River Cruise Diary – Tournon, France

After extolling European river cruising in 2020, I posted twelve stories (June 2 to November 20, 2020) from what was then, the most recent trip, our fourth, which sailed the Rhine and Moselle Rivers. The next trip to detail was our first, which sailed the smaller Rhone River in 2006. The most recent post, the sixth on this trip, appeared June 18, 2022.

Sorry that I abandoned that travelogue midway as my attention returned to more graves, state houses, ballparks and election ranting. The rest of this trip, my first time in France, included terrific stops in Lyon, the Burgundy wine country, and Paris. But before that, there was a less-than-exhilarating stop in Tournon, and true to the journalistic standards we have at Images and More, it is reported here.

Tournon at Night (24 April 2006)

Completed in 1825, by engineer Marc Seguin, Europe’s first

suspension bridge with iron cables spans the Rhone River.

Unlike the many suspension bridges we see in the U.S.,

it has a single tower midway across the channel.

Statue of Marc Seguin, Tournon, France (24 April 2006)

After touring Viviers, we sailed upstream to dock in Tournon for the night. This is a tidy town of 10,000, named for its towers. There was no formal sightseeing here because this was the place where passengers are met by local residents and escorted to their home-hosted dinners. This popular feature of the cruise operators is appreciated by the guests, who are briefly immersed in French language and local culture. The hosts are also interested to meet Americans and practice their English...most of them, anyway.

Tournon Castle (24 April 2006)

Built on the ruins of a tenth-century fortress, Tournon Castle

is now a museum and exhibition center.

Becky and I (along with two other couples) had a different kind of evening. Our host, a single mom with two daughters, ages ten and three, lived in a very small apartment with a tiny dining room. While the food was edible, the space was cramped and young Inez dominated the evening. The meal lasted until 11:00 PM. Between that and the cat and the nine, caged, Chilean squirrels (pets or food?), our patience was tested. It was great to walk in the night air and make our way back to the boat. We might have been the last group to return.

The next morning, as we sailed toward Lyon, all the passengers shared wonderful stories of their experiences from the night before. There were tales of fascinating homes, interesting people and references to local culture, personal vineyards, and history. The six of us agreed we had nothing positive to contribute to the discussion and remained silent. After we privately offered feedback to the tour guides, Grand Circle removed our host from the roster of local families.

While this was the low point of the trip, what we saw of Tournon was lovely and the remaining days on the river and in Paris were spectacular so, hang in there with me.