traveldiary.stracke.us

We spend our first night in the Provence, relaxing in the garden restaurant of the Novotel in Aix-En-Provence. It is a very warm evening and we enjoy cheese and local wine, sitting on the terrace, first in the sun, later under the starry sky. Sunset is only at 21:25 and there is still daylight until 22:00. By midnight, fatigue and jet lag are catching up with us. On Saturday, we miss breakfast ( blame the jet lag) and then refresh with a swim in the outdoor pool.
In the afternoon, we have enough energy to get out of the pool lounges and drive into the Luberon mountains. We amble along the narrow country roads, with vistas of vineyards and small villages, with the old stone houses precariously hanging on to steep hillsides and rock walls. Besides us, there is not much traffic. It is siesta time and France is resting. Only a few overzealous bicyclists are pedaling up and down the hills. We stop in Cadenet for delicious peaches and cherries (cerises), have ice cream in Bonnieux, with a view of Marquis De Sade’s castle in Lacoste, one hill over, and explore the Ochre cliffs in Roussillon.
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We have to go (fly) the extra mile(s) to get to Marseille, our summer vacation destination.
It is Thursday, June 26, and we are in Newark Airport, trying to check in with Air Canada. I had booked our flight on December 4, 2007, taking advantage of an excellent airfare to fly Air Canada from Newark to Paris, connecting in Montreal. This fare was actually less expensive than the non-stop flight from Montreal.
This is all academic now. We are being informed, that the Newark-Montreal flight has been canceled (for the third day in a row). We are going through the usual tug-of-war negotiations with the gate agent: I decline offers to fly the next day or fly on Air Portugal via Lisbon later that night. We are going through all the Star Alliance partner airlines. United has a flight from Dulles Airport, Lufthansa from Newark via Munich. By the time the agent tries to ticket and confirm our new flights, the seats are gone.

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