Author: marniesteve

Our Nicaraguan Adventure Begins

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Our Nicaraguan adventure has gotten off to a good, but uneventful start. After an early flight from Phoenix to Miami we met up with our great friend Sam. We had just enough time for a beer and a snack before we boarded our flight to Managua.

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Steve in Miami

All of our American Airlines flights have been on time and the skies have been clear. We were even able to juggle our seat assignments so that the three of us could sit together for the 2 ½ hour flight south.

Upon arrival in Managua we were met by Roberto (Bobby) who will be our guide for the next few days and Sergio, who will be our driver. Both men are English speakers and appear very professional. We feel like we’re in good hands. We’ve got our own van and Bobby and Sergio will accompany us to Leon and Granada, which are our first two stops.

Tonight we are at the Contempo Hotel Boutique, which is a gorgeous, modern hotel in Managua. As soon as we checked in we headed for the restaurant where we enjoyed dinner of brie, goat cheese salad, and sea bass.

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Dinner at the Contempo

Our server Carlos was full of great suggestions and quite a pro. If all of our meals in Nicaragua are like this, we’ll be ecstatic. We even like the local beer, Victoria.

We’ll post pictures and updates tomorrow. We are having trouble staying awake after our big day of travel.

Buenos noches amigos y familia!

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The Long Road Home

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Phoenix, AZ

As we are in the middle of our long flight home, we can’t help but reflect on what a wonderful vacation we’ve had. The eight hour flight from Amsterdam to Philadelphia, followed by the five hour flight from Philadelphia to Phoenix are grueling, but they are a small price to pay for the wonderful experiences we had at this year’s Tour de France.

We finished our vacation in the fabulous city of Beaune, France. We visited this area two years ago when we followed our first Tour and the city continues to impress.

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Final lunch in France

The medieval walls and turrets that surround the city conjure up images of ancient battles and wine-making monks. This time we had less than 24 hours in this special place but we made the most of it.

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Steve in Beaune

On our final night with our Custom Getaways friends, we enjoyed a fabulous five course French dinner at a Beaune restaurant. With great local Burgundy wine and fine cuisine, we recalled the highlights of our trip:

 

  • The rainy time trial Prologue in Rotterdam, won by “Spartacus” Fabian Cancellara
  • The up-close and personal back-stage access of the start of the race in Brussels
  • Getting Lance Armstrong’s autograph and patting him on the back to wish him good luck on the Tour
  • Riding the closed course during Stage 2
  • Crossing the finish line by bicycle and then having our pictures taken on the podium, as if we were all the holders of the maillot jaune
  • Viewing the race from the Izoard VIP area while enjoying champagne after a sprint finish
  • Riding 100s of miles through the Dutch, Belgian, and French countryside, through polders, cobbles, and vineyards
  • Spending time with new friends from across the globe—Australia, Canada, Belgium, The Netherlands, Greece, USA, and France to be exact
  • Being led by a great group of cyclists and tour leaders: Sandra, Erik, Thomas, Nico, Giles, and our driver Adrian

 

 

 

Custom Getaways allowed us to see the Tour from a perspective that few will ever experience. They executed the plan with precision and flexibility and were attentive to our needs. They adapted to our varying levels of cycling experience and worked to make sure that everyone got what they needed whether it was a short ride, long ride, no ride, vegetarian meals, or medical attention.

All great trips must come to an end. Our end started yesterday when Adrian dropped us at the TGV station in Le Creusot, France. A transfer on the Paris metro and another train to Amsterdam marked the end of our European journey. It certainly will not be our last. For now though, we will continue to follow the Tour daily on the US broadcast from Versus. We will read the blogs and Facebook posts from our cycling friends and wish that we could be there for the Tour conclusion in Paris. Viva Le Tour!

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Just another routine day at the Tour de France

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Beaune, France

Today we had one more day in the Champagne region of France. The beautiful scenery of the vineyards and the French architecture never gets old. Steve rode about 58 miles today with the “fast” group while I took the bus into town to wait for the group and the Tour de France start. The ride was a challenging one, through the hills of the champagne region. One of our group members had a really bad wipe-out, so I was glad to be in the bus.

The Tour de France is like a traveling circus. Each day a new city hosts the departure, which means they must stage the arrival of the teams, their buses, and their cars along with the publicity caravan, the press, and the dignitaries.

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Riders at the start in Epernay

Roads are closed and large event venues are assembled each day just to host the departure of the race. Then, along the race route there are sprint zones and feed zones set up by roving crews that are always a step ahead of the peloton for the entire month of July. At the finish each day, usually in a town over 100 miles away from the starting line, the same thing happens in the town that hosts the arrival of the peloton. At each phase there are moving restaurants, souvenir stands, medical tents, and the like.

We’ve been so lucky because we travel in a bus that has VIP access. For each stage we’ve visited, we have been able to drive within a block or two of the race course. As you’ve seen on previous days sometimes that means we have to drive on the actual course, across the finish line, in order to find our parking space. Spectators along the way cheer and wave to us each day as if we are something special.

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Radioshack team car

This afternoon, after the departure of the riders in Epernay, we walked down the Avenue de Champagnes. This is a beautiful, famous street that is home to some of the most prestigious champagne houses in the world. We took the tour at Champagne de Castellana and then tasted the good stuff at the end. Yum! This was the perfect thing to do before our four hour bus ride south to Beaune.

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Stainless steel vats

We will spend this evening in Beaune and have planned a nice dinner with the group. We expect there will be plenty of good Burgundy wine since this is the capital of the Burgundy region of France.

This will be our last night in France as tomorrow afternoon we will begin the long journey home via Paris, Amsterdam, and Philadelphia. What an adventure we’ve had!

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