Philpott Family Adventures: European Vacation 2023 (Part Deux)

When we left our intrepid travelers (see Part Un here), we had spent our first evening in the city of Bordeaux, prior to boarding our ship for an 11-day cruise through the region of Bordeaux. I will mention here that place names in this area can be confusing, since the various regions are named after the towns that they are in. So you have, for example, the city of Medoc, in the region of Medoc, and just to really complicate things, you also have an appellation (something like a proprietary wine blend) called Medoc. More on that when we get to the winery tours! 

I will also mention here that although this is called a "Bordeaux River Cruise," it is a "Bordeaux [pause] River Cruise," not a "Bordeaux River [pause] Cruise." There is actually no river called the Bordeaux; the three rivers we navigated in the region of Bordeaux are the Garonne, where the actual city of Bordeaux is located; the Gironde, which flows further north and west to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Dordogne, which branches to the southeast just north of the city of Bordeaux.  

The branching of the rivers is very important to the world of wine-making, which differentiates between the "left bank" and the "right bank". The left bank is south of the Garonne, and the right bank is north of the Dordogne. The area between the Dordogne and the Garonne is called Entre Deux Mers, which means "between two seas," and is known for white wines, rather than the reds typical of the Bordeaux region. Again, we'll learn more about the differences between these regions when we visit some Chateaux in the different areas.

And now, on with the trip!

Wednesday, June 21st

It's Embarkation Day! We had struggled to get a specific boarding time from our travel agent, with the vague idea of "They generally board between 2pm and 4pm." So we figured that we would check out of our hotel and then head off with our luggage in the direction of the pier and find someplace for breakfast on the way, then try to see if we could drop our bags early and spend a bit more time in the city before we boarded. Most of the other couples in our group (who hadn't packed quite as lightly as we had) opted to take a shuttle from their hotel, but one other couple was planning to walk, as we were, so we joined forces and headed over together. They hadn't had the chance to explore that we did, so we showed them some of the areas we had discovered while we were walking. 

We stumbled across a promising little sidewalk cafe not far from our hotel, so we stopped for a very French breakfast of baguettes with butter and jam, croissants, juice, and coffee. I opted to try a "cafe creme" instead of a cappuccino, expecting to get something like filter or drip coffee with cream, but instead got (I think) espresso with steamed milk - whatever it was, it was exactly what I needed to start my day.   

With full bellies and caffeine-infused blood, the four of us headed for the waterfront and discovered that the boat we had seen yesterday was, in fact, the boat we would be on: The Scenic Diamond. 

The docks at the waterfront are bordered by a broad brick walkway filled with cyclists (manual, e-bikes, and "bike trucks" pulling or pushing trailers and carrying bins), scooters (also both manual and electric), roller skaters, skateboarders, pedestrians (or, in French, pietons), and dog-walkers. On the landward side of the walk, we spotted a small canopy with the Scenic logo on it and a pile of luggage, manned by a large man with a shaved head and a full red beard wearing a Scenic uniform. We asked if we could leave our luggage, and in somewhat broken English, he gave us the idea that not only could we leave our bags, we could board the ship now (it was about 10am) and enjoy drinks and lunch on board. (We learned later that his name was Bora, and he was the deckhand who did most of the heavy physical labor - but more about that later.)

The process of boarding felt very sketchy and loose to our American senses - Bora never took our names, no-one looked at our passports or IDs when we boarded, we didn't even have to check in until it was time to go to our cabins, many of the passengers from the previous cruise were still on board - but we were warmly welcomed by Cruise Director Mitch and the bar staff, who presented us with glasses of champagne as they ushered us into the Diamond Lounge, where there was a bar with drinks, snacks, a very nice coffee machine, and plenty of comfortable seats.  

We explored the ship a bit and eventually met up with our entire group of 10. My husband and I discovered that our cabin had been upgraded from a lower deck with small windows and no balcony to a much nicer cabin with a balcony that had a large window that could be opened, and that our luggage had miraculously appeared on our beds (thank you, Bora!), waiting for us to unpack and settle in. 

We explored a little more around the ship, finding the front area with small round tables for open-air dining and relaxing and a nice view in front of the ship; the upper deck with both canopied and open areas with lounge chairs and small tables, a walking track, storage of the ship's e-bikes, and the ship's bridge; and the beautiful Crystal Dining Room.

We also did a little group bonding when one of the men in our group brought out a set of red berets for all the guys - so very French!

We had a ship-wide meeting later in the day that included a safety briefing and explanation of the Scenic app, which showed our daily schedule and had an option for audio tours of points of interest on the banks as we passed them. This was our full general schedule:

We enjoyed our first dinner on the ship, choosing from a menu that included several hot and cold appetizers, three main courses (including one vegetarian), and three desserts, all of which varied daily, as well as a few standing options such as salmon, steak, creme brulee, and a cheese plate. There was also a list of red, white, and rose wines as well as a full cocktail menu and soft drinks that were always available. Before each dinner, there was a full-ship meeting in the lounge as Mitch reviewed the next day's schedule and Chef Julian and House Manager Claudia introduced the food and wine for that night. Chef Julian recommended a particular combination each night and described its preparation in detail, and House Manager Claudia described her recommended red and white wine pairings to accompany the meal, but you could choose anything on the menu (and often, if you asked nicely, even something that wasn't). Tables were not usually reserved, and were set for 2, 4, or 6 people, but our wonderful server Florin arranged for our group to have a standing table for 10. 

For my first dinner, I started with some kind of fluffy souffle as a starter, then I opted for the salmon, which had a wonderfully crisp citrus glaze and was served with steak fries that were crispy on the outside and pillowy-soft on the inside, and vegetables that were steamed to a perfect tender-crispness. For dessert, I tried the creme brulee, which was creamy and custardy, with just the right amount of caramelized sugar on top. We also had a few cheese plates for the table, which included a selection of soft, semisoft, hard, and bleu cheeses, some crackers, some grapes or dates, and some nuts. Meals always began with rolls and butter, and water and wine glasses were topped off as soon as the level had dropped even a hair. Because we had a "reserved" table, we usually arrived to our wines already poured and waiting for us! The food was consistently spectacular throughout the cruise.

After dinner each night, there was entertainment of some kind in the lounge starting at 9:30 (dinner ran from 7-9pm most nights), followed by music for dancing. Our group quickly became known as the ones to get the party started, and Entertainment Director Rachel would often nudge us to take to the dance floor when passengers were hesitant to be the first. 

So ended our first night on board, and we were ready to set sail in the morning!

Thursday, June 22

After a wonderful night's sleep on a very comfortable bed, I discovered that I was one of very few "early risers" who grabbed a cappuccino from the fancy coffeemakers in the lounge, and a small croissant to tide me over until seated breakfast began. There was also a daily crossword and Sudoku puzzle that I enjoyed solving in the quiet lounge over my morning coffee.

Breakfast in the dining room included an extensive breakfast buffet with scrambled eggs, various types of breads and rolls (and a toaster), spreads including jam and Vegemite (for the Aussies), American and English bacon, sausages, some type of potatoes, an omelet station, beans (for the Brits, of course), fruit, and also a menu you could order from with additional items made to order, as well as an array of coffees, teas, and juices. 

And we're off to Libourne! Libourne is on the Dordogne River, so we traveled north on the Garonne, then turned southeast onto the Dordogne to reach Libourne (see map above). Herb and I watched from the upper deck as we passed under a few bridges - the rivers are tidal, so we often needed to set off at a specific time based on the tides and the height of the bridges we'd need to pass under. A few were low enough that the crew would take down the canopies on the upper deck and the pilot house itself would be lowered, with the captain and the local pilot popping their heads through a hatch in the roof in order to see. The boat was so long that after the bow went under the arch, they'd look back and steer the stern through - just like driving a fire truck! 

Since there are quite a number of cruises along the river with similar itineraries, there literally isn't enough dock for everyone, so the boats practice "double-docking," where one boat ties up to the dock and the second boat ties up to the first and puts a gangway between the boats. If you're on the outer boat, you just troop through the lobby of the other boat to get to shore!

Before our afternoon outing, we had lunch on board. The daily lunch menu includes several salads and small bites, a pasta station, a soup, plenty of breads, and several heavier main courses that can be ordered from your server. I quickly discovered that the chef in charge of soups (Chef Orlando, who taught us his French onion soup recipe) was amazing, and my daily lunch was usually a couple of the single-bite appetizers, a bowl of soup, and some bread. Today's soup was pea and pancetta, and it tasted like the peas had been picked only a few hours ago. My favorite small bite was a cheese and leek tart that was buttery and rich but not heavy.

It was so delicious that I forgot to take a picture before I ate it

After lunch we went on our first outing, traveling on a coach bus to Saint-Emilion (in Libourne the region, but not Libourne the city), which is famous for its monolithic limestone church (L'eglise monolithe) with its underground catacombs, carved out of the rock in the 11th century. The church is at the top of a hill, and the scenic overlook from the top is simply glorious. 

Closeup of the limestone walls

Side note: There is a group of local guides who lead the shore outings. They fill us in on local history and points of interest that we're passing, as well as some information on the places we're about to see. Since the area we cover is relatively small, they travel from town to town with us. 

Now I have a little confession to make: I know we visited a winery after we saw the church, but all that's in my notes is "wine tasting," and the only vineyard name I have is from a photograph I took on the way to Saint Emilion of a place called Clos St Julien:

I'll be honest: After tasting wine at a vineyard a day nearly every day for a week and a half, it kind of blurs together. So on this particular day...we learned about wine, we tasted wine, it was good, and I'll tell you more in an entry with less preliminary detail. I'll just say that we did learn the term "terroir," which refers to the soil, climate, geography and geology, and even the traditions and rules of a specific wine-making region. The grave, or gravel in the soil, is limestone, which absorbs heat during the day and radiates it back at night. Because of this, the grapevines in this region are trimmed shorter than in other regions (as tall as the heat can radiate), so the temperature around the vines keeps relatively stable. I'll tell you more of what we learned, particularly about regions and appellations, in a later entry.

Our coaches returned us to the ship in time to dress up a bit for our Gala Welcome Dinner. After seeing innumerable fashionable Frenchwomen wearing chic scarves, I decided to go with the trend, and Herb and I coordinated our lavenders to meet the captains, Captain Jeremy and Co-Captain Gary. One of our friends realized he had the same outfit as Herb, so of course they twinned it up tonight as well.

Tonight's dinner featured a wonderful lamb dish, a creamy mushroom soup, and hazelnut ice cream, paired with some luscious local red wines. Our after-dinner entertainment was a wonderful local jazz trio who came aboard just for the evening. Herb and I dusted off our foxtrot (and boy was it dusty), and everyone had a lovely time dancing the night away. We also met a delightful British/Irish couple who became part of our group over the course of the cruise. The gentleman was quite taken with the men's berets and claimed one for himself for the evening!

Tomorrow we leave Libourne and head for historic Fort Medoc. Stay tuned for more PFAs!!