It is amazing (and a relief) when public transport and plans made ages ago mesh and work. Our trip to Reims was effortless and remarkably fast. A very early ride to Prague airport, an 06:40 flight to Paris Charles de Gaulle and a pleasant breakfast at the airport station felt easy. We caught the TGV (very fast train), changed onto the local train and had dropped our bags at the hotel in under an hour after leaving Paris.
So, it was time to explore this historically important town over the next two days. First stop was the ancient and stunning cathedral, after a swing past the ancient Roman Porte de Mars gateway. The church hosted the coronations of the French kings and required massive restoration after extensive damage in WWI. The gothic architecture and modern(ish) stained glass windows (some by Marc Chagall) combine to create a feeling of tranquillity. And it is a continuous work in progress, as the restoration of the structure and decorations will take forever. We strolled the town, enjoying the holiday vibe; the town played an important role at the end of WWII, when it was the site of the unconditional surrender of the German forces. We had crashed the 80th anniversary celebrations of VE Day (Victory in Europe) and Reims was our host. We attended commemorative events and enjoyed walking around the decorated and car-free streets.
For lunch, we looked across to the Opéra and the cathedral towers. In Champagne, drinking champagne, eating crepes – we are definitely in France! And Wanda was given some local pastries for free. Bonus. After our first glass of champagne at the cafe, it was time for a formal education. Fortunate for us, a champagne house was next to the hotel. Olivier was fantastic as he introduced us to a lot of the terminology, technology, terroir and tastes we needed to know (but often forgot!).
The next morning we watched flag presentations and marching, got confused about a lantern moving a flame and listening to commemorative music. There was a historical exhibition of period cars, uniforms and accommodation, brought to life by volunteers who even slept over in the tents on the Republic Square and took people for rides around town in the open army jeeps. We were honoured to be present at some of the following events – the commemoration at the Synagogue, the ceremony at the Heroes of the Resistance memorial and the march past at the War Memorial.
We are not going to list all the champagne houses we visited on our clockwise cycle around the Montagne de Reims to Epernay. Suffice to say, there were quite a few (double figures) with two, three or four varieties to taste and compare in each place. Each house had its own flavour profile and individuality. And sometimes the host would go that little further and take us behind the scenes – into the chateau, down to the cellars to show the stacked bottles and demonstrate riddling proficiency, share additional vintages or take us into unofficial areas.
The cycling through the countryside, beside canals, along forest trails and dusty lanes was exhilarating (see videos below). Having e-bikes made the uphill tracks easier, getting off the roads to cycle dirt roads between row upon row of grapevines was a bonus and finishing our first day at a characterful hotel with swimming pool was terrific. Downside was the non-delivery of the luggage, as promised by the bike-hire/tour company. It did turn up, just a couple of hours late. Dinner was in the neighbouring village, at a bistro that was empty when we arrived at 8pm. By the time we left, in true French fashion, at 930pm it was full of locals. The cycle back was a closed-mouth, glasses-on affair, as hordes of mayflies were out and about, just at head height.
We took it slow the next morning, opting for a dip in the pool after a delightful basket breakfast. We set out along the Marne Canal towards Dizy and our destination of Epernay. More beautiful countryside, a few pretty villages, glorious weather and a couple more champagne varieties to taste too.
Epernay was a real surprise. Its whole focus is champagne tourism. The champagne houses along Avenue de Champagne are palatial – and that is an understatement. All the big-brand names are there and many we had not heard of, showing off in magnificent buildings, and their displaying their products (some at extreme prices, thousands of Euros for a magnum). We explored the town and grabbed a bite to eat (with a glass of champagne, of course) in a bistro on the town square. Bikes returned, another champagne tasting then it was off to the station to collect our luggage (phew, it was waiting for us). We then discovered there was trackwork, no trains and a replacement 3+ hour bus ride … hooray. An expensive taxi ride to Champagne-Ardenne TGV station across the mountains and a speedy train ride got us back into Paris within 45 minutes. A short Metro ride to Gare d’Austerlitz (under renovation and very confusing to navigate around the hoardings) got us close to our new abode for the next four nights.
Our Champagne adventure was terrific, though we were disappointed in the tour company’s service and support. The minor inconveniences were definitely outweighed by the beautiful scenery, amazing experiences and unforgettable memory making.
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