Vendredi le 2 juillet - à Dijon

It was a simple and easy drive from Crans-sur-Céligny, Suisse to Dijon, France.  Finding our way to our hotel might have been the hardest part.  If we could have gotten out and walked, it would have been easier!  We knew where it was, but we just couldn't get the one-way streets in the right direction in the centre ville.  We circled, and closed in our hotel.  The concierge said our room wouldn't be ready until 14h, so we parked, right in front of the hotel, on the street, and decided to walk to the "place" next to the Palais des Ducs for a light lunch.  While we were there, we conspired on how would would buy Austin his birthday gifts for the next day.

Though lunch wasn't cheap, we had great salads and the kids enjoyed a shared pasta bolognaise.  I had my first real Dijon "kir" of the trip and the kids enjoyed playing in the public fountains.

We were surprised when we finally checked into our hotel room.  We had reserved a room with a double bed, and in the photos on-line, it looked like the hotel would squeeze in two single beds for the kids.  Since we expected to spend a lot of time doing wedding-related activities as well as sight-seeing, we really didn't mind tight accommodations for the weekend!  But when we walked into the room, I was worried.  There was only one double bed.  I politely asked the woman in French about the additional beds we needed for the kids, and she said they were "en bas."  As "en bas" means downstairs, I was puzzled.  But sure enough, a staircase inside the bedroom led to a floor below - to what would have been the wine cellar of the building.  Maybe it sounds strange, but for us, it was perfect!  We had extra space, extra privacy, and it was very cool in the cellar (see right).  For the money, and location, we were really pleased in the end.