Annecy – Sept. 13-16
By Leyla
Our AirBnB appartment
Day 5 of our trip brought our first train ride of the trip: the TGV to Annecy out of Gare de Lyon. After deliberating whether to take an Uber or Taxi, we decided we felt confident using the metro and transferring at Les Halles, despite the rain and all our bags. It was easy and the train ride, with 3 seats around a table and by the window was very comfortable. We arrived in Annecy and walked from the train station to our Airbnb in the Vieille Ville. We were met by Beatrice, our gracious hostess, who has created an Airbnb against which all others will be measured. The building dates from the 1600s and it was 3 floors up but well worth it, given the stunning and tasteful restoration of a top floor studio apartment with beautiful furnishings, linens, real silverware and other thoughtful touches. And the location next to the lake and in the Old town, with it architectural marvels and canals was something we never got tired of exploring. We set out to explore the park and the lake before finding some food. We decided that we loved being in the apartment so rather than eat out, we went to the nearby supermarket, bought hummus, chips, veggies, beer, and sparkling juice to hold us over until the farmers market the following morning.
Paella on a bridge! Crowds and food in the farmers street market
Day Two in Annecy started early because the open market in the Old Town reportedly started at 7:30. Mark and I ventured out while Emily slept in, returning home with a bounty of fruits and vegetables. There were stalls lining several narrow streets of the old town laden with the most glorious local foods including plums of every color, olives in all shapes and sizes, charcuterie and cheeses for days, and so much more. We went back with Emily and bought more, also stopping at what would become our favorite Boulangerie for croissants and baguettes. The afternoon before, we had made reservations at the best restaurant in town, 1st Mets, for lunch. It was good, albeit a bit precious, but glad we did it. We then set out to find out about renting bikes for the remainder of our stay, ending up at the municipal facility next to the train station that offered bikes at a discount if you arrived by train. The men working at the store indicated that this was the beginning of bike sharing, but without the docking stations around town, this was the best they could do. We were off on our pale blue bikes with baskets and ingenuous locking mechanism to explore both sides of Lac Annecy, going first on the left side of the lake and then doubling back to explore the right. The lake is large and we never made it all the way around but it was good reconnaissance for the following day when we would be hosting Samantha, Brian, Cammie and Caden Clark, a family from Shining Mountain who are taking the year off to live in various spots around the world, starting in Grenoble. Back to Le Cocoon, the name of our Airbnb, for a delicious dinner made from our Farmer’s Market bounty and then to sleep in our cozy beds.
The main canal from lake
The next morning, after breakfast and some exploring in the Old Town, including a stop at our favorite Boulangerie, and another stop at the local health food store for yogurt, we met the Clarks at the train station to rent more bikes so we could all explore together. Our guests were hungry so we got sandwiches in the Old Town for a picnic on the grass near the lake. We essentially retraced our bike ride from the day before but this time, in the 80+ degree weather, there was swimming for those who brought their bathing suits. Mark, Emily and Caden found the swimming in the lake really refreshing. At 6pm we returned our bikes, said goodbye to our friends and went back to the Cocoon for another terrific home meal with plenty of salad and other vegetables. In the morning we would be packing to leave Annecy for Torino.
