Normandy, France

This trip titled Normandy is so titled because that is where my visiting Mom wanted to go in all of France. After learning more about my Mom's traveling partner Mary, the most well traveled person I have ever met, I knew that my Mom was in good hands before her arrival and upon her departure back to the states.

But before we could get to Normandy, George and I wanted to show both Mom and Mary some gems of France close to our home, Strasbourg and Beaune. Strasbourg is known the world over as the seat of the European Parliament. This building sits in contrast to the numerous half-timbered buildings you will find in old town Strasbourg. There are beautiful parks, excellent biking trails throughout the city and a mixture of German and French regional foods.

Strasbourg center

As mentioned in a previous blog, the area in which this city is located was once Germany, then France, then Germany, then France.  I do not know how many times it changed hands. 

Construction of the magnificent Strasbourg Cathedral began in 1015.

Strasbourg Cathedral

 Inside the church is an astronomical clock that displays animation everyday at 12:30.

Strasbourg astronomical clock

Beaune, located in the heart of Burgundy country is a cute little town, great for relaxing, shopping, and dining. One of the attractions in this town is Hotel- Dieu (Hospices de Beaune).  Established in 1443, it was once a hospital for the poor. Interesting things we saw during our tour were unusual instruments used by nurses and doctors back in the day, that would appear somewhat barbaric today. The apothecary was most interesting as well with records showing very bizarre ingredients thought to aid in medicinal remedies such as eyeballs and ground goat skin.

Next stop - Reims. Located in the champagne region, we had the opportunity to visit Taittinger Champagne cellars. Underneath the city there are many champagne caves (cellars). These caves were originally dug or mined by the Romans for chalk. The interesting thing is that the chalk walls have carvings in them.

An advantage of chalk is that it absorbs moisture, so there isn't a damp feel in the air. But the best part was the tasting after the tour. My Mom went from not liking champagne very much, to liking it, in a matter of minutes, who would have thought!!! The Reims Cathedral is significant because this is the church were the coronation of French kings took place. In 2011, the city celebrated the Cathedral's 800 year anniversary.

Onward west - We found an adorable bed and breakfast west of Paris for the night, Le Moulin Du Bechet. It was part B & B and part conference center. Our room had an unusual aspect to it that one door to the room opened into a conference room. We joked the prior night about me leaving the room in the morning with a fistful of euros, kissing George goodbye while he stood at the door in his bathrobe. But we couldn't strike up the nerve to proceed with this humorous parting. But perhaps in France, the joke would have really been, on us!

Further westward - Mont St. Michel has been on my must-see list and I was happy when Mary said she'd like to visit it too. It is an imposing structure even from many miles away and it is hard to miss looking out over the horizon. Construction developed in the early 8th century and continued on and off for the next 10 centuries. It has been a place of pilgrimages, a monastery and a prison. During high tide it is an island.

Mont St Michel

Our next stop -The Normandy region. We toured the beaches of Omaha and Utah on our own for most of the day, walked around St Marie du Mont, a small town near Utah Beach, and visited a museum on Utah Beach.

Historical plaques throughout the town square of St Marie du Mont told short stories and photographs of events leading up to, and following the invasion of June 6th, 1944. One plaque told of a German officer who was looking over his maps high up on the church steeple. A big gust of wind came along and swept the paperwork out of his hands. A nearby painter found the paperwork and stuffed it down his pants. The paperwork contained valuable information that the Allies would use in the war efforts.

The First Mass celebrated the 1st Sunday after the
Allied Landing at the Church in Saint-Marie-du-Mont
(photos was inside church)

The following morning we had a guided tour of Omaha Beach, Point du Hoc and the American Cemetery. Before the war these beaches had other names. But the code names were adopted as such after the war. To our surprise we saw signs for a German Cemetery too.

In this photo Utah Beach is almost at low tide, similar to the morning of June 6, 1944. The soldiers were told that there would be rocks to hide behind when they landed - there were no rocks to hide behind. This is the length of beach that the Allied Forces had to travel...

Utah Beach

before reaching this hill to climb. I cannot come close to imaging these feats of courage performed by soldiers during D-Day.

Utah Beach

Paris, our last stop before taking Mom and Mary to the airport. A tour bus was the best option we decided given the limited mobility of my Mom. So we saw all the popular sites in Paris on a double-decker bus. A perfect way to get around on a warm and sunny day.

Rooftop at Printemps store

My first time to the Paris flea markets, and I gotta say, I am hooked. I don't think there is anything, that you cannot find there. It is amazing, but we only scratched the surface. But to my surprise, (but shouldn't have) were the vendors setting themselves up for their lunch.

Lunch for the flea market vendors-I think the seated guy caught me taking
this photograph, whoopsie. But behind him was a large tray of oysters
on the half shell. I'll say it again, the French know how to eat.

Paris flea market - Trying on vintage clothing.

Here's a link to more photos of our trip. My apologies to the photos that are not oriented correctly if you view them using the slideshow. I think there is a bug in Flickr, the photo sharing website.

http://flic.kr/ps/285kjt