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much easier than the walk up along the way we saw some seagull parents trying to protect their chick from passing tourists the chick had wandered near the walkway much to the parents distress although some passersby took photos of the chick most stayed a respectful distance away i did not take a photo a house at the bottom of the hill on mont st michel we caught a shuttle back to our bus and then returned to bayeux dinner was on our own we d worked up an appetite i had a scrumptious mediterranean pizza with anchovies black olives tomatoes and mozzarella at le florentin restaurant with cream puffs and ice cream for dessert the next day would be our last full day in france coming up honfleur my mediterranean pizza france day 4 d day beaches apple brandy bayeux july 20 2026 mariezhuikov 16 comments pointe du hoc omaha beach normandy the next day of our road scholar trip took us from our base in bayeux on a bus ride to the beaches of normandy the beaches used to be a vacation area but due to wwii are forever known as places of conflict and ultimately victory for the allies our first stop was a bluff above omaha beach this is where most of the casualties occurred earning it the nickname of bloody beach we viewed the remnants of an artificial harbor known as mulberry a our local guide explained that the floating breakwaters pontoons and piers for the harbor were secretly built over six months in england and then towed across the english channel the components were put into place to protect allied supply ships from storms and enemy fire while allowing them to dock and unload cargo close to the shore part of the artificial harbor offshore at omaha beach mulberry a was built soon after the june 6 1944 d day landings however a violent storm on june 19 22 1944 damaged the four mile long harbor severely forcing the allied forces to rely on open beach landings on omaha beach for the rest of the campaign another artificial harbor was built at gold beach mulberry b and it lasted longer there really wasn t that much left of the harbor just thin broken lines of concrete offshore although the view may have been unimpressive the thought of all the effort and planning that went into constructing them was impactful the american cemetery was our next stop more than 9 000 soldiers are buried on immaculate grounds we walked the grounds and visited another bluff that overlooks omaha beach as we gazed at the now peaceful scene it was hard to imagine the violence that occurred on d day our group then gathered around the spirit of american youth statue for a ceremony one of our tour members david did the honors of laying a bouquet of flowers at the base of the statue david is a u s army veteran during wwii his father was stationed in scotland in the navy he was part of a highly classified small team of men who worked on a top secret project that involved developing reconnaissance film used in preparation for d day david said he was thrilled and humbled to be part of the ceremony and to celebrate his father s contribution david at the american d day cemetery ceremony i don t have any direct connection to d day but as the bugle call of taps played even i teared up by the end david s wife robin videoed the ceremony except for the taps part you can watch it on youtube link provided with permission one thing to note if you visit is that no eating is allowed in the cemetery somehow i missed that memo i took out a granola bar because i was getting hangry one of the cemetery staff members saw me got a horrified look on her face and indicated in french that i should put my granola bar away a view of omaha beach from the bluff omaha beach was next on our agenda we were able to walk the sands i took off my shoes and felt the cool ocean while our guide explained that the beach has five ravines that allow access past the bluffs to the interior these were the focus of the troops on d day the bluffs above the beach and the ravines were full of machine gun and mortar nests imagine being an inexperienced soldier dropped onto a beach under enemy fire and having to climb the bluffs more than 4 000 soldiers were killed and wounded on d day many of whom drowned after being hit any beachy enjoyment i felt faded as our guide described the happenings of that fateful day a rock formation at pointe du hoc next we visited pointe du hoc which features a german pillbox observation bunker that we could go inside these concrete guard houses made of reinforced concrete were home to several soldiers the narrow openings loopholes toward the sea allowed the soldiers to fire on the enemy the path to the pillbox was pocked by several deep craters where bombs impacted the view from inside the german observation bunker after all the heaviness i guess it was time for a drink our next stop was chateau d englesqueville to sample normandy s renowned calvados apple brandy and regional cheeses but first owner bernard lebrec showed us his farm s monument which honors american soldiers who fought in normandy during wwii it s thought to be the first erected in france the 14th century tower at chateau d englesqueville bernard with cider stains on his shirt explained that germans took over the farm at first but after d day americans the 147 th combat battalion used the farm as their headquarters and built an airfield across the way the house chateau was built in the 17 th century and the farm buildings still sport a tower from the 14 th century bernard tells us about calvados while his daughter marie watches the charming bernard then invited us inside for a tasting his daughter marie helped an easy name for me to remember along with their two english cream retrievers the calvados was 84 proof really strong it tasted like french moonshine to me i preferred the aperitif which was milder and bought a small bottle to bring home we also bought some of their apple jellies plain vanilla and cinnamon by now the aperitif is long gone but we re still working on the jellies besides calvados normandy is known for flax dairy lace wheat artichokes apples pears and seafood it s like the wisconsin of france the chateau also offers a restaurant run by bernard s nephew restaurant l ephemere was closed when we visited but looked like a nice place travel author rick steves says it s a laid back all outdoors tres french well run café restaurant serving delicious meals salads or just drinks with a smile cathedral of our lady of bayeux our bus took us back to bayeux where we had time to meander around the town we walked to the cathedral of our lady of bayeux which was consecrated on july 14 1077 in the presence of william the conqueror making it a site of great historical importance it is believed that the famous bayeux tapestry which depicts the norman conquest of england was originally housed in the cathedral the tapestry was later moved to a nearby museum we couldn t see it however because the museum is undergoing renovations and the tapestry has been temporarily relocated to england russ by the bayeux liberty tree which was planted in 1797 behind the cathedral stands a huge liberty tree these trees were planted across france after the revolution to celebrate the end of the monarchy the scale and age of the plane tree species was difficult to comprehend see the photo above with a teeny tiny russ beside the tree the town is known for its creperies the most popular one le moulin de la galette was booked solid during our stay so we could not eat there but we walked past it and it was hopping the restaurant is housed in a charming former oil and flour mill along the aure river that has been transformed an outdoor terrace allows guests to savor their meals while enjoying picturesque views of the river and historic buildings in old bayeux we kept following the river on a paved trail that led to a boardwalk across a wetland the boardwalk offered a great view of the cathedral and i took a few photos the bayeux cathedral as seen from the river boardwalk our plan b for a crepe dinner was au louis d or on the sidewalk we dined all frescos for dinner on galettes savory crepes made from buckwheat with crepes for dessert with camembert cheese apples and sausage my galette was pure normandy my dessert crepe was filled with chestnut cream both were outstanding and the price was very reasonable my normandy galette whew and so day 4 of 6 of our tour came to a close we really enjoyed being in a smaller french town after the crowds of paris i would love to revisit bayeux someday perhaps once the tapestry returns i m not much for following military history but i gained a greater appreciation for the machinations of wwii and the sacrifices of the soldiers after seeing the d day beaches and cemetery next up mont st michel and another great dinner in bayeux poppies and forget me nots at pointe du noc sea lamprey cuisine radio story july 12 2026 mariezhuikov 24 comments the business ends of two sea lampreys image courtesy of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration i interrupt my france travelog again for a breaking news story thanks to this very blog i was interviewed by the canadian broadcast corp about that time i organized a sea lamprey taste test marie s meanderings post which i wrote in 2020 i later reworked the post for a blog i used to manage for work and that s where the cbc reporter saw the story it s also included in my meander north book her 9 minute feature about how the invasive and ugly sea lamprey are a sought after food in europe aired last week you can listen to it here amy hadley sea lamprey cuisine superior morning on demand cbc listen i loved the light tone she took and that she was able to speak with sea lamprey cooks and fishery commission staff it just goes to show you never know where blogging will take you sometimes france day 3 monet s gardens and rouen and a chocolate croissant july 10 2026 july 18 2026 mariezhuikov 15 comments a rose tree in monet s garden giverny i fell asleep with a head full of grandiose images of versailles in the morning those images faded and i awoke with a mission to find and eat a genuine parisian chocolate croissant before our trip many people asked what i was looking forward to most in france i didn t answer with a standard reply like the eiffel tower or versailles for me it was eating a chocolate croissant yes that s all it takes to make me happy a picture of a picture on a sign that describes a crookie you see in the u s i can t eat anything made with wheat or corn from past travels i know i have good luck eating wheat in russia and the u k today was the day i put france and my digestive system to the test a bakery was just around the corner from our hotel so i hotfooted it over there and made my purchase i was almost sidetracked by a new type of croissant called a crookie that s all the rage but i stuck with classic chocolate a crookie is a combo croissant and chocolate chip cookie i was not disappointed the croissant was so crunchy buttery and rich with chocolate if i had to die in paris now i could die happy my breakfast chocolate croissant i m also happy to say that my digestive system suffered no ill effects from the wheat so i was free to eat like a normal person for the rest of the trip i ve read articles about the phenomenon of u s tourists in europe who can eat wheat when they can t at home it may be because the wheat used in europe contains less gluten than u s wheat it could also be because fewer pesticides are used on the crop in europe the arc de triomphe as seen through a moving bus window powered by croissant fuel i rejoined russ and the tour group for a bus ride to our next stop which was the town of giverny site of monet s home and gardens on our way out of paris we passed the impressive arc de triomphe giverny was more rural than i expected such a charming village a long line of tourists were waiting to enter we had to walk through them to get to the group entrance beyond i made it through the gauntlet but others farther back in our group line weren t so lucky they said an angry german woman stuck out her arm and wouldn t let them pass she must have thought they were cutting the line somehow they convinced her to let them pass they rejoined our group shaken by the rudeness and in a bit of disbelief monet s pond but hopefully the peace of monet s gardens and ponds soothed them in addition to being an artist monet was quite the botanist and civil engineer to create his ponds he diverted the flow of a small creek the ponds are the site of his famous waterlily paintings which he created in his later years when his eyes were clouded by cataracts another shot of monet s pond like in versailles taking a photo without a ton of people in it was challenging but i managed a few russ and i sat on a bench for a while to soak up the feel of the place that was also a challenge with a parade of people walking past but we were partly successful monet s home then the path took us into his gardens and next to monet s pink and green house i was surprised by all the paintings in the home but i guess i shouldn t have been they were mainly by other artists who were monet s friends but some were by monet i was also surprised by all the japanese prints on the walls our guide said that monet never went to japan but considered the prints an investment the home s kitchen and dining room were quite picturesque monet s dining room then we were back on the bus traveling to rouen which is known for its cathedral half timbered houses and as the place where joan of arc was burned at the stake the spot where joan of arc was burned bears a stone plaque and is near a large church built with a fish architectural theme the roof looks like fish scales etc we ate lunch not far from there and then our group walked to the impressive romanesque gothic style cathedral which monet painted in a famous series to capture how light played on the outside looking up at the notre dame rouen the inside of the notre dame rouen cathedral was more interesting to me than the outside because it contained the tomb of rollo the first duke of normandy and his son william longsword if you ve been following this blog for a while you may recall the post about my visit to maine and the history of my herring ancestors rollo s tomb rollo was a viking raider who was given the land in normandy by the french king so that he would cease his raider ways family lore says my ancestor was commander of rollo s navy and was given the title of viscount in research i ve done i ve learned that rollo usually only gave titles like that to relatives nepotism at its best so there s a good chance we re related to him i made a beeline for his tomb which carries an inscription that translates to he toiled so hard that he died in life rollo had another nickname the walker legend has it he was too tall and massive for a horse to carry so he had to walk everywhere while historians have debated whether this was an exaggeration the nickn...