Nomad Bento

I had a very National Geographic vision of the Camargue: I imagined pink flamingos flying over my head, wild horses running on deserted beaches, bulls being caught by the French version of “gauchos” on horseback. And then we went to the Camargue, and I wonder where all these images come from because the ratio expectation vs. reality hurts a bit. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13 and #14 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel…

After having scratched the car because of a too narrow passage, we say to ourselves that we are a little tired because of the rhythm of the trip and that it will be necessary to go a little softer. So, instead of making stops in all directions, we remove the ancient monuments from our itinerary, namely: the Ancient Theater of Orange (before Avignon), the Arena & the Blue Museum of Arles ( after Avignon). Without these visits, we have 2 full days in Avignon. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2,…

When we learned that we were in the Ardèche gorges, C., JB’s great cousin and tour guide, strongly advised us to visit the Chauvet 2 cave. Without her encouragement, we probably wouldn’t have taken the plunge because we had planned to visit Lascaux IV and had planned to visit only one cave. Finally, we did well to visit the two caves which are very different. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11 and #12 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips…

I am very excited to discover for the first time the Gorges de l’Ardèche. I’ve heard so many good things about them that I wanted to see them with my own eyes. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10 and #11 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary Route Clermont-Ferrand – Gorges de l’Ardeche We make a stop at Le Puy-en-Velay (see the travel diary), then a stop for lunch at Pradelles, a “most beautiful village in France”,…

Well, for once, I’m going to mix up the order of visits because I don’t want my childhood memories of Lavoûte-Chilhac to be told at the same time as the other visits. Before going to Lavoûte-Chilhac, we made a stop at a producer of Saint-Nectaire, one of the 5 AOP cheeses in Auvergne. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9 and #10 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary A Saint-Nectaire with too much protein There are 5 PDO…

When I was little, I won several singing and electronic keyboard competitions in Vietnam. The rewards were not huge, except in 1997. This one was organized by the French Embassy in Vietnam, on the occasion of the Francophonie Summit in 1997. The prize was a one-month trip to France. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8 and #9 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary Of course, I participated… and won! We were about twenty of us, including 6 minors,…

This is only the 2nd time I visit the Auvergne, but the landscapes are so breathtaking that I don’t understand why there aren’t more inhabitants. I hope that there will be more jobs to develop the region because both in terms of gastronomy and visits, we have been spoiled. While researching the places to visit, I was completely overwhelmed because there are too many things to do and see here. Too many things to eat too 😀 So I chose the best of the best: the Puy de Dôme. Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts,…

After a week of intense visits comes finally the rest in Vichy, a spa town known and recognized for the effectiveness of its water. Note: this blog article is part of the series “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6 and #7 Part 1: Travel Diary Part 2: Practical Tips Part 1: Travel Diary Route Colmar – Vichy The trip from Colmar to Vichy is long, very long (5 hours estimated but in reality we drove more than 6 hours). We stop at the city of Pesmes, one of the most beautiful villages in France…