2013: Week 34

2013: Week 34, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

The drive from Provence to London is pretty lengthy, so we decided to break it up by stopping in Reims on the way.

Reims is the capital of the champagne region, so we were disappointed to not be given a bottle of complementary champagne on our arrival in the city. Oh well.

Reims is also known for its amazing cathedral. We have been to our fair share of extraordinary churches in our time, but this one was by far the most awe inspiring of them all.

Extraordinary.

2013: Week 33

2013: Week 33, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

On our last night in Provence, my son and I went out with our cameras, lenses, phones and other photo gear to capture the sunset over the vineyards.

It was epic.

We got great photos, sure, but it was epic because of the fun we had together. It was a perfect ending for a perfect trip.

2013: Week 32

2013: Week 32, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

This was the view outside our living room room of the house we rented in Week 32 in Semur-en-Auxois in Burgundy, France.

It made for an interesting week, as the ducks would glide by in the morning and evening and we had the ever-present sound of water rushing down the waterfall (we got used to it eventually). The sight also reminded me of a waterfall from my childhood that was just down the street from our house, which was nice.

But after surviving a hail storm and a small flood in the house here (that's another story for another time), I'm glad we were only visiting, not living there permanently.

2013: Week 31

2013: Week 31, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

We all set off in Week 31 to take part in RideLondon, a completely manic ride with thousands of other cyclists through central London. As you can see from the above, we passed by the most famous London landmark of all, but we rode past plenty of others, too, including Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's, the Tower of London.

RideLondon is the successor to the Sky Ride, which we also did. Central London is closed to automobile traffic, but it is still completely mad because so many people take part. But there is definitely a special thrill having the roads taken over by cyclists and gliding past all the places that make London London.

We managed two loops-- 16 miles-- before the crowds got to be too much and we headed home. It definitely was something special though.