Upon leaving France, we drove about six hours through northern Italy to a small ski town called Axalp, high above the shores of Lake Brienz in central Switzerland.  We passed through an array of landscapes, from the twisty roads along the rocky shores of the French Riviera, to the lush hills of the Italian Coast, which gave way to flatter farmland as we approached Milan.  North of Milan, we made a quick pass by Lake Como (to which we would be returning in three days), before crossing into Switzerland, and viewing the most dramatic scenery yet.  

After passing through the 16km long Gotthard tunnel (the world's third-longest), we exited the highway and traversed the mountains via the beautiful Sustenstrasse, from which the views truly became magical.  I thought I'd entered a fairytale!  

Axalp is located about 20 minutes up (as in vertically!) from the town of Brienz, which is situated on the eastern shore of Lake Brienz.  We were about midway between the towns of Interlaken and Lucern, both of which we planned to visit during our stay.  Axalp is primarily a winter time destination, but it's incredibly beautiful in the summer time.  We stayed at a ski lodge called the Hotel Chemihüttli, which is run by a very nice Swiss family.  Ruedi, the patriarch, is a huge guy of about 6'6" and sounds a bit like the Swedish Chef from the Muppets (see a pic of him at work here).  He even wears a chef's hat after 5pm since he runs the hotel's restaurant. Naturally, the hat exacerbates the Swedish Chef association! During our stay, we saw him completing a variety of tasks, including landscaping, catering, handyman duties, auto repair and lumberjacking.  Every time we turned around, he was there doing something different - we suspect he might have had a twin involved in the operation.  He has also competed in professional woodsman competitions, as evidenced by the many photos adorning the lounge area.  Here are a few shots of Axalp and Chemihüttli:

The next day was a bit dreary/rainy, so we decided to put off our hiking plans and headed into Interlaken to check out the town.  Interlaken, which means 'between lakes', is nestled between the shores of Lake Brienz on the east and Lake Thun on the west.  It is incredibly picturesque, even in the rain.

Unfortunately, the afternoon brought more of the same weather, so with our hiking plans further delayed, we decided to make the approximately 1.5 hour drive over to Lucerne to see the city.  Lucerne is a much larger city situated on the shores of the beautiful Reuss River.  We spent a while walking around the riverbanks and taking in the sights.  

On the way back, we stopped off at our local town of Brienz, which is a quaint little town on the shores of the lake.  Here we saw the sun trying to finally peek through the clouds, which made for some nice photos.

When we got back to Axalp around 6pm, the weather had improved - slightly - and with a few hours of light still remaining, we decided to check out a nearby hiking trail.  The area around the lakes is full of hundreds of miles of great hiking though all different elevations.  One could spend days hiking from town to town through all types of terrain, from lake shores to snowy alpine peaks.  All of the trails are interconnected and well-marked, and so expansive that you rarely encounter other hikers.  The segment near Axalp and heading toward Brienz led toward a remote alpine lake, and along this section of trail, you pass by many wooden sculptures carved out of tree trunks.  This area is famous for its wood carving, and many of the local artisans had contributed to the sculptures   They were quite remarkable:

Unfortunately, this high up the mountain, the weather can change quickly.  The skies opened up causing it also to get very dark, so we abandoned our hike about 30 minutes in.  We decided to try a 'shortcut' back, which ended up bringing us through someone's farm amongst their cows, which brought another challenge of both trying to both avoid falling down the steep, wet inclines and avoid the big, juicy cow pies all around us.  We eventually found our way back to the lodge, dried off and called it a night.

Fortunately, the next day brought better weather - at least in the valley by the lakes.  While we wanted to do one of the alpine paths, the tops of the mountains were still completely immersed in cloud cover, so we decided to head up to Harder Klum, the mountain just north of Interlaken, so that we could enjoy the views.  Here are some photos from the top and along the trail:

When we got back, I was totally beat, but Chris still wanted to try to get to the lake from the path near Axalp, so he set off again on the path we took the previous day.  This time the rain held off.  Here are a few shots from the lake.

The next morning, we headed back to Italy and to Lake Como.  We had to drive Susten Pass again to get back to Italy and this time, it was snowing which made for a much slower (and scarier) drive. 

While the Swiss weather was less than ideal, we still found it breathtakingly beautiful.  Unfortunately, Switzerland has also become a very expensive place to visit.  We only ate out one night while we were there, as we had a hard time justifying the prices.  As an example, a cheap entree at a budget restaurant in Switzerland costs about as much as a fancy dinner in South Africa, and probably twice as much as the same dish would cost in Italy or France.  And on top of this, the Swiss food was not really my cup of tea.  Although, we did come across an interesting local brew from Interlaken: 

We were speaking to Ruedi about the high prices, and he explained how tourism from other parts of Europe and the US has really dropped off due to the prices.  While the Swiss economy is actually doing ok overall, the tourism industry has changed.  Ten years ago, most tourists came from other parts of Europe or the US, however now it has become too expensive for these tourists.  Switzerland's tourism department heavily advertises in other countries, where people are willing to pay the high prices. Therefore, a large percentage of today's visitors come from the Middle East or parts of South America. Despite the high prices, we are glad to have visited.  Most remarkable is the amazing scenery, which was unlike anything we've ever seen! 

After 3 wonderful days in Provence, we headed for the coast to check out the world famous French Riviera, or as the French say, Cote d'Azure.  We left on a Sunday, and on our way we stopped in Cassis to have lunch on the beach. It was so incredibly crowded that we left immediately. We went to nearby Ciotat beach which was also packed, but not as bad as Cassis. People literally sat inches apart on the beach. We quickly ate our lunch outside on the rocks while enjoying the cool breeze coming off the sea. 

Bastide Valmasque
Summer is high season for this area, thus it is full of people from all over the world. We were lucky to find a really cute B&B near the small town of Biot called Bastide Valmasque.  It's owned by a lovely couple named Claudia & Philipe who were both very helpful with providing information about the area. They met in India as they both worked in the textile industry, so while the B&B is a French country house, its interior has a lot of Indian influences making it very different from most of the places we had seen in France. They still have a a stake in a business in India manufacturing scarves and other textiles, and sell some of their designs at the B&B.  As a parting gift, Philipe gave us a little travel laundry bag made from one of his patterns.  We loved eating breakfast in one of their many garden nooks and we also enjoyed snacks in the evening sun on the patio. While this place isn't located right on the beach and doesn't have a pool, it's about a 5 min drive from the beach.  You'd pay significantly more money to stay right on the beach and you definitely would not get the charm that the Bastide Valmasque offers!  

Dining Out vs. Picnic
We arrived in the late afternoon and after we settled we went out to dinner at a cafe in nearby Valbonne. This was a very small village, but it was completely full of people - locals and tourists alike. There were four cafes in the plaza and we went to the one that our B&B recommended, which also happened to be the one with the lowest prices and the most patrons. The food was OK - nothing special - but it was expensive.  After eating out a couple of times in Southern France we found that the food didn't justify the cost. We actually ate better when we shopped at the local markets which are filled with amazing produce, cheeses, breads and tapenades for a fraction of restaurant prices. 

Saint Paul de Vence
The morning of our first full day, we visited Saint Paul de Vence, one of the oldest medieval towns in the French Riviera. This town came highly recommended by Mom & Dad Barbier as they fell in love with it during a visit in the 90's. It did not disappoint! It is adorable, picturesque and choc full of art galleries. We really enjoyed strolling through the streets and wandering in and out of the galleries. It's definitely worth a visit if you are ever in this area.

Antibes:
After visiting Saint Paul de Vence we were ready for the beach! We went to nearby Antibes which has two beaches on either side of a peninsula  We went to the first beach which is half public & half private (private means anyone can go, but you pay a fee and get a chair and umbrella in return).  While the beach was decent, it was incredibly windy.  There were several yachts anchored in the water which is typical in the French Riviera. At one point, one of the yachts came loose and started drifting towards the shore. The lifeguards sprung to action and soon a ton of emergency vehicles were at the beach. A couple of people went out to the boat but not much happened after that. The emergency crew stood by waiting for the yacht to come closer, but it never did. Tired of the wind, we left for the beach across the peninsula, which was a peaceful public beach - no wind, no waves, and no rogue yachts! 

The next day  we toured a couple of the ritzy towns along the Riviera - Nice, Monaco & Villefranche.  

Nice:
I had been to Nice in college and Chris wasn't that interested in visiting the museums there so we just did a drive by. Chris got to see the coastline and some of the plazas just in from the beach. Nice is a great place to stay if you are willing to spend more on a hotel room, especially if you can find one along the coastline. There is a really long stretch of beach from Antibes to Nice which is nice because you can find a little privacy with all that space. Also, if you are into art they have a wonderful Chagall and Matisse museum. I highly recommend it! 

Monaco:
We spent a half day in the principality of Monaco. It was my second time visiting and Chris' first time.  We parked the car in a garage midway up the hill and walked down to the marina to see all the giant yachts. Then we walked back by the Monte Carlo casino. The building itself  oozes opulence and everything surrounding it is waiting to pounce on the casino's patrons - the Lamborghinis parked outside, the ultra high-end jewelry stores, and even some heavily made-up young women standing around in short skirts and 5 inch heels at 11am.  Instead of bear bottles scattered in the streets, Monte Carlo has champagne corks. Seriously, we saw them everywhere.

For such a small place, there is actually a lot to do in Monaco - one could stay busy sightseeing (or shopping) here for 3-4 days.  We enjoyed our half day there and decided that we'd come back here one day if the opportunity presented itself.  However, if we do go back we'll have to pack a lot more than just a backpack! 

Villefranche:
This is a nice little town on the coastline that is a popular stop on cruises. We drove through town and walked around a bit. Driving here was a little complicated, as the streets are very narrow. The town was very crowded with people from the cruise ship so I don't think I'd recommend staying here if you are looking for someplace quiet. It might be worth a visit for breakfast or dinner when there are less day-trippers. The views from the top of the town are beautiful!

Paloma Beach
By afternoon, we were ready for another beach.  We had read good things about Paloma beach, which was not too far from the area we were exploring.  Supposedly, celebrities frequent this beach from their yachts, although we didn't spot any while we were there. It's another beach that is half private and half public. The private side was really packed - chairs just inches away from each other. We opted for the public side and had a lot of space to ourselves. The beach was very nice and the water was great for swimming!

After a day in the sun, we went back to our B&B and enjoyed a picnic on the patio. Thus ended our time in the French Riviera. Despite the crowds, we enjoyed it very much. However, I think the best way to enjoy this coastline is from a giant private yacht!! A girl can dream...

From Barcelona, we took the train to Montpelier, France where we picked up our 2 month car rental from Citroen.  The French car manufacturers have a program where you can lease a brand new car for an extended period of time, picking it up in one European country and then returning it in another.  After familiarizing ourselves with our Citroen (it turned out to be an automatic – a rare find in Europe!), we were off to our next stop: Provence, France.

Before checking into our B&B we stopped in Avignon, a medieval French city most famous for being the home of the Papacy during the Catholic schism in the 1300's.

We walked around this beautiful city and then stopped in the main square for lunch wherewe saw two fantastic musicians. The first was a solo guitarist playing everything from traditional French songs to Queen. The second was a lively threesome led by an older gentleman on the violin. He was fantastic. Check out the video:

Le Mas de Prévôts: A Country Haven
We found this little gem of a B&B on TripAdvisor. It’s located on the outskirts of Chateaurenard, just south of Avignon. It's owned by a nice couple named Julie & Jean-Pierre. They live in the main house and rent out two charming rooms above their garage. As you’ll see from the pictures below, the house is gorgeous and the view from our room was just perfect. Julie & Jean-Pierre purchased the property over 30 years ago and fixed it up little by little. They raised their children there and now that they are grandparents, their grandchildren come over to visit after school. We had the pleasure of meeting two of the little ones! Breakfast was served on the patio right off the kitchen. Julie always had an assortment of traditional French pastries, yogurt, fresh juice, fruit from the local farms and coffee.  She even wrapped up the leftovers for us to take on picnics.  They offered great advice on places to visit and we enjoyed the first day so much we decided to tack on a third night to our stay (luckily our room was available!).  We are so happy we found this place! 

Luberon Region Driving Tour:
After a nice evening out in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence on our first night, we decided to take a driving tour of the small villages per Julie & Jean-Pierre’s recommendation.   Here were the places we visited:

First Stop: Isle-sur-la-Sorgue
The river Sorgue runs through this quant little town filled with over 300 different antique shops. 

Stop 2: Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
The Sorgue river begins at “La Source” which is located in this village. No one knows where this spring originates. In the late 1940's, Jacques Cousteau dove into the caves from which the water originates, and could not find the source.  He almost died while searching for the source, as an air compressor in one of his tanks had taken in its own exhaust. We walked from the town center about 15-20 minutes to see “La Source” pictured below.  It's a nice walk but it was packed with tourists and French schoolchildren who were there on a field trip. 

Gordes
This is one of the prettiest villages in France, especially when you look at it from across the gorge!

Roussillon
This area boasts the most important source of ochres in the world. Ochres are used as pigments in the textile industry. We enjoyed seeing the bright orange-red colors of this village which are so different than what you see in the rest of Provence. 

Lavander
No visit to Provence would be complete without lavender fields.  While we didn't actually search for them, we were lucky to stumble upon a few!

The second day in Provence, we visited Arles in the morning and then kayaked down the Gardon River under the Pont du Gard aqueduct.

Arles
Arles was an an ancient Roman city, complete with a large amphitheater at its center which still stands today. Roman emperors frequently used this city as a military headquarters and it's said to have been a favorite city of Emperor Constantine 1 - his son, Constantine II, was born there.

The impressionist artist, Vincent van Gogh, lived in Arles for about a year during which he produced over 300 paintings. One of the most famous is Cafe Terrace at Night. The cafe that was the subject of that painting still exists.  A lot of artist drama went down in Arles. Paul Gauguin visited van Gogh in Arles, at van Gogh's request.  Vincent's mental health was deteriorating, so Gauguin left Arles due to the eccentric behavior of his old friend. Shortly thereafter, Vincent cut off his ear and was sent to the local hospital. The Arlesians petitioned to have van Gogh committed and he eventually left the city and checked into an asylum in the nearby Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.  As you may know, van Gogh never really recovered and eventually took his own life.  While it's sad to know that Arles was the beginning of the end for van Gogh, I loved seeing the city that inspired him and appeared in so many of his paintings. 

Kayaking under the Pont du Gard
This was a big highlight for us! The Pont du Gard is an aqueduct built by the ancient Romans about 2,000 years ago and is still in excellent condition.  One can visit the aqueduct by car and walk across it. However, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and see it from the river. 

We rented a two person kayak from Canoe Collias. We launched our kayak upriver, kayaked downriver with the current, stopping along the way to swim/rest/eat, and then the company picked us up right after we passed under the aqueduct and brought us back to our car. They provided air-tight barrels on the kayak, so we packed a picnic in our backpack and enjoyed it mid river.  There were some mild rapids which were a lot of fun. Definitely the best way to enjoy the Pont du Gard on a hot summer day!

There were a bunch of teenage boys hanging out on the cliffs by the aqueduct as we approached. They yelled at us in French and when they realized we spoked English, they asked where we were from. I said (in terrible French) USA. They started cheering We LOVE America!! Can we come with you to America!? We love it!  A great end to a fun kayak trip.