July in France = ???

... Tour de France !!!

Although we weren't VIPs like last year, Philipp and I had a great time visiting the Tour de France on July 9, when they left from Cholet, which is not too far from Angers. We were joined by Philipp's friend Bernard and his son, who is 16 and already a competitive cyclist (maybe we'll see him on the Tour one day!). We borrowed Philipp's sister's motorcycle (and Bernard had his) so that we could move quickly and (somewhat) easily from spot to spot. We ended up seeing the promotional caravan and the riders at the departure, and then at two other points along the route. Lots of fun! Oh, and I got to see my favorite, Thomas Voeckler, too. Check out his smile in the first picture. He's wearing the polka dot jersey because at the time, he was the fastest climber.