Alsace Travel - Laurence R. Pearson, Highly Experienced US and

travel
travel
RIGHT Sonia, Scott, Jasper, Diana
and Larry stop in front of the old
town well before exploring Eguisheim
in a mid-morning excursion on foot.
BELOW Scott and Diana
check maps on the way to
Chateau d'Isenbourg in Roufach
L’Alsace en famille
Three Generations Enjoy A Relaxed—And Nostalgic—
Bicycle Ride In France
STORY & PHOTOGRAPHY BY LAURENCE R. PEARSON
The lower Rhine River Valley separating the Black
Forest on the German side and the Vosges Mountains of
Alsace on the French side is one of the most stunningly
beautiful places on earth. Yet, it is relatively unknown to
many venturesome travelers, even those native to the
two widely-traveled countries.
My family—three generations of us—had the joy
in early June of pedaling through the verdant rolling
hills and flat valley floors on 24-gear bicycles at an
average speed of about eight miles per hour, passing
grazing sheep and budding vines, coming upon fairytale castles and storied medieval villages full of life and
the frequent peal of church bells. The uphills were
breathtaking—literally—and the downhills were long
and thrilling. We stopped in the cobblestoned streets
of these villages to try a pain au chocolate or éclair in the
morning and tarte flambée (Flammekueche in Alsatian/
German) for lunch, catch our breath and refuel for the
next stretch of quiet country road.
There were five of us who had selected the first bike
tour of the season in Alsace offered by Backroads,
a highly respected active travel firm. While Backroads’
European family bike trips later in the summer were
filled, ours wound up as a magnificent private family tour.
DECEMBER | 109
travel
Backroads was unstinting on the quality and breadth
of the service, despite our small number. We met in
Mulhouse, France and bicycled and slept the first night in
Badenweiler, Germany. The next day we rode through
gorgeous parts of the Black Forest, stopping at one point
to pick ripe, intense wild cherries before crossing the
Rhine into France, passing remnant pill boxes of the
WWII Maginot Line on the French side. The rest of our
days were spent in Alsace, many along the pastoral Route du
Vin country in the foothills of the Vosges Mountains, ending our trip six days later in Strasbourg.
I had discovered Alsace in 1979 while on a solo
trip, drawn to the area by my reading of Albert
Schweitzer, the Nobel Peace Prize winning theologian,
philosopher, physician and organist who was born in
and spent his early life in Alsace. I had been “adopted”
then by two venerable Alsatian families while wandering the streets of Strasbourg, and I now planned to
introduce them to my family at a post-bicycling dinner
at their restaurant, Maison des Tanneurs. The restaurant is
in a picturesque half-timbered 16th Century building
on the bank of the Ill River in the historic Petite France
area of Strasbourg. Its red geranium flower boxes originally drew me to it in 1979.
Most of the fifteen or so towns that we bicycled
through in Alsace were like the typical village of
Blienschwiller, where we enjoyed a delicious wine tasting
and lunch at Vin Spitz provided by the small family that
owns the winery. The population of the town was 300, yet
it counted 25 vineyards in its area. About sixty percent of
France’s more than 36,000 “communes” (Paris and
Strasbourg are two) have fewer than 500 inhabitants.
Riding options each day ranged from 20 to 50 miles
or more, with a van always close. Our weather was ideal
110 | CALIFORNIA HOMES
for bicycling, thanks to
the cooler days of early
June. We had full sun
or dappled light under
puffy white clouds much of the
time but on some days we watched dramatic black clouds
gather over the Vosges. Despite the fast-moving thunderheads, we encountered short sprays of rain only a few
times during our six days of riding, and real rain only one
afternoon when Scott and Diana braved a steep, optional
ride up to Haut-Koenigsbourg castle. A good part of our
riding was in the morning, with my grandchildren often
engaging in other activities, such as pretzel making with
one or both of our guides in the afternoons.
Our multilingual Backroads guides, Ingo and
Dominique, were warm, affable, athletic and ever at the
ready to make a bike adjustment, modify a route, supply
historical notes, provide juice and a moveable feast of
energy snacks during the day, or make special arrangements for us at the hotels. They became big brothers to
13-year old Sonia and 11-year old Jasper, learning their
word games of Ghost and Detective and playing them with
gusto at lunches.
One afternoon, when the three adults continued on
an extended riding option after lunch, Ingo and Dom
took the children ahead to our next lodging, the regal
Chateau d’Isenbourg. When we arrived later at the hotel,
located on a high bluff overlooking vineyards and the
tiled roofs and church steeples of Rouffach, the foursome
were playing pétanque on the hotel lawn. We could hear
their laughter as we pedaled up the hill. Another time, we
found Jasper and Ingo finishing a late afternoon tennis
tie-breaker after nine games. Ingo and Dom were our
unfailing guides as well—we never got lost!
travel
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT A city official pauses on the balcony
of the ornate 17th century Town Hali in Mulhouse, which displays its
art and culture from the 1400s until Mulhouse joined France in 1798.
Sonia and Larry prepare for an elegant boating breakfast on the
Ill River, courtesy of the Hotel des Berges.
The Pearson family pauses outside the historic Maison des Tanneurs
restaurant in the Petite France section of Strasbourg.
Regional food specialties from fois gras to local wines and cheeses are
advertised outside a smart shop in the romantic village of Riquewihr.
DECEMBER | 111
travel
The base for
our last two days of bicycling and lodging
was the stylish Hotel des Berges in
Illhaeusern on the banks of the Ill River, a
western tributary of the Rhine that runs all
the way to Strasbourg. One afternoon,
Ingo rented a canoe and scurried the
children off for a swimming and paddling
adventure on the Ill, which ran close to the
Hotel. The Michelin three-star restaurant,
L’Auberge de l’Ill, is located on the same
grassy grounds as the hotel, where storks
nest and white swans waddle amidst the
flowers and manicured lawns. Spirited and
convivial Marco Baumann manages the
hotel, while his lovely wife Danielle oversees the restaurant. Marco’s father-in-law
Marc Haeberlin is the restaurant’s worldrenowned Chef.
The night we arrived at the Hotel des
Berges, we asked Marco if we could just
have an impromptu light dinner on the
British AirwAys
www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_us
I invariably find flying BA such a pleasant experience
that I actually look forward to the flights. Their new service from San Diego to London was flawless. Every BA
person I have ever encountered on the ground or in the
air has been remarkably kind, intuitive and helpful. The
completely flat beds in business class and the high quality of the food and wine and service explain BA’s great
loyalty amongst business travelers and tourists. Every
flight segment to Europe and back home to California on
BA were on-time and enjoyable, quite an accomplishment these days.
sofitel hotel Heathrow Terminal 5 London, England
www.sofitel.com/gb/hotel-6214-sofitel-london-heathrow/
index.shtml
Sophisticated, sleek, and incredibly convenient for my
short stop-over in London.
hotel du PArc Mulhouse, France
www.hotelduparc-mulhouse.com
Sited on a small park walking distance from the train
station and the beautiful St. Stephen’s Church in the
Place de la Réunion historic square, the hotel offers
friendly Alsatian hospitality and comfort.
hotel romerBAd* Badenweiler, Germany
www.hotel-roemerbad.de
A stately resort hotel near the Black Forest’s natural
springs, the hotel is something of a time-warp, with many
families having come to “take the waters” for generations.
chAteAu d’isenBourg* Rouffach, France
www.isenbourg.com
Beautiful grounds, magnificent views out every window,
and the feeling of living in France’s more distant glory
and luxury.
112 | CALIFORNIA HOMES
hotel terrace. He quickly had a table set for
us and our food was brought over from the
Auberge. Eating some of the best cooking
France has to offer, we watched the sun set
dramatically behind the black oaks and willows lining the river. For the final night of
the bicycle trip, our family walked across the
lawn with Ingo and Dom for a sumptuous
dinner experience of Alsatian and classical
French cuisine at L’Auberge de l’Ill itself.
The next morning, my son and daughter-in-law went for a last ride, while Jasper
slept in. Sonia and I walked down to the
river where a dugout boat was being prepared for us. Staff attached a wicker basket
full of croissants, breads, rolls, breakfast
meats and cheeses to the side of the boat.
Orange juice was poured for us and coffee
for me. Then our two boatmen, each wearing boating hats and red scarves, polled us
out into the river beyond the weeping willow on the far bank and then down the
stream. I felt like I was in a scene out of
Lina Wertmuller’s Elvira Madigan with
Mozart’s piano concerto #21 playing in my
head. Out of the corner of my eye I thought
I saw Renoir himself painting the scene.
For the next hour Sonia and I breakfasted
divinely in the French style while we talked
about those things that grandfathers and
granddaughters talk about. CH
hotel des Berges* Illhaeusern, France
www.hoteldesberges.com
A luxurious, charming small hotel, built in 1964 on the
grounds of Auberges de L’Ill. If you are looking for a
romantic getaway that is more like the country home of a
rich friend with impeccable taste and is just a few steps
from one of the best restaurants in France, this is it.
AuBerges de l’ill* Illhaeusern, France
www.auberge-de-l-ill.com/V2/index.html
For those to whom fois gras is a life passion, it doesn’t get
any better than at this Michelin three-star restaurant.
Original dishes created by Paul Haeberlin, the father of the
current chef, are a soaring gourmet experience.
mAison des tAnneurs Strasbourg, France
www.maison-des-tanneurs.com
By far the most picturesque restaurant setting in
Strasbourg, its meticulously prepared, traditional Alsatian
cuisine has been enjoyed by everyone from Nancy
Reagan to a number of the recent French presidents and
cabinet members.
le PAvillon des lettres Paris, France
www.pavillondeslettres.com
This discreet, small hotel is 165 meters from The Élysée
Palace in the 8th Arrondissement. When I gave my cab
driver the address at the train station, he asked if I were
going to see Mr. Sarkozy. Each of the 26 rooms is uniquely
designed in the fashion of a French writer. Mine was L, not
for Laurence but La Fontaine, whose Fables excerpts were
imprinted on the wall. This tastefully-designed hotel
opened anew in November 2010 and offers quiet luxury in
an exceptional Parisian location.
BAckroAds www.backroads.com
An extraordinary active travel company.
*included in the Backroads’ “Alsace Premier Inn Family
Bicycle Trip