Monthly Archives: September 2014

Following the same route out of Yvoire that we have traveled on several times, we skirted Geneva to the Autostrada. Soon seeing Charolet cows – the traditional white bread of this region and past Bresse home of the famous chickens.
A 3 hour drive took us to the small village of Cluny . So why here ?
To see the remnants of the largest monastic church in Christendom – which promoted peace and benevolence from the 10 th century. With a Community of over 1000 monks it’s hard to believe how something as big as this could be destroyed and demolished . One tower remains and they have the most extraordinary screens that you can move around and they provide a digital image of what the interior of the church would have looked like.

It was a great lunch stop and we continued through the beautiful country side to enable us to pass through the village of Chardonnay and the home of the grape variety that we are all know and enjoy.
From now on its vineyards all the way to Beaune – mainly Pinot Noir and Chardonnay – some of the grapes are being picked and we did pass a pressing plant with a queue of tractors and trailers full of baskets of grapes.

What a joy to return to Beaune – this town is gorgeous and so is our hotel.
We were met by Richard and Lynley – my guides for the next 4 days and two newby’s to the tour Ted and Janine – also from Dunedin.
Richard introduced everyone to the drink of the area – ‘kir ‘ made from cassis and white wine or sparkling called Kir Royale.
Understanding the wines of Burgundy needs some guidance and Richard gave us a 101 introduction along with a wine tasting to get everyone started . Over the next few days with his help and our visits we will reinforce and learn about this extremely old and famous wine region.
It was a short walk into the village to a favourite restaurant called ‘Le Conty’
From lake views to sitting in a wine cellar underground we loved our traditional dinner of Ham and parsley terrine / beef bourgegnone / French pastry dessert.
Yet another memorable dining experience with delicious wine.

It’s Tuesday and market day in Annecy. This gave everyone an opportunity to buy and converse with the market people.
I did my best to encourage everyone to choose something they may not be familiar with – In amongst the masses of fabulous cheeses and salamis, vegetables, fruits and bread we also found terrines, rillettes and smoked duck, our only problem was Janet and Graham had the only knife ….
So sitting on a park bench with a view of lake Annecy we thoroughly enjoyed our picnic on this warm balmy day.

By mid afternoon we were walking up into the old heart of Geneva . Big cities are never easy to negotiate , but with Charles help Marco managed to drive us past the United Nations, the ILO, Red Cross, WTO and many others .
The Calvanist church was started here and the cathedral has a simple stark interior but surrounded by lovely cobbled streets full of some lovely shopping and restaurants.
Sadly no time…
The roads in Geneva have many flash cars. The streets are full of very smartly dressed women and men in sleek suits – it’s a city known for banking and of course diplomats and it shows. ,

For the second year in a row we visited the lovely Stephanie’s restaurant high up mountains in amongst the ski fields . Charles and Lissa have holidayed up here for the past 25 years and know the roads well . I think my group wondered where on earth we were going .. Driving past stunning wooden alpine houses we emerged out on a plateaux with the most awesome view of Mt Blanc.
Our food was typical mountain fare starting with a simple wine aperative- thinly sliced potatoes were served in hot pots with mushrooms collected earlier that day and baked with cheese on top, followed by Bilberry dessert ..
Being ‘ full’ was an understatement – but what a fabulous memorable time we had and will definitely be back next year.

Can you quess it was a quiet sleepy trip down the mountain along the valley over some very impressive viaducts and past the turn off to Italy through the Mt Blanc tunnel to the socialite skiing town of Chamonix.
We all enjoyed an exhilarating ride, first on a Gondaler then higher up in a scary cable car to a magnificent view of the mountains and Mt Blanc with its glaciers flowing below.
There were many people up here in tramping boots with walking poles enjoying the numerous walking trails on this sunny hot afternoon.
Oh.. How lucky we have been with the weather and it was important that we had a good day today to see these colossal mountains in all their glory.

One of the delicacies of Lake Geneva is the lake fish and tonight I had to go back to Jacque de leman for their famous fried fish and frites. Yep… Fish and chips and oh my goodness they were delicious.

We were back in the bus early today in time to get to our appointment at Gruyere in Switzerland to watch the making of Gruyere cheese.
What a stunning beautiful drive – firstly around the side of the lake, beautiful in the calm sunny early morning, then up into the hills lined with pristine farmland – rolling away from either side of the motorway – the grass looked manicured and of course the cows had bells around their necks. We were all interested in the huge farm buildings which not only house the animals in the winter but often the family at the other end.
Our visit was high in the mountains – a huge bucket left here to take skiers higher up the mountain.
In a house over 350 years olds we watched the traditional method of making cheese in gruyere – the milk was heated over an open fire and everything was done by hand .

On this gorgeous morning we stood outside to enjoy our cheese tasting , surrounded by stunning views and were entertained by a group playing Alpine horns..what an amazing deep beautiful sound. Graham and Ed both made an excellent attempt at blowing these huge beasts.

From cheese to chocolate. Switzerland is famous for this delicacy and Maison Callier is one of the oldest manufacturers – after a Disney type tour we emerged in the tasting room to eat and taste to your hearts content.

No one felt like lunch after too much cheese and chocolate but it was very hot and we found a lovely verandah to enjoy a local beer and watch this very busy Sunday in the picturesque village of Gruyere- full of locals out for a long lunch.
A drive past the Chateau Montreax on our return was enough – the swimming pool at the hotel was a preferred destination and a perfect end to a lovely day.

Traveling over the Simplon pass is one of life’s exhilarating driving experiences. The gradual climb through Villages of Italy that must get no sun in the winter, past the border and no mans land before emerging at the top of the pass to a grand view of Switzerland and the steep road we will drive down to the valley below.

By lunch time we had reached Martigny – surrounded by high mountains and castles. It is situated on the Rhone river where travelers in the past could choose to use the great St. Bernard pass or the Simplon, where we had just come from.
We were here to visit the Fondation Gianadda – a very lovey art gallery with permanent sculpture exhibits in the garden and this year the fabulous painting of Renior were visiting. It was a very pleasant couple of hours .
You could also visit the museum of the St. Bernard dogs where some of the group chose to go in and spend some time with these massive dogs.

Another border – this time into France and a drive along the lake side – watching enviously everyone, swimming and boating on this gorgeous, calm sunny afternoon.
Didn’t matter though as our beautiful hotel has a pool and it took about 5 minutes to change and enjoy the cool water, an aperol spritz and a relax before a lovely meal of smoked duck salad, lake fish and a beautiful dessert. It was so enjoyable and sitting outside on a warm balmy evening was the perfect end to a long drive and the start to a new country,food and customs.

Day 10 already. Apart from my ferry cliche yesterday our tour is flowing along splendidly.. I have a group of very happy campers.
This morning the local market visited Pallanza – these traveling markets ensure everything from fruit, vegetables, fish and salami to shoes, bags, underwear and clothes come to town each week. Some of my group did a spot of shopping before we we started our day with a walk along the side of the lake to the gardens of villa Taranto.

Planned and executed by the Englishman Captain MacEachern.The garden has an extensive collection of trees -( many badly damaged by a storm in 2012. ) A stunning manicured lawn lined with a herbaceous border. Plus an incredible dahlia collection – not a plant I have been partial to in the past, but the colours, shapes and forms had to be admired.

The quiet lake Orta was our stop for lunch and a short visit to the little island of Isola San Gulio – still home to a convent and I suppose a group of Nuns and very few else.
Like the other lakes , Orta is surrounded by lovely villas with gardens and lawns right down to the water edge. It’s actually very close to Milan and would be a perfect retreat .

A restful slow start today for our leisurely day tripping around the Borremean Islands – Isola Madre, Isola Bella and Isola Pescatore .
A very reliable ferry service runs all day on the lake. Perfect for tourists and local residents alike.
We had a relaxing hour walking through the neat colourful gardens of Isola Madre and the grand villa which would have once had the island to itself.
It’s a quiet retreat compared to the intricate Italianate gardens of Isola Bella …
The grand palace which entertained and accommodated Napolean gave us a small insight into the lives of the wealthy Boromean families.

It was day of choices and after I mucked up the ferry times a group set off to the Chapel of Santa Catarina on the other side of the lake – …..
Some shopped in Stressa, some went by cable car to take in the expansive views of the lake, while some returned to Pallanza for a quiet afternoon at the hotel.
Hannah and I stopped at Isola Pescatore – known as the fish island and home to fishermen and many restaurants.

Siting high on a balcony over looking the lake our dinner was at one of my favourite trattorias – dad in the kitchen, mum at reception, sons and daughters waiting on tables. A lovely long table had been set for my group and they could choose things like wonderful homemade Ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta and coated in sage and butter, delicious mussels and Tagliata – rare beef sliced with rocket and parmigiana Regiano .
It’s been a terrific day and ended with a memorable meal..

I am sure everyone will have very fond memories of Lake Como, Moltrasoio and the very comfortable Posta hotel .
But today we traveled to lake Maggiore via Barbaresco. Who would have expected to meet a New Zealander in Piedmonte …. Jeffrey Chilcott has lived here for 25 years.. He is the cellar master at the Martinenga estate and a very good friend of Charles.
Surrounded by the most beautiful vineyards dripping with huge bunches of grapes, they are nearly ready to be picked for the 2014 harvest in a couple of weeks.

4 hours later we left after a stupendous visit and wine tasting at the winery and a long lunch in the village. We were treated to such delicacies as – steak tartare with truffle, wonderful fine egg pasta with ragu, poached veal with tonnata , guinea fowl and vegetables and finishing with sorbet made with barbera wine and berry fruits .

I will leave it up to your imagination of how we looked on the bus after the initial high from lunch. Our two hour journey was very quiet to lake Maggiore and our Hotel at Pallanza – once again over looking the lake.
Needless to day a peach, water and walk was all that was required before an early night,.

By 8 am we were on the road – not so far this morning to start off with – Salvo dropped us off at the Como north train station to take us into Milan quickly and succinctly. We had an appointment at 10 am and met our guide Andrea to visit Leonardo Da Vincis incredible fresco of the Last Supper. This is a fabulous visit and she helped everyone understand the history and trauma the fresco has gone through in its long life time.nShe lead us onto another new and very lovely find – the church of San Maurizio and the ex convent Monastero Maggiore. The frescoes here were outstanding and rarely visited by tourists.
After my favorite mozzarella lunch at Obiko, high up on the top floor of the Rinacento department store over looking the fairy style roof top of the Duomo. Everyone had a couple of hours to shop and take some personal time to appreciate the centre of Milan, visit the Duomo or the fashion streets .
Visiting a large city like this in a day is never easy – my group were terrific and I’m glad they could experience a little of Milan – spot the odd gorgeous model walking by and see some very smartly dressed business people in amongst beautiful architecture and underneath the huge white intricate marble facade of the Duomo.

Accommodation for our 3 days on lake Como was at the delightful family run hotel called La Poste – from grandfather , father and daughter they couldn’t have been more helpful.
Many rooms faced the lake with balconies and a view of the many ferries transporting people up and down the lake.
We began our day driving up the side of the lake to the impressive Villa Carlotta where our visit included the huge villa and extensive gardens . The house was a 21st present to the the …. Who sadly died a few years later.
A short ferry ride took us to the touristy town of Bellagio – famous for its lovely hotels and where travelers from all over Europe come to enjoy the ambience.
The fast ferry whisked us back down the lake in less than an hour, where we caught the funicular up a very steep hillside to take in the view. Today it was a sunny, windy day – the first for ages we heard . Consequently we could see as far as Milan and well up the lake.
Our day finished with a 6 course meal at my flavourite La Baia restaurant – sitting on the edge of the lake my lovely friend Alessio excelled himself for the second year in a row with a meal of regional local dishes and wine.