France — encore!

In October, I spoke and climbed in several parts of France. While there, I also got to visit some of my (French) friends, and re-visit some of my favorite places on the planet.

Have you been to France? Not just Paris, but France?? One always eats well all over France, and drinks exceptionally well! For example, at my friends’ home in Brittany (north-western France), a traditional meal is crêpes (which originated here) with hard cider (du cidre):

And of course, no matter whose home you go to, chances are good they’ll have ‘une cave’, or a wine cellar:

In Paris, I was invited to speak to the American Club of Paris, an organization founded by Benjamin Franklin, the first American ambassador to France when our country was new. 

Last season my son & his family spent a month bouldering (climbing without ropes) in Fontainebleau, an extensive forest filled with boulders just south of Paris. Serendipitously, during my trip I also got to spend some time there, exploring the boulders and the trails among them:

An important part of this trip was waiting for me down south in the French Alps — in legendary Chamonix, surrounded by iconic glaciers and peaks, where I got to experience some Alpine climbing…

…and in Albertville, the host of Le Salon du Livre, an international book & documentary fair / convention. White tents took over the whole main street of the center of Albertville. Like Chamonix, just upriver about 40K, Albertville nestles along a narrow river alley surrounded by towering peaks

some exploring of what I think is the most beautiful monumental city in the world, Paris. A few glimpses:

La fameuse Tour Eiffel:

L’Hôtel de Ville de Paris, or City Hall:

Notre Dame without its steeple, scheduled to be repaired by 2024.