France and Belgium

Gallery of Jim Blilie's Photos:

France and Belgium 1997

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For detailed pages on each trip, click on these links:

France and Italy Index Page

France and Belgium 1997

France 1999

Italy 1999

France 2010

In May 1997, I returned to France for 4 weesk, this time, bringing my Mom and traveling with my

friends Jeanne and Steve Mason. We flew from SEA to CDG on British Airways (they lost my bag),

through LHR. We arrived Saturday afternoon and immediately caught a train to Lyon, where

we had intended to pick up the car and continue south. But delays in the air travel and train

travel put us in Lyon, exhausted at 10pm. We picked up the car and my bag at the Lyon airport

the next day and headed for Gigondas in Provence. We spent two weeks in Provence with a car

and a Gîtes at Domaine Raspail-Ay in Gigondas. My Mom and I then drove back to Lyons with

the car, rode the TGV back to Paris, where we spent a few days, then by train to the tiny hamlet

of Waharday in the Ardennes in Belgium, to spend a week touring Belgium and staying with

my friend Kevin's Dad in Waharday. His Dad kindly lent us his car and that allowed us to tour

Belgium and dip into Germany and Luxembourg as well. We then returned by rail to Paris for

a couple more days before flying home.


Riding the TGV from Paris to Lyons	Riding the TGV from Paris to Lyons	Driving to Provence from Lyons	Gigondas	Gigondas

Gigondas	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Steve in the vineyard with a glass of Gigondas	View from my bedroom

Early morning	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Gigondas	Gigondas

Gigondas	Gigondas	Gigondas	Gigondas	Gigondas

Gigondas	Gigondas, the ruined chateau	Gigondas, view from the ruins	Gigondas	Gigondas

Gigondas	Gigondas	Near Gigondas: The local goat cheese makers	Seguret	Seguret

Seguret	Seguret	Seguret	Seguret	Seguret

Seguret	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Road into the hills above Gigondas	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay

Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Gigondas: At our very first Gîtes at Dom. Raspail-Ay	Avignon: The Palais des Papes	Avignon: The Palais des Papes	Avignon: The Palais des Papes

Avignon: The Palais des Papes	Avignon: The Palais des Papes	The view across the Rhone from Avignon	Avignon: The bridge	Arles

Arles	Arles	Arles: Van Gogh's View fo the Rhone	Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles: The Roman Colliseum

Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles: The Roman Colliseum

Arles: The Roman Colliseum	Arles	Arles	Arles: St. Trophime	Arles: St. Trophime

Arles: St. Trophime	Arles: St. Trophime	Arles: St. Trophime	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail

Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: Les Dentelles de Montmirail	Gigondas: Vineyard with head-trained vines and the Les Dentelles de Montmirail behind

Chateauneuf du Pape: The vineyard of Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe	Chateauneuf du Pape: The vineyard of Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe	Chateauneuf du Pape: The vineyard of Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe	Chateauneuf du Pape	Chateauneuf du Pape

Vacqueyras vineyards	Fontaine du Vaucluse	Fontaine du Vaucluse	Fontaine du Vaucluse	Fontaine du Vaucluse

Gordes	Bonnieux	Bonnieux	Bonnieux	Bonnieux

Bonnieux	Bonnieux	Bonnieux, Jeanne with a huge bowl of cafe au lait in the cavernous pattiserie in an ancient olive oil mill.	Bonnieux	Bonnieux, me and Mom

Bonnieux	Bonnieux	Bonnieux	Oppede	Oppede

At the Gîtes	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum

The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum

The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum	The Roman ruins at Glanum

	Les Baux	Playing boules de petanque at Chez Monique et Jacques in Gigondas	Lunch at Chez Monique et Jacques in Gigondas	Domaine Raspail

Near Gigondas	Near Gigondas	Near Gigondas	Near Gigondas	Near Gigondas

Vaison la Romaine	Vaison la Romaine, Steve Mason next to a "Dolum" a huge wine vat, normally buried (I'd like to see the potter's wheel and the kiln!)	Vaison la Romaine, the Roman amphitheater	Vaison la Romaine, the Roman amphitheater	Vaison la Romaine, the Roman amphitheater

Vaison la Romaine	Vaison la Romaine, theRoman bridge: Still in use ~2000 years after construction	Vaison la Romaine	Vaison la Romaine	Vaison la Romaine

Vaison la Romaine	Vaison la Romaine	Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, the Mediterranean	Aigues-Mortes	Aigues-Mortes

Aigues-Mortes	Aigues-Mortes	Aigues-Mortes	Aigues-Mortes	Orange: The Roman Theater

Orange: The Roman Theater	Orange: The Roman Theater	Orange: The Roman Theater	Orange: The triumphal arch built during Augustus's time (?)	Orange: The triumphal arch built during Augustus's time (?)

Orange: The triumphal arch built during Augustus's time (?)	La Gorge de L'Ardeche	La Gorge de L'Ardeche	La Gorge de L'Ardeche	La Gorge de L'Ardeche

La Gorge de L'Ardeche The natural bridge	La Gorge de L'Ardeche The natural bridge	Pont du Gard, part of a Roman Aqueduct (part of a nearly 50 km (31 mi) aqueduct that brought water from the Fontaines d'Eure springs near Uzès to the Castellum in the Roman city of Nemausus (Arles).	Pont du Gard	Pont du Gard

Pont du Gard	Gigondas: The Belvedere	Gigondas: View from the Belvedere	Gigondas: View from the Belvedere	Gigondas: View from the Belvedere: The Dentelles

Gigondas: View from the Belvedere	Gigondas: View from the Belvedere	Gigondas: The Belvedere	Gigondas: View from the Belvedere	Driving back to Paris

Driving north to Grenoble	Driving north to Grenoble	Grenoble, with the Alps behind	The Hermitage hill at Tain	Paris

The Hotel Kensington, Paris	29 Avenue Rapp	The Champs de Mars	The Champs de Mars	L'Ecole Militaire

Place de la Concorde	The Champs Elysee and the Arc de Triomphe	Paris	Paris	Paris: Le Palais de Justice and Sainte-Chapelle

Sainte-Chapelle	L'Orangerie Museum with huge Monets	L'Orangerie Museum with huge Monets	Paris	Paris

Paris	Paris: Ile des Cygnes	Paris, the Seine	Sacre-Coeur	Sacre-Coeur: The view over Paris with a thunderstorm

Sacre-Coeur	Les Invalides	Les Invalides	L'Etoile, in the rain

Rue Cler	Rue Cler	Rue Cler	Rue Cler	Rue Cler

		The Louvre (closed due to strike)	Le Metro

Chez Beretta at Waharday	Waharday	La Roche en Ardennes	La Roche en Ardennes

Antwerp Cathedral	Antwerp Cathedral	Antwerp Cathedral	Antwerp	Antwerp: The Statue of Brabo with the Giant's hand

Antwerp: The Statue of Brabo with the Giant's hand	Antwerp	Antwerp	The Ardennes	The Ardennes

The Ardennes	The Ardennes