
• Evening walk through Annecy
• Dinner of pork chop from butcher with remaining Provencal accompaniments*
• Ice cream
Sunday July 12
• Market day in Annecy in the morning
• Boat cruise of Lake Annecy after lunch
• Dinner of pasta with heirloom tomatoes
• Evening walk through Annecy with ice cream, playgrounds and carousel
Monday July 13
• Morning walk through Annecy
• Rode the Luge D-Ete in Semnoz*
• Continued up the road (Semnoz) to Alpine views and cow pastures for incredible picnic lunch*
• Evening walk through Annecy with ice cream and playgrounds
• Viewed Lake Annecy town fireworks from Annecy
Tuesday July 14 (Bastille Day)
• Market day in Annecy in the morning
• Toured the Gorges du Fier after lunch
• Swimming in the Fier river
• Diner of Tartiflette*
• Fireworks in the evening
Wednesday July 15
• Drove to Chamonix in the early morning
• Toured the Aiguille du Midi*
• Picnic lunch on the mountain*
• Took the Montenvers train and toured the Mer de Glace after lunch*
• Checked into hotel and had dinner at a restaurant
• Evening walk of Chamonix town
Thursday July 16
• Took the cable cars up to Le Brevent*
• Took the Flegere cable car and the L’index chair lift up the mountain*
• Picnic lunch and snowball fight on the mountain*
• Rode the L’index chair lift several more times*
• Drove back to our gite in Annecy
• Dinner of pork chops from the butcher and mashed potatoes
Friday July 17
• Annecy market day
• Lunch of assorted sausages from butcher
• Swimming in Lake Annecy after lunch
• Packing and preparing for return home
• Dinner of mussels and French fries
Saturday July 18
• Drive to Geneva airport and fly home to Boston via Iceland