The Garonne and the Dordogne

Friday and our last day of the cruise. We are back in Bordeaux and a full tour of the covered

market as conducted by our excellent chef from the boat. He is a Greek and shows some of his distaste for inferior French olives by pitting a French green against his Greek black variety. Woe betide any of us who don't vote for the superiority of the black olive.

The Chef gives us a running commentary about what to look for in terms of the freshness of fish and shellfish, organic vegetables and fruits and a stall owner gives us samples of some French cheeses. Not all stall owners are happy about 25 tourists stopping in front of their merchandise to hear about how to choose various food items and we are "shooed" away from the most unfriendly entrepreneur vendors.

However the Chef has established enough good will amongst his favorite vendors that we get a good grounding for us in all things destined for the ship's kitchen. We do get to sample some classic  French cheeses.

By midday we are back on board and just in time again for the next meal. Alas, all of this good life will be shortly at an end and we will have to think and do for ourselves again. On board we are instructed as to when to be at breakfast, when to be on the tour bus, when to be back at the meeting spot to be bused back to the boat in time for lunch. Then we are invited to consume quantities of liquid, be it beer or wine, and then to be ready for an afternoon tour. Lastly we are compelled to join others for an evening postprandial, only to receive information about tomorrow's touring arrangements. Then we all traipse into dinner for another round of vino and top-notch cooking. After dinner we are invited to go topside and engage in an evening drink and, scandalously left to our own devices as to when to get to bed.

Can anything be better than this type of existence?

 After dinner we are treated to a tall ship and flotilla passing by, complete with a show on the river of fireworks and water cannons,




Saturday Judy and I will pick up our rental and have to navigate to the various places we want to get to/ We will have to decide what and where to eat and we will have to find our own way back to the hotel for the necessary night's slumber. Thinking for ourselves will be a unique concept after a week's worth of being spoiled rotten!