Trip to Dijon

Anka, Lincoln and Oscar joined us this morning as we were finishing breakfast and we all headed off in our car for Beaune - so that I could have my eyes tested for my new glasses (and to have a cuddle with the beautiful miniature schnauzer)  and to pick up Oscar's bike from the sporting store.  Then up along the "Route des Grands Crus" between Beaune and Dijon, through the little burgundian villages with names that sound like a fabulous wine list!

I don't know who started it, but suddenly, we 5 reasonably sensible adults were playing a very competitive game of "spotto" in accordance with the rules enforced by Ash and Mila, and I'm afraid to admit that the fabulous scenery took second place to car parks, side streets and private gardens.  Anyway, Oscar won with 15, followed by Anka with 13, me with 6, Lincoln with minus 1 and Brian, as usual came last - with minus 5! 

Dijon is a lot bigger than Beaune and once you're inside the walled city, parking is not easy.     Our first attempt to park in what we thought was a public carpark was a bit of a drama. It turned out to be for "hospital staff only" and Lincoln and Oscar had to physically hold the boom gates open while I restarted the car and made a quick exit!  Then a long walk along the cobbled streets to Place Darcy for lunch in a traditional old French restaurant.  We had a main course each with lots of good bread and a bottle of pinot and then headed off for the Maille Mustard shop - one of Brian's and my favourites.

We tasted and then ordered jars of the fabulous fresh mustard which has a limited shelf life and needs to be kept in the fridge, and then went for a long walk through the beautiful city centre.  We visited the Musee des Beaux-Arts de Dijon along the way, specifically to visit the restored tombs of the Dukes of Burgundy - as recommended by the wife of the optician - and finally made our way back to the car just as the ticket was about to run out at 4pm.

We drove back to Bouilland around the back of the motorway, on the very narrow road that follows a canal for some of the way, and passes through tiny villages, green fields and beautiful, dark forests.

Then a brief stop at Anka, Lincoln and Oscar's cottage for cold beers in the garden before Brian and I returned to our cottage for a game of backgammon.  We retrieved the backgammon set from the cupboard in the living room, and in the box was our score sheet from 3 years ago!  It would appear that we are the only guests in this cottage who find and/or are interested in playing this silly game.

At 6:30, we walked back to our friends' cottage for pre-dinner champagne, delicious mushroom omelettes, a huge bowl of salad and a crusty loaf of bread with white burgundy, and a fabulous selection of cheeses with pinot.

The evening finished with Brian teaching Oscar his old 2 corks' trick, before we returned to our cottage and once again, cannot wait to have our showers and head off to bed.