Today is the last day of our Seine river cruise through Normandy. But what if I’m not ready to get off the boat? I might not be ready to give up sitting on our French balcony, refreshment in hand, watching the lush Norman landscape slip lazily by. Oh well. Ready or not, it’s almost time to move on. Continue reading “Seine River Cruise – Last Day”
Category: Normandy
Auvers-sur-Oise and Vincent van Gogh
Yesterday was all about Claude Monet. Today is all about another great painter, Vincent van Gogh. This morning we docked at Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, just fifteen miles from Paris. Van Gogh spent the final months of his life living in a quiet little town near here called Auvers-sur-Oise. Today we’re going to visit Auvers-sur-Oise and get better acquainted with the life of Vincent van Gogh. Continue reading “Auvers-sur-Oise and Vincent van Gogh”
Giverny and Monet’s Gardens
We’re docked this morning at Vernon, a small town on the Seine, fifty miles downstream from Paris. Vernon was founded by Rollo in the 10th century. (Remember Rollo?) It was a defensive outpost on the French/Norman border, back in the day when the weapons of choice were swords and axes. We’re here because Vernon is close to Giverny, where the great impressionist painter, Claude Monet, made his home. Today we’re going to visit Giverny and Monet’s gardens.
Continue reading “Giverny and Monet’s Gardens”
Walking Around in Rouen
We’re in Rouen, the capital of Normandy, France. Walking around in Rouen is like being in a time machine. We stroll around town, passing by modern buildings that one might see in any cosmopolitan city. Then we turn a corner and it looks like we’ve walked into the 15th century. Continue reading “Walking Around in Rouen”
Rouen and the Hundred Years War
We’re cruising through Normandy on the Seine river, heading back from the Atlantic coast toward Paris. Today we’re docked at Normandy’s capital, Rouen. It’s probably best-known for its massive cathedral, but history buffs know Rouen for being where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. Julia Child fans know it because this is where she had a life-changing experience in a French restaurant. The restaurant is still here. Continue reading “Rouen and the Hundred Years War”
D-Day Beaches – Arromanches and Le Bocage
We have one more stop on our whirlwind tour of the D-Day Beaches – Arromanches. Today Arromanches, (pronounced “arrow-mansh”), is a neat little tourist town on the Normandy coast. Seventy-five years ago this was Gold Beach, where British forces landed on D-day. In the critical days following D-Day, Arromanche was Action Central. Continue reading “D-Day Beaches – Arromanches and Le Bocage”
D-Day Beaches – Batterie Longues-sur-Mer
We’re in Normandy, visiting the D-Day Beaches. We started at the Normandy American Cemetery, made a stop at Omaha Beach, and then headed north toward Arromanche. We’ve been taking a coastal route on narrow roads passing through one small village after another. Home-made tributes to American, British, and Canadian soldiers lined the road whenever we passed through a village. We’re on our way to see the Batterie Longues-sur-Mer. Continue reading “D-Day Beaches – Batterie Longues-sur-Mer”
D-Day Beaches – The First Six Hours
We’re at the Normandy American Cemetery three days before the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landing. It’s a beautiful, serene, thought-provoking place. We traveled 90 minutes by bus to get to the D-Day Beaches. Along the way, our guide for the day painted a picture in words that helped put the D-Day invasion in perspective, so the ride was time well-spent. Continue reading “D-Day Beaches – The First Six Hours”
D-Day Beaches – The Normandy American Cemetery
In three days it will be the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landing on the beaches of Normandy. I’ve wanted to visit the D-Day beaches for a long time. Today is finally the day.
Last night our boat traveled back up the Seine and docked at the small town of Caudebec-en-Caux. At Caudebec-en-Caux we boarded a bus to make the 90-minute ride to Colleville sur Mer, where the American Cemetery is located. Our tour guide, who was with us on the bus, was a youngish French lady. As we made our way to the highway, she started telling us a few things about the D-Day invasion . I thought I already knew quite a bit about the invasion, but I soon realized I knew next to nothing about D-Day, really. Continue reading “D-Day Beaches – The Normandy American Cemetery”
La Route du Cidre — Let’s Take a Drive!
We’re in Pays d’Auge, Normandy, rolling through the countryside on La Route du Cidre. Drinking and driving is bad, but luckily for us, drinking and riding in a gigantic, modern tour bus is perfectly fine – especially in France. Bordeaux has its “Routes du Vin.” Burgundy has “La Route des Grands Crus.” Ah, oui. But Normandy has “La Route du Cidre.” And from cidre, we get Calvados! Continue reading “La Route du Cidre — Let’s Take a Drive!”
