Taste of Bordeaux June 30

Despite my early bedtime I slept until almost 10a! Stuart is off to breakfast and I relaxed in a nice hot shower and shampoo. By the time I finished  it was about lunch time. We had the Bistro lunch that I must say was a bit disappointing. Pizza was dry, overcooked or both. 

We played a few games of Rummikub and I enjoyed the prettiest French Coffee I ever had. So elegant!

However, that was followed by a macaron demonstration. We heard about how to prepare the componants and then we put together the premade componants. I thought of Sam making the perfect macarons! We tasted btut did not eat them...much to sweet for us, but fun to participate.

At 4:30p we had a Wine Festival, it was very nice. Singers really entertained and the wine was good. The walk back was all downhill so that was easy!

Tonight was the Chef's Table. This was 7 delightful courses. Amazing tastes and we shared a table with 2 other, nice, friendly couples. (shown in opposite order of serving)

After dinner we enjoyed piano music and some dancing until midnight!

Taste of Bordeaux June 29

We had a lovely day. Our tour left at 9:45a and returned 2.5 hours later. Our excursion was Fronsac Wine Tasting. We went to Château of La Rivière. It was a short, but rainy ride to our location. Such beautiful scenery with all the grapes growing on sloping hills and even through some forest area. We had a tour of the limestone caves where they store wine. It was quite extensive. That was followed by the wine tasting. We did have some cheese, walnuts, and baguette to eat with it. It stopped raining for the trip back but it is still chilly. I did not bring clothing for cold weather!

We returned just in time for lunch in the dining room.That was tasty being appetizers, a salad followed by a duck leg with sides. Following that we had a crepe demonstration where we could participate in making our own crepe! That was fun. See the videos here: LINK 

At 5p they had a welcome back for all previous cruisers with AmaWaterways. Dinner was delicious as usual. I was exhausted so I was off to bed early. Stuart stayed up and watched the trio of lassical musicians, La Douce. He enjoyed it. 

Taste of Bordeaux June 28

Up but not too early! Stuart off to breakfast, I took longer! We both brought our laptops into the lounge and worked on things. In the mid morning there was also a presentation about the overall cruise. By 11:30 we have arrived in Liborune. We had lunch in the lounge, the "bistro" lunch, which was splitying a burger. It is a lovely, sunny day. 

Our tour today was to be Saint Emilion Excursion & Wine Tasting. However, we decided we needed one more day of rest before we take a 4-5 hour walk in a castle, etc. 

All our meals were lovely. We spend the afternoon on the sundeck playing cards and watching the crew load supplies. In the evening there was a nice trio providing some pop music. We enjoyed that and even did a little dancing. 

Taste of Bordeaux June 27

Bonjour! All checked out of Airbnb! Yes, Stuart hauled all those suitcases down the big flight of narrow steep stairs! My hero!!! Our stay was pleasant enough under the circumstances.

We had anoter wonderfully polite Uber driver. In a few minutes we pulled up riverside next to the AmaDolce. Crew were immediately there to greet us and take our suitcases across the cobblestone. Wheeled luggage is great but not-so-much on that surface.

Moments later we were sitting in the lounge having a cool drink and the promise of lunch in 10 minutes. They offer a "bistro" lunch in the lounge. Today's choices were a mixed salad, soup, or a pasta dish. I asked for a salad and also received a little sandwich/sweets tower with it.

A little bit about drinks: Beverage package is not included and we cannot bring alcohol onboard. Most drinks are between 4.50 and 7.50€. Wine and beer are included at lunch and dinner, with a generous window of time. Some speclial offers are offered at Happy hour, which starts at 6p. I'm not really sure how long it lasts. You can order any drink you want during happy hour. 

We played Phase 10 most of the afternoon. When our cabin was ready we did the dreaded deed of unpacking. After that we walked across the street to Molly Malone's for a drink to honor John and Darlene. When Stuart and Darlene were here in 2019, they had a meal and drink here. A nice memory for Stuart. 

Back to the ship just in time for the safety briefing and welcome from the captain with champagne and appetizers. 

When that was over, it was time for dinner. It was enjoyable but a large table near us was very loud and boisterious... After dinner a creme de menthe on the sun deck, so nice and cool and refreshing after the hot day. 

Bordeaux June 26

Today is our last full day at this Airbnb. I have grown used to it and the stay has been pleasant enough. Stuart made breakfast, fried potatoes, eggs, and sliced tomatoes. I just had the potatoes and tomatoes - Tasty! I cleaned up the kitchen and laundry got started. Since it is very warm today there should be no problem drying things on the little rack. 

We need to pack to check out of here by 11a tomorrow morning. It can probably wait until morning since we kept almost everything in the suitcases. There was only a tiny place for hanging clothes and no drawers to be found. The large wardrobe in the photos was not for our use, it was locked. 

It's been fine, but feeling better and hopefully plenty of energy for the upcoming river cruise!

Bordeaux June 25

We are getting better! We did nothing but play some games today. Oh, Stuart went to the market again. We have supplies enough to last us through our stay. We had some not-quite-ripe peaches today, still good flavor. The store has no tissues so it is my job to tear off 2 squares of toilet paper at a time and make a nice stack for our runny noses! It's a full life here in Bordeaux. This afternoon we put a small ice cube on the top of an open wine bottle and watched it melt. The purpose was to see how long it took, but we forgot to time it!

We checked all our AmaWaterways Taste of Bordeaux paperwork and everything is in order. It is going to be a fun river cruise and I hope we are really well enough to enjoy it. 

It is still warm as we head to bed. There is supposed to be A/C here. We have not tried it yet. It has cooled off nicely overnight. There are large French doors, 2 sets, in the bedroom so the outside air can really come in. Tomorrow is supposed to be 94F so we will probably check out the A/C by then. Glad we are getting better. 

Bordeaux June 24

Today we did laundry and not much more. Shower and shampoo helped my outlook on things. We are eating our chicken soup along with other items Stuart got at the store. It was a warm day, not really hot. Mid 80's I think, with a nice breeze. At least our clothing dried quickly. We have a wash machine, but not a dryer. Happy to have the washer!

We relaxed, played games, rested, and rested more! Stuart made another trip to the market for a couple things. We are managing. 

This is where we are staying: LINK.