France 2006: Days Four and Five - Weekend in Normandy
By Nancy Kamp
Photos (mostly) by Cary Kamp |
Jill's Paris - 2004
Day One of Paris 2006 - Louvre
Day Two - Versailles
Day Three (Part One) - Île de la Cité
Day Three (Part Two) - Petit Palais and Napoleon's Tomb
Day Three (Part Three) - Arc de Triomphe
Days Four and Five - Normandy
Day Six - Paris - Montmartre, Eiffel Tower and more
Day Seven - Musée d'Orsay
Getting cash in a country not your own can be complicated. My difficulties in France were smoothed when I realized French ATMs are often marked "Postal." I'm sure there's a logical reason for this, but ...
Nevertheless, we (I - when did I realize Nancy made all travel arrangements - even in countries where I was not the most fluent in the native language?) managed to obtain funds, make our way to the Gare St. Lazare in Paris, buy tickets for our party of six, and set off for Bayeux in Normandy.
Attention! The Bayeux train station does NOT have restroom facilities. None at all.
Fortunately, we (I) had been reading posts on the excellent Fodors.com website and knew the station was frequented by guides for hire. As my daughter and I were standing by a sign advertising various tours, Gilles with Les Taxis du Bessin came up and asked us if we wanted one.
We choose the 2 1/2 hour excursion to a few of the major high points of the Allied invasion sights of Nazi-occupied France on D Day: June 6, 1944: the American Cemetery, Omaha Beach and Pointe du Hoc for €75, (Gilles was so good we gave him €!00) and promptly set off for a cafe behind the Palais de Justice in Bayeux for hot chocolate, coffee and bathrooms.
American Cemetery near Bayeux
The American Cemetery overlooks a fenced off beach. It's very large (70 hectares) and very moving - even to our Finnish guest whose country opposed the Soviet Union during World War II by allying with Germany. (Fallen Axis soldiers are buried in other cemeteries.) We wandered the rows of crosses and Stars of David, thinking most of the fallen were the same age as the four students traveling with us. Before leaving, I signed the guest book for my father who lost so many friends in the war.
Anilore Banon's sculpture on Omaha Beach, one of several landing beaches used by Allied forces on D Day
Omaha Beach is flat, an excellent place for a large scale naval landing. It had the same types of seashells one can find on the beach on Amelia Island, half a world away. Today, it's a summer resort with memorials.
Pointe du Hoc contains many bunkers and bomb craters. There is no charge to visit any of these places.
Pointe du Hoc was heavily fortified and still shows shell craters
Back in Bayeux, Gilles took us to Logis Les Remparts, just down the street from the museum honoring General and President Charles du Gaulle, the leader of the Free French government during World War II. We were welcomed by the delightful Christèle and François LeCornu. Their bed and breakfast was our first ever, and we all loved it. Any of us would return in a heartbeat.
mill in downtown Bayeux
shop in downtown Bayeux
Lunch was quite good at Hotel Reine Matilde's Le Guillaume restaurant. We were fortunate to have our soup, croque monsieur (messieurs?) and desserts just before a group of students wandered in, and then we were off to see the Bayeux Tapestry.
This remarkable 230 foot long piece of needlework dates to the reign of William (Guillaume) the Conqueror, who claimed and won the crown of England from King Harold in 1066. Harold's men defeated the invading army of King Harald Hardrata of Norway and Harold's own brother at Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire, then rushed south to defend Saxon England at the Battle of Hastings from William. When Harold took an arrow in the eye, William went from bastard duke of Normandy to king of England. His wife, Matilda / Matilde was credited with the creation of the Bayeux Tapestry, known in France as La Tapisserie de la Reine Matilde, though scholars tell us William's brother probably oversaw its construction to honor the Norman version of William's victory.
The Tapestry was originally displayed in lovely Bayeux Cathedral, which was locked on the Saturday afternoon we were there. Today, the Tapestry is located in Centre Guillaume le Conquérant and the entry fee in March 2006 was €7.60 per adult. This is a don't miss sight.
front (with three of our students) and rear views of Bayeux cathedral
After playing tourist all day, we shopped the shops in the small cathedral square, then wandered off to Rue St. Martin to eat at Les Dous Apostles, a cheap but satisfying local establishment that serves homemade mayonnaise. Sadly, our party split up after dinner, so some of us were locked out of the B&B and were reduced to pounding on the front door while others of us relaxed in their rooms.
Next morning, brought a wonderful breakfast of coffee, chocolate, large croissants and other breads with François' own apple jellies. These were so fantastic, we bought as many as we could carry - and I don't like apple jelly.
Two cabs from Les Taxis du Bessin arrived promptly as ordered and for €7 we were whisked to the train station to head to the industrial city of Rouen.
Rouen is the fifth largest port in France and was heavily bombed during WWII. The CDO chose to visit because Joan of Arc / Jeanne d'Arc, was burned to death there.
the Tower of Saint Joan was built by King Phillipe Auguste, step brother and enemy of the Richard the Lionheart - Joan of Arc wa not imprisoned there
We walked at least 10 blocks from the train station to our hotel [to be named later when I unearth the receipt], only to find it closed. A woman across the street brought in two men to discuss the situation with me, providing a great spur to my French conversational skills, but no solution. Finally, we decided to begin calling the hotel periodically until someone answered. The whole problem was my fault as I didn't print all the pages of the confirmation. When we caught up with the hotel manager, he pointed out the clause that read no one would be available until 5 p.m.
Rolling our luggage behind us, we set out for the glorious Cathédrale Notre-Dame, made famous in a series of paintings by Claude Monet. Portions of the limestone are too delicate and the water cleaning process is very expensive so the church, rebuilt in 1200, is blackened by grime and pollution in many places.
front (with our Cary in the lower right corn) and interior of Rouen cathedral
Much of its stained glass was destroyed by World War II and a subsequent tornado, and was replaced by clear glass.
Tombs inside the church include that of Rollo, the Viking founder of the Norman dynasty and grandfather of William the Conqueror, as well as the heart only of their descendant, Richard the Lionheart (evil Prince John's big brother and friend of the possibly fictional Robin Hood).
tomb of Rollo, the Viking
tomb of Richard the Lionheart's heart
meet Richard's wife, Queen Berengaria
The Plague Cemetery, the Aître Saint-Maclou, was a little hard to find. It's located in the medieval courtyard of a fine arts school and features a window with an embalmed cat. This area of Rouen is behind the cathedral and retains many half-timbered homes and shops.
our CDO in the Plague Cemetery
The Gros-Horloge or Great Clock was under repair during our visit. Its façade was masked by a picture of the clock as it should look. But our destination was the post WWII Church of Jeanne d'Arc, built like a ship in tribute to Rouen's maritime heritage, in the Place du Vieux-Marché. This square was where the French heroine, who led the army of France against English invaders, was burned at the stake in 1431. I thought the interior of the church was beautiful, the exterior not so much.
Our luggage pulling tour of Rouen made it clear March is not that city's finest month. Sunday afternoon in downtown Rouen brought us to two chain restaurants we enjoyed because we couldn't find any other options, Flunch and Quik. Both will fill your stomach for a reasonable price, though I personally recommend Quik burgers.
Our last stop before becoming the only guests in our semi-seedy hotel to be named someday soon was a bench on the River Seine where we watched logs drift on the current and dreamed of Viking raiders sailing upstream toward Paris.
Next morning, we headed to the train station and the City of Lights.
Next - Day Six (Part Five) - Paris - Montmartre, Eiffel Tower and more
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