Return of the Mistral in Valence and Tain l'Hermitage

Maybe it wasn't the mistral in full force, but a tributary of it definitely swept through our hair and chilled our bones the Saturday a group of us met in Valence.

Valence assistant, Allison kindly met Leslie, Jamie, Gearoid, and I at the train station and from there we strolled the streets of what seemed to be a very nice-sized city. At times Valence felt big, when we stood overlooking the park that gave a postcard picturesque mountainous skyline. And at other times, it felt quaint, like a small town you just stumbled upon sans touristes, complete with outdoor market.

I am obsessed with parks. This is a view from within the park looking up at a grandiose Versailles-esque fountain and stairways.

This is a courtyard of a Valence building in which Rabelais supposedly once lived.

A view of Tain l'Hermitage from the town of Tournon sur Rhone. If only Chasse sur Rhone could be this picturesque. I particularly like les vignobles et collines. Allison led us to Tain's hidden secret, a Valrhona Chocolate Store that had bowls and bowls of free samples. These weren't just ordinary pieces of chocolate, but glorious bits that came in flavors such as peanut butter, nougat, and pistachio. Needless to say, I made myself sick on sugar before we left without purchasing anything. Tastes that good don't come cheap.

Blue sky and church in Tournon sur Rhone.

Sometimes, there's nothing more enticing than a trail curling around a bend. This trail led us up some steep hills that were more difficult to get down than up. Great way to work off all that specialty chocolate...

Quaint church at the top of the hill. I believe that people once made pilgrimages to this church in the past. We never made it over there, but I wondered, if we had, would we have had the chance to sample some of the hill's wine like pilgrims of days yore? Unlikely.

View of the river from our highest point.

The mistral left us alone on the hills, while the sun shone down in our favor. Walking the vineyard trails made me want to get outside more and hike. It also made me respect the workers who venture out onto the steep hillsides and not so sturdy soil.

Lastly, it also made me a little thirsty for some wine...