Oldwineaux in Europe

Norwegian Air took off from JFK on the way to Charles de Gaulle Airport at 1 a.m.- a 7 1/2 hour flight. I was asleep before the plane lifted off. Norwegian Air being a budget carrier charges for everything but the air you breathe on board. So no free whiskey, wine, or needless food which in years past guaranteed that I would land in London, Paris, or wherever in a fog regardless of what the local weather was like. Refreshed by a relatively good night's sleep, I rented a car (thank you Hertz! It has just 2,000 kilometers on it, an awesome navigation package, and, for gas savings, the engine shuts off while you are at, say, a stoplight). My destination for the day was Beaune. The city sits some 3 1/2 hours by car south of Paris. De Gaulle Airport is located north of Paris, so the first hour and a half of the trip was late afternoon stop-and-go congestion. Finally, I got on the A6 toll road and then clicked along happily for about 2 1/2 hours at a little more than 130 ...

On May 30 I am off to Europe and England.  My return ticket is for October 23 health and  pocketbook permitting.  Like my previous trips around the planet (see the 'Travel Blogs' tab at russellraines.com) I have no real set itinerary. The sum total of my trip planning thus far is to start by going back to Beaune and sample wine at the Marche du Vin, then rent an apartment and cook for a week in the small French village where Richard Olney lived.  After that do some hiking and biking in an effort to reduce my waist line.  I have a bicycle waiting for me near Oxford England that I bought on UK Ebay for a cycling trip around Europe and England last year that never materialized.  So maybe some cycling in England and maybe a circuit or two around the Channel Islands and Ile of Wight.  Oh yes, and I am on a mission to sample wine at Chateau de Chamirey in Burgundy in memory of the bottle of wine Barbara's son bought her.  Vintage 2012 as I recall. ...