After Croatia, I spend three days on the naturist (naked) island, Île du Levant for three days. Afterward, after a road trip through Bourgogne, Baune, and Dijon (highlight: I ate an entire bottle of dijon mustard — delicious — using a gas station sandwich) I settled into Reims, France, the capital of the Champagne region of France.
I was supposed to stay 10 days before heading to Paris, but I ended up extending my stay on account of a heavy work schedule, an ugly sinus cold, and the happy, healthy routine I fell into in Reims. I worked from my Airbnb rental apartment that had the best city view of any I’ve had so far: a view of the cathedral and a beautiful fountain with a golden, valkyrie-looking woman on top.
My gym had an oyster stand out in front of it and I made a habit of visiting each day after exercising. A local boulangerie owned and operated by a very sweet woman and her daughters captivated me — my daily breakfast order came to be “duex crossaints s’il vous plaît” as well as the only French that I spoke. Nevertheless,, the locals were gracious and made it a comfortable place to feel at home for a couple of weeks while I slaved in front of my computer.
I was able to discover and appreciate French food for the first time. Spending a month in Croatia eating canned sardines and raw carrots beforehand no doubt helped. My favorite local restaurant in Reims become La Maison, a small bistro 50 meters from the first of the two apartment rentals I stayed in. I was able to sit at the bar and drink champagne flutes at six euros a pop while recording my luck in my travel journal.
My sister and brother-in-law visited for a day on the tail-end of their 10-day Paris vacation, taking the train to meet me in Reims. We spent the day doing touristy things that I don’t feel interested in doing by myself.
