09/11/2025 Run

Woke up and went for my first run in a while. I was a little concerned about the pace I'd be able to hold. Ran over to where the city walls were and headed west toward the river. Followed the city walls over to an old Roman bridge across the river, that was 2 miles and my turnaround point. I retraced my route back from there. Was able to run negative splits, aided by occasional stops at crosswalks. Legs felt fine but started to tire in the fourth mile. Hoping to get a couple more runs in before we fly back.

Avg pace = 8:00/mi

Total distance = 4.06 mi

Elapsed moving time = 32:32

Avg heartrate = 129 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 14

https://www.strava.com/activities/15771717861

Got back and had some muesli, coffee, and a banana for breakfast, surprisingly good. We stayed around the flat for a while mapping out a strategy for wine-tasting, but that turned out to be no time well spent. Headed up north initially to Beaumes-de-Venise, not really sure why, but Pat was providing directions. We stopped there and walked to the local tourist office to get some ideas about nearby wineries to try. From there, we drove to Malaucène, again not sure why, no wineries visited yet. We walked into the little village and had a decent lunch at a French café. From there, we drove toward the Vacqueyras valley, and we finally stopped at a wine shop, Les Vignerons de Roaix Seguret, along the road. They had Cotes du Rhone wines, no vineyards of their own, and they specialized in blends with Grenache grapes. Sampled some wines, I just had small tastes since I was driving, and Pat bought an inexpensive bottle of red wine. Back in the car, and we drove to Vacqueyras, stopping at another small winery, Domaine de Montvac, along the road. This one was the best experience. The server was a member of the family who had owned the winery since the 1850s and passed it down, mother to daughter, for six generations. Impressive! She was very nice and told us about different grapes based on the soil and altitude they were grown in and at. From there we drove to the Chateauneuf-du-Pape region and stopped at a winery, Chateau La Nerthe, that Pat remembered stopping at over 20 years ago (I'm not so sure he had the right one). This was definitely more upscale, and corporate, than the others. The server was knowledgeable about the wines and generous with the pours, and the wines were very good, what little of them I tried. Pat bought a bottle, another red. We talked briefly with another couple of visitors from Scotland and Ontario who were on a private wine-tasting tour and were interesting to hear about. From there I drove us back, just a short distance since we had been working our way south after having gone a fair distance north. Relaxed late afternoon followed by a dinner of clean-out-the-refrigerator. Family storytelling during and after dinner, from all sides, that was also interesting. First-level cleaning of the kitchen and preliminary packing for the next day's travel, then it was to bed.