A few weeks ago, we updated our ‘loo view’, replacing images from our visit to Spain in 2011 with a selection of photos from the three days we spent in Burgundy in May 2014.

Although we enjoyed several bottles of the region’s famous wines, the main themes of our explorations and experiences were fine dining, scenery and the old heart of the town of Beaune. These themes are illustrated by the images that now adorn the walls of the little room in our home:

Group 1

Here are two of the dishes that we both enjoyed during our time in Burgundy and took as inspiration for cooking in our kitchen back in Melbourne: chicken with a mustard cream sauce and a refined presentation of boeuf bourguignon.

Group 2

This group comprises a colourful public park in the centre of Beaune; vineyards at Montrachet, some of the most expensive agricultural land in the world; and bunches of lily of the valley, sold on every street corner on the morning of May Day, a very French tradition.

Group 3

The last pair of photos is of the famous Hotel Dieu, constructed in the middle of the 15th Century by the Chancellor of Burgundy and his wife, as a hospice and hospital for the poor. From its inception to the present day, this facility and its successors have been the direct financial beneficiaries of the sale of wine from an an allocation of fine Burgundian vineyards arranged by the founders.

Cheers!
Rick Grounds