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Good Bye St. Martin Lanes Hotel
You have to know this is here and what it is called because there is no sign saying St. Martin Lane's Hotel. Just nice doors, and doorman at the door. It was a very nice hotel stay. Day 16
Today we depart London, after a wonderful stay. The city is dlightful. We stayed in the theater district I think, and there was a choice of every type of eatery you could possibly desire. Good Bye London.
Our next stop is France, Paris, then drive to Carentan to visit the Beaches of Normandy, and the memorials associated with that effort of keeping Europe Free.
We took a 2 hour train ride from London to Paris, under the channel. It is called the Chunnel. The Channel Tunnel, with three tunnels for traffic going both ways. If they need to repair one, the move traffic to the spare one while work is going on. Sleek trains, going up to 185 miles per hour (not sure the kilometer/hour google it if you need to know) get you to Paris (or London) in about 2 hours. It is a smooth ride. We enjoyed the ride, and I think everyone but me took a little nap at some point during the ride. We got up very early to leave the hotel at 5:15AM to be at the St. Pancras station for the Eurostar train. We clear customs, and French Passport control
St. P:ancras Station, at 5:30 in the morning.
Of course, we were on the street level floor and needed to be down one level for passport control and customs. in London before we got on the train. When we got to Paris, we just got off, like any other train station, and begin our journey.
Here is where it got interesting. We had arranged for a driver to pick us up, take us around the city to see some of the well known sites, such as the Eifel Tower, the Arc d’Triumph and others. We arrived and when we saw no one to meet us, we called the company. Oh, he’s not there? Let me find out, and I’ll call you back. Oh, something came up, and he isn’t available. Sorry. Refund please.
So, we opted for a taxi to take us around, and then to the Charles Degaulle Airport to rent our car to drive to Carentan, where we were going to stay tonight before visiting the Beaches of Normandy. We had a lot of luggage, so we needed a big cab. We got a big cab, but it came with a driver that did not speak much English, nor did he understand my French. And if he did speak English, you couldn’t understand what he was saying, through the thick accent. He did drive us
The crowd picks up as we get closer to 6:00.
We were going to Paris with a lot of other people, but there were a lot of people going to Brussels as well. After the train to Brussels loaded, we noticed some seats were available. around, we did get some pictures, but you could tell he wasn’t wanting to make the customer happy. We said to the Hertz rental at CDG and will go from there.
We did notice that there are no lanes marked on the streets, and when there are stripes, they are only optional because no one uses them, not even the cab driver. He does use his horn frequently, like everyone else though. It makes you think you are in New York.
He dropped us off at Hertz, and we got the van, loaded it up, and then made sure we had the route in the iPad to leave and follow the route to Carentan.
We advanced an hour so lunch was later on the clock than our stomachs time. We stopped along the highway at one of the European gas-restaurant places, ate lunch, and continued our journey. There was a daily special, which was like a cafeteria. So, you can point at the meat you want, and then point at the veggies you want, and then get to the register, and had the lady a credit card and deal is done. No French needed.
It is
Waiting for boarding.
The class staircase is where you board. The doors are closed, and when you board, you go up the ramp to the train platform. a little over 3 hours to drive, but the scenery is nice, it is a pretty day, no rain, no clouds either. 60’s 70F.
Onward to Carentan, check in to the B&B, get some groceries for tomorrow. Opps, we forgot something we went back at 7:15, and the store was closed, parking lot empty. New concept, stores close at night.
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