Days 9 and 10- Annecy, France

The last leg of our journey was in Annecy, which is a small town on the edge of a beautiful alpine lake in the French Alps. Canals from the lake feed into the old part of town, giving it incredible charm and beauty.


The narrow, cobblestone streets wind their way through the area and snow capped mountains rim the lake.


There are bike trails around the lake and when the weather is good (which it was when we were there) everyone gets outside to enjoy it all. Breath-taking!

We stayed there for two nights with rooms that overlooked the canals. Howard and my room had a balcony which overlooked the canal and a central square. It was quite scenic so we sat out on it regularly. People walking along the canal kept looking up at us longingly and then eventually they'd wave at us. It became very funny. We were the envy of the town with that balcony. Here's a shot from our balcony!

And then Howard's mother on the balcony!

We were lucky enough to be there on the last Saturday of the month to enjoy a large flea market (also called Brocante sale in French speaking areas). There you find all sorts of "stuff" from expensive antiques to old cowbells and farm equipment. It is a fascinating view into the community and whenever we travel we try to go to at least one. Sometimes we come away with some fun find but often it is just enough to be there.

To add to the richness of our experience, Howard's sister had a problem with her eye and we were required to try to find an eye doctor on a Saturday morning. I was called upon to navigate that in French, and after a couple of cups of coffee I was up for the job. We went to the local hospital and I explained in my most rudimentary French what the problem was. The woman at the front desk congratulated me on my French (she was being oh so kind) and we were instructed where to go and what to do (in French of course). After less than an hour wait, we were called into the eye clinic and my sister-in-law was examined by a wonderful doctor who spoke perfect English. She got a thorough eye exam and was given prescriptions. They had no idea how to collect money from us so it was all "on the house". The prescriptions cleared up the problem within 24 hours. Now tell me, would that have happened in the USA? I think not...at least not on a Saturday!