It’s dark outside as we drive north from Granada north to Madrid and ultimately to Bordeaux. Very little traffic on the highway. Not unlike America, we pass way stations along the highway. `Gas…and Cappuccino. Long, lonely highway. Dad is happy…behind the wheel. Driving across the nothingness of the middle of the Iberian peninsula. No lights. Nothing. And we drive on. Dad is in his element…its as if we were driving across west Texas…and the landscape is not significantly different. As we get closer to Madrid, we begin to see more life…more traffic…more activity. From driving alone to driving in moderate traffic…still maintaining good speed…120-140 km/hour. Again, west Texas southern New Mexico…southern Arizona.
We get closer to Madrid and, not unlike other major cities in the world, we see activity. The suburbs. Long distance, lonely highways turn into urban expressways…we follow Apple Maps and the signs towards the Madrid airport. It’s really flat and the buildings and businesses around us are again synonymous with any large city in America. We follow the signs to the Madrid airport to drop off Kecia…the Madrid airport is a major hub for this part of the world.
Directions to the airport terminal are difficult so we finally pull into a parking garage to drop off Kecia. She dons her pack, a bit frustrated, and dashes off to catch a flight back to the states…and we are on our own again. After a bit of confusion leaving the airport area, we turn north and head towards Bordeaux. We find ourselves now driving through the rolling hills north of Madrid. We start to climb and, at some point, we find mountains and snow. Small resort towns…really cute…but we are Bordeaux bound. We saw a clear change as we approached Northern Spain, the coast and…Basque Country. Dad is intrigued because he has watched the Tour d’France for years as they pedal through the Pyrenees with the omnipresent crowds cheering on the riders. Lakes, mountains, winding roads. We cross the border into France and, pay a toll. In France, we paid a toll every 10 miles or so…3.50 Euros a stop. We are now driving through the National Forest south of Bordeaux…along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Traffic is easy and Dad is still enjoying the drive…a total of about 11 hours. As we enter the outskirts of Bordeaux, both Dad and I are somewhat surprised that we see so much urban sprawl. Dad always saw Bordeaux as a small, wine growing area like Napa. Bordeaux is actually a small city. We follow Google maps through Bordeaux to find small streets around our hotel. For once, no major issues. We park, check in and head up to our room. Dad eats dinner downstairs in the hotel restaurant…which is really good…and we hit the sack after a long day.
The next day is Sunday. Bordeaux is quiet. Dad and I walk downtown to find a beautiful, old city built adjacent to a beautiful river. The palace is impressive, as is the reflecting pool in front of the palace. We walk home past another beautiful, major cathedral…like most of the towns and cities we have visited. Once home, we clean up, Dad eats breakfast and we jump in the car and head out to the small, wine making town of Saint Emillion. The drive was magnificient. As we left Bordeaux and crossed the river, we found ourselves in a sea of vineyards…grape vines were everywhere, reinforcing that this IS the premier wine producing area in the world. We leave the highway and turn onto a small, two-lane road heading toward the town of Saint Emillion. Soon we are driving up a small, two-lane road heading up the hill and we see the town in the distance. Everything we see is wine. Grapes, vineyards, and estates making such beautiful wine. We drive up a one lane road, through the vineyards, and come upon the beautiful town of Saint Emillion…perched atop a small hill. Dad parked the car and we strolled towards the town. Everything was quiet at noon on a Sunday morning. Dad called his friend Mike McConnell and Paul Winter just to share with them where we were and what we were seeing and feeling. Glory. Beauty. Simplicity. We walk into town, down a steep flight of stairs with brick/cobblestone roads. No major crowds. Dad takes photos and just relishes the moment…the place. We stroll past the beautiful cathedral, past the stone wall that originally formed a wall around the city…along paths with 3 foot high rock wall borders on each side. The town is ancient…shops, restaurants. This is the wine country of Bordeaux. This is wine history. It’s just shy of noon and most of the shops and restaurants are closed. Dad checked trip advisor and found a great lunch spot called Table38. They had just opened and welcomed us…quaint little restaurant. After we sat down, the restaurant filled with both tourists and locals…all festive. Dad had a salad and beef stew with wine…and devoured it…and love it. He had two glasses of local red wine…delicious. For dessert, our waitress recommended a cheesecake tart with a peach topping. Dad devoured it and enjoyed a cup of Cappuccino to top off a lovely lunch…just perfect. As we were finishing lunch and waiting for our “Addition” a young couple came in, looking for a table. Unfortunately, the restaurant was full and they were turned away. Oh well. We paid and left…and stopped a a local wine store with thoughts of sending some wine back to Maryland to enjoy with Paul. No way…the prices were exorbitant. Over the top…so I guess we will just visit Glenn at Eastport Liquors when we get home. We walked back to our car and enjoyed a pleasant drive back to Bordeaux and our hotel. Dad is quite taken with Bordeaux, Vibrant, historic and yet manageable with our the glitz of Cannes, Nice and the Côte d’Azur. We could live here. On our way back to the hotel, we dropped our rental car off at the airport and took a bus back to the train station…and took a 45 minute walk back to our hotel.
After a nice nap, we cleaned up and headed down to Old Town for dinner at a restaurant again recommended by the hotel. We walked through the narrow roads and ancient buildings…none of the retail glitz that we saw in Cannes, Nice, Verona, Venice, Florence or Nice. What a nice change. Dinner was amazing. Dad had oysters and steak…along with a glass of scotch and two glasses of beautiful wine. Our waiter was efficient but not to patient with us…but Dad did love the food. As we were finishing dinner, Dad looked up and, low and behold, it was the young couple from Saint Emillion sitting down next to us. Dad smiled and engage them…they were Dutch from Amsterdam. We (Dad) had a lovely conversation with them and they shared a restaurant in Paris overlooking the Eiffel Tower where they at twice.
We walked back to our hotel…happy and satisfied. Loving our life and loving being in Bordeaux. The next morning, we packed our bags and left them at the front desk of the hotel. We scheduled a cab to the airport and took a long walk back into old Bordeaux. Our cab arrived on time an off we went to the train station and the beginning of our final journey in Europe…Paris and then back to Amsterdam and a return flight to Philadelphia. I wonder, is this the end…or is this just the beginning. Despite my continuing diarrhea, I am happy and think its amazing that Dad and I are on this amazing journey together. I am a happy dog. And, in France, I am welcomed on trains and in restaurants. Glory!
So..next Paris and Amsterdam…and the magic continues. As always, thank you for reading about my adventures. I am a tired puppy…but I have seen amazing things and, the best part, I have shared this journey with my best friend and my Master…who I love dearly and am totally devoted to…Dad.
Maggie (and Doug)
PS...I forgto to tell you. When we had dinner at the nice restaurant in Bordeaux, Dad was having difficulty selecting a dessert...so the waiter said try the special...and Dad did...PRUNES!!! He laughed and texted pics to his friend Paul...Ah France.
perfect photo's again--how beautiful is Bordeaux!!