Here are some photos from our recent foray into France. They are somewhat out of order, and likely some are mislabeled. This represents just a fraction of the 600+ photos I took.
First day was a bus tour through Paris. Great overview for the first time visitor.
Champs-Élysées
Notre Dame de Paris
Jumieges Abbey
On the right you can see some of the original paint on the vaulted arch area that still remains. Apparently there was extensive interior paint work on the stone. Really incredible place. Would make a great movie set.
A small, very nicely kept house across the road from the abbey.
This is the head monk of an Abbey (can't remember the name). All the brothers take a permanent vow of silence, although he is the only one allowed to speak. I think that is done since he is the primary liaison with the public. Weird little guy who walked very fast, only spoke French, and had a great sense of humor. The day we were there they were inducting a new "brother" into the abbey, and we arrived right in the middle of some lengthy secret induction ceremony they were doing behind closed doors. He gave us a tour, but wouldn't allow us near where they were doing their secret business.
This abbey was bombed during WWII. Parts had been rebuilt. It was hundreds upon hundreds of years old and showed it, although they are beginning some long overdue renovation on some of the stone work. The entire abbey is self-sufficient.
They bury the dead monks under the sidewalk.
We were allowed in this chapel shortly after the indoctrination had finished.
It was still smokey in there and had a weird smell about it.
Nice old wood timber frame. Just like home.
Incredible stone carving inside the chapel.
The paint had faded long ago, but back in the day it must have been spectacular.
We traveled from Paris to the beaches of Normandy, and spent a long day visiting the war memorials.
Omaha Beach – above, remnants of the D-Day invasion can still be seen. The engineering done by the Allies to pull off a landing of this magnitude was incredible. The French people are still deeply thankful for the Allies. As it was, the Germans attempted to pillage and destroy all of France, and the Allies saved the country. The French have made no real attempts to hide the damage the Germans did to the country. Most towns we traveled through still bore the marks of the bombing and gun battles. Many of the older buildings still had many, many bullet holes on their facades from the street to street fighting that took place. I used to gasp when I saw pictures of Berlin after the Allies bombed them into the stone age. They got what they deserved, Frankly. Don't kid yourself, it wasn't just Hitler that fought this war – it was the whole of Germany.
Looking down from the bluffs toward the bottom of Omaha Beach. When we had a break, I quickly made my way down to the beach to gather a few rocks and some sand as a remembrance. It is a wonder anybody survived. It was very steep and overgrown. Imagine scaling this while carrying equipment, dealing with sea sickness and being under heavy enemy fire. They were just sitting ducks. No wonder 40,000 American's died on this beach in a single day.
This is the memorial for the Americans who died on D-Day. The place is immaculate.
There are 10,000 American boys buried here. Thirty thousand more were originally buried here, but after the war many families asked that their kids' remains be brought home. Despite that, this place seemingly goes on forever. Such a waste to see so many dead kids lost in a war on a single day. When will people learn nothing good comes out of war? The only people who prosper are the military industrial complex and people like Dick Cheney who are wartime profiteers.
At the beach below the war memorial, this was spelled out in stones from the beach.
Bombed German gun emplacements on the top of Omaha Beach.
This is Petit Notre Dame in Rouen, France. The Germans bombed the hell out of this place.
Inside were photos showing the damage before repairs were made.
More photos of the US War Memorial on Omaha Beach.
The bomb craters are from Allied shelling that was happening just prior to and during the invasion. These craters are huge and everywhere! I can't imagine what it was like to be a German solider on that day. I suspect they realized they messed with the wrong people in the moments before we sent them to hell.
Bomb craters and blown up German emplacements.
Going in for a closer look.
This is the mosaic on the dome of the US War Memorial at Omaha Beach.
I can't remember the name of this. It is where a former ruler holed up with his men until they ran out of food and were killed. Very old, but a spectacular view of the countryside. I'll update when I figure out the name and location of this.
Vincent's resting place next to his younger brother. He only sold one painting in his lifetime, and his brother was the one who bought it. Vincent painted well over 1,000 paintings in the few years that he painted. He was one of the most prolific painters when compared to his contemporaries.
This was the town he lived in, painted in, and then died in. At various locations around town, they have reproductions of his paintings placed from the approximate place where he painted the scene. It was an interesting touch.
This is Giverny where Monet lived and painted his now famous water lily paintings. It was still a little early in the spring, so the flowers were just starting to bloom, and the water lilies had not yet come to the surface.
Petit Notre Dame
This is from the Chateau de Bizy. Still owned by the same family. A 90+ year old lady (the owner) still lives here. Our tour guide used to live here and give tours. She is a friend of the old lady and had lots of great stories about her time here.
Priceless one-of-a-kind piano. The entire thing is gold leafed and hand painted. The old lady who owns it encourages anyone who can play to sit down and play. Her thought is that musical instruments are like people's bodies – if you don't exercise them and use them, then they just go to pot.
Looking down the Seine early one morning. I had a lot of jet lag issues, so usually woke up around 3:30-4:00 am and walked around the ship drinking coffee and looking for food.
Here's a photo of the boat we were on. It's long, narrow and low. The river has many low bridges and narrow locks, thus the size. This was a brand new boat, and this was only it's second cruise. The thing was immaculate.
Jen and I got to know the Captain, and he invited us up to drive the boat. At the helm is the second in command. The captain is 28 years old, and his co-captain was about the same. She was a doll! She spoke very good english and always made a point of greeting us whenever she saw us.
The helm was quite modern. There was no wheel – the entire ship was controlled through the joystick she has her right hand on. There are 3 engines on the boat – 2 in the back and one in the front. The reason for that is due to the narrow river – they have to do some rather elaborate maneuvering to get in and out of some really right spots. I was on the deck one morning around 4:00 am when they were docking in heavy wind and current, and they dropped that thing right into the tight little space they were scheduled to tie up in. It was incredible. Also, there is an array of screens that show river bottom contours, depths, hazards, etc. It also has a number of different radar displays that are so sensitive it can see a swan swimming in the river. They could drive this thing in thick fog and know exactly where they were.
This is not the Captain.
Here is the Captain.
Entering one of the narrow locks. There is only about 4-6 inches of room on either side of the boat when inside the lock. The controls are so precise that they never tie up as the locks rise and fall. With the 3 engines they can keep the boat perfectly centered the entire time and never touch the sides of the lock.
This is Adrian who was our waiter for most meals. Very nice guy and an extremely hard worker. He has a wife and a couple of small kids back in Romania (I think). He works on the boat for about a month at a time, then flies home for a short break, then comes back to the boat to work. It must be a tough life being away from his family so much of the time. We had great respect for him, and he treated us well. Unfortunately, there were some American's on the boat who just treated the crew like they were day laborers – showing them very little respect. It was sad to see that. The crew never complained, and did a wonderful job despite the very long days they worked.
The evening meals were a real treat. Most were 5-7 courses of beautifully prepared dishes. All exquisitely plated with fresh ingredients that were bought in the market, for the most part, the same day. The head chef Oliver left a 5-star restaurant in Paris to come work here. The guy had incredible pairings of foods and spices, unlike anything I had ever experienced. The food alone was worth the price of this trip. Jen really enjoyed the fact that as soon as she took a few sips from her wine, they immediately came back over and refilled her glass. Of course you might have guessed that from looking at this picture. She was singing Broadway tunes by the end of the third course.
We had dinner with Dr. Don (on the left here) most evenings. He was a retired ER doctor from San Antonio, Texas of all places. A wonderful guy with a great sense of humor and political views which were similar to mine. Not your typical Texan, that's for sure. We exchanged numbers and will look him up for dinner next time we're in San Antonio. He was great fun to have around.
Rouen, France. We only had half a day here, although it would really be nice to spend a week here. There is just so much to see and do. We only were able to see a few of the highlights.
A typical town on the Seine. All towns are far older than the oldest places in the US. So much history in France. We were walking down cobblestone streets in some towns that were over 1,000 years old. In the US you are surprised when you see something that is from the 17th century. Here, the 17th century seems like just yesterday.
Great door knocker on a church.
I'd like to have some gutters like these!
After a full day of walking I'm ready to relax a little.
I was on a boat. And there you have it.
