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Published: June 19th 2010
I had been planning a trip to France to coincide with Anzac Day ever since arriving in Europe and our week away did not disappoint. We had wonderful weather the majority of the time and our favourite parts were definitely the French countryside and small towns (and of course breakfast with all those chocolate crossaints!!). I'm ready to move to France.
The week leading up to our French adventure was a slightly nerve wracking affair courtesy of the volcano in Iceland. Flights did not resume normally until the day we flew and the idea of a 18hr car drive to Northern France was not very appealing although we were prepared to do it if we had to. We were lucky though and our flight departed on time giving us a full 9 days to enjoy in France.
Once we arrived we hired a small, fuel efficient (petrol cost 1.40 Euro/ liter) car and headed straight out to the French countryside to spend our first night in the town of Reims which is just over 100km east of Paris. Reims has two notable claims to fame - it is the largest town in the Champagne province of France and it
was the place where all the former Kings of France were crowned and anointed. Unfortunately I couldn't partake in the champagne tasting which seemed to be available at wine shops on every second street corner but we did visit the Reims Cathedral which was very impressive and had some beautiful stained glass windows. All French Kings after 496 were crowned and annointed with Myrrh in Reims Cathedral so it holds a similar prestige in France as Westminster Abbey does in England.
The following day we drove to Verdun which was a very sombering experience. The surrounding countryside is now beautifully covered with trees and grass but the photos and slides at the Memorial museum showed the same area in 1916 as a desolate moonscape of mud, trenches and barbed wire. The remains of the trenches and craters can still be clearly seen in the area surrounding the memorial and cemetery almost 100 years later. The memorial combines both a museum and a remembrance hall and underneath the building is an ossuary where the remains of over 130,000 unidentified soldiers from all nations are buried together. The scale of fighting and death over such a small area (almost 300,000 soldiers
died in 1916 alone in an area less than 20 square km) was very difficult to comprehend and Jamy reflected that his view on the French approach to conflict changed significantly as he 'could see why they avoid war at all costs after witnessing this on their own soil.'
Our next stop was Amiens for 2 nights in order to attend the Anzac Day Dawn Service at Villers Bretonneux. Villers Bretonneux retains close links to Australia and holds Anzac Day Ceremonies there every year at the large Australian Memorial. The town lays on a slightly raised hill in fairly flat country so was a strategic target during the war. It was taken by the Germans on 24 April 1918 but liberated that night and the following day by 3 Australian brigades. The town has never forgotten its Australian ties and many of the streets are named after Australian towns and cities, kangaroos are painted on houses and statues of Australian animals sit on lawns. The dawn service was exceptionally well organized and parking and traffic were not a problem despite over 3000 people attending. The Iceland Volcano still made its impact felt though as there were a couple of
changes to key personnel in the program and the honour guard had to perform its duties without weapons as they had been unable to fly them from Australia. The service was conducted in both French and English as many of the French inhabitants of the town also attend the service. Post service, they had set up a large tent offering free coffee, tea and French pastries which was much appreciated by all the Australians who had arrived hours early as we had been unsure how the parking arrangements would work.
Following the dawn service there was also a memorial service at the French monument in the town which we attended prior to visiting the Adelaide cemetery which is just outside the town. Many of the Australians who died in 1918 around Villers Bretonneux were buried there and in 1993 the Australian Government exhumed one of the unknown soldiers and moved him to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the War Memorial in Canberra. We then spent the rest of the day driving the Route of Remembrance which visits many of the major battle sites and war memorials of the Somme. It was interesting to see that like Verdun,
many of the craters and trenches were still clearly evident though covered by grass.
The next day we left Amiens and headed toward the Channel and West Coast of France. Our first stop was the picturesque fortress town of Mont Saint-Michel. The town is actually built on an island which is 1km off the French coast but as the tides in this area are so significant (over 18m), the town is an island by night but can be accessed from the mainland by car during the day. The central piece of the island is the church which is dedicated to St Michael the Archangel (a la St Michael's Collegiate). Legend has it that the the Archangel appeared to the Bishop in the neighbouring town and instructed him to build a monastery...which he ignored...and the Archangel then returned to burn a hole in his skull with his finger. The town is very impressive to view from the coast but sadly is quiet touristy on the inside with overpriced souvenier shops and restaurants lining the one cobblestone street which makes its way from sea level up to the Church at the top of the outcrop. They do produce good chocolate croissants
though and I devoured my first on the beach at the bottom of the city.
We spent the next 2 nights in a lovely bed and breakfast in Bayeux where we enjoyed our favourite breakfasts - home made pastries and crepes with French toast, fresh bread and jam. Definitely more than we could eat in one sitting but we gave it our best effort. Our first visit was to the Bayeaux Tapestry which I remembered studying at School. The Tapestry was very well presented - mounted in a 70m long case which you walked right next to while listening to the hand held audio about each scene. Interestingly it is not a tapestry as we would think of a tapestry but more a calico cloth with yarn embroidery of each scene. I guess the 'Bayeux Cloth' doesn't sound as impressive as the Bayeux Tapestry!
The next morning we set out for a day long guided tour of the Normandy Beaches and major sites. The tour group consisted of an extremely knowledgeable guide and 7 Americans so it was a small group and we really enjoyed the tour. The day started in the easternmost of the 5 sectors (Juno
and Sword - the Canadian and British areas) where we were able to see the well preserved German guns and pill boxes still pointing out to sea. We then visited Omaha Beach where the Americans took so many casualties but unfortunately it was high tide so we could only imagine the challenge they must have faced landing at low tide with barb wire and obstacles on the beach. The landscape at Omaha was notably different to Juno and Sword and the Utah section which we visited later in the day as the coastline rose steeply from the beach providing the German Defense with a much greater advantage against the landing forces. We also visited the large American Cemetery at Colleville-Sur-Mer which is beautifully kept overlooking the water and contains the graves of over 9000 Americans. Families of the Americans killed were given the option following the war of returning the bodies to America but many chose to leave them at rest in France and so the cemetery has been arranged so that all the graves point toward the United States.
Lunch was in the town of Saint Mere Eglise which was made famous in the film 'The Longest Day'
(which apparently I am the only person in the world not to have seen.) A replica of a paratrooper still hangs from the church steeple in the center of the town - the unfortunate landing place of one of the American paratroopers. He played dead so the Germans left him there for hours and he was later rescued and continued visiting the town regularly for D Day ceremonies throughout his life. After lunch we visited Point du Hoc where the American Rangers had the almost impossible task of climbing a sheer cliff face to take a strategic peninsula. Although the area was not heavily defended, there were a number of German batteries located at the top and the cliff face looked impossible to climb under normal conditions with the best rock climbing equipment. Our next stop was inland where we saw the flat marshy lands which the Germans flooded in an attempt to slow down the Allies advance inland. We learned that after taking control of the lochs which had been used to flood the land, the Allies chose to leave them flooded so that the Germans could not get any reinforcements or supplies into the area, giving the Allies
time to land significant amounts of supplies and troops before proceeding further into France.
The following day we set off for the Loire Valley - famous for its grand Chateaus and vineyards. After lunch in the pretty university town of Tours we headed for one of the most famous Chateaus - Chateau Cenonceau. The Chateau is set in a beautifully manicured garden but the most amazing feature is that it is basically built across a river. It is set on a number of arches in the river so forms a bridge between the two banks and also gives a beautiful reflection in the water. The rooms inside the Chateau are beautifully decorated and maintained with 16th and 17th Century period furniture, paintings and tapestries. There is also a 'garden farm' on the property which grows all the flowers for replanting in the manicured gardens and large fresh flowers in vases were used as centerpieces in every room. It felt like we were in a 'living Chateau' rather than touring an museum.
Our final stop on our vacation was Paris where we spent 3 days. After all our time in the countryside and smaller towns, Paris felt crowded and
we found ourselves back in the tourist queues. Fortunately it was not too warm so we spent the majority of each day walking between the sites which does seem to be the best way to experience and enjoy the city. We visited the majority of the major sites although I think you might need a year in Paris to truly appreciate all the museums on offer. Our favourite moments were often spent sitting in parks appreciating the views. We watched sunset over the Eiffel Tower and had baguettes for lunch sitting on one of the many bridges that cross the Seine. Within one of the parks is a large lake with reclining lawn chairs conveniently set up all the way around it. We relaxed for over an hour in the sun and discussed how such a feature would never work in Naples as all of the lawn chairs would have been stolen by Day 2. We also visited some of the markets and I wish I had taken some photos - the duck meat at the market was often presented like a chicken...but with the fully feathered and severed head sitting next to the body - somewhat disturbing..it looked like
the duck was asleep.
We climbed the Eiffel Tower (Jamy took the stairs challenge but I took the lift and met him up there) but one of the highlights of the city was the Saint Chappelle Chapel which was built to house Christian relics including part of the 'Crown of Thorns' which is only displayed occasionally. Unfortunately like almost every cathedral, chateau and significant monument we visited, part of it was under restoration so we were unable to see the altar portion of the chapel or the windows behind it but the remainder of the chapel was stunning. We also visited the Louvre and the Basilica Sacre Coeur which has a wonderful view out over Paris at sunset.
It was a wonderful relaxing holiday and I wouldn't hesitate to head back to France for another trip given the time - if only for the friendly people, the chocolate crepes and croissants and the lamb (which Jamy declared almost as good as yours Mum!). Hopefully it won't be too long between visits.
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Pam Wall
non-member comment
another great one!
Did I tell you exactly where we were going or is it only co-incidence that we and you have both chosen to do the WWI and the WWII sites? Shall copy out your email. We are staying in French B and Bs , interestingly all run by expat Brits, but we are in a hotel in Tours and had planned to visit Chenonceau (with its history of the women) and maybe one other chateau because we have the car and getting around should be no hassle. Any suggestions?. We should be able to take full advantage of the champagne! Interesting to note what you chose to see on the battlefields. We have been told to get hold of "Major and Mrs Holt's Battlefield Guides" - which we did for the Normandy sites from our local library - and after we had both perused it and found that there was literally a museum at every beach we decided to forgo the guide and follow the signposts to the biggest and most notable. Therefore your tour sounds great. Who did you go with? We get off the Dover ferry and stay at St Lo (with a circumflex over the o) for three days but in July it would be good to have ourselves booked. We plan to get the ferry to Guernsey too. I bet Jamy was amazed at the Anzac service crowd? Good that you had an equal war experience. Are you well? How is Naomi and son now? We are off to the Norfolk Broads next weekend. Admittedly in a powerboat for 4 hours because WW wasn't convinced we would have enough wind to sail or see enough by sail. If we are smitten then we can come back again and sail. Friends from Aus (actually a boyfriend from when I was 16) this week for couple of nights and since it is midsummer on Thursday we hope to have a picnic on the Downs watching the sunset (better than aerobics which is my usual Thursday night. Wednesday nights was golf lessons until last Wed. An amazing way of spending the twilight until 9.30 - even it was 12 degrees as I drove home). "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is on the TV - unusual to have anything vaguely interesting on UK TV so shall go since I have not seen it and it reminds me of lots of Greeks I have known. Love Pam