Barcelona - French Riviera, France We retraced our drive to the French border, then into the vine covered region of the Herault for a stop in Avignon to see its famous bridge built in 1171. The bridge has achieved worldwide fame through its commemoration by the song "On the bridge of Avignon". We continue west across the Rhone to the Mediterranean shores for an overnight on the French Riviera at the Park Inn Nice. We had dinner at a restuarant on top of a hi...

Barcelona Today we had a morning of sightseeing with a local guide driving around Monjuich to see the Olympic stadium and a panoramic view of the port and city. We visited La Famiglia which is one of Gaudí's most famous works inBarcelona. It's a giant Basilica that has been under construction since 1882 and will not be finished for another 30 years. We visited the Marina and saw the Columbus Monument which is a 60 m tall monument to Christopher Columbus t...

Bordeaux - Barcelona Spain From the vineyards of the Gironde and the Garonne we travelled east to a well preserved medieval fortified town, Carcassonne. We spent some time here walking around the walls and through the cobbled streets seeing drawbridges and towers. We also did some shopping. From here we crossed the River Ter to the Spanish border and onto Barcelona. We stayed at the Catalonia Atenas and had a room with a balcony and a view. We all headed...

Paris-Chateaux Country - Bordeaux We started the day travelling south to Blois and then parallel to the River Loire past the castles of Chaumont founded in the 10th century and Amboise. After a short tour of the castles we continued through the Grand Champagne wine growing area to Bordeaux on the banks of the Garonne where we stayed at the Mercure Bordeaux Meriadeck. We went for a night walk along the waterfront and had spectacular views of the city at nigh...

Paris France Up early for sightseeing around Paris with a local expert . We visited the Notre Dame Cathedral which is widely considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and among the largest and most well-known churches in the world. Gargoyles and chimeras adorn the outer gallery of the North Tower with its ribbed vaulting and spiral staircase, while the South Tower houses the belfry and Emmanuel, the great bourdon bell. We also saw...