This story begins in Seattle, where we have come for a quick visit with the grandkids.  Why we do that is obvious - we would not be the Grampies without it.  But of course we also have some other passions.  Not the least of these is baguettes.  So the story really begins in Ken's Market in the Ballard district.  In a low key way, Ken's is a hub for some of the best baguettes in this  country. 

At Ken's you will not find a French boulangerie style presentation of stacks of gorgeous breads, made by artisans and priced from €.80 to 1.20.  Rather you will find a shelf of bagged breads, with just one or two from each of at least five bakeries.  They are delivered fresh daily.  The one I was after was from Grand Central Bakery, which started in Portland but which has a strong presence in Seattle.  It was the first "real" baguette I discovered in the US.  But today, nothing from Grand Central.  So I took one from "The Essential Baking Company".   From humble beginnings in 1994, Essential Baking has grown to have its products in maybe 100 locations in Washington, and lots more nationwide, even in Florida.  Yet they cling to an artisanal ethic, and to my mind their bread can compete with any in France.

Heart

2

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

Heart

2

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

Heart

0

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

But bread is not really what I am trying to write about in this introduction. What I am trying to write about nevertheless was still prompted by Ken's market. In Ken's was the latest edition of the Oprah Magazine.  And this month's headline struck a chord:

Heart

1

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

  Oprah was referring to something completely different but the general question of "Where Do We Go From Here" has been a hot topic for the Grampies since we got back from Yucatan.

 With nineteen cycle tours already blogged we can still say that the question is not "What Do We Do From Here?", because we are clear on that.  What we do is to get back out there, as soon as possible.  That's because cycle touring remains super fun.  But, Where Do We Go?

We still think that Europe is the best place to cycle.  We avidly read blogs from Asia, and South America,  even the Middle East and South Africa, but Europe remains cycling central.  So we will continue to pick off corners and edges of the place that we have missed.  Two that we have had in mind for a while are Provence and Brittany. Both of these happen to be in France. But inconsiderately they have been placed in opposite corners.  And when these placements were made the additional barrier of the Massif Central was plopped in the middle.

We know little of the Massif Central, and no doubt more intrepid cyclists consider it a magical and interesting place to cycle.  But both we and Google Maps seem to prefer to go around.  So that establishes part of a circle route, from Provence down by the Med, skirting north of the Pyrenees and up the Atlantic coast to Brittany.

Heart

1

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

Now for reasons we will talk about in coming pages, we need to begin and end in Netherlands.  So that would have us climbing up the Rhine and then sliding down the Rhone, to Provence.

And once in Brittany, we need to follow the English Channel and the North Sea to get back to Amsterdam.  So simple as that, it's a complete ring around France.   A ring around France would surely translate as a Tour de France.  So that's what it will be:  Grampies' Tour de France!

Heart

2

Comment

0

Link

Log in to comment or reply

Epilog: The Seeds of Doubt

This morning Violet and I walked up to Ken's Market for another Essential Baking seeded Parisian baguette.  Violet cast the first doubt, saying "I don't like the seeds".  This caused me to briefly consider the Grand Central Bakery one, but the lure of seeds was too great. After all, the thing is coated in not only poppy but also sesame. For someone with such a long bagel background, it's irresistible, granddaughter notwithstanding.

So we got the baguette home and now Dodie joined the discussion. "It's a good bread, but it's not a baguette" was her opinion.  Now that opens a difficult area, not only in baguettes but in all of food, in fact in the world overall. What is a ... donut, steak, french fry, etc. really? How can you tell one that is from one that is not, when there is a challenge? For that matter (a topic current in our world), what is a bicycle? And ultimately with the coming of artificial intelligence,  what is a human?

I countered the seeds and not a real baguette argument by recalling the seeded baguettes I had bought actually in Paris. But Dodie deflated me with "Is a pumpkin-raisin bagel really a bagel?"  Since the answer to that is a resounding "No!", I am left quietly sipping my coffee and wondering what to do with my two leftover 1/2 "baguettes".  And by the way, how do I know this is really coffee?"

Ok, lookit, we are headed for France where the food is great and you don't even have to think about it!