Our Toyota will be 10 years old in October - in the past five years we have been taking a few continental journeys from England to Italy through France (once through Belgium), which have been documented on this blog and a newsletter (see links at the bottom of this post).
We started travelling with a toddler and we now have a school-age child and a lighter boot - you can well imagine what it is like to travel with a young child with the travel cot, buggy, bulky car seat, etc... This year we have been able to take back oil, wine and other continental delicacies (madeleines, langues de chat, saucisson sec, Mont St-Michel biscuits...) that took our fancy.
This year, the itinerary was: Cambridge, Laon, Dijon, Grenoble, Asti, Lyon, Reims, Calais. Calais has a surprisingly nice, clean beach and great facilities for kids as it has several free playgrounds for all ages (from baby to teens) just opposite the beach. It was kind of interesting to walk around the beach, pick up shells, build a sand castle and see big ferries come in and leave.
First stop: Laon
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| Laon's cathedral - a pilgrimage hotspot in the Middle Ages |
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| Laon, part of the old walls |
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| Laon - this sign tickled our funny bones |
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Laon, The Templars' Chapel
On the French motorway: two of the best aires
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Aire d'Urvillers
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| Aire de Jugy |
Second stop: Dijon
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| Dijon: main park |
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Dijon: old buildings in the prime shopping area
Third stop: Grenoble |
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| Grenoble: the old fort |
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| Grenoble: a church angel |
Fourth stop: Castagnole, near Asti
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| Castagnole: the baroque church |
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| Castagnole: the tower |
Fifth stop: Lyon
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| Lyon: the farmers' market (Sunday) |
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| Lyon: the Japanese tea stall at the farmers' market |
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| Lyon: a stunning square close to our hotel |
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| Reims: the cathedral |
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| Reims: the Art Museum |
Seventh stop: Calais
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| Calais: the beach |
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| Calais: town hall and Rodin statue |
Extra pictures:
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The lake on Mont Cenis
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| On the top of Mont Cenis - our Toyota has a rest |
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P.S. Each year we have a different itinerary, here are our previous travelogues:
- 2008: Rugby, Reims, Dijon, Asti, Troyes, Lyon, Le Touquet, Rugby
- 2009: Rugby, Boulogne sur Mer, Auxerre, Annecy, Asti, Grenoble, Beaune, Arras, Rugby
- 2012: Cambridge, Langres, Chambery, Asti, Lyon, Salon en Champagne. de Panne (Belgium), Cambridge
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