BURGUNDY: VINES AND WINES

During our stay with Steve and Maria in Switzerland, Steve, Bill and I took the weekend trip any wine lover would envy. We literally drove through every vineyard in the Cote d'Ore, the famous Burgundy wine region between Beaune and Dijon.

It was foggy and pouring rain, which did not stop this guy...or us. But at least we were in the car and had umbrellas. 

Rodolphe Demougeol

Home of Maurice Chapuis, with the entrance to his cave on the right

Maurice Chapuis in his cave

Maurice's cellar has been in use for over 800 years and in his family for four generations.

Steve and Maria have been here before. This is their favorite area hotel and restaurant,  Hostellerie du Vieux Moulin in Bouilland.

Road to Hostellerie du Vieux Moulin in Bouilland

The hotel sheep come to the fence to visit.

One of several tasting experiences

St. Vincent of Saragossa, a 3^rd Century Spanish deacon, is the patron saint of wine and vinegar makers. His statue appears around the villages and vineyards of Burgundy, where his feast day, January 22, is celebrated with a fete known as St-Vincent Tournante.

Steve at Romanée-Conti, reputed to be the finest and most expensive wine in the world.

Bill, too, standing in the midst of greatness

Lots of grapes were still on the vines. We don't know why.

We happened to be there on November 11, and we saw several gatherings around World War I and II memorials.

Just before we left to back home to Switzerland on Sunday, we saw that this wine make was open and stopped for a last tasting. She was most welcoming--a lovely finish on a lovely weekend.

SWITZERLAND-NOVEMBER 2012

Upon returning from Spain with our Geneva family, we spent a lovely, relaxing couple of weeks at their home. Well, actually, we relaxed and they went back to their busy lives of work and school.

It's a beautiful area and we so enjoyed being part of the family routine and participating in our granddaughters' activities.

MY DAILY WALK

How about this for luxury...an iPod with a good audiobook, trees in autumn color, crisp fall temperatures, and scenery like this?

French Alps beyond Lake Geneva 

A Farm near Crans with Dark Clouds over the Jura Mountains 

Village of Crans-pres-Celigny and Snow in the Jura Mountains  

Crans Harbor on Lake Geneva and French Alps 

Another View across the Lake toward France

I walk uphill to reach the village of Crans-pres-Celigny

Crans Community Center

HOME, SCHOOL, AND NEIGHBORHOOD

The local streets and yards are lined with high well-trimmed hedges.

A Picnic Spot Near the House

View from Upstairs Bedroom Window with Mt. Blanc in the Distnace

We enjoyed spending our days with our newest grandcats, Minuit and Cappuccino. They are litter mates, if you can believe that!

Halloween Night Trick or Treating

Kate and Maria teamed up to create 60 items for Kate's class bake sale. Each class gets to have a bake sale on a Friday recess once a year. The children can buy a treat for two Swiss francs. Half the profits go to the class and the other half to Aarohan, the school charity in India, http://www.aarohanngo.org/ 

Kate's class made pumpkin headgear to wear while selling their treats at recess.

Kate's class bake sale happened to be on the same day as the big evening family Halloween party at school, also a fund-raiser for Aarohan. Bill and I sold tea, coffee, and hot chocolate. Pizza and hot wine were also available, so that took care of dinner. Maria staffed a classroom for Trick-or-Treat. All the kids got glow sticks as well as candy. It took a while to round up the families to go home, but all agreed it was a great Halloween.