Retour auprès de nos amis en France

 The next morning we were not in a rush and were able to enjoy the large breakfast spread provided by hotel Bellini. But after our one night in the over used and maybe under appreciated city of Naples, we were a bit over-traveled already and about to deal with EasyJet.

We flew delayed over to Milan but it was ok because our connection was delayed. Then we almost missed our flight to Toulouse because EasyJet updated the screen at the airport, but not the application on our phones. When I went back to look at the screen, I found it said now boarding and it was flashing! So we raced to the terminal only to find that the flight was still going to be delayed by another half an hour. When we arrived in Toulouse the door opened as we exited the arrivals area and Benoit was standing right there smiling.

We went directly to their beautifully appointed home in Beaupuy, to have dinner and spend the evening. Benoit made prawns on the grill, along with Nadine’s ratatouille and bread.

It was fantastic to be back together again. We sat outside that night, enjoying pastis and wine.

On Saturday we had our big 12 K walk on the Epicurean Trail. This was the 9th annual event that was setup with the help of Nadine’s son Roman and the company he owns. We met their friends, Mark and Veronica, who they would be going with on a government backed ‘thermal cure’ near Sète for 3 weeks!, the week after we leave. They were very nice. The walk was interrupted a few times along the route, with temporary stations that were setup with wine samples and small appetizer bites.

That night, we had dinner at their place with canard out of a can, which we’ve had before there and it was again excellent.

On Sunday, we got to see Matilda and Etienne and their children Zoe and Lou. Matilda’s parents also came and we had a couple games of boules on the court Benoit had made in their yard. Her dad Gabriel was an expert at hitting boules on the fly. That night Frank came over and we met his new bride Sandra and her four-year-old girl Lindsey. They met at Orange, the cell provider company they both work for. While we are sad to not see Frank’s first wife Jennifer their daughter Elenna, who we had met a couple times in the past, we can understand how hearts can move in different directions and we are happy that Frank seems very happy and Sandra seems really wonderful.

Saintes-Marie de La Mer

On Monday, we got back on the road in Benoit’s Tesla Model3. They planned our picnic lunch off the highway wayside stop on our way to Saintes-Marie de La mer. There we checked into the Hotel Les Palmiers for a one night stay. That afternoon we took a boat tour of the Camargue (Les Quatre Maries II) to see bulls and horses in the wild. Afterwards we climbed to the top of the church there. Literally climbing onto the rooftop tiles. Can’t believe Randi did this. Went out to dinner in town at La Bouvine for paella and walked along the beach, bare feet on the earth, before bed.

Bandol

The next morning we walked a little in Saintes-Marie before driving towards Bandol. We again planned a picnic lunch at a wayside rest.

We stopped at the InterMache and picked up a few groceries before checking into our Airbnb apartment there in Bandol. We really liked the apartment with multiple patios and a jacuzzi hot tub. We stayed there for dinner and wine that night at the apartment.

The next morning we drove to Cassis to hike the calanques. More specifically we hiked the Calanque de Port-Miou. It was ‘cool and tranquil’ according to Benoit …but with uneven slippery rock screaming for a possible long descent. Unfortunately I think we cut the hike shorter than they may have wanted but after a couple small slips we started worrying about all the days of travel and walking we still had ahead of us. Found a hidden spot for a picnic lunch on the rocks.

Walked through Cassis and had ice cream. Dinner in Bandol, on the port at a restaurant called ‘Auberge Du Port’. I had boulebaisse which was amazing.

Next day we went to Sanary-sur-Mer. Took a boat to the island Ile Des Embiez. One of the most beautiful islands ever and developed minimally by the pastis giant Paul Richard. This made the place even more magical to me and certainly to Benoit :)

That night we went into Bandol town looking for moules and frites and ended up at the same excellent restaurant having ‘Moules maines de bouchot et fites maison’.

Nice

We left our excellent Airbnb in Bandol to drive to the old city center of Nice. We walked the town and ate lunch at Lou Gese.

Drove to our promotel. Nadine did Randi’s hair. We walked to Lou Castelet for excellent dinner.

The Amalfi Coast

 The London tube went on strike the night before, so we had to take a very expensive, beautiful luxury Uber Mercedes 750 E. Could’ve slept in that reclining heated seat as good as anywhere.

Upon arrival in Naples we took the hydrofoil to Capri in the late afternoon. Luckily we were able to take a taxi up the hill and then walk back down a narrow sidewalk just a short way to the Algarogi B&B. Our host Giovanni was waiting for us outside the door when we arrived. After washing and

hanging some clothes outside our balcony, we went for a walk uphill to the main Piazza Umberto. We sat for a drink and enjoyed the people watching. The range of wealth seemed to be extremely wide, with the middle class representing the peasants.

We went for a walk and stumbled upon probably one of the most expensive spots on the island, which had an incredible views, both the amazing smile across the table from me and a view of da love rocks of the fagliniis. The place was aptly named 'The Rooftop'. I ordered an excellent 'That’s Amore' martini drink and Randi had a Chardonnay. We had some calamari and the cost was around 80 euros ...but we did get get peanuts and potato chips at the table.

We finished the night feeling we needed to get back to our roots, like buying a decent bottle of Chardonnay for a reasonable price at the small mart store there just off the main piazza. We also got a street sandwich and quiche and brought it back to Giovanni's entry seating area, just inside his gate. We enjoyed sitting there taking in the quiet, listening to the sea and looking at the stars.

As it turns out I had too much to drink and was hurting the next morning. The breakfast from Giovanni the very professional and accommodating Giovanni was good. He had a couple meats, a couple of cheeses, croissants and some fruit. His main room has a beautiful view of the sea.

He convinced us that we needed to start out with the blue grotto tour today, this morning, as soon as we were done with breakfast. While the sea was calm and the crowds were It was which we did and took a ferry boat. We went around the entire island and when we got to the blue grotto, it was high tide and they said the weight might be up to three hours, so that was scratched. We were glad we didn’t have to wait for three hours to peek into the blue cave.

From there we got on a very crowded bus to Anacapri where we had lunch. The single seat gondola did not look safe for us we took a taxi ride back and enjoyed the open air taxis.

From Capri town, we took a walk down Via Tragala and went to the end for the excellent viewpoint of the Faraglioni. The legend has it that kissing your partner while sailing through the natural arch of the brings good luck and love. Our boat driver suggested French kissing for increased love!

That night we ate at an old family restaurant in Capri town called La Capannina Ristorante. We met a couple from Toronto, Jean François (JF) and Lisa, who did not have have a reservation, so we invited them to join us and changed ours to a table of 4. We had a nice dinner there with them. The food was excellent. We talked about our cabins and Trump and how much we all hated him. JF is a financial advisor and he assured us that everything will be OK.

Amalfi

The next morning we took a ferry to Amalfi. We were just happy Poseidon allowed ferry traffic that morning with a storm approaching. We watched John Franco’s video on WhatsApp to follow the many steps up to our accommodation at Casa Mao. Randi was very impressed by my abilities to take all the steps while carrying our two heavy carryon bags and backpack. This is apparently her love language which I was previously unaware of. We went back down to the Main Street and took down almost to the end. We stopped for a margarita pizza and Caesar salad, that was quite good. Afterwards we had an amazing lemon/limoncello gelato stuffed into a lemon. So good.

We bought a 10è bottle of SantaMargarita Pinot Grigio before taking the stairs back up for a nap…much better without luggage. Afterwards we enjoyed the bottle sitting out on our patio watching a storm roll in to town off the sea.

That night we had a terrific dinner at A’bside. We had seafood pasta and an excellent caprise salad. We had a nightcap in the main square that night, with everyone cheering a young bride and groom as they strolled by with photographers. They had fireworks going off near the port as well. There is a lot money being thrown around in the Italian Rivera.

The next day we were happy to find that the storm had passed and the seas had calmed. John Franco assured us it was good. We took the ferry back to Naples, after making stops in Positano and Caa-pri. We took a cab ride from the port to our hotel. Waze told me it would take 16 minutes but our driver did it in 7 minutes by driving through and almost over wall to wall tourists in the narrowest of streets. We felt we were at our weakest when we arrived at Hotel Bellini. It seemed odd at first but as it turned out very nicely appointed and only half as much as what we paid on the Amalfi Coast.

After a short walk for a small lunch we returned for a quick nap. We went back out in the afternoon for a walk through Piazza Bellini and then down Via dei Tribunali through the Old Quarter to get a feel for the area. We saw the church of Saint Andrew and what look like shrine to the soccer great Madonna in the street. After going back to the hotel to get ready for dinner we enjoyed some really excellent 6è glasses of wine in Hotel Bellini’s atrium…really a beautiful space with nice seating and a high overhead heavy clear plastic web that would catch any rain from coming down into the atrium. I wish I could install this at home above our deck. That night we had dinner in the Old Quarter at a restaurant named Monsú, tucked in a very small alleyway, filled with graffiti. I had an outstanding dish of ravioli stuffed with grouper. Terrific red sauce. Randi had linguine with small octopus in tomato sauce with olives and capers. Everything was great. We even had a young street performer come by to play guitar and sing. She had a good voice and it provided great ambiance. As it turned out we enjoyed our stay there, even though we were wearied travelers.

London - Ross and Val

September 4th 2025

Started out difficult. American Airlines talked about possibly flying to Chicago with no bathroom available. Didn't sound like a great idea. But the issue was alleviated, so to speak.

We came off the plane in Chicago to find that Randi’s bag got damaged. The handle was only connected to one of the two posts and left only the one sticking up.  It looked like a cane. It still sort of worked but not great to see the bag break on the first leg of a month long journey like had ahead of us. We were pretending that maybe the ‘cane bag’ could become the new style in London.

We took the tube on the Piccadilly line and got off at Hammersmith stop. Ross was there waiting right outside the station. Great to see that big smile. Ross has always been such a funny guy. He looks exactly the same to me.  We took the bus to his new house in Chiswick. They just closed on a month before we arrived. When I had emailed Ross a month earlier, that I hoped it wouldn’t be too stressful having us come so soon after they moved in. He responded saying “we eat stress for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s not a problem” :-) 

The neighborhood in Chiswick, just near the Thames is great! So great then to arrive and receive greetings in from the lovely Val. So great to see her. She took us on a beautiful walk in the afternoon on the Thames Way (walking/bike trail next to the Thames), while Ross was working part of his Friday afternoon. 

We came back meet their beautiful young adult daughter Devon, who we had not seen since she was eight maybe? Devon is social media influencer. She is trying to get to a 15k followers plateau. I think I said that right. I really don’t understand it. I still only influence a few family members and friends and they don't always like it. 

We also met Devon‘s friend, Malaak, who has lived with them for the last six months. Wonderful kids and good friends. Their black cat Geebs or GB kept us all entertained, watching him walking the walls of his new outdoor patio space.  Geebs was very friendly and would look right at you with his beautiful emerald eyes.

Ross received delivery of his new bike shed, which most of his neighbors had in their front driveway, sans an automobile. He thought it came with assembly but they left many heavy boxes out in front and drove away. So we removed everything from the boxes and got a start on what turned out to be our weekend project. The good news is that someday I’ll have a round plaque on it commemorating my work. 

Afterwards we went with Ross and Val for drinks at the Old Ship and then The Dove. We had a couple Sipsmiths orange flavored gin and tonics…really good. 

We each went over stories of how we met each other in the Guinness smallest bar room. Ross being present at the infamous SGI Sales conference weekend in Santa Monica, California, where Randi and I’s love story started. 

Then out to dinner for Turkish food on High street, to a restaurant called Hatch Meyhane.

The next morning I woke up to hearing Val helping Ross putting together MY bike shed, so I got right out there.  We finished the bike shed, mostly, before taking the Tube into London. We got off near St. Paul’s cathedral and bought tickets to climb to the top for a view of London. 

The cathedral was founded in 604 AD and was built on a hill over the Roman town at the time of Londinium. That cathedral burned to the ground in the Great Fire of 1666. The current structure was completed in 1710 and was designed by the amazing Sir Christopher Wren. There was a display there showing the many accomplishments of Christopher Wren and what he meant to the design of the entire city of London.  He was an architect, astronomer, mathematician, physicist and definitely not a slacker. 

It's 540 steps to the top of the cathedral. Most of the steps being standard size with ample headroom but not all.  The climb made Randi a bit nervous/tight.  She said her calves hurt for the next few days because of it. 

We did an audio tour of the cathedral and crypt that was very interesting. One of the more moving/disturbing displays I've ever seen in a church was the 7 minute video titled 'Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water)' 2014, from the artist Bill Viola.  As the work opens, four individuals are shown at a time when there is a pause from their suffering. Gradually there is movement in each scene as an element of nature begins to disturb their stillness. Flames rain down, winds begin to lash, water cascades, and earth flies up. As the elements rage, each martyr's resolve remains unchanged. Finally it ends in their most violent assault, the elements represent the darkest hour of the martyr's passage through death into the light. 

We had lunch at the Salad Project, which was like the Crisp and Greens back home and was very good. We walked around town a bit and ended up at a pub called the ‘Fox and Hound’ for more G&Ts. 

That night we played Telestrations with their daughter Devon and her amicable live-in friend Malaak. 

On Sunday morning we put some more finishing touches on my new pride and joy bike shed before going for a walk down Thames Way and over Hammersmith bridge. We went through an outdoor market. Along the way Ross gave me a pretty thorough explanation of cricket. I had almost no understanding of it prior to that but came away with a genuine interest now and am hoping to get a chance to watch a match sometime soon. 

In the midafternoon we went for a traditional Sunday roast at a pub called Boars Head. We had a choice of Turkey or beef roast, with potatoes. Afterwards we walked along the river Thames in Chiswick, stopping at the ‘Bell & Crown’ and the ‘The Copper Cow’. All the pubs seemed to be offering a similar Sunday roast.

We came home to watch the NFL red zone and have Thai food delivered. The worst thing about that night is that we saw Aaron Rodgers threw for four TDs in his Pittsburgh debut. When I told Randi about it she just said “isshh”.

The tube went on strike the next morning and we took a very expensive Mercedes 750E Uber the next morning.  Fortunately we were able to borrow Ross’s special British F5 carry-on, and then could exchange our bags back again in a month when,
we returned back through London.