Second Trip To Europe: Geneva (Switzerland), Monaco & A Tour of France

INTRODUCTION

     My first European trip was in 2007 when my husband, Ken, and I visited my brother who lives in Barcelona, Spain. Among the tourist sites we got to visit were the Sagrada Familia, Las Ramblas, Palau Nacional, Poble Espanyol de Montjuic, Parc Guell, Tibidabo, Parc del Laberint d'Horta, Parc de la Ciutadella, Marina Port Vell, Olympic Village, Casa Batllo, Casa Mila, Catedral de Barcelona, and Castell de Montjuic. We also toured the Costa Brava (Wild Coast) and got to see the medieval ruins of Vila Vella (Old Town) in Tossa de Mar, the Salvador Dali Theatre-Museum in Figueres, and the beautiful town of Cadaques. We even got lost while driving around looking for Salvador Dali's house (which we later learned was only a 20-minute walk from the town center at Port Lligat in Cadaques!). Realizing that we were nowhere near Dali's house, we continued driving and "discovered" Cap de Creus, a cape located at the easternmost point of Catalonia just 25 km. south of the French border. The place is very rocky but have amazing views of the Mediterranean Sea!

La Sagrada Familia y yo
(Barcelona, Spain)

The Peix Sculpture behind Ken and my brother
(Barcelona, Spain)

     After a 2-night stay at the beachfront Gran Hotel Reymar in Tossa de Mar, we crossed the Spanish border on our way to Carcassonne, France, to visit the restored "Le Cite Medieval" which is a walled city within a city. The next day, we drove up the Pyrenees mountains to get to Andorra, the 6th smallest country in Europe located on top of the Pyrenees and bordered by Spain and France. From there, we enjoyed gorgeous views on our way back to Barcelona. We stayed 2 more nights in Barcelona before proceeding by train to Madrid which we toured for 4 days.

Behind us is the medieval ruins of Vila Vella
 (Tossa de Mar, Spain)

The restored "Le Cite Medieval"
 (Carcassonne, France)

     Per suggestion of a Spanish lady we met here in the U.S., we booked the Hotel Plaza Mayor located just outside the old Plaza Mayor, a major tourist attraction in Madrid. The hotel is conveniently close to many tourist sites in the city (including the Palacio Real and Puerta del Sol) and to 2 or 3 Metro de Madrid train stations.

The Palacio de Communicaciones
 at the Plaza de Cibeles
 (Madrid, Spain)

A view of the Palacio Real from
 the Jardines de Sabatini
 (Madrid, Spain)

    As the designated Travel Planner, I realized on that first trip that I should have read more on what to expect, what to wear or what clothes to take, and other details that would have allowed us to see more places in the 2 weeks that we were there. We planned to go back to Europe sooner but some life events had to take precedence over our desire to travel to the continent more often. In May of this year, we finally made it back to Europe!

     We had a whole year to plan and save for this trip, MY second European trip as Ken has been to Europe many times since he was a kid, though he admits that his vacations in Europe before have never been as "adventure-filled" as OURS. He has me to thank for, of course. He told me once that I could write a travel guidebook the way I plan our vacations! That's what got me thinking about creating a travel blog.
     I had to change our itinerary, length of stay, and arrival and departure dates a couple of times. In the end, Ken and I agreed on spending 3 amazing weeks in Europe! The only hurdle that Ken had to overcome was informing his boss about our plan to be away for 3 weeks. The boss wasn't too happy about it but acquiesced, reminding him that he better take his celphone and work laptop (Great, another working vacation!).
     The first leg of our trip was a 2-night stay in Geneva, Switzerland. From there, we took the train to Aix-en-Provence where we stayed for a week. The thing I hate most about traveling is the "packing and unpacking" part. Hence, we decided to make Aix-en-Provence our base in the South of France.
     We drove all around Provence and the Cote d'Azur! In Provence, we toured Les Baux-de-Provence, Saint-Remy-de-Provence, Avignon and Nimes, and drove around the Luberon. In the Cote d'Azur, we visited Monaco, Eze, Villefrance-sur-Mer, Nice and Antibes one day, and Cannes, Saint-Raphael, Port Grimaud, Saint-Tropez and Marseilles another day, opting to take the longer but scenic routes along the coast. 

     From the South of France, we took the train to Paris, picked up our rental car at Gare de Lyon, and drove to Normandy. We arrived in Paris a little past noon on a Saturday and were glad that traffic was relatively smooth when we drove out of the city. Along the way, we visited Claude Monet's House and Garden in Giverny before proceeding to Honfleur, our base in Normandy. We spent 4 days in the region, also visiting Saint-Martin-de-Boscherville, Rouen, Mont-Saint-Michel, the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, the D-Day Beaches, Caen, Bayeaux, Beuvron-en Auge, and Le Havre. 

     Our last stop was the City of Love and Lights, PARIS! The prospect of weaving through heavy weekday traffic in "Gay Paree" wasn't something we looked forward to. We then opted to return our rental car to the Avis location at the Gare SNCF in Le Havre and took the train back to the City of Lights. The modern and nicely-decorated (and spacious by European standards) apartment we rented 6 months ahead was located on the market street of Rue Cler where we could live and feel like the locals for a week! From Paris, we also went on a day trip to Versailles and got to see the Grand Musical Fountain Display around the magnificent gardens and parks of the Chateau de Versailles!
     Contrary to popular belief that the French people are rude, we found them to be extremely amiable, courteous and polite (more so than the same people who call them rude). At the end of our trip, I found it hard to leave Paris. I felt that our stay in l'Hexagone wasn't long enough. Arriving home, I terribly missed French food! I constantly thought of French chocolates, macarons and pastries. I soon realized that, without doubt, I was deeply smitten with France!