Blogs from Upper Normandy, France, Europe - page 2

Gabby the motorhome is alone. Quite alone on a free aire above the tiny village of Lions le Foret. She is in corner overshadowed by the gendarmerie and the pompiers. So we should be safe tonight . There are a couple of cars parked , two buses and the village dump. So folks do come back and forth with their rubbish. The buses wont move until Monday . It feels odd . At first I am not sure about staying but sense prevails . What can go wrong on an aire sandwiched between the police and fire service? If we cannot stop here safely where on earth can we be safe. We have moved from nearby Picardy and are now in Upper Normandy . It's a flat car park and very dark. After a while we ... read more

Today, I ran...on the London/Paris bike path...well, you know, my shuffle run....it was just the right temperature and the 70% chance of rain held off until it POURED at exactly 10 am... Saw some really really gorgeous gardens along the bike path, still with some great looking veggies... We needed to update our cell phone coverage, so drove into the town...Bill executed a PERFECT park job, figured out how to pay for the parking space with his credit card (which we use ALL the time!) Found the telephone place and there was a “wonderfully proficient in English” person who explained everything perfectly...Then, it POURED...and we got soaked, because we really don’t want to buy yet another umbrella when we have so many back home! Want to mention the app Vivino... which we use back home to ... read more

Nous voilà encore en Normandie pour quelques heures... le chemin du retour se préparant grandement... Notre prochain camping se trouvera à proximité de Pont de Brotonne dont je profite de vous donner une photo ou deux... Découvrant une abbaye que l'on peut visiter sur la carte, on fera un petit arrêt de plus... Elle vaut la peine car habitée par encore une treintaine de moines, l'accueil est chaleureux... Saint Wandrille est la seule abbaye en France à produire le la bière... On en achète bien entendu... mais JJ ne la trouve pas formidable... à chacun ses mauvais goûts comme me disait de temps en temps un voisin de jardin à Kahler... Par contre les ruines de cette abbaye sont magnifiques... L’abbaye Saint-Wandrille, anciennement abbaye de Fontenelle, est une abbaye bénédictine de la congrégation de Solesmes située ... read more

Doug was barely 19 when he landed on Juno Beach on June 6, 1944 - D-Day. Hazel was 16. Doug had been training in England for the previous few years along with the ever increasing numbers of allied troops prepping for the inevitable invasion of France. No one except the top brass knew when or where. Doug ended up stationed in Bournemouth. Life in Bournemouth - as in all of Britain and most of the world - was not easy during the war - food, clothing and essentials were rationed / families torn apart - Hazel spent many hours in long queues hoping that 1) there was something left and 2 ) that it was something her family needed - bombing raids had started in September 1940 and while London was the target of most raids ... read more

Today we arranged for a private tour of Claude Monet's former house and gardens in the village of Giverny, located about 50 miles northwest of Paris. Our driver for the day, Philippe Coste, an associate of Serge Molho whom we'd met two years ago, picked us up from our apartment at 9 AM. After some traffic congestion leaving Paris, we reached the former home and gardens of Claude Monet (1840-1926), the revered painter and founder of the French Impressionist movement, around 10:30. Once we left the Paris metropolitan area behind, the drive through green countryside and small villages was very scenic. When we arrived at the Fondation Monet, operated by a private, non-profit organization, the ticket line stretched for 150 feet! So we stood in line for about 45 minutes before gaining entrance, but the wait ... read more