There's so many things to do in Paris besides The Eiffel Tour... And while there's some of the best museums in the world... Amazing art galleries, World Famous Cathedrals... many people love Paris just for its street life and cafes!
And with that said, someone has reached out and asked about other possible market streets to visit in Paris besides The Rue Cler that we wrote about last week... So yes, there are many market streets in Paris, but some are more worth your time than others... this video points out a handful of the most popular market streets... (The Rue Cler is still our favorite!). Also we will in future posts talk about some of the magnificent and famous department stores in Paris that are worth at least a quick walk-thru! Enjoy!
(ps: if YOU have questions, or if we can help in any way, please reach out)
So if this is your first sojourn to Europe, you might be surprised to see a bidet next to the toilet in your bathroom! Bidets are very common in Europe... They're not nearly as common in France as they are in Italy, but you'll definitely run into them, and there are bidets in some of the bathrooms at Chateau du Soleil...
Here in the US, many folks have heard of or perhaps have seen bidets on their travels, but think that they are just an Old World tradition and not commonly used any longer...
Actually nothing could be further from the truth... Europeans use bidets all the time... It's not a type of toilet, but think of it as a bathtub for your "private parts". So a common question is: Don't they use toilet paper? Yes, they use toilet paper just like we do, but then afterwards, they just scamper over to the bidet to "clean-up..." (In Europe, they actually think it's odd that we don't use bidets)
Here in the US, many people have slowly adopted to "wet-wipes" for the same reason, and those in the real estate business will tell you that the bidet is slowly making it's way into the upscale & luxury US housing market... All that being said, we told you this would be an "adventure" and we suggest you at least try the bidet if there's one in your room! You might find that you like it! You basically just squat down and hover over the fixture, turn on the faucet, and splash a little water over the parts you want to clean! If there's a bidet in your bathroom, there will be special towels provided in your room specifically for drying after using the bidet! And in the "end" (pun intended) you'll feel much more international & immersed!
(note: while were on the subject, we always like to remind our guests that sometimes if the bidet has not been used for a while, the water in the p-trap evaporates and septic odors can escape into your room... if you smell anything odd, just run the water in the bidet for 10 seconds so that the p-trap fills with water.)
The video below will give you a little more detail on "bidet technique". Enjoy!
(hover over the video after it starts, and click the little box on the right to go full screen)
For those of you going to Paris for a few days before or after Provence, and staying in the 7th arrondissement at the hotel we recommend, Hotel de Londres Eiffel, you will of course be just a 5 minute walk from The Eiffel Tower... (more about the Tower in future posts), but you will also be in The Rue Cler neighborhood, and just a 3 minute walk away from The Rue Cler, a wonderful quaint & charming little pedestrian market street filled with lots of fun little shops, cafes and bistros! It's a favorite place of ours in Paris!
This is a great place to go for a stroll and immerse yourself in the delights of the French culture... There's some great little bistros and cafes to eat at, or just sit outside and have a glass of wine and do some fun people watching... Perhaps pick up a bottle of wine and some fun cheeses for the late evening parties under the Eiffel Tower for The Light Show! Here in this video you have our favorite travel guru, Rick Steves, showing you the charm of this little market street!
If you've not traveled with us for a few years, we now have nifty new complimentary Adventures to Tuscany luggage tags we'll be sending out to you as we get closer to your departure!
Your upcoming Beautiful Villages of Provence Tour is now just under 6 months out, and usually at this point with the Holidays over, some of our guests are beginning to start to think about packing... So our guests often ask us: How many suitcases can I bring?
As far as we're concerned, you can bring as many suitcases as you want... (But to be the happiest, our advice is: one medium suitcase & one small daypack) This is what most experienced travelers learn to live with...)
You do need to be aware of a few things... Airlines today, in order to make more money, usually strictly limit both your carry on and checked luggage... Today many airlines have at least four to five levels of tickets:
Basic Economy
Standard Economy
Premium Economy
Business
First Class
With their very most-basic economy tickets, some airlines now usually only allow one small personal item (9" x 10" x 17") as a carry-on. (not a full size 9" x 14" x 22" carry on). With these most basic tickets, if you want to check luggage, you sometimes have to purchase that separately... Usually around $100 per piece of luggage up to 50 lbs. And if you show up at the gate with a full size carry-on, they likely will make you pay the $100 to check it, and may even charge you a $25 Gate Handling Fee. We strongly suggest you check your airline's written policies on their website... and if you haven't purchased tix yet, keep the luggage situation in mind when you research flights. If your tix doesn't include checked luggage, consider this scenario:
if there's 2 of you
2 checked pieces of luggage @ $100 each (the fee is charged each direction)
total luggage fees = $400
size matters! the black one is 22" and will actually satisfy full-size carry-on restrictions, but be aware now some airlines are also putting weight restrictions on the carry-ons... the purple one is a 26"
With the next level up: Standard Economy ticket, you typically (not always) get one free personal item, and one free full size carry-on that's typically limited to no larger than 9" x 14" x 22" and one free checked bag (usually)with a top limit of 50 lbs... They're pretty stringent on the weight limit... if your bag goes over, the fee is expensive... (many airlines charge $100 extra if your bag hits 51 lbs - 70lbs and $200 extra if it goes over 71 lbs) All airlines have their own policies and they change often. (While this post is just an example, it by no means is the exact policy of your airline.) Please keep in mind, this is generalized advice based on lots & lots of experience; but we don't know what airline you're flying, what class of tix you've purchased, or what their luggage restrictions are... We suggest you check with your airline for restrictions based on your class of tix. (find their written policy on their website) You'll get nowhere telling a gate agent: i called and was told blah, blah, blah...
Biz Class / First Class: If you've shelled out the $4k plus for a biz class tix or the $6K+ for first class tix, you're probably not concerned about luggage restrictions!
As far as size and style goes, usually anything above a 26" case is wasted space as you can easily put 50lbs in a 24" - 26" case... 40 years ago we always traveled Europe with backpacks...We personally like rolling luggage these days, and it certainly makes toting your own a lot easier... And "spinner" luggage is a joy on smooth surfaces... While a standard 2-wheeler tends to pull easier if you're walking across an Old World city on cobblestone streets... Another thing to think about is that in Europe you're typically handling your own luggage. Most of your smaller 3 star hotels will not have porters, bellmen or lifts. It's just not as common in Europe... And this will be true at our Villa in Provence as well. The Villa has a couple of floors and there is no lift, so just like most everywhere else in Europe, you'll be handling your own luggage...
the classic zip out tote bag, folds into the little pocket
in the front and available in several sizes for around $20
Also, another thing to think about; if you're sharing a car with others, you'll likely have limited space... Cars tend to be smaller in Europe. Note the luggage guide on your car rental companies website for your class of car. If you're trying to put 4 people in a car with 4 large suitcases and 4 daypacks, you'll certainly need a larger car! After observing many of our tour groups with their luggage several times a year for over 25 years, we can tell you that we've always noticed that those with the least luggage seem happiest!
We also recommend you at least think about packing a "folding nylon suitcase" for your return flight... (Most of our guests end up buying things that they want to carry home). They're commonly available, economical and will last forever. It folds up tiny into the little pocket in the front, usually weighs less then a pound, and packs into your suitcase till you need it... So the strategy is this; you pull this out for the trip home, put your carry-on daypack inside of it plus any excess weight to keep your checked bag under the 50 lb limit... If you decide to get one, make sure it's a size that satisfies the "carry on restrictions" within your ticket. This bag or bags like it are usually about $20 and available in less then 30 seconds with one click at Amazon.com.
this is a style of daypack we usually recommend
for daytime touring... room for a water bottle, camera,
map, guidebook, lightweight sweater & umbrella
And then a daypack... The daypack is a small backpack or shoulder bag like kids use as book bags for school... the key word here is small... This a small pack that you might take with you as your free personal item on the plane and/or out touring everyday to carry your camera, water bottle, sweater, guidebook, umbrella, map, medicines, personal items, etc.. (usually available for as little as $10 - $25 at amazon.com)
Lastly, we'd tell you that from our experience, everyone usually overpacks... We'll guarantee you this; the less you take with you, the happier you'll be... if you end up needing something, there will be stores everywhere! Over all the years, and hundreds & hundreds of guests, we've never heard a guest say: "next time I'm going to pack more..."
Keep in mind, you will have access to the wonderful laundry facilities at the Villa... Chateau du Soleil is upscale, and the equipment at the Villa is all very nice! The laundry room & facilities are very nice, and they are for you to do your own laundry, and we fully stock the laundry room with complimentary laundry soaps, stain removers, etc, and we encourage you to use them. You'll be at the Villa in the evenings, so it's simple to throw a load in. So if you're doing a multi-day pre-tour extension, you'll be able to do your laundry as soon as you arrive at the Villa and have all fresh clothes for the week... or if you're doing a post tour extension, you can do your laundry on Friday before you leave!
Hope you're getting excited about Provence... You're gonna love The Beautiful Villages! And you're really gonna love Château du Soleil... We're going to have a great time! If we can help you with anything at all, please reach out to us!
There's always a slight bit of apprehension surrounding our two little language ditties in the right sidebar; A Little Bonjour Goes a Long way and Mangeons ~ Menu Item of the Day. The lists just keep growing! So folks alway ask:
A little "Bonjour" goes a long way...
Wait, do I have to speak French?
Do I have to learn those words...
So, do people there speak English?
Do you guys speak French?
So the answers to those questions are: No... No... No... and Yes (a little)! No, you don't have to speak French, and No, you don't have to learn those words, and No, they don't speak English, they speak French! And lastly: Yes, we speak a little... what we call "Survival French..."
We've learned a bit as we've traveled to France many times over the last 30 years, and we try to keep up with it by using DuoLingo online... and lastly, Terese worked many years for Ponant, a French Expedition Cruise company headquartered in Marseille, so we'd get over there most every year as she went to their headquarters for meetings, and of course many of her colleagues were French. (we had been thinking of developing a TV show - "Terese in Provence" but the Emily in Paris folks beat us to the punch!) So while we personally are by no means fluent, we do of course need to be able to communicate with the people in the local communities where we work with real estate brokers, hire our chefs from, acquire foods, wines and provisions, and arrange tours, etc...
We encourage our guests to try to learn at least 200 words of French... One, it will make your life a little easier while you're there... (especially in cafes). Two, it shows a sign of respect to the local people... and Three, we guarantee you'll definitely have a better time, a more satisfying vacation experience, and most importantly - you'll feel really good about yourself!
So some of the local people do speak a little bit of English... And certainly in the bigger cities like Paris, Marseille, Aix, Avignon and Arles you'll find more people, especially in the hospitality industry (hotels & restaurants) that speak decent English... But in Provence, there will be fewer people that speak English... In small shops & stores that deal mostly with tourists, you're more likely to find someone who speaks some English... But in shops & stores that the locals use (think clothing, grocery, banks, hardware, farmer's markets, etc) it's not unusual that no one there speaks any English... And if they do, they're often reluctant to use it because they, just like many of us, don't feel confident in their ability... Usually their English is a whole lot better then our French... But you have to always remember, it's not their native language and most have never been to the US... More often then not, besides French, they speak a little Italian, Spanish, German and Dutch as these are nearby countries that share borders with France... So English is like a fifth language to them... Keep in mind, when you're talking to them, and they pause before answering you, they're thinking in French and are translating in their minds to English... Often, when you ask them something, you'll see their eyes staring upwards as they struggle to think of the translation...
"Terese in Provence"
Usually, locals will be patient with you & you'll find a way to communicate with each other... and when you do, everyone feels good about it! But it helps if you know at least a few words... Again, it shows respect to them... That's why we always say: "a little bonjour goes a long way..."
More often then not, in the Provence area, you'll find that the women speak at least a little English and the men often don't speak as much, if any... We've always speculated that it's because more of the women end up working in hospitality, and more of the men more likely end up working at the Wineries, Olive Press Mills, in the fruit orchards and in the vineyards and olive groves...
While we're in Provence, you'll of course meet our Chefs Fabian & Coralie... Coralie has spent many years working in guest facing positions in the hotel industry and speaks pretty good English, and Fabian on the other hand, speaks really good French! Hope you're getting excited about France! We are!
Hi Guys, Happy New Year! hope all is well with each of you, and we hope you're getting excited about your upcoming Adventure to France! As of today, we're just a little over 5 months out from meeting up in Provence! We've recently received questions from guests on your upcoming Provence Expedition this June...
Someone has reached out about the new Schengen Area Entry/Exit System known as EES. The new EES system has been in the works for years and has been delayed several times already. They're now estimating that it will come online and be active starting November 10th, 2024". Travelers will need to scan their passports at a self-service kiosk each time they enter or cross an EU external border. The system will register the traveler’s name, biometric data, and the date and place of entry and exit. Facial scans and fingerprint data will be retained for three years after each trip.
If this is in place when you travel in June of 2025, there's nothing you need to do in advance of traveling. (unless you're an international jewel thief). You'll just scan your passport at the arrival airport and the kiosk will snap a facial photo and you'll put your fingers on a digital scanner for fingerprints.
The other new program coming out is The New European Travel Information and Authorization Services (ETIAS). This program has been delayed multiple times over the last 4 years, and is now slated to come online "Mid-2025". It will require non-EU travelers (that means you) entering Europe to register in advance online for a visa-like document that will be valid for 3 years. Passengers will apply online or via a mobile app and be checked against EU borders and security systems. Most applications will be approved within minutes to hours, but it could take up to 30 days. It will be valid for three years or until the holder’s passport expires (whichever is sooner), at a cost of €7 for those aged 18 to 70. It’s free for those outside this age range.
But again, this is not in place yet, and you can not apply for it yet but it may be in place by the time you're traveling in mid June of 2025. Their latest estimate is mid May, but again this has been delayed dozens of times since 2020, and might be delayed again. Because of all the confusion over the delayed start of this program, they're already saying they going to put in place a 180 day "grace period". We will keep you updated on this as we're sure a lot more information will come out on this very soon
But we do always take every opportunity to remind you that the French government requires you to have a US Passport that's valid for at least 6 months after your scheduled return date from France. If you need a passport or if you need to renew your passport, we strongly urge you to work on it now. It sometimes can take upwards of 3 - 4 months to get a new one or renew.
