Tag Archives: france

12 August, 2014 · 1:27 pm

Goodbye Paris, hello Brussels

With nothing on the agenda today until the train to Brussels just after midday, I had a nice sleep in and a leisurely breakfast before packing up. As I was packing, I found that my brand new Spender & Rutherford suitcase had started splitting all down one side, which was disappointing. I’ve emailed the company so let’s see what they can do.

Once packed up, I decided to not run the gauntlet of the metro to get to Gare du Nord, and took a taxi through the deserted streets. Only a few tourists around, so it looked like everyone else was either having a late sleepin or were already in the museums.

Gare Du Nord

Gare Du Nord

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7 August, 2014 · 4:19 am

Reims Day 2

Today was always going to be a full day, but it was very full!

I started out with breakfast at the hotel. Not too bad a buffet, but the pickings seemed a bit slim for the non-bread consumers, until I discovered a small bain marie hidden in a corner which had bacon, eggs and grilled tomatoes to add to my yoghurt, fruit salad, and of course, cheese! There was a nice selection of herbal teas, and I tried out the Verbena, which was light and refreshing. 

Macaron shop (sadly closed when I was walking past)

Macaron shop (sadly closed when I was walking past)

After breakfast, I headed off to Ruinart, to do a tour and tasting. They charge 70E for the privilege, and take payment in advance, so it had a lot to live up to! The walk, 3km (well, more like 4km after I got “directionally challenged” a few times) from the hotel, was nice though, and took me out of the touristy centre. I was early, much to the consternation of the guard at the gate, who told me I couldn’t come in yet as nothing was open. Since they’re primarily a producer, not a marketer like Moet, they don’t have a lot of staff to look after early tourists! 

Streets

Streets

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6 August, 2014 · 2:31 am

Seven Weeks Away – Reims day 1 (or one and a half…)

This trip is really pushing the boundaries of my blog title – seven and a half weeks away, which is at the same time scary and exciting!

I’m in Reims, France right now, finishing off Day 1 of this trip. More on that later though, as I’ve been told in no uncertain terms I MUST blog about the trip over. 

I’d booked the flights for this trip on Etihad, with Virgin points. Haven’t flown them before, but they just started flying from Perth a few weeks ago, and are cheaper than Singapore. One of the perks of business class with them, even on points, is that you get a chauffeur pickup, which is lovely, and makes sure you get to the airport nice and early! 

One of the other perks of being there nice and early was that a staff member pulled me aside and asked me if I wanted to pay to upgrade to First, since they had a plane change and it had First on it, which this flight won’t be doing regularly. $720. I thought about it for about three seconds and whipped out the credit card. Woohoo! 

In my suite 1A!

In my suite 1A!

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