Thanks Dax, It was great. Not sure I would call it a "vacation" though -- it was the toughest week-and-a-half of cycling I have ever done. Its actually called a "raid of the cols" -- you climb as many of the biggest passes and mountains as you can (usually from two to four a day), staying in a different town and hotel each night. We started from the town of Artemare, near Lyon, and biked south-east towards the Alps. Of course the best known climbs in the world were on the program, including Alpe d'Huez and Mont Ventoux, made so famous by the Tour de France bike race. These are the true Mecca's of road cycling. On Mont Ventoux in particular, we met hundreds of cyclists from various countries in Europe and elsewhere. Also included was the highest paved road in Europe, the Cime de la Bonette, as well as the very tough Col du Grand Colombier, Croix-de-Fer, Izoard, Vars, and a buch of smaller 'cols' along the way. A commercial photographer snapped a photo of me on Alpe d'Huez. From a botanical perspective, its of course always interesting to watch how the flora changes as you climb each mountain, from deciduous to coniferous, and eventually to a barren moonscape near the top. We were very lucky with the weather, as it is not uncommon for the highest col roads to be closed due to dangerously high winds or cold (ice, snow, etc.). In addition, there is the change to warmer zone trees as you head south towards the Mediterranean sea -- while the "Pines" dominate as conifers in the wild, around the towns and villages you see a huge number of Junipers of all sorts of shapes and colors.

If sight-seeing in Paris doesn't wear you out (or even if it does), it's great to pack a picnic lunch and go to the Bois de Vincennes and visit the Parc Floral, perhaps France's largest botanical garden. (they do sell food in the Parc) If you like dahlias, they have HUGE displays of them in September. (to others: if you're there in mid-late May, there are INCREDIBLE displays of iris, and the Pinède [pinetum] area is full of hostas and astilbes for late May through July) This is what Parisians do on the weekend! Very un-touristy, but very cool. Giverny is a half-day trip IF you take the earliest bus you can (even if you are on your honeymoon, wink wink). If you go later in the day, it can be so crowded it takes twice the time to see. Have a great trip. I'm sure we're all jealous.

That's really interesting Kath! I'd want to take the longer tour too. The beach makes me sad-I've seen it in so many movies. Danielle

Gooster - if you decide on Antibes, I can recommend apartments through Apartments in Antibes. Michelle is great to work with, so have no fear of renting from her. If you need a larger apartment for more people, I can find out if a lovely apartment where stayed once is still on the rental market. We were in Antibes twice when the Cannes Film Festival was underway. It was fun to train over to Cannes to people-watch, see the red carpet, watch the stars walk it, etc. For some reason, the guards waved my late DH and i through for an up close view one evening. From Cannes, you can take a ferry over to Île Sainte-Marguerite. Lovely, nature walks, but pack a picnic. When we were there, only one food stand was available where the ferry landed. There, you also see the fortress where the man in the iron mask was held for awhile. Hyères is lovely, but I've never stayed there. The islands (Porquerolles) were on our list, but we hadn't made it there before my DH passed away. Bormes-les-Mimosas and Bandol are also lovely. I know a couple who live in Bandol and have wine tastings. My late DH and I visited them when they had a vineyard near Aix. They moved to a smaller vineyard on the coast. Cassis is a seaside village that is often visited on day trips by those in Aix and Avignon areas. In the fall, I'll be going to Basque County (Saint-Jean-de-luz and Biarritz) and sharing a house with friends who live in Paris. I'll be there a week between a week before and after in Paris. It will be interesting to see the Atlantic Coast in the southwest of France, as well as the Pyrenees.