What we did yesterday

Yesterday we had a relaxing morning and didn't go into town until afternoon.  We had plans to climb the tower at Notre Dame.

It was my favorite view of Paris.

I was excited to see the gargoyles.

 Afterwards, KJ and I spent a relaxing time by the Seine.

We had dinner with Parker and the young adult group at his church that night, followed by a walk by the Seine again.  It will stay one of my favorite memories.

Chateau Sarceaux

The Chateau Sarceaux was such a relaxing place.  I wish we could have stayed longer.  I'll share more pictures later, but here's a little glimpse of our morning.

 The Salon

This is what awaited us in the dining room. Isn't it beautiful and wonderful?  Freshly-squeezed orange juice, crunchy and soft croissants, and the most delicious marmalade I've ever tasted.  I drank hot tea and tried my first French coffee, heavy on the milk and sugar. :)

   The man of the Year

What an anniversary present this was...

Our hostess was so kind and let us explore all the rooms and take pictures.  We were sad to leave.  We had several hours to drive in the car today headed back to Paris, with one planned stop at Fountainebleau.  When we arrived late this afternoon we found that the palace was closed on Tuesdays, but the grounds were open, and we enjoyed walking through them.  They were beautiful, and not touring the palace made it possible to get back to Paris in time to have dinner with Parker, so it has been a pretty relaxed day.

What's for dinner?  Crepes.  I stuck to my roots and ordered the l'anglo saxonne. 

Le Mont Saint Michel (and a tidbit about what came next)

Sunday night we drove into our hotel right across a field from Mont St. Michel.  It was late, and we arrived 30 minutes before they stopped serving dinner.  I'm so glad we got there in time, because we had one of the most memorable meals ever.  It was so delicious.  Expensive and delicious and French.  It was so cold and windy, and we'd been wet through on the Normandy beaches, but we had to try to set up the tripod for a shot of Mont Saint Michel at night.  We did okay.

Yesterday morning we stopped and bought some local products and then walked into Le Mont Saint Michel.  The legend from several centuries ago is that the angel Micheal told a bishop to build an abby on this mountain.  Over the next hundreds of years, it was also lived in by Benedictine monks and was also a fortress.  Many people, including French kings, made pilgrimages here.

It reminded me of the village of Bree in the first Lord of the Rings movie, narrow and steep cobblestoned streets.  The stairs keep going up and up to the abbey.  The abbey is huge and cavernous and cold, only a few of the reasons I'm glad I wasn't a Benedictine monk in the 12th century.

 a view as we were climbing up to the abbey

 The other really fascinating thing about the place is how much the tides come in once a month at the full moon.  Most of what you see there is very wet beach.

I really am always amazed at the ingenuity of men and what they can create.  The stonemasons and builders who constructed this place were incredibly inventive and smart.  

 one of the massive fireplaces

When we left there we drove to what was supposed to be one of the most picturesque villages in France.  I found it on Pinterest, of course.  Pinterest doesn't lie, because this was the most peaceful and beautiful place I've ever been.  There was hardly anyone in the village; it was so quiet, and all you could hear were birds singing and frogs croaking by the stream.  We saw ducks and a groundhog.  It's a place known for having artists and painters come, and we also saw a lot of French people camping.  I took a picture of every door and gate we passed because they were all beautiful.  Here's one picture.

I'm in a hurry this morning to get out and take pictures of the chateau where we are staying.  It is the most amazing place, and the marquess told me I could wander all over and take pictures.  It's the type of place where when we arrived she first showed us to the salon we could use.

D-Day Beaches

One of things I was surprised by was the remaining German bunkers you could see and, in some cases, walk through at Omaha Beach and Pointe du Hoc.

We first stopped at Omaha Beach.  The other thing I wasn't expecting is how one moment we were driving through French countryside, cows in the fields, and the next we were right there looking over the water.

  Inside a bunker

People are quiet here; it is a moving place to be.  We heard French being spoken, spoke to some people from the UK, and saw several Americans, too.

This is a view from the water's edge to get a feel of what they had to cross and achieve.  The point sticking up on the left side is the monument, sitting on top of one of the bunkers.  It's a long beach and a steep hill to climb. 

 

We walked to the American Cemetery next.  It's amazing the difference you feel when you walk on to American soil.  You can read the signs, there are beautiful free bathrooms, you hear familiar accents, and you're not afraid of making any social faux pas.  I felt like I knew what to expect inside those walls.

The crosses (and some stars of David) seem to go on for as far as the eye can see.

Inside a chapel on the site

Our next stop was Pointe du Hoc, which has a fascinating story of brave Army Rangers.

The site is riddled with huge craters from the gunfire of American and British naval ships.  KJ got inside one (not the largest by any means) to show how big they were.

 Cliffs climbed by Army Rangers