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Press Room published in French News June 2008
STARS OF THE TRACK For motor sports enthusiasts, two highlights in June are the Formula One Grand Prix at Magny Cours on June 22 and the Le Grand Prix de l’Age d’Or the following weekend at Dijon Prenois. F1 Grand Prix The competition is on in more ways than one. As more and more countries are keen to host the F1 Grand Prix and pour huge amounts of money into building new circuits around the world, France’s number one racing track at Magny Cours near Nevers has been under heavy fire from Bernie Ecclestone and Co. To keep the event in France is a matter of Gallic pride. So funding of some 30 million euros has been agreed and work will start after this year’s race to improve the on-site and off-site facilities with a new pit area, press centre, restaurants, improvements for the teams and visitors. Much needed hotels will also be encouraged. There is greater national interest in the championship this year with Frenchman Sébastien Bourdais driving for the first time for the Toro Rosso team. Like several of the rising stars in the sport, Bourdais started off karting, winning his first championship in the early nineties. Born in Le Mans in 1979, motor sports are in his blood, and he has been consistently winning in the Formula 3, Formula 3000, and more recently the Champ Car World Series. Along with many of the other high profile F1 drivers he now living in Switzerland, and fitness is his god, with cycling, running, weight training and kayaking on the regular agenda. Luck has been against him so far in this year’s championship, but his experience holds him in good stead for the future, and with local fans out in force, his home turf will hopefully bring a turn of fortune. L’Age d’Or
By contrast to the mega event that F1 has become, down the road at the Dijon Prenois circuit on June 28 and 29, the classic cars of the past turn out in force. Bugattis and Bentleys, AC Cobras and Porsches all take their turn around the track in style. Dijon Prenois used to be the F1 circuit up until 1984. Nowadays the facility hosts the highly popular Coupes Moto Legende for vintage motorbikes at the end of May, and L’Age d’Or at the end of June. There is more of a club atmosphere: the place is crowded but you can stroll around the pits area amongst the glorious machines of yesteryear, and here it is not the drivers who are the stars of the show, without doubt it is the cars themselves. This is a relaxed weekend out, with stalls for car enthusiasts, refreshments and bonhomie, you can chat to the car owners, it is very French and a million miles away from the world of corporate advertising and the glitzy lifestyle of F1.
published in french news, March 2008 Bernadette Soubirous, from Lourdes to Nevers This year marks the 150th anniversary of Bernadette Soubirous’ first sighting of the Virgin Mary at Lourdes. Hounded by sceptics, Bernadette fled from Lourdes and became a nun at the convent of Saint-Gildard in Névers where she died at the young age of 35. Connections to Europe to the east of Dijon are set to improve. Just announced, a new TGV route is in the offing from Dijon to Alsace, Switzerland and Germany. Financed by the European Investment Bank to the tune of €475 million, this is part of the EU trans-European network project for greater transport communication throughout the Union. You may have seen the ad. It’s certainly an eye-catcher. Leather-clad bikers, tattoos and all, chill out on the new Corail Téoz service to Névers, home of the Magny-Cours F1 racing circuit. This super-smart train which continues its journey from Paris to Clermont-Ferrand via Névers offers a new luxury in train travel with a children’s play area and leather seats and laptop connections in first class. published in sur in english, ANDALUCIA, 22 February 2008 WHERE THE GRASS IS GREENER… From the ‘new’ Europe of Andalucia, we travel to ‘old’ Europe, to France, and one of the most traditional regions of all, Burgundy.
To fully appreciate living in Andalucia, you need to get away from time to time and experience something completely different. For a holiday, or a stop-off en route north, Burgundy provides just the right contrast to your Mediterranean lifestyle. Unlike the hectic pace of new Spain, this is the land of gourmet food, fine wine, sleepy canals, forests and lakes, ancestral chateaux and picturesque villages largely unchanged through time. Burgundy lies to the north of Lyon and south-east of Paris, with the A6 autoroute running through from north to south. It is an easy drive up the east coast of Spain, about 2000 km with motorway all the way. The Mediterranean influence comes to an end in southern Burgundy. A couple of villages in the Beaujolais wine region just nudge into Burgundy but Macon is the first major town you will reach. For your first stop off, head to north of Macon to Tournus, just off the A6, on the river Saone. This is a little known but charming town centred around the Abbey of St. Philibert with its pink and cream vaulted ceiling, recently revealed mosaic floor, and modern stained glass windows. A little time spent around this region is rewarding; there is the magnificent Chateau Cormatin, and Cluny, the once all powerful centre of Christianity in Europe. The surrounding countryside is gentle and peaceful, and if you fancy a night in a chateau, head for Ige with its well recommended restaurant, frequented by the locals, always a good sign. Beef from the white Charolais cattle which graze in the surrounding lush valleys, is of top quality, and a real treat. Designer Chic
Beaune should be your next stop. Beaune is chic, with designer shops, trendy restaurants and gourmet food shops from cheese to irresistible patisserie. But this is a town given over to prestigious wine: cellars, shops selling wine accessories and books, tastings and of course vineyards. These preciously manicured patches of land, sometimes tiny, are the famous vineyards of Pommard, Meursault, Volnay, Aloxe Corton… the list reads like a Christie’s wine catalogue. Christies in fact run the auction for the Hospices de Beaune in November, each year receiving record prices for the wines. But for the wine lover paying a visit, try a good selection at one of the cellars offering tastings throughout the day, such as the Marche aux Vins by the Hotel Dieu, or Bouchard Aine et Fils on the perimeter road around town. The tastings cost 9 or 10 euros per person and are a really good introduction to the wines made from the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grape varieties which are so revered. For a fuller introduction to the wines of the region, Burgundy Discovery and Burgundy on a Plate, run by English people, each offer excellent one day or more personalised wine tours, visiting some of the smaller producers. If your time is limited, this is a great way to get insider information straight off. The town of Beaune organises an international Baroque Music Festival each weekend during July in the magnificent setting of the Hospices de Beaune and the church of Notre Dame. For a music lover, this is an event worth going out of your way for. In the town, you could well ask, where is the Hotel Dieu, the Hospices de Beaune, with its much photographed patterned tiled roof? The patterned roof, so characteristic of Burgundy is in the inner courtyard, largely hidden from view on the outside. The building, dating back to the glorious days of the Dukes of Bourgogne, also houses an important work by Roger van de Weyden, The Last Judgement, impressively displayed in an ante-room. There’s a wide choice of hotels in Beaune, from the Hotel de la Poste which has just undergone a refurb. to the top of the range Le Cep, a favourite with Americans. Around Beaune, a couple of the wine producers have turned hoteliers, with contemporary boutique bed and breakfast in the famous domains. Chateau Chassigny Montrachet and Olivier Leflaive are two such establishments new on the scene. Both also offer tasting lunches to introduce you to their wines. Another boutique chambres d’hote worth searching out is Chateau Les Roches in the little village of Mont St Jean, between Beaune and Saulieu. This is a friendly and stylish six bedroom bed and breakfast serving dinner two nights a week, and an ideal starting point for exploring some of the gems of Burgundy. The Abbey of Fontenay, Dijon, Chateau Bussy Rabutin are all within easy reach, as are several golf courses. The golf courses of Burgundy are worth a mention here. They are comparatively inexpensive compared to Costa del Sol rates, uncrowded, particularly during the week, and in glorious settings such as Chateau de Chailly, a Japanese owned hotel and golf course. In Vine Style can arrange tailor made golfing holidays. Mustard and all that
The town of Dijon is the capital of the region. Don’t be put off by the outskirts of the town, the centre itself is solid and traditional with a fantastic market, half timbered buildings and it is lively, being a university town. There’s a large choice of restaurants from Michelin starred establishments to various international cuisine. The Auberge de la Charme, a one star Michelin restaurant owned by Chef David Zuddas in Dijon Prenois a few kilometres out of town is a restaurant to watch. At lunchtime during the week, prices here and in other top restaurants offer good value from a set menu. If you are into art, the Beaux Arts museum in the centre of Dijon has a fine collection, but stop off too at the Archaeology Museum in the Abbey St.Benigne – the building itself is a work of art. Shopping is good in Dijon, and there is plenty of nightlife too. Off the beaten track
So now, let’s wander off the beaten track. For a gentle but lavish tour, you could take a hotel barge trip along the Canal de Bourgogne or the Canal du Nivernais, explore the Morvan National Park with its lakes and rivers, discover some of the spiritual places in Burgundy such as the Bhutanese Temple near Autun, the medieval town of Vezelay or the Benedictine Monastery of Abbey de la Pierre qui Vire, a retreat, famous for its cheese, with its surprisingly hi-tech shop. The countryside is lush, gentle and fresh, with plenty of little country inns and restaurants to explore. If you are travelling with the family, make a trip to Guedelon in the unexplored area called the Puisaye to the west of Auxerre. Here a fortress is being built from scratch just as it would have been constructed in the Middle Ages. There is no electricity, no cranes; the stone is hewn from the rock face by hand. The wagons are made in the carpentry shop to transport the rock, there are huge pulleys, a forge and all the artisans, dressed in medieval gear, needed for this 25 year task. You can wander around the site, the second most visited attraction in Burgundy, and it is of interest to anyone over the age of five or six. The wine town of Chablis could be your last port of call. There’s a boutique hotel with wine bar here too, run by the wine domain Laroche who also offer one day wine courses or a very impressive tasting for 10 euros a head. Down the road from here you have Chateau Ancy le Franc, one of the finest chateaux in Burgundy, the medieval villages of Noyers and Montreal. This is a taste of Burgundy. You may find though that you get so immersed in one little area that you have to return time and again to explore further. Andalucia, fresh and go-getting and Burgundy, traditional and bursting with culture, is a winning combination. Notes Lunchtime is sacred to the French and most shops and tourist attractions shut for lunch between 12.00 and 14.00 with the exception of the supermarkets. This is rather a culture shock when you are used to the 2 pm lunch time in Spain. Museums are shut on Tuesdays, Guedelon, for instance, on Wednesdays except in July and August. Do your homework before setting out to avoid disappointment. Meals are far more formal than in Spain, booking is advisable, and once again the opening hours of the restaurants need to be noted as serving is not continuous throughout the day. For more information on all the places mentioned, plus more, see www.burgundytoday.com by Claire Williams, www.burgundytoday.com
published in french news, 18 February 2008
published in French News Thursday, 17 January 2008
Recent finds upset theories about Celtic society. Traces of a Celtic town with a palace, a main street, granaries and water cisterns dating back to around 500BC have been uncovered in northern Burgundy, near Châtillon-sur-Seine. The nearby village of Vix is already famous for a sepulchre unearthed there by archaeologists in 1953. Inside were the remains of a woman and a chariot. This was unusual as ritual burial was normally reserved for men, and indicated a woman of standing. The archaeologists named her the Princess of Vix. In a crate inside the chariot, they found her jewellery in bronze and pearls and an enormous and magnificent gold torque. Another find was an enormous bronze vase, as tall as a man, weighing 208kg. This and other Mediterranean, Greek and Etruscan-style ceramics and tools suggest a wealthy Celtic community, a cut above the norm. In recent years, work has continued on the plateau below Mount Lassois near Vix. Using modern seismology equipment, a German excavator detected a small fortified village of 60ha. This led Bruno Chaume from the University of Bourgogne to set up a Franco-German team of archaeologists on the site last summer. The dig began in earnest.
by Pam Elson
Pam Elson info@burgundytoday.com Maggi Fox, Maggi Fox PR and Marketing, |
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