Eh Hostellerie Le Cedre Beaune

... really got what, but it all tasted good.<br><br>Our trip to Burgundy would not be complete without a stop in Nuit-St. George, where we again employed the "look for the sign of whoever is open" tactic and were not dissapointed. We got to try some excellent Pinot, C******nay, and even some Aligote (a white that they mix with Creme de Cassis for an aperitif) from some of the local producers. <br>Now its up to Champagne!

... the car to make our way to the hotel. We checked in and the lady was less than pleased to help us. She was not very friendly to say the least. Either way, we got up to our room and dropped our stuff before heading out for dinner. It was only about a 15 minute walk to the center of the city from our hotel. I think we spent 20 minutes once in the square trying to find a restaurant with something for everyone. Eventually we decided on the first place we looked at... go ...

... hours. <br>I got to Dijon at about 1840. My guidebook said the tourist office would be open until 1900 so I could get a map but it closed at 1830. Luckily I had copied down the directions to the hostel from the internet just in case. I had to take two buses. However, the second bus' monitor wasn't working and it was only by chance that I turned to look at the name of the next stop which I thought was mine, and so got out. Lucky I did though because I found that the bus ...

... Cube' we had left Belgium for ran out, leaving us with a fridge only functional when on the move. This time we had a much longer drive to France than previously -some 350 miles. Off we set, stopping on route at Frankenberg/Eder and Thalfang, reaching Clermont-En-Argonne (49.07'15"N 5.02'13.8"E). For 5eu on a spotlessly clean aire we have electricity for 24hrs, as muc water as we want, toilets and showers. The only drawback being no cafe/bar within ...

... medieval Phillipean castle and explained the evolution of castle defenses. It was thoroughly enjoyable, though it would have been better had it not been 30+ degrees on the dry and dusty construction site.<br><br>After leaving Guedelon, we headed for our home base for the next two nights, the city of Beaune. Beaune is a small city of 25K in the heart of Bungundy. After checking into our hotel, we ventured into ...

... slipped behind the wheel caressing the gearstick lovingly and cooing words of enouragement<br>to the little pooper. With a softness usually only reserved for these special moments in the <br>shower, he took hold of the gearstick engaged first and proceeded to kick the ***** out of<br>four gears with the cry of Corporal Jones "They don't like it up'em". With a strong tail <br>wind, three bodies lent forward, and on a down slope the old girl knockered out ...

The journey from Dunkirk went well. Soon we were on the A25 to Lille and soon enough after on the A26 to Reims; the miles smoothed away. We stopped occasionally at services - which the French do better than anyone else - and came off the motorway for a short while at Chalons en Champagne to fill up more cheaply. This little excursion was made especially interesting by a brief attempt on my part to drive on the left - it ...

... A fabulous breakfast but an even more interesting discussion with her regarding the hard reality of a champagne producer's English wife and children trying to fully integrate despite having the language and a French husband. A thorough understanding now of just how hard they are hit by taxes when really trying to make a modest living which curtails their growth. So, then Heroes by Bowie blaring took a 'petit tour' around the region - lid off and sun shining ...

He Said: Aside from drinking wine and eating foods cooked in wine, there's not much else to do in Beaune. A city in the heart of Burgundy, it basically divides two of the regions most famous clusters of vineyards - Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuits - but more on that later... We arrived rather late in the evening in the middle of a rainstorm, and quickly found accommodations recommended in our scavenged Rick Steves book. Beaune is not very big, so we were only steps away from the ...

... indoors. I was happy to retire though since I knew I had a big day of drinking, er, tasting ahead of me. But as I lingered that last moment outside, it struck me that I'd spent most of my time on this trip in larger cities and here I was now in a thoroughly enchanting little village. Don't get me wrong, I was glad to have seen the grand sites of the larger cities. But Beaune had already got me thinking that perhaps I would have to engineer another trip some day just to explore the ...