Toulon & The French Riviera - Friday Nov 12, 2010
To see all of the pictures from our stop in France, see the France gallery here.
The cruise got off to a fast start. Geographically speaking, our ports of call - at least for the first section of the cruise - weren't very far apart. Our first stop happened the first full day of the cruise - we hadn't even been on the ship 24 hours - and that stop was Toulon, France. Seeing as the only European country I'd been in before was Italy, I was looking forward to stopping here. To be honest, though, I had no idea what was in store or what we would see or do. Well, I had a general idea, but I didn't know what to expect.
Some back story is required here. When we first planned the cruise, and I saw that Toulon was on the list, my first thought was, "I don't have a huge interest in France, so maybe I'll just stay on the ship, or just stay in the immediate area around the ship." Then Reba communicated with the group that a friend and colleague was living not far from Toulon and wanted to get together when they were there. Things sort of snowballed from there, and our entire group - all 15 of us - decided to tag along, regardless of what was in store. Why not? We had a "local" that could hook us up! So after some planning - and a lot of help from Megan (thanks Megan!!!) - we were set up to take a winery tour and then visit Saint Tropez for lunch at La Bastide de Saint Tropez.
 The Big Boat   |
 France Group |
So upon our arrival and debarking the ship, we hung around for a little bit and waited for Megan and our driver to arrive. Megan set all of this up for us through Med-Tour.com, which provided a driver (his name was Yorgi, and he was from the Ukraine; what's up with Ukrainians on this trip?) and a 15 passenger Mercedes van for €870. When they finally arrived, everyone greeted and met and all that, then we loaded up and headed to a winery in the Provence region. We ended up at a winery called Chateau Sainte Rosaline just outside of Draguignan. Before touring the winery itself, we toured the chapel of St. Rosaline which is right next door to the winery. The chapel itself is very old - back around the 13th century. Anyway, it was an interesting visit because of the chapel's reliquaries. There are two relics there: the essentially mummified body, in a glass casket, of Saint Roseline. Kind of weird to see a nun mummy in a glass coffin in a church environment - especially one that died 682 years ago (as of this writing in 2010). The other strange relic: her eyes were removed and preserved separately in a strange ornamental case. Apparently for centuries after her death, the eyes looked like those of a living person (thus the reason for them being preserved separate from the body), although they have deteriorated in the last century and a half or so. But still very weird to see.
After touring the chapel, we went into the winery and had a tour. This was my first visit to a winery of any sort anywhere, and it was cool to see the storage casks in what amounted to the wine cellar. We didn't see any of the wine-making process, but did see some of the equipment, at least before the power went out for a few minutes. After touring, we had a wine tasting. Now, I have to admit, that while I really enjoy wine, I'm not a connoisseur. My olfactory and taste senses just aren't that sensitive I guess. But I know when I taste something if I like it or don't like it. If I like it, I drink it. If I don't, then I don't drink it. I know, not very scientific or discriminating, but it is what it is I guess. Anyway, we ended up sampling four or five of their wines, and they were all good. From what I could taste, anyway. Besides my rather undiscriminating palate, the cold I was fighting pretty much wiped out my sense of smell and taste. But the whole experience was still fun, and a first for me.
 French Vineyards |
 Chateau Sainte Roseline |
 Chateau Sainte Roseline |
 The Wine Cellars |
 Fermentation Vats |
 Vineyards |
After the tasting, we proceeded into the chateau's wine shop. Some folks bought bottles to carry, and I think a few folks ordered some for delivery to their homes after returning from the trip. Once we were finished there, it was back on the bus for the drive to our lunch in Saint Tropez.
Saint Tropez is known as a popular destination on the French Riviera for celebrities and the rich. Since we were there in the offseason, we didn't have any celebrity sightings. It is probably a good thing, at least for me: the place is crowded with hoards of people during the summer, and I'm not a crowd person - I have a large personal space bubble. Anyway, our destination for lunch was La Bastide de Saint Tropez. It is a combination bed and breakfast/hotel with a restaurant. Megan had eaten there a few times before, thus the recommendation. And a fine recommendation it was! It was not by any stretch of the imagination cheap, though. But the food - again, from what I could taste thanks to the cold - was fabulous. All of the courses - I think there were 5 - were prepared in the classic French fashion and were all gourmet and presented beautifully and artistically. And it was all done in a cozy, elegantly decorated, classically French bistro type of atmosphere. I really wish I would have taken a picture of the menu and dishes I had, or at least otherwise recorded what all I had. I just can't remember...but it was all great. The only bad part of the meal happened when the bill came. We were spread across two tables, so they got one bill and our table got the other. To make things simple, and because nobody had any booze or wine wiht the meal, everyone agreed to split the total check amount by the number of folks at the table and have just one person at each table pay. That person would then be paid later. I don't know what the total bill for each table was, but after the breakdown, my portion cost €65, plus another €12 to Reba because that was the extra portion paid to cover Megan's and Yorgi's meals. Based on the exchange rate at the time, that came out to about $96.50 plus $18, or $114.50 - and that was just for me! I believe that was the most expensive lunch I've ever had - $100 per person is pretty steep. But it was so worth it to experience the great food and outstanding service in such a quaint and classy place amidst the playground of the super-rich.
After finishing lunch - and again, the gastronomic schedules in Europe are different; we didn't finish until almost three - it was time to hop back on the bus for the drive back to Toulon to get on the ship. The drive both ways was beautiful - coastline and rolling hills with small mountains. Agriculture was everywhere, and while not necessarily as picturesque as, say, Tuscany, it was still gorgeous countryside. And Megan was such a pleasure - and a doll for helping us plan and enjoy this wonderful day in France.
To continue the story and read about our stop in Livorno, Italy, go here.