France: Paris to Normandy

Well, the JB has taken to driving again like a duck to water.  Even though, he’s driving a foreign car, on foreign roads and it’s a manual left hand drive, he’s managed to get us both safely, and without incident, from Paris to Normandy yesterday and all around the D-Day beaches today.  Ken did help him though.  Who is Ken you might ask?  Ken is our guide, he sits in the car, without complaint, even though he’s in the front with us, and tells us that in 500m we should bear left or that after the next right in 400m we ought turn right.  Yes, Ken is the voice in our GPS and quite possibly the reason why we are still a happy couple. 

Yesterday we caught the Roissy bus from Opera Garnier to CDG airport where we were collected by shuttle and taken to the Peugot leasing terminal.  Expecting to find a 3-door Peugot 206, we were pleased to find that we had been upgraded to a 5-door 207 with only 2km on the clock.  Here she is.

The JB as James Bond

Driving affords us opportunity to do so much more travel on our own terms.  For instance, our accommodation tonight is at La Foulerie about 20km from the nearest town, it’s a little farm with horses, a donkey, dogs and cats and our hosts Jean-Luc and Irene are lovely.  It feels like the type of French provincial home you see at the movies or read about in books.  After spending the last two months in cities, it’s really great to be in the country.  Just delightful. 

This morning we defrosted our little car and headed up to Omaha Beach, one of the points of the D-Day assault on June 6, 1944.  It was the point where some of the biggest losses of life occured due to the exposure troops had on the water, and the terrain soldiers had to overcome before then fighting the Germans at the top.  Quite an impossible feat.  We then drove down to Pointe du Hoc which is where the German stronghold was.  It’s amazing and a bit creepy that the ruins of the elaborate network of tunnels just lie open for visitors to wander through. 

After this we headed down to Port en Bessin which is a small provincial fishing town located between Omaha and Gold Beaches.  We wandered through some of the relics which lie there still, before moving along to Arromanches les Bains, Gold Beach.  This is the point where all the Army engineers brought ashore the barges and requirements for the Pegasus Bridge – the main source for Allied troops to receive supplies and replete troops.  It was a truly enlightening day.  Some pics.

Bayeux Cathedral

Omaha Beach

Fancy a climb up one of these limestone cliffs?

One of original relics still in the bunker: 88mm gun used by the Germans

Remains of a barge used to bring supplies ashore for Allied troops at Omaha Beach

Omaha Beach

View inside a bunker at Pointe du Hoc

Steel door to a bunker at Pointe du Hoc: steel was over an inch thick

Most bunkers still feature the original perimeter barbed wire

Labyrinthine network of bunkers and tunnels used by the Germans at Pointe du Hoc

Slim granite column at Pointe du Hoc commerating the battle of D-Day

Provincial fishing town: Port en Bessin

Tide out at Port en Bessin beach

At Port en Bessin

Pontoon relics of Pegasus bridge on Gold Beach

Pegasus Bridge relics rusting out at sea: they litter the beach particularly so at low tide (oh and yes, that IS a tractor towing a boat to the water edge)

View inside one of the pontoon relics

Gold Beach

So, not so many jokes in today’s entry but there’s not really much to laugh about when at the D-Day beaches.  It’s been such a worthwhile experience.  Reading about and watching films on D-Day don’t really resonate until you stand on the beach and get a true sense of perspective; listening to crashing waves, walking along rocky beaches etc.  There’s a sense of eerieness about the whole place and it offers insight into the feat undertaken by Allied soldiers. 

 

Tomorrow we explore more sights in the Normandy area; down St Malo way.  We only posted an entry tonight because Jean-Luc and Irene offered us free internet access.  Not sure where we’ll next write from but until then stay on the right side of the road.                    

Paris: France

Ever been chased by a gypsy brandishing a whip? We have. On Saturday we caught up with little Leroy who in his inimitable style managed to get all three of us in a ’situation’ that only the JB could get us out of.

After meeting Leroy for a coffee down at the Musee du Quai Branly, the JB and I decided to walk Leroy back to his hotel, The Ritz, as it was on our way home and the weather was just beautiful. Now, I’ve mentioned the gold ring scam in a previous entry – where a gypsy walks past and feigns bending over to collect a gold ring from the ground, stopping to check whether it’s yours or if you would like to have it for a fee – and the JB and I have encountered it a good half a dozen times, on each occasion getting out of there asap incase there is a second person working as a pickpocket etc.

Well, we had worded up Leroy on our previous experiences and do you think he listened? Nicht nicht. Before we know it, an older gypsy had proffered the gold ring to Leroy who gratefully accepted, turned around and flung the ring directly into the nearest bin before walking on. Nothing at first, then we turn around and she’s on our tail mumbling something in a foreign language (didn’t sound French) and putting her hand to mouth, gesturing for food, but really money. So on we walk ignoring her. Leroy flattered at the pursuit and the JB and I shaking our heads wondering how on earth do we lose her? About 100m along gypsy #2 arrives out of nowhere, blocking our path, and smacking a horse whip in her hands, angrily yelling to give the ring back in broken English. Well, poor Leroy was taken aback some, when younger gypsy started fisting and threatening to punch him. He kept saying he didn’t have it that he had thrown it in the bin, but younger gypsy wouldn’t have it. More yelling, more threatening, more fisting. That’s when the JB stepped in and in one swoop sorted the entire situation. Yep, that’s right he punched the gypsy fair and square in the mouth. Only joking (Rocky Romano, that’s you!). I don’t think the JB could punch a woman, even a gypsy – he’d more likely throw one. Anyway, the JB steps in and has some harsh words with gypsy junior, who cowers back to gypsy senior, who coerces gypsy junior to get out of there. So off we tootled, with me looking over our shoulder all the way up to Hotel de Crillon. About another hundred so metres up, another gypsy stops us trying the same scam, and Leroy being Leroy, stands there smiling, palm outstretched for the ring. I grabbed him and forced him to walk before we had the gypsy population of Paris following us with baseball bats and clubs or casting spells. Moral of the story: Don’t travel with Leroy, but if you do, never go without the JB.

On a quieter note we have had a most delightful five days here in Paris. It’s felt more like a holiday than travel as such, because we’ve eaten in more restaurants, lounged about in more cafes and taken in the Parisian lifestyle. We ate delicious crepes of goats cheese and apple or caramel and walnuts covered in Grand Marnier and then set alight. We devoured Parisian pizza topped with gruyere rather than mozarella. All this food consumption has had more to do with the temperature which has been decidedly colder; we even had a snow flurry yesterday, before the heavens opened.

The JB’s French is improving by the day; he can order from the menu now, thank the waiter/ess, request the bill and order a hot chocolate without so much as a side glance from the locals.

Yesterday we toured the Opera Garnier which is not only an incredibly beautiful building but architecturally interesting. One of the most innovative buildings of its time in terms of technology, materials and design. This afternoon we caught up with Leroy again, who dragged us out to his ‘favourite’ coffee place Lauderee where one can indulge in the finest macaroons in the world. The lemon tarts are pretty fabulous as well.

So tonight we conclude our time in Paris. All in all we’ve had a fantastic 2 weeks here. Tomorrow we commence the third chapter of our trip and collect our little Peugot which, if all goes well, will take us to the D-Day beaches, up Normandy way. We’ll be more regional from here on in, so we’re not sure what internet access will be like nor how often we’ll post. We continue to have an amazing time. Until next time, stay away from the gypsies.

London: UK

Well back in Paris again tonight, so thought we’d post about our last couple of days in Londres or London, depends what language you speak I suppose. We really only had a couple of days there, but we managed to pack them full of the things we didn’t get time to do before. A visit to Tate Britain, the London Clocktower (which contains Big Ben, a 13.5 tonne bell), a few churches, some more Hyde Park etc etc. Yesterday we we tried once again to see the changing of the guard at Lizzie’s place and were successful! After that we wandered through Trafalgar Square and down to Westminster Pier, jumped on a cruiser down the Thames and spent the arvo at Greenwich. Some pics.

St Stephens at Parliament

London Clocktower, I said CLOCKtower...

The London Eye...as seen at the Melbourne Docklands

The JB's preferred mode of transport...

St Paul's Cathedral

Wellington Arch at night

The unshaven JB was cautioned by troops outside Lizzie's place - be alert but not alarmed...

YappingDog's 'lady friend' at Lizzie's

Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham...and we thought there were only five Jacksons...

Warning: Don't ever ask for a short back and sides!

Nelson Monument at Trafalgar Square

Underneath the Tower Bridge (sailing down the Thames)

Thames River...beautiful day

London city from Greenwich Royal Observatory

Prime Meridian: One side today, the other yesterday. Note the time - to be said out loud in your best Richie Benaud voice... 2 22...

The London Eye at night - minus a bulb here and there...

Memorial at Marble Arch commemorating all the animals lost in war...really beautiful

Inscription on reverse says "they had no choice"

Bon voyage from Popeye...

So, our UK leg of the trip is over. One thing we remain puzzled over is the number of Italians loitering about Buckingham Palace. Last time we dropped by we thought there must have been a tour bus full of them, but on our second visit there they all were again muttering ‘Regina’ and ‘Madonna!’. Can someone please explain the Italian fixation on the British monarchy?

Can anyone see the Dolmio grin?

All in all, we had a “brilliant”, if too short time in the UK. Excellent, excellent. A few more days here in Paris before we head regional…so until then abientot!

Edinburgh: Scotland

It was so great here on the first time through, that we decided to spend a couple more nights here on the return trip.  We arrived mid way through Scotland vs South Africa, so everything about town was pretty quiet with most glued to the telly.  The Scots were flogged, so it stayed pretty quiet.  We expected a little more merriment and revelling, but alas, not this time.

On Lochness we got chatting to a fellow Aussie who had also arrived in Inverness via Edinburgh, and one of the first questions he asked us was whether we had visited the Britannia.  We hadn’t, so this morning we headed over to visit Queen Lizzie’s royal yacht even though it’s been ‘retired’ since 1997.  This is the yacht that Princess Margaret, Charles and Diana, Andrew and Fergie all honeymooned on.  Strange thing is that Lizzie and Phil designed the yacht to have separate sleeping quarters (with single beds) and the first double bed didn’t arrive on the yacht until Charlie and Di honeymooned on it.  Britannia is still used today for corporate functions and whatnot.  We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering aimlessly through the streets of Edinburgh.  Some pics.

Inverness: this is Bond (on the right!), cousin to Yapping Dog

Royal Yacht Britannia

Britannia deck where all the Royals used to frolic

The lost sailor...

Grand dining room that seats 54 aboard Britannia

Where Lizzie and Phil would have a pre-dinner drink

View from Britannia

Christmas decorations starting to come up everywhere...

Edinburgh Castle

Goodnight from Edinburgh

So we head off tomorrow morning, next post probably from London, until then keep your feet dry.   

Inverness: Scotland

Well, our last day in Inverness and the lovely Margaret of Bluebell Guest House (the B&B where we are staying) has been generous enough to allow us usage of her laptop for blogging.  This is the best place we’ve stayed on our entire trip and Margaret the best host of all; suggestions of great places to eat; fully cooked delicious breakfasts; our room is furnished with the finest and on top of all that she’s provided some Yapping Dog therapy in letting us pat her beloved boxer, Ruby.  I was even allowed to feed Ruby a dog biscuit from Harrods!  Special.  Should anyone find themselves in Inverness, this is the place to stay. 

Inverness has been a little chilly, but nothing like others warned.  Yesterday we walked along Caledonia Canal all the way up to Dochgarroch Loch; it took us about 4 hours return and it rained only lightly for the last 20mins or so.  This morning we wandered around the Ness Islands, again very picturesque, and then we wandered into town where we stumbled across a little market where a Scotsman was on his bagpipes.  A further stroll found us at the Inverness Old High Church and cemetary, dedicated to St Mary, built on St Michael’s mount in the 12th century.  It’s just next to the Free North church which is another impressive building.  The Inverness Cathedral has never been finished – it’s been going since 1866 - maybe one day they’ll get there. Some pics.

The boat stairs at Caledonia Canal

 

The JB is still thinking about how to kayak through this torrent.

Ness islands walk

Beautiful autumn colours in the gardens around Ness Islands

River Ness locals swimming against the current (I think I can, I think I can...)

River Ness raging torrent

JB's favourite place in Inverness...

 

Inverness Castle

Scotsman in full kit incl. bagpipes (sounded fantastic)

Cemetary next to Old High Church

Bluebell Guest House; this photo doesn't do the place justice

Tomorrow we board the bus back to Edinburgh for a short stay, before once again returning to London for a further few days.  Today is Prince Charles’ 60th birthday so I must head off and fetch myself a wee dram of whiskey in celebration, aye!    

Edinburgh/Inverness: Scotland

Ah, bonnie Scotland, the more we see, the more we love this place.  The JB has been at me to do some hiking over the rolling green hills of Scotland, so on Sunday we climbed the real Arthurs Seat, which sits some 250 odd metres above sea level.  It didn’t rain but the gale would have blown a dog off its chain. 

On the way up to Arthurs Seat

  

Arthurs Seat: View from the top

We can see our homeland from here...

After we descended, we headed into Holyrood Palace; Queen Lizzie’s Scottish headquarters, even today.  She spends a week at Holyrood each summer conducting official events.  I love that we wandered through rooms where she recieves people…

Holyrood Palace

The Abbey ruins at Holyrood Palace

The Abbey ruins at Holyrood Palace

We stayed in a fantastic little B&B we found in Lonely Planet; in chatting to the owner we discovered that Paul Kelly (Aussie singer/songwriter) stays there when he has gigs to perform in Edinburgh.  Judging by comments in the guestbook, a fair few Aussies go through the place.  On Monday we caught a local bus out to Rosslyn Chapel (yes, the one from Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code) which features the very beautiful Apprentice Pillar and possibly the Holy Grail…

Rosslyn Chapel: under restoration

Rosslyn Chapel

On Tuesday we boarded a bus to Inverness, some four hours north of Edinburgh.  On the way we glimpsed our first sight of snow capped peaks amongst the rolling green hills of Scotland.

Snow capped peaks from the bus to Inverness

Inverness is a beautiful little city in the Scottish Highlands, through which the River Ness runs.  Its fresh water is a cold dark colour and it’s one of the strongest water currents that I’ve ever seen.  The JB and I walked across a footbridge that is supported by cables and it shook the entire way; I’ll be using the roadway for the rest of our time here… 

River Ness

Can you see the water swelling around the bridge pylons? Fast current let me tell you.

The River Ness

Today we joined a tour group to search for the mysterious Lochness Monster; since the 1930’s it’s taken countless scientists many hours of research to dispell the myth; sonar readings, special underwater contraptions all because a few Scottish crackpots saw an illusion across the water, a bird, a mirage…  but hang about…

Could it be...

Oh my goodness...IT IS...WE FOUND NESSIE!!!!!! Call the newspapers!

On Lochness

Urquhart Castle from Lochness

Urquhart Castle ruins

As our tour guide said, this is a genuine plastic version of Nessie...

Good night from Inverness

Day breaks around 7am and it’s dark by about 3.30-4pm.  It’s pretty chilly but it hasn’t rained.  We can see snowy peaks from our front door, but Margaret our delightful B&B host assures us that fortunately snow rarely settles in town.  Another few nights here before we head back south…until then keep your kilts clean!

London/Edinburgh: UK

Ah, London, it’s great to be back home again; it’s been over 200 years.  Home to our Queen; yes I dragged the JB to Buckingham Palace in the hope we might sight the grand old lady herself, or at the least witness the changing of the guard, but alas, no cigar on either count.  Apparently the Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Phillip) arrived whilst we were there, but we didn’t see him.  

London has an energy difficult to articulate; it’s constantly buzzing, people, cars, double decker buses everywhere all the time, so you can imagine the fun a couple of heavily laden backpackers had navigating our way about.  We’ve visited the Tower of London, where Henry XIII ate chicken drumsticks celebrating his marriage to the ill-fated Anne Boleyn.  We walked along the Thames, famous for more things than I’ve time to mention; we walked passed the Tate Modern, London Bridge, Shakespeare’s Globe, we wandered through Hyde Park, to Princess Diana’s memorial, the impressive Albert memorial, Royal Albert Hall and finished our visit at the Natural History Museum.  We’ve altered our plans so that we can spend a couple more days there on our way back through, that’s how much fun we had (and it’s great to be back in an English speaking country!). 

Tower of London

Tower of London Bridge

Hyde Park local

Armed men with guns and hats at Buckingham Palace

St Pauls Cathedral from Millenium Bridge

Royal Cavalry arrived just as we put new batteries in the camera

The JB at the war memorial commemorating Australia's contribution

The JB visits the French bakery...

...one thousandth of a second...

...three thousandths of a second...

...seven thousandths of a second...

...eleven thousandths of a second...

A new world record and the JB v. happy

The Albert Memorial

On Friday we rose early to catch our 7.10am (12 hour) bus ride to Edinburgh via Birmingham; at our pick up point, the driver drove straight passed us.  So we had to double decker it to Victoria Station and then catch a later connection.  The bus company (National Express) took full responsibility so thankfully we didn’t have to pay for our tickets again, but it did mean we didn’t pull into Edinburgh until 9.30pm.  But we’re here now and without sounding like a broken record, this city is just fantastic!  Today we spent time up at Edinburgh Castle, where Mary Queen of Scots spent time when she wasn’t in exile, and gave birth to King James XI.  We also wandered up Calton Hill and visited the Nelson monument. 

Edinburgh Castle

The JB gets ready to fire

Calton Hill view from Edinburgh Castle

Pick the Italian Stallion...

Movie title: When Mustafa met Habibah

Edinburgh Castle from Calton Hill

So, we’re here in bonnie Edinburgh (aye!) for another couple of days before heading to bonnie Inverness; the JB is growing a beard to shelter him from the cold even though he’s looking more like Grizzly Adams each day.  There’s a lot of blokes around in kilts – even saw an asian one today - not right.  Even funnier when they speak in the ‘Scawtish drawl’. 

Asian in kilt???

The weather has been threatening rain all day, but so far we’ve escaped any major downpours.  We’re staying in a lovely bed and breakfast which is the first place we’ve stayed in that feels like home.  We’re planning a few more touristy adventures which we’ll update you all on next time.  Until then, keep eatin’ your Haggis… aye!            

Paris2/London: France/UK

Our last couple of days in Paris turned out to have beautiful blue skies and lovely warm sunny days. Being our last days for a few weeks we were busy tourists…we spent nearly the whole of Saturday at Paris’ cinema museum to JB’s delight.  As well as the history of French cinema they were featuring a retrospective on Dennis Hopper, all good.  On the first Sunday of each month The Louvre opens its doors to the masses for free, so we seized the opportunity and spent the better part of the day there.  Yes, we saw the Mona Lisa, from a distance as the crowd was just ridiculous, but more beautiful were Napoleon’s Apartments, the Egyptian art, the Roman and Grecian sculptures and the amazing decor.  Spectacular.  Expectations of The Louvre were high and it did not disappoint.  We also visited The Pantheon.  It basically commemorates all those who fought in the French Revolution and were part of the Resistance, as well as other French notables as Louis Braille, Emilie Zola, Marie Curie and Voltaire.  Some pics.  

The Louvre - 8minutes later, we were in!

The Louvre: JB & Yapping Dog

Inside Napoleon's apartments

The Louvre: Egyptian Exhibition

The Louvre: Gallery

The Louvre: The infamous Mona

 

The Louvre: Stunning window view

Inside The Pantheon

The Pantheon

 

The 'awful' from The Pantheon

Just before they were damaged

Gone in 60 seconds!!!

So yesterday we boarded the ultra fast Eurostar (300km per hour!) to London where we were greeted by double decker buses, overcast (but not cold) skies and a man who accosted JB in the street to ask what brand of GPS he was consulting.  Bloody poms.  We’ve only got a couple of full days here, so we’re off to explore today.  Until next time…

Paris: France

Bonjour, from the most beautiful city in the world (second best in the world behind Melbourne!).  Yes, we have returned to our base in Paris where we are accommodated within the delightful Opera district, ensuring we have walking access to all the amazing sights that Paris has to offer.  Already we have indulged in ’tarte citron’, the BEST lemon tarts one will come across, JB has been all over the chocolate eclairs which he assures me are incomparable to any sampled prior, and today we found this little pasta joint that makes it better ‘than mama ever did’!  (Ha, only joking Ida).  Seriously, Paris is just phenomenal.  Even as we arrived at about 9.30pm on Tuesday evening (we had boarded in Munich 8am that morning) and were stuffed from being in transit, our eyes were widened to the lights and sights of ‘gay paree’.  So far we’ve visited Notre Dame Cathedral, The Eiffel Tower, the Paris Catacombs, Arc de Triomphe and of course the ‘chumps elise’ or the Champs Elysee for those with French accents.  It’s a little damp with the heavens opening upon us yesterday and for a better part of this morning, although we’re entertaining ourselves with indoor activities such as Quantum of Solace, the latest in the James Bond series, which we’ve only just watched.  JB is so pleased to have finally had a ‘movie fix’ (in Paris too!) and although action flicks are not really my cup of tea, it was great fun.  (Beat that one, Fonzie!) We are having an amazing time traveling; even though each city has had something different and wonderful to offer, Paris is a stand alone.  There’s so much to do; endless things to do and see and eat!  We’ve both heard people rave about Paris in the past, but I think you don’t really get how wonderful this city is until you see it for yourself.  There is no way we’ll get to see everything we want to in this visit, although we do return at the end of this month for another few days, so hopefully we’ll see more and catch up with little leighroy who will be here for a few days.  Some pics.

Notre Dame Cathedral

 

Inside Notre Dame Cathedral

The Seine

The pyramid outside the Louvre (where's Robert Langdon?)

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel

Garden on the wall (next to Musee de Quai Branly)

 

From the Eiffel (awful) Tower

More from the awful...

The happy couple at the awful, freezing...

Bogans at the Arc de Triomphe

   

The Grand Palais

Grand Palais: nothing in Paris is purely functional, everything is decorative - check out this little guys guns...

Bogans again! At the L'Obelisque, Concorde this time - 3,300yrs old!

The Opera House (not as cheap as Vienna...)

JB is in love with French women because last night when we went to collect our little treats from Artisan Boulanger (on every corner), he opened the door for a lady exiting the store and she chirped a little ‘Merci Monsieur’ a couple of times; he’s so chuffed to be genuinely referred to as ‘monsieur’.  Never mind she was about 60… 

We’ve had a couple of dodgys try to scam us with a golden ring, we’re not sure what the deal is other than they seem to be trying to distract us by saying “you’ve just dropped your gold ring” or “here I just found this gold ring, is it yours?”.  Both times it’s been near the awful tower, and we’ve pretty much just gotten out of there asap.  If anyone has heard about this one or been duped by it, what’s happened?  They seem to be on their own, we’re not sure if a second person is watching from close by to pickpocket or whatever.

So, it’s a little on the chilly side, (fortunately we bought super weather coats just before we left Munich!) but we’re still having an ace time.  Internet access here is the most expensive we’ve come across, so we probably won’t post again until we Eurostar to the UK next week.  Until then, Bonsoir!     

       

Pont Alexandre III