Viva la France

Hello faithful followers.  What can I say? We are having a grand time in spite of the out come of the election.  It was tough news to hear on this side of the Atlantic.  And as an FYI, the French and British are horrified by the results -we've talked to many.  I am not so much in despair because Hillary lost. It is more profound sadness that my fellow Americans elected a man who's campaign was based on fear and loathing.  Just what does "Make America Great Again," really mean. I also find it ironic that the first Black president is being followed by the man who questioned his citizenship. He and others tried to de-legitimize Obama's presidency. Trump is out of his depth, a nasty man and Republicans own it.  Thank you for allowing me to vent and I am done with politics.

Sacre bleu, I need to segue?  How about this...

The Big Fella is doing a bang up job butchering the French Language. We are quite a pair. His ability to mutilate simple words coupled with my tentative  and not so great my language skills make us less than the dynamic duo.  Restaurant staff looks at us and  hand us the English language version of the menu.  Maybe it is the puzzled look on our faces?  I dunno but I am grateful for their patience. On with the details.

We finished our tour of Normandy, rented a car -in Caen- and headed for Mont Saint Michel. Getting out of Caen was interesting and -um- tense. I am not sure how we found our way out of Caen and onto the correct road. We arrived at our destination but of course there were a couple of hiccups.

The night before we were to arrive, I received an email from our accommodations near the Mont. Our B&B hostess cancelled the reservation due to the death of her husband.  He had a heart attack while visiting Thailand and she was leaving to bring back the remains.  Oy!oy!oy! First, how awful and second, we needed a place to stay. Not to be irreverent but thank God for the internet. In just a couple of clicks new accommodations were secured. One bonus  -it is the slow season...

Some hotels are on the causeway that accesses Mont Saint Michel  but a gate prevents cars from driving on the causeway unless -ahem- you have code that lifts the gate.  By golly, our hotel was beyond the gate and did we have a code?  Of course not and the comedy commenced.  First we tried to push buttons like that was really going to work. Then we asked someone who spoke no English how to find the code. No dice. Cruising the parking lot just outside the gate did not work nor was the parking lot attendant helpful. He told us to call the hotel to get the code. Silly me decided to forego buying a sim card for my travel cell phone and hence no phone. Finally, we parked and found an information center. The clerk-who was most kind- called our hotel and retrieved the code for us.  Yes! We were in business and ready to conquer Mont Saint Michel.  It is a fascinating place and a bit other worldly.  We trod the steep streets and steps up to the Abbey and tried to imagine the thousands of monks who walked the same paths. The views were amazing. The wind was wicked the day we were there and darn near blew me down. Caution weather digression ahead:

Rainy, cloudy, windy in fact very windy. It is very much like fall in the Pacific NW and we feel right at home. This concludes the weather report. Back to Moose and Mosquito Tours.

The next day with Mont Michel in the rear view mirror, we were off to our next stop at Saumur. This time rather than relying on paper maps, the Big Fella deployed the navigation system. We've named the voice Mabel. Anyway Mabel took us on Mr. Toad's adventure but she found our B&B and here we are in the Loire Valley. The main attractions are historic Chateaus, historic Chateaus with wineries, and wineries in caves.  Sounds like a place yours truly might enjoy to the fullest. Except this spot was picked by the Big Fella, so you must know that wine and Chateaus were not on his agenda. Can you say Tank Museum? 

The Musee des Blindes- perhaps the world's largest Tank Museum- is located in Saumur. In fact it is walkable from our B&B. The proximity to our accommodations was a surprise and could be seen as a happy accident or an unintended consequence. Feel free to come to your own conclusion. It should come as no surprise that being close to all those Tanks was hog heaven for the Big Fella. There were  hundreds maybe thousands of them from Panzers to Shermans from those built in the 1930's to some built in the 2000's. You name the tank; this place had it. There was a bone yard of rusted hulks and a work area for those being restored. All shapes and sizes -it was a veritable Tanks Are Us. If Tanks are your thang, head to Saumur, France and you will be blissfully rewarded.

Yes, the Big Fella owed me big time.  Remember the Chateaus etc?  One full day of the Loire Valley was on the itinerary.  The Big Fella bore up well as we toured the Abbaye Royale de Fontevraud, Chateau De Breze and drank some delicious local wines. Sparkling wines are the specialty of this part of France. the local wines are magnifique!  Our dinner -restaurant located in a cave- featured local foods and wines and we both left with full stomachs.  What a great day pour moi.

Saumur is now a memory and we are on the road again.  All roads lead to Charles DeGaulle airport and our next stop -Lisbon.  But and this is a big but...The Musee Des 24 Heures is on the way to Paris.  Yes, it is located in Lemans and yes The Big Fella decided that he needed to stop.  So here I am in the cafe, blogging while he is taking in everything race car.  The staff allowed me to use their wifi and here I sit.  I will join the Big Fella at some point...

Normandy D-Day

June 6, 1944 also known as D-Day was the beginning of the end of World War II. It was a day when ordinary American, Canadian and British soldiers did the extraordinary.  On Monday and Tuesday Greg and I toured the beaches of Normandy and other significants sites of the battle to free Normandy from German occupation. Our tour guide Stuart Robertson helped us to understand all aspects of the allied invasion from the logistics and weather, to horror of Omaha Beach and the battles in the hedgerows, to the freeing of Ste. Mere Eglise.  He  spoke with emotion and reverence of veterans of this battle. 

Today, it is difficult to imagine the chaos of war on the beaches, in countryside, and villages. I do Having a tour guide  was essential for me to understand the events here. As well  cannot adquately describe my own emotions.  This was a deeply moving experience for me and I am grateful for the sacrifices made here for the freedoms that I take for granted. I have no more words - just a few pictures. 

Bon Jour!

Honfleur

J'arrive en France et je suis fatigue et ma Francais est tres mal. Mon Dieu! Perhaps it is because I last spoke French in 2003 but only to find a restaurant that served Mussels in the city of Lyon. Alas, the six years of French classes (high school + college) did not do the trick. Hmmm. 1973 marked the year of my last French class but hey I had four years of high school and two years of College French, What could go wrong? I will blame it on the lack of opportunity to speak the language not -ahem- the passage of time.

After an uneventful and long flight from Seattle, we landed in Paris, disembarked and followed the herd to buses that drove us to the terminal. No one asked why the plane was parked 10 minutes from the nearest terminal but off we went on Mr. Toad's wild ride.  As it turns out the bus deposited the flock of us at customs/immigration and after an hour in a rather long line, France was just out the door.  At long last we met B&B hosts/ Normandy tour guides Stuart and Jenny Robertson and the trek to Normandy commenced.  On the way we stopped at the village of Honfleur for a bit of sight seeing. It is a charming village. Most of the buildings date to the 13-14 century  and all the streets are cobble stones. The cobbles make for interesting walking--pay attention or serious injury may result. It is not clear if this village is simply an old village or if it qualifies as ancient.I am thinking it is ancient.

Did I mention that the B&B was built in 1652? No that is not a typo -1652.  It may be ancient too but it is quite cozy.   Wild life update!: the views from our cozy abode are mostly cows of various sizes and colors. To my knowledge they are not ancient.  Although come to think of it, I have not asked one to show ID proof of age.  Apparently, this region is the dairy farming capital of France  - cows and dairies all over the bloomin' place. Cows to this part of France are what sheep is to New Zealand.  Anyhoo you get the idea. lots of dairy cows.

Either the jet lag has kicked in or the Sandman is working overtime.  My eyelids are begging me to close up shop and head for dreamland.  There will be more tomorrow  -highlights include Utah and Omaha Beaches, a couple of museums, and Ste Mere Eglise.

Night folks and sleep well. Moose and Mosquito Tours is calling it a day.












I won't mention that our flight was over an hour late boarding and we'd arrived at the airport three hours in advance of the flight -as recommended. According to my fellow passengers it seems that Delta is never on-time -just sayin'. 

Moose and Mosquito Tours is back!  Admit it you missed reading about the hair raising adventures of yours truly and my faithful side kick.  Well, lady luck has changed and another geezer adventure is about to begin. 

This trip takes your intrepid travelers to France and the biggest TANK museum in the world.  No that's not a typo. It would not be a Moose and Mosquito Tour without a visit to a TANK museum. Lots of other stuff on the itinerary including a river cruise that features tons of wine which I will need after the TANK museum.

When the plane land in France on November 6, the fun stuff begins, So hop along for the ride if for no other reason than to distract yourself from the election.  And for cryin' out loud don't forget to vote.

See you on the road!

Mary