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Valentine’s Day is coming, what are you waiting for? It’s time to pack your bags and spend a romantic week in France aboard a hotel barge. With eye-popping scenery of Burgundy, fine wines and delectable meals you have a romantic getawayyour sweetie will never forget. The Barge Connection’s newer addition, C’est la Vie is a perfect choice. What is Hotel Barging? Imagine staying in a luxurious boutique hotel. You have an attentive staff, gourmet quality food and a comfortable room. Now, imagine that hotel is floating along a quiet canal. Instead of sitting at a sidewalk café and planning your next adventure, you are already on the move. Sip a glass of wine as you cruise by vintage villages, cultivated fields and age-old vineyards.Your hotel barge has its own Captain and crew, including a gourmet chef and a designated tour guide and driver. This all inclusive experience includes arrival and departure transfers, all meals, beverages and tours. Your plane ticket and crew gratuities are all you have to worry about. The C’est La Vie carries a maximum of eight passengers, with a crew of five. This means a more intimate travel experience and more personalized attention. Get to know your fellow cruisers in a way you just can’t on a cruise ship carrying thousands. The barge gives you much more personal space and a more relaxing cruise experience. Another wonderful option you have with barge cruising is to charter the entire vessel for your group or family. For one glorious week you have your own private floating villa taking you from one scenic Burgundy village to another. Introducing the C’est La Vie The C’est La Vie is 128 feet of cruising pleasure. The lower deck offers four spacious cabins with king beds that can be converted to twins if needed. Cabins are air conditioned and offer plenty of storage space, an arm chair and a writing desk with chair. En-suite bathrooms offer a large shower with multiple jets, marble vanity, mirror and hair dryer. The barge is wired for both 220v and 110v electric usage. An abundance of hardwoods and boldly colored paintings add charm and class. Much of the upper deck is open to the sunshine. A teak table with chairs sits under an adjustable sun canopy and is the perfect place for a meal in the great outdoors. If you choose to dine indoors, the dining room is surrounded by windows ensuring you don’t miss any of the journey. Also indoors is a fully stocked bar and a lounge with comfortable sofas and arm chairs, a CD player, iPod docking station and Internet access. Guests also have use of eight bicycles, all with 21 gears, helmets included. If you are looking for some exercise pedal along the towpaths next to the barge or explore one of the local villages. C’est La Vie travels at a leisurely pace so it’s easy to catch up with the barge at one of the locks. Cruising Burgundy This luxurious barge cruises the waterways of Burgundy. All cruises are six nights/seven days, departing on Sunday and arriving on Saturday. One week the barge travels from Raviere to St Florentin, the next it cruises in the opposite direction. Along the way you may visit Noyers, a medieval town dating back to the 15th century, Auxerre, a town that the Romans once called home and Chablis, a town famous for its white wines. Sampling some of those wines is definitely included. Breakfast aboard is buffet style, offering fresh local pastries and breads, yogurt, fruit, cereals, cheese and cold meats. Eggs may be ordered if you prefer something hot. Lunch is also buffet, filled with quiches, salads, pates and cheeses, all accompanied by wine. On chilly days hot entrees or soup is also offered. Dinner is more formal, a four course meal including heavenly desserts, skilfully paired wines, coffee and assorted liqueurs. One shore-side dinner at Le Pot d’Etain is also included. Your Hotel Barge Hosts Oliver and Deborah Megret are your barge hosts and the owners of the C’est La Vie. They bring with them 25 years experience in the art of barging. Oliver is your Captain and this amiable soul even allows passengers to visit him in the wheelhouse. Deborah is more like the glue that holds everything together, a welcoming ambassador for humanity, wildlife and the countryside in general. Both have an avid interest in fine wines and the culinary arts and know the Burgundy area intimately. A Hint of Chocolate To give you a taste of what you may enjoy aboard the C’est La Vie, Deborah is sharing a special recipe chocolate crepes kissed with sweet cheese ice cream. Candy in a box for Valentine’s Day is nice. But what if you prepared this delectable dish for your special person? Maybe it might lead to a romantic hotel barge cruise for two. Crêpes Souffle aux Chocolat et Glace a la Fromage Blanc – Serves 6 (Chocolate pancake souffle and fromage blanc ice cream) Pâte a Crêpes 250g/9 oz Flour 30g/1 oz Sugar Pinch of salt 4 Eggs 650ml/22 fl oz Milk 200ml/7 fl oz Cream 50g/2 oz Cocoa Powder 30g/1 oz Melted Butter In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, sugar, salt and cocoa powder Add in the eggs 1 at a time, mixing well. Stir in enough milk for the mixture to become smooth, approx 1/3. Pour in the cream and the rest of the milk, stir and leave to rest for 1 hour. Crème Pâtissière 6 Egg Yolks 125g/5 oz Sugar 50g/2 oz Flour 50g/2 oz Melted Chocolate 500ml/18 fl oz Milk 1 Vanilla Pod In a bowl whisk the egg yolks with approx 1/3 of the sugar until they are pale and form a light ribbon. Sift in the flour and mix well, In a saucepan bring the milk, vanilla pod and sugar to the boil, leave to infuse for 5 mins. Pour the milk mixture onto the eggs in a steady stream mixing well all the time. Return the mixture back into the saucepan, and over a gentle heat stir until thickened. Pour out into a clean bowl and add the chocolate, dot with a little butter and cover with plastic wrap until needed. Cooking the Crepes Using a small Crepes pan brush with clarified butter and cook all the Chocolate crepes. Set aside until needed. To be prepared 20 mins before needing Chocolate Soufflé 6 Egg Whites ½ Quantity of Chocolate Crème Pâtissière 25g/1 oz Sugar Warm the chocolate crème pâtissière over a bain marie Whisk the egg whites to form soft peaks then gradually add in the sugar. Take the chocolate crème pâtissière off the heat and beat in a spoon full of the egg whites. Carefully fold in the remaining egg whites. On a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper place the crepes, (they can all be cut to the same size using a saucer as a template), spoon some soufflé mixture on one side and fold over to form a taco shape! Repeat until the baking tray is full and cook until risen in the oven Gas 5/6. Approx 8 mins. Glace aux Fromage Blanc 500g Fromage Blanc 250g Tub Mascarpone 300g Sweetened Condensed Milk 150ml Sorbet Syrup Blend all the ingredients together and churn in a sorbitier, or if you don’t have one, place in the freezer and every 30 mins stir with a fork until frozen. Take out a little before needed to soften. Serve with the Chocolate Soufflés Bon Appetit! Courtesy of Olivier and Deborah Megret Owners, C’est La Vie Barge The Barge Connection specializes in hotel barge cruising and has done so since 1998. Their experienced staff would be happy to create your romantic hotel barge cruise vacation.
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