Every Day Matters

Normandy

To say that I was overwhelmed by my visit to Normandy a few years ago is putting it mildly. Of all the places I have ever visited, it was the most memorable. Forget the museums, the churches, the ampitheaters, coliseums, temples, ruins, castles, forts. If I never go anywhere else, I have been here.

Those beaches were the most emotional places for me....picturing all the young Allied soldiers getting off the boats and facing certain death. The sense of patriotism. And the absolute quiet. No one talking, just thinking.

From a wall near the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, overlooking Omaha Beach:

Looking down upon Omaha Beach - German bunker in foreground. How did any of the Allied troops survive? Not only were the Germans firing from above, but the beach was strewn with mines and devices to tear open the hulls of the landing craft. And if the Allies got to the cliff, it had barbed wire and more mines.

Au revoir, France

                          

                                        

                                Farewell to France!

I think I have come to the end of my blogging about our trip to France….after all, we have been back for over a month now.

In summary…it was a great trip, and really special because the kids came with us. I loved being on a boat and in the same bed every night as opposed to changing hotels and packing/unpacking all the time, and never really having a sense of “being there”. I like being settled.

We were lucky to have decent weather during the whole trip. Some days were overcast, but we only had slight drizzle one day. Temperatures mostly in the 60s, which was perfect.

Viking was a good cruise line….very organized, clean, fairly  good food (some exotic offerings like wild boar ugh! and not enough chicken. LOL) There are a couple of picky eaters in our family who would have killed for a hamburger once in a while. The staff was very accommodating and always on top of things. I loved the slow pace of the boat and watching we cruised past towns and villages along the Seine. Our cabins were small and compact, but plenty big enough….and an added bonus was windows that could slide open.

I would say that the most special place we visited was Normandy. Standing on those beaches and visiting the cemetery were truly moving experiences. I was surprised by all of the signs thanking the “liberators”  - 64 years after D-Day. The most beautiful place was Paris, an incredibly gorgeous city, wonderfully preserved. New construction is  strictly regulated so that the center of the city remains uniform…and uniformly lovely. Versailles was a big disappointment due to the crowds and some obnoxious groups of visitors. I do not think that “crowd control” is even a concept there – surely something could be done in terms of ticket sales, etc. to keep the crowds more manageable. The sheer magnitude and opulence of the palace of Versailles is certainly impressive, though.

I think all of us enjoyed seeing some small and out-of-the-way places like Caudebec and Les Andelys, which the October tourists seemed to miss….if they are ever there at all. Rouen was a nice place to spend a day, very walkable and lots of interesting things to see, and I was glad we were able to visit Giverny, about which I had read so much.

In the not-too-distant future I look forward to returning to France with some of my high school gal-pals and spending more time in Paris, as well as visiting Provence.

Below is a photo of the Elysee Palace in Paris, described to us by our guide as "the home of Carla Bruni.....oh, and her husband, Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France!" 

  

Laura and Brendan under the Eiffel Tower

 

and last but not least, all of us - overlooking the Normandy beaches

                                      

Au revoir

The Golden Gate at Versailles

Just a couple of months before we went to France, hundreds of artesians, aided by historians, completed the years-long restoration of the 250-foot long royal gate at Versailles. The gate, originally built in the 1680s to enclose the royal courtyard, had been torn down during the French Revolution. The restoration was financed by $6 million in private donations. 100,000 gold leaves were applied on site to recreate the original look of this ornate Baroque-style gate. It was dazzling!

Paris at Night

We went on a nighttime boat tour on the Seine in Paris, on a Bateaux-Mouche, an open excursion boat that seats 1,000. This was one of my favorite things that we did on the trip. I loved seeing all of the buildings along the river lit up and just so beautiful and almost magical. We sat on the open upper deck...the photo below is of Laura and Ken with the Eiffel Tower in the background. At 8, 9, and 10 PM, the Eiffel Tower's lights sparkle and move. This only lasts about 3 minutes, but it is breathtaking. Of course, a still photo cannot show this but you can see it here on youtube by putting the url below into your browser (link does not work)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chtLk5Jg9-w

The Seine's passage through Paris is interrupted by a pair of natural islands, the Ile de la Cité - the original site of the Parisi tribes of the Sequana river, now known as the Seine. Only the ends of the island are still residential, with many official buildings being located there. The famous cathedral of Notre-Dame is actually situated on this island, considered to be Paris’s prime real estate. Notre Dame was beautifully lit and is huge. If you want to learn more about it, here is the information.

The other island is Ile St-Louis which was once used for grazing cattle and stocking wood. It is one of France's first examples of urban planning, mapped and built from end-to-end during the 17th-century reigns of Henri IV and Louis XIII. Most of this peaceful island is residential, but there but there is some commercial development and one large church. This photo is of a residential building facing the river.

Other places we passed on our river tour:

Hotel de Ville, the seat of government and the largest city hall in Europe

Musee d’Orsay - a fabulous turn-of-the-century building — formerly a railroad station — which was converted into a spacious art museum. For many years, Paris's  collections of 19th-century art were distributed among three museums: the Louvre, the Musée d'Art Moderne, and the small and crowded Musée du Jeu de Paume.

In 1986, these collections were transferred to the Orsay. Thousands of paintings, sculptures, objets d'art, items of furniture, architectural displays, even photographs and movies.

We also saw many beautiful bridges - you can see some of them and their history here: Paris by the Water