A Leisurely Cruise Through Burgundy 夏日慢駛‧靡爛之旅

蒙地卡羅雜誌 Monte 2012 一月號

2012.01.01

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Text and Photo by 陳岳夫

夏末八月初,有個機會去法國酒鄉Burgundy(勃根地)走走。長住法國的朋友對我說,這時候去是最舒服不過了。此時當地的葡萄已結果。除了出名的葡萄美酒外,迷人的景色、舒適的氣候更是讓人留連忘返。

我不是擅於走馬看花的人,總希望悠遊於嚮往之處,靜靜地欣賞在地的風景;或是在某個城市好好住上幾天,再以旅館為中心,呈放射狀去探訪這個地區。  

此行的目的地是Canal du Centre(勃根地運河),位於巴黎東南方距離約100 Km。大夥以舒適的河船為旅館,每天緩緩地在運河上移動,一段一段地往山丘上行駛。直言之,就是我心目中的理想旅程。

亞洲到歐洲的長途飛行,加上從戴高樂機場搭TGV到Dijon(狄戎);這都只是來往的交通,並不能算是旅行。要等我們一行人上了專屬的Barge(運河平底船),才算啟程。

天空藍得有點過頭,船上的房間也十分舒適。才放下行李,一眼就從圓型船窗看到運河上悠遊的天鵝;我就此相信這會是一段慢活式的旅行,6天內我們也才走了約70 Km。

以往搭乘郵輪時,一望無際的海洋當然心曠神怡,但天天如此就會嫌它變化不大。比起來,我們的河船雖然走的是小小運河,兩岸的風景卻更為精彩。

高高低低的緩丘,有如深淺不同的綠色波浪。當運河的水閘門一開一關,船身就慢慢被水捧起;彷如打開一扇門進到另一個房間,永遠有不同的驚奇。

河船慢慢通過水閘門時,我們也可以隨時上岸散步、騎車、慢跑。連走路都比船行快上許多。每一個閘門旁都有座看守小屋,標明了編號及距離鄰閘多遠。小屋的個頭不大,但因主人的不同而各有各的風情。沿岸的專用道路只供騎車或步行,悠悠哉哉完全不會有汽車來打擾。

運河延著山丘高低起伏建造,這兒就是孕育葡萄酒的Burgundy,著名的酒王La Romanée-Conti就產自此區。每一天我們都會下船,到附近的小城鎮走走看看。我們逛了安寧的Dijon(狄戎),參觀了12世紀的Beaune(波恩)濟貧院,更拜訪了13世紀時建立的酒莊Clos de Vougeot(伏舊園,本區葡萄酒的起源)。

對我這愛喝歸愛喝、卻不怎麼了解葡萄酒的人來說,最有趣的就是拜訪了許多酒莊,接觸到葡萄酒的知識。結實累累的葡萄藤葉就像是未來的財富。有的葡萄園看起來似乎一模一樣,只是隔了條小土路,但所產的葡萄竟然風味大不相同。

許多酒莊主人熱情地招待我們。總是先介紹歷史及釀造過程,然後開上好幾瓶不同年份的酒讓我們品嚐比較。即使一座小小酒莊,也會因為葡萄的年份、釀造的技術等而呈現各種不同的滋味,其中的學問真是博大精深。

我們前前後後通過了逾40個水閘門。我問過船長,每個閘門的高度差約2.5 m,所以6天來我們共計向上高升了超過100 m,這種「乘船爬山」的經驗還真不多。一路上,我們還品飲了約40種不同的本地紅、白酒,吃過約40種口味迴異的法國起司,更享用了兩餐藏在美麗風景中的Michelin(米其林)餐廳。

要優雅地活在這世上不難,多加練習即可。但想像這般無所事事、天天只是啖美食、飲好酒,漫步欣賞美景,想想可真是不容易。這次美好的旅行,真是一段難得的「靡爛人生」!


勃根地靡爛之旅
名門會 0970-33-33-00 / 0970-22-22-22
異數風格旅行社(02)2536-1314

 

Late summer in August we had the opportunity to wander about Burgundy, France’s wine producing region. Our destination this trip was the Canal du Centre, southeast of Paris. We used a comfortable river boat as our hotel, and every day we slowly moved along the canal, cruising up hilly regions section by section.  

It was a long flight from Asia to Europe, but we didn’t consider that leg of our journey as part of a significant part of our trip. For us, the excursion really began when we boarded our chartered barge. Under the blue sky, staying in our four-room barge was incredibly relaxing. The carefree swans on the water practically accompanied us along, and we only traveled some 70 km during our six-day tour.  

The high and low gentle hills around us appeared to be colored in flowing hues of light and dark green. On the canal, the opening and closing of the lock gates would have the water slowly move the boat vertically. Whenever one of those gates would open, it was like opening a door and going into another room, and the process always provided us with ever-changing surprises.  

When the captain was slowly navigating through a lock, we were able to go ashore and walk, bicycle, or jog, in the meantime. Besides each lock was a small watch house, on which was a clear marker showing the distance to the next lock. There were paths on the banks for the exclusive use of cyclists and joggers, so while there we didn’t have to worry about cars spoiling our fun at all.  

The canal was built on the undulating hills of Burgundy, home of the famous La Romanée-Conti vineyard, the maker of the most prestigious wines. Each day we would get off the boat and explore the nearby area. We strolled about Dijon; toured the 15th century Hospices de Beaune, a charity hospital; and visited the Clos de Vougeot winery, which dated from the 12th century.  

What I liked the most were the tours of various wineries, even though I didn’t consider myself an expert on wine, where we gained first-hand knowledge. Some vineyards look exactly the same, separated from others by a thin dirt road, but the wines they produced had surprisingly different flavors.  

Many owners of the wineries enthusiastically welcomed us. They would always first brief us on their vineyard’s history, as well as the procedures that went into making their wine. Later, they would open several bottles of different vintages for us to sample and compare. Even the tiniest wineries have their own vintages and winemaking techniques that result in every sort of distinct flavor.  

We cleared over 40 locks. I asked the captain and he told me that each gate was some 2.5 meters high, so during the six days we scaled over 100 meters. This ‘hill climbing by boat’ was a one of a kind experience. On our route, we tried nearly 40 red and white wines, ate close to 40 varieties of French cheese, and enjoyed the food at two Michelin-starred restaurants.  

It is incredibly difficult for most to imagine having to do nothing every day, other than eating delicious food, drinking superb wine, and strolling around and delighting in picturesque scenery. Our pleasantly ideal trip was one of those rare moments of living for the sake of pure pleasure!

 

本文感謝蒙地卡羅雜誌和陳岳夫先生。

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