Life along the River Rhône One of the best ways to experience the essence of
any destination is through the eyes of the locals, who share insider perspectives you can’t get on your own. Highlights include:
Spend two days in Paris, graced with garden parks and elegant architecture
• Tastings in Chalon-sur-Saône with culinary artisans who invite you into their shops to sample the specialties of the house. You will learn how delicate croissants are made – no less than 16 paper thin layers of buttery dough, deftly kneaded and fashioned into crescent shapes that puff and flake with flavor, will do – and that you must look for a pointed end on French baguettes to ensure that they were made by man, not machine.
• A dressage demonstration at the renowned Haras Nationale de Cluny, established by Napoleon I as a military equestrian center. Today it is a stud farm and training center for magnificent horses, whose grace, strength and beauty are admired all over France. See carriage horses trot by and view an intimate dressage demonstration by a skilled equestrian who puts her beloved equine partner through its paces with gentle signals, affection and mutual respect.
good, enjoy shipboard commentary on the Sun Deck during this afternoon’s cruise and join us for a tasting of French chocolate hosted by our riverboat chef. After dinner, relax to the tunes of our guest accordionist. Meals BLD
10. STORIES OF POPES (& WINE) IN AVIGNON Papal fervor put Avignon on the map some 700 years ago when safety-seeking pontiffs reigned here in the 14th century. Evidence of their rule comes to life during a guided tour of the impregnable Gothic-style Palais des Papes and at an afternoon wine tasting at one of the select vineyards permitted to produce Châteauneuf-du-Pape – literally meaning the “New Castle of the Pope” – the most famous of the Côtes du Rhône wines. Your host reveals secrets of the terroir as you sample red and white wines tended with time-honored care on the estate. Meals BLD
11. VAN GOGH’S ARLES & LA CAMARGUE Wake up in Arles and walk into town with our local guide. See firsthand what drew the Romans and artists like van Gogh to this riverfront town and visit sites they immortalized while they were here. Explore the Roman arena, built in the 1st century BC and still in use today. Pass by the café that van Gogh painted in The Café Terrace, the hospital where he recuperated from his ear injury and other iconic settings you may recognize. You will have time to wander through town before taking an excursion to la Camargue region, famous for fleur de sel (sea salt), prized black bulls and pretty white horses. A home-hosted Provençal lunch at a private ranch is made even more memorable when you see an exciting demonstration by fleet-footed gardians (local cowboys) who dodge the feisty Spanish black bulls they raise here. Return to the riverboat in Arles and join us for the Captain’s farewell dinner this evening. Meals BLD
12. DISEMBARK ARLES / HAVING A NICE TIME Upon disembarking ms Swiss Emerald in Arles, travel to Nice. The capital of the French Riviera, Nice entices with gracious Belle Époque mansions, pastel-painted squares, a palm-lined
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