Brussels

The awesome thing about living in France for a month is that one evening, you can decide that you will head to Belgium the next day.

The train journey is only a half hour ride away. Since Kim had lived and taught in Brussels for two years, we all relied on her knowledge of the city to get us to where we wanted to go. And where we wanted to go was anywhere that was serving delicious food or drink! Our day in Brussels was all about eating and drinking.

First stop was the Waffle Truck. This was literally located at the exit to the metro! Locals will only order their waffles plain. Apparently, all the toppings that are on offer are strictly for tourists. €2 gets you the most delicious waffle and completely explains why the entire city smells so sweet.

Waffles, Round 1.

Brussels is a very walkable city. The Newberys had visited Kim while she was teaching here and there were things that they wanted to revisit. First stop was a phenomenal toy store. This was a toy store for the rich. Beautiful toys that all children would love to play with and make all adults wish they were children again. It was so much fun to browse this store.

As we were walking away from this area of town, I began to recognize where we were. We approached the Palais de Justice, or law courts, a phenomenal building under perpetual construction. Directly beside the Palais de Justice is a far-reaching lookout over the city of Brussels. We paused there and enjoyed the spectacular view.

Our destination for the day was the Grand-Place, the central square of Brussels. Anyone who was unaware would quickly become educated that Brussels and Belgium are well known for chocolate. It seems that every other store in the city is a chocolate store. Pierre Marcolini is a favourite of Arlyn’s and we stopped in so the kids could have some hot chocolate and for Arlyn to stock up on her favourite chocolate.

The Grand-Place is a beautiful square. It is traffic free, pedestrian friendly square surrounded by ornate buildings ranging from the 14^th to the 17^th century. It is a wonderful place to stand and soak in the atmosphere, people watch, and appreciate the buildings. We witnessed the beginning of a march or parade by a moustache appreciation group. One gentleman was kind enough to allow me to have a picture with him! The Grand-Place is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Summer Sisters.

 New BFF.

From the Grand-Place, there are several road ways or walk ways that exit and enter. We followed one path toward Kim’s favourite frites place, Fritland. Turns out, it is not only Kim’s favourite frites place – the queue extended from the restaurant, across the sidewalk, over the cobbled street, and on to the property of the next building. To me, the frites tasted like French fries. But I am not a connoisseur. My travelling companions were in frites heaven. Apparently, it is the method of frying – double fried accompanied by the variety of dipping sauces that a customer may choose from that really makes the frites. They are served hot, fresh, made to order in a large paper cone. And although I don’t really get the enthusiasm people have for these frites, I can tell you I was definitely in the minority. Everyone was enjoying their Belgian frites.

Frites

Tim was very eager to try a specific kind of beer that had been recommended to him by a friend. Anyone who was unaware would quickly become educated that Brussels and Belgium are well known for beer. It seems that every other store in the city is a beer store. Beer is a big deal in Belgium. In fact, there are more Belgian beers than there are days in the year. While the long frites line up took place, Tim went on a hunt for his Trappist Beer. Westvleteren is a brewery founded in 1838. They are known as some of the best beers in the world. So, after Tim met us at Fritland and everyone had enjoyed their frites we decided to head back to the pub that Tim had found. He took us to Au Bon Vieux Temps. Located at the end of a narrow alleyway, the pub has a kiddie cornered entrance way. Upon entering the pub, you will notice that there are stained glass windows and some religious references located around. Everything is old and it feels like how a pub is supposed to feel. We all ordered and enjoyed a drink, toasting our wonderful travels and a great day.

 Cheers!

We returned to the Grand-Place to people watch. Abby and I hunted down some delicious chocolate covered strawberries which we devoured in minutes.

Our final stop in our day of debauchery was Fanny Thai, a favourite restaurant of Kim’s from when she lived in Brussels. We enjoyed our dinner on the restaurant’s patio. So ended a wonderful day in Brussels.

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In planning for their vacation, Anne-Marie and Sage had expressed interest in visiting Brussels. So, it was off to Brussels once again! Some similar things occurred on this visit. A visitor must always have a Belgian waffle. We visited chocolate shops. We bought chocolate and may have had some chocolate covered strawberries. Sage and Anne-Marie also tried the frites. We visited the Grand-Place. New to me, we met up with a free, city walking tour. Tour books and websites are only able to express so much in writing. It is so wonderful to meet a guide that loves the place they live and can share the quirky and entertaining stories of their city. From the door that was build off centre on a building in the Grand-Place to the questionably famous Manneken Pis, put in place in 1618 to his modern-day sister Jeanneke Pis, put in place in 1987, our guide took us on a 2-hour journey around popular and lesser known areas of Brussels.

Waffles, Round 2.

Two busy and exhausting days that were filled with lots of delicious food, wonderful beer, beautiful buildings and an education about Brussels.

Paris

After a couple of days relaxing and exploring Lille a bit it was time for our next excursion. We were off to The City of Lights - Paris.

July 9

Our home away from home in Lille is very central. It is a short walk to the train station. We (Sharon, Arlyn, Calvin, Abby, Kim, and I) left around 10 in the morning and headed to Paris, only an hours journey. Then we braved the Paris metro, which is actually really well laid out and easy to use once you immerse yourself in it. It also helps to have other people travelling with you to reassure each other that you are on the right track (or to support each other if you get lost or turned around). Our group of 6 teamed up in order that we would always have a buddy to watch out for each other while travelling in the city. Team Lush - Kim and Sharon (a fitting team name), Team Formidable - Arlyn and Abby, and Team Awesome - Calvin and me.

Arlyn and I had found a cheap (relatively for Paris) hotel to stay in for the three nights that we were there. Here are the great things about Yooma: it was new, therefore it was clean, free wifi, free candies on the counter each night, the staff was helpful and attentive, the cost, but the best was that is was central. The hotel is a short walk to the Eiffel Tower. We were able to rent one room for all 6 of us. There were four bunk-like pods on one side of the room, with partition like sliding walls, which were way more comfortable than I predicted and a double bed in the central part of the room. I think the hotel is still working out some kinks, so here are the not so great things about it: the air conditioning was a bit spotty - working some places, not working in others. This caused room change number 1. There was a flood through the ceiling of the hallway. It was pouring the first evening we were there and water came through the ceiling and was filling the hallway. We were in limbo a bit that first night, not too sure if we would have to change rooms. But the water did not reach our room and we were given the all clear to head back to bed. The next night, we had room switch number 2 as the air conditioning had stopped working in the second room and no windows would open. So we were off to our third (and final) room. Travel is all about adventure and we definitely had an adventure without even leaving our hotel.

Our plan for the afternoon was to visit two museums. Musee Rodin and Musee Marmottan Monet.


We walked from Yooma to Musee Rodin stopping at the Champ de Mars to enjoy a lunch of baguette and cheese and then passing by Les Invalides on the way. Musee Rodin houses the works of the sculptor Auguste Rodin. His works are located in an old mansion and its surrounding gardens. His most famous works include The Gates of Hell and The Thinker. The Gates of Hell is based on Dante's Inferno. The Thinker was a part of The Gates of Hell but later became its own independent sculpture. Both of these sculptures are located in the gardens along with a number of other pieces including partially completed works. Within the museum, there are many more sculptures over two floors. Having previously visited and thorough loved Musee Rodin, I have had an appreciation for The Thinker. Often, I have considered purchasing a copy of the piece but have held off, until today. I am now the owner of my very own The Thinker and am excited to see where this travel souvenir will fit in my home.

The Thinker

After leaving the Musee Rodin, we hopped back on the metro and headed to Musee Marmottan Monet.There, we were able to see many works by Monet as well as Pissarro.There, we were able to see many works by Monet as well as Pissarro. For dinner, we stopped at a restaurant close to the Seine and our hotel. The bridge that crossed the Seine on our way back to Yooma had a replica of the Statue of Liberty located half way across. Behind Lady Liberty, down the river, we could see Eiffel's other creation, the Eiffel Tower. It was a fitting end to our first day in Paris.

July 10

We began our morning slowly, with a breakfast at Yooma and then a stroll to the Eiffel Tower. We wandered around the tower for a bit and took some photos. Our ever present tour guide, Rick Steves had suggested taking the city bus number 69 to see some of the sites in Paris. We hopped on at the bottom of the Champ de Mars and Kim read aloud to us explanations of the various sites we were passing by. Obviously, we started at the Eiffel Tower, we also passed by Ecole Militaire, Rue Cler, Les Invalides (Army Museum), the Louvre, Ile de la Cite (where Notre-Dame is located), Ile St. Louis, and finishing at the Place de la Bastille. We hopped off at the Place de la Bastille where the 52m-high Colonne de Juillet is now located in the centre of a crazy busy, barely marked, multi vehicular, use at your own risk round about. The round about is attraction enough as we all stood back and watched the trucks, buses, cars, motorcycles, and bicycles scurry and weave their way around the round about.

Next we were off for lunch. Once again, Rick Steves came through for us and suggested that we eat at the cafeteria style eatery in a major department store. Located 5 sets of escalators up, we not only enjoyed a delicious lunch but a fantastic view of the city and some scrumptious ice cream!

Our next stop the Louvre. Although we are saving visiting the Louvre for Anne-Marie and Sage's visit, we were still impressed to walk around the outside of the buildings where we took some pictures with the Grande Pyramide. Continuing on we walked through the Jardin des Tuileries and stopped to enjoy a cup of coffee as we sat beside one of the many ponds and fountains. Continuing along we walked up the Champs-Elysees where the sidewalks were packed with people and the streets lined with high end stores. The Champs-Elysees led us directly to the Arc de Triomphe. It was really difficult and a little disconcerting to think about Hitler walking up this exact same road, heading to this exact same monument about 70 years ago. The arc is quite and impressive structure. We walked under the round about that surrounds the arc and were able to stand under the arc and walk around it.

Arc de Triomphe

It was time for a bit of a rest so we headed back to the hotel, picking up a crepe on the way. Our goal for the evening was to head back to the Eiffel Tower to see it lit up at night. On top of the lights, every hour, for five minutes, there is a twinkling light display. We were there just before 10pm, when it is still actually a bit light out, and toasted the Eiffel Tower, Paris, and our wonderful adventures as the twinkle lights sparkled.

July 11

Unbelievably, Sharon part of our adventures had come to an end. Today was the day that she was heading home. Sharon hopped in a taxi at about 10am with lots of hugs and kisses and wishes for safe travels. Our little group was down to 5 people.

So, continuing on our journey, we took the metro to a northern part of Paris called Montmartre. My Lonely Planet book had a mini tour around Montmartre for us to follow. Our metro station as one of the deepest stations in Paris with the multitude of flights of stairs to prove it. At the park, located at the exit of the metro station, is located Le Mur des je t'aime, The Wall of Love, and art installation where the phrase I love you is written in many different languages. This is one of the many different art installations, commissioned or rouge, that we saw around this part of the city. The tour had us walk past two windmills - Moulin Radet and the hidden Moulin Blute Fn. Moulin Radet dates from 1717 and was used to ground flour and is now the location of a restaurant. The streets of Montmartre are very hilly and rather steep at times. The buildings are very beautiful. At the top of one of the hills, a busy tourist section, film crews were ushering people out of the area as they completed a 15 second take. This area was so packed with tourists as it was extremely close to the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur. We pushed through the crowds and headed to the church. The grounds of Sacre-Coeur gave a very impressive view over the city of Paris. We hopped on a finicular to head down the hill and back to the metro. Our stop let us off close to Pont Neuf where we found a charming crepe maker who made us some delicious crepes. He encouraged our use of the French language. We ate the crepes at the base of Pont Neuf, looking over the Seine.

A short walk further got us to Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris. The line to get in was impressively long and so we simply wandered around the cathedral and took in some of the points of interest courtesy of Rick Steves. Behind the cathedral is a lovely and peaceful garden where we sat and enjoyed some shade for a while.

Our group of 5 quickly turned back in to a group of 6 as we met up with Tim at the Pantheon. Originally a church it is now a mausoleum to some of France's greatest thinkers - Voltaire, Rousseau, and Hugo. We also saw the resting place of Marie Currie. Most resently, some Resistance fighters have been interred here. At the centre of the dome hangs a 67m long wire with a sphere at the end of it. The pendulum swings and displays the time. Foucault's pendulum was used as a experiement to prove that the earth rotates. I was completely fascinated by this. I still don't fully understand it all but I feel like my brain is on the verge of comprehension. I'll get there.

We walked through Luxembourg Gardens, where we saw kids racing mini sailboats on a large pond, on the way back toward our hotel so that we could rest up for the evening ahead!


Today was the day that we had planned the Fat Tire Bike Tour. Our tour began at 6:30 and was planned for about 4 hours. This tour was so much fun. I would highly recommend this company to everyone travelling in Paris. We all loved it so much (even the reluctant Abby enjoyed herself in the end) that we are planning on looking into the tour while we are in London later this month.

The tour company fitted us with the proper sized bikes, my bike was named "Effiel in Love", a recess duty vest, and we all chose to wear a helmet. We met up with our Irish tour guide, Ted, who explained the tour and gave us some safety instructions also. We would either travel single file, two by two, or by a swarm that we would use to our advantage to dominate the intersections that we cycled through.

A few times throughout the evening, Ted told us that he had a Master's Degree in French history. I guess he was pretty proud of that. We bike through the Latin Quarter and over to the Île de la Cité, along the river and enjoyed salted caramel ice cream at Berthillon (the most famous ice cream shop in Paris). We cycled around Notre Dame and Ted stopped us and told us some interesting information and facts about the cathedra. We cycled to the Louvre and finally headed to a boat cruise on the Siene. Ted poured the wine and we all enjoyed the views from the boat, espcially the Eiffel Tower, once again lit up for the night. I don't think that I could ever get tired of seeing that sight.

Cycling through the busy streets of Paris was a real adventure, especially after we had enjoyed the wine on the boat tour. I saw Kim cut off a couple of pedestrians which got me started laughing until tears were streaming, which is also another hinderance to cycling, at night, on the busy streets of Paris. The tour ended back where we had started. It was truly a fun adventure that kept us all smiling and laughing.

 The Eiffel Tower

July 12

We purchased our tickets to Versailles prior to arriving there, on the advise of Rick Steves! This was an early morning start after our late night bike tour. We left our luggage in the lock up at the hotel, got some coffee and Pain au Chocolat and caught the train to Versailles. This was about a half hour journey. The station is a short walk to Chateau de Versailles. We arrived about 10 minutes prior to open and lined up with our tickets in hand. Shortly after arriving we were in. The chateau around the tour is set up in a very organized way and we were provided with Audio Guides. Obviously, Versailles is stunning. The Chapel, the Hall of Mirrors, the symmetrical gardens are all so very impressive. Louis XIV transformed his father's hunting lodge into the Chateau de Versailles in the mid 17th Century. It was in use from 1682 until 1789, the beginning of the French Revolution. At its peak, it took 10 000 people to run Versailles. After our audio guide took us through the palace, we ventured out to the sprawling gardens. We walked and walked. The entire property covers 900 hectares. We also visited The Estate of Trianon, sort of a cottage away from the court life of the palace, and The Queen's Hamlet, a mini village built to reflect a rustic countryside, which was mainly used by Marie Antoinette as a play place. By the time we were finished visiting the playful goats at the hamlet, we were all ready to head back. So, we caught a city bus to the train station and headed back to Paris to collect our luggage. A couple of metro rides later we were at Gare du Nord and hopping on our train back to Lille.

Versailles

Exhausted after our busy few days in Paris, we all crashed in the apartment.

Normandy

This summer, travel opportunity has presented itself to me once again through the kindness of the Newbery family. Tim's company has him stationed out of Lille, France. Lille is situated in Northern France, close to the boarder with Belgium.

In the month leading up to our trip, we spent time organizing excursions. Our first 3 nights away took us south of Lille, in the Normandy region, to Rouen, Bayeux, Nonant, the villages along the D Day Beaches, Honfleur, Etretat,Veulettes-sur-Mer, and Dieppe.

July 3

A short walk to the Lille Train station with all our gear for the next three days began our first adventure. We picked up the rental van, crammed in all our gear and were off.

Our first stop was Rouen. Rouen is a medieval city with beautiful buildings lining the old town. It is known as the place where Joan of Arc was tried and burned at the stake. There is a new-ish church at the sight of her death, Eglise Jeanne d'Arc, across from what is reputed to be the oldest restaurant in France. We walked the streets of the old town and saw the Atrium of Saint Maclou, the plague cemetery. Rouen was greatly affected by the plague, in 1348, 3/4 of the area's inhabitants died as a result of the plague. There are carvings of pick axes, skulls, and bones all over the buildings. As we were leaving, we even saw a little window box that had the remains of a mummified cat in it. We continued our walk around Rouen, stopping in front of Cathedrale Notre Dame, an ornately carved building that Monet visited and painted. The main street, or Gros Horoge, passes under an archway where the Great Clock is located. It's original construction only had the hour hand as that was sufficient for time telling in the past! In Rouen, we got our first sighting of the Seine. Our last stop in Rouen was for a delicious crepe lunch.

 Examples of buildings.

Notre Dame, Rouen

Clock in the archway in Rouen.

Evidence of bullet holes still remain in this building where Canadians were shot by an SS Nazi division.

 German cemetery.

Casements at Longues-sur-Mer.

Pointe du Hoc, looking over the English Channel.

Pointe du Hoc.

Poppies

Omaha Cemetery

Etretat

The beach at Dieppe.

Our next stop was the city of Bayeux. Apparently known for its world famous tapestries, I did not see one. Bayeux was the first French town to be liberated June7, 1944 (a day after D-Day). It, therefore, remained relatively unharmed. We walked along the main street to Cathedrale Notre Dame where we climbed underground to the crypt. I lit a candle in memory of a very special person. We enjoyed dinner out, French Onion soup for me, to complete our first travel day.

We chose to stay in an Air B&B in Nonant, a tiny village close to Bayeux. Our host, Chantel lives in the same house that has been owned by her family since 1697. She was a lovely host. The home and setting were spectacular. Chantel had a couple of lively dogs, some donkeys, a few horses, and a number of chickens and ducks. Everyone enjoyed interacting with the animals, especially Abby. We enjoyed a glass of wine on the back deck of the home as the sun was beginning to set. A very civilized way to end a day in France.

July 4

Chantel served a traditional Normandy breakfast of homemade bread, toast, spice bread, butter, homemade jam, and coffee served in a bowl. Lots of delicious carbs. But when in France... As we were eating she headed out to her garden and picked some raspberries for us. The freshest fruit we will likely eat this entire trip. They were magnificent.

We set off for Arromanches at about 9. This was our first of the D-Day sites that we visited. All of the information I learned here was new to me and completely fascinating, thanks in main part to my most recently acquired historical crush - Winston Churchill. The allied forces needed to have a harbour in order to unload supplies needed for the war effort. Where there wasn't a harbour, Churchill conceived of one. Mulberry Harbour, a portable harbour, was set up at Arromanches. 146 cement caissons were towed over from England and sunk to form two semicircular breakwaters in which floating bridge spans were moored. After WWII, the area became known as Port Winston. At the Visitor's Centre, we watched a 360 degree movie that was effective in its ability to explain what had occurred without using any text or spoken word (beyond what was quoted by the original speakers). I was able to purchase a beautiful poppy scarf at the gift shop after the movie! We walked down the winding path toward Gold Beach and enjoyed a walk along the shoreline. Although there are remnants of the cement caissons still visible, it is difficult to imagine the carnage and destruction of what occurred in 1944.

At 1pm we met our guide, Philip from Normandy Sightseeting Tour, Canadian Edition, at the Place du Quebec in Bayeux. We had a private group tour so the 7 of us climbed into the mini bus and Philip shared some information about the Canadians and D-Day as we travelled around. At our first stop, we were shown a house off of a square called Place du Canadiennes in a small village. There is still evidence along the outside walls of the house of the bullet holes that were fired at Canadian troops. We learned about Kurt Meyer, an SS officer of Nazi Germany. He commanded the Panzer Division, also known as the Hitler Youth, a division made up of mainly 17 and 18 year olds who had been in the Hitler Youth since they were around 10 years of age.

Our next stop was Ardenne Abbey. Philip took us to the back of the abbey where there is a memorial garden to 18 executed Canadian Prisoners of War. Kurt Meyer and the German army took over the abbey on June 7, 1944 and brought their prisoners there. Kurt Meyer was complicit in the killing of these men. He was tried and convicted after the war. He even served some time in Canada. His lifetime sentence was commuted and he was released from prison in 1954. They abbey is now home to government offices.

Although I have visited a number of commonwealth cemeteries before, the experience is never redundant. Our guide took us to The Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery. Here lie the remains of the Canadians who died on D-Day. In total, there are 2,048 soldiers buried there. The majority are Canadian, 4 are British and 1 is French, 19 are unidentified. There is a headstone that is turned to face the opposite way to all of the other headstones. This is a grave to honour a soldier whose remains are located elsewhere in the cemetery but due to the sheer numbers of dead at the time of burial, his specific location within the cemetery remains unknown.There are 9 sets of brothers located in this cemetery. Two towers, located at the entrance of the cemetery, allow visitors to climb and gain an elevated view of the cemetery. That is a sight that makes you pause. We all wandered through the rows of headstones. As always, it is jarring to read the ages of these men, some as young as 18 or 19 as well as to see the commonality in many of the dates of death on the headstones.

Our next stop was Canada House, located in Bernières-sur-Mer, the building that has become known as the first home in France to be liberated. Canada House is an iconic building and is privately owned. The owner, who recently died, had set up a permanent shrine to the Canadian soldiers and it was known that he would welcome any Canadian soldier who stopped by for a visit. The home is adorned with Canadian flags and memorabilia from the war can be faintly seen through the front windows. It is always a thrill to see a Canadian flag while away from home but these flags and this home as a greater meaning.

Our last stop of the tour was at the Juno Beach Centre. Here we were given about an hour to go through the visitors centre. Thankfully, I had been here before as an hour is not enough to explore the entire centre. Fortunately, we were able to watch the film as the final stop in the centre. It is entitled "They Walk With You" and is, in my opinion, a wonderful film that captures the reason why so many Canadians want to visit Juno Beach and why so many Canadians should want to visit Juno Beach.

Another interesting and new bit of information I learned on this tour was about funny tanks. Hobart's funny tanks were basically unusual looking vehicles used during the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy. These vehicles were designed as a result of the tough lessons learned from the Dieppe landing the previous year. Tanks like the amphibious swimming Sherman tank, the crab flail, the crocodile flamethrower and the bobbin carpet layer were all used.

Our tour ended where it began, back in Bayeux. We walked around town searching for a place to eat dinner and ended up enjoying our meal on pleasant outside patio.

July 5

Chantal once again started our day with the traditional Normandy breakfast, this morning, adding a traditional sweet bread, similar to a brioche. Obviously, it was delicious! With extra fruit in hand we set off for our next stop which was Longues-Sur-Mer. Longues-Sur-Mer is a part of the Nazis' Atlantic Wall. Located just west of Arromanches, large cement casements were built with 150mm German guns. They were designed to hit targets up to 20km away. The guns and the casements, as well as soldiers bunkers and lookout points are open for people to tour and climb in. It is very difficult to imagine the horror of war time as, when we visited, the sun was shining, the skies were blue, the fields were planted with their crops, poppies and wildflowers growing along the sides of the pathways, and I was happy to be with my adventurous travelling companions and to be near the ocean again. It just does not seem possible that this site was once one of blood and fear and destruction.

After we had walked around Longues-sur-Mer we climbed back in the van and continued west, down the road to Omaha Beach. This is the beach where the most brutal fighting took place on D-Day. US veterans refer to this area as Bloody Omaha. The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial is where we stopped to explore this area. We walked to the cemetery first. This is a most impressive site. There are 9387 graves in this cemetery, a mere 1/3 of the American causalities of Normandy. Here there are 33 pairs of brothers. The remaining 2/3 of the dead were repatriated at the request of their families. See almost 10 000 white crosses or stars of David is truly overwhelming. Just when you think your eye has reached the end section of headstones, there is another section to gaze upon. The vastness of this cemetery is difficult to describe and is unbelievable to think that it consists of only 1/3 of those who died. Again, we spent a lot of time wandering through the headstones, reading names of those we do not know. Many of these men died at an incomprehensibly young age. At both ends of the centre mall there are memorial structures. The larger of the two is a huge semicircular structure with a statue called The Spirit of American Youth. There are massive and excellent maps in alcoves located on either side of the statue. These maps clearly explain the order of battle. Behind the statue is garden and a shorter semicircular wall with the 1557 names of those soldiers who were not found. Although beside very few of the names there is located a small rosette which indicates that he remains had been located after the memorial had been built. In the visitors centre, there are some artifacts from the war as well as some excellent films that describe different aspects of D-Day from the American perspective. This was an exceptional and overwhelming memorial.

There is so much to see and learn on the beaches of Normandy. We decided to have lunch on the go and picked up some grocery food at a road side store on our way to Pointe du Hoc, the furthest point west that we visited. It is also the highest pointed located between Utah Beach and Omaha Beach. It was here that US Army Rangers scaled the 100 foot cliffs in order to seize German artillery pieces. This mission was completed on D-Day, June 6, it was successful but at a high cost. Of the 225 Rangers, 81 were killed and 58 were wounded. Today, the area is open to the public to visit. The land is still pock marked with giant craters left behind by the bombing that occurred. The German command post and a number of bunkers and casements are still there and are able to be explored. Standing at the top of the cliffs and looking over, it is remarkable that anyone would be able to scale the cliffs at any time let alone at a time of war. It truly is a testament, yet again, to the desire by the Allied forces to overcome and defeat the German forces.

To end our time in Normandy, we decided to visit a German cemetery. La Cambe German war cemetery contains more than 21 000 German war dead. The headstones lay flat on the ground. Interspersed between the flat head stones are groups of 5 crosses. The stone of the headstone is black or brown. The cemetery is a contrast to both the Commonwealth Cemeteries and to the cemetery at Omaha Beach. In this cemetery, each headstone contained the names of two German soldiers. The centre of the cemetery housed a large hill which was a memorial to almost 300 unidentified and later discovered remains. Notably, many of the headstones indicated that the men had been born in 1926 and died in 1944. The entrance of the cemetery explains, "The German Cemetery at La Cambe: In the Same Soil of France Until 1947, this was an American cemetery. The remains were exhumed and shipped to the United States. It has been German since 1948, and contains over 21,000 graves. With its melancholy rigour, it is a graveyard for soldiers not all of whom had chosen either the cause or the fight. They too have found rest in our soil of France."

It was time to move on. Our education over the past couple of days had been enormous.

We were heading next to Honfleur to find our beds for the night in our next Air B&B. This was a contrasting location to Chantel's beautiful and historic home but we only needed a place to rest our heads so all was well. After dropping our luggage off we took a very short walk to the harbour of Honfleur. It was interesting to note that this was the location the Samuel de Champlain had sailed from a few times on his way to explore Acadia, Canada, and the founding of Quebec. Honfleur is another example of a city with beautiful old buildings including a church that we peeked our heads into that was built in the 15th century! We enjoyed our dinner overlooking the harbour. After dinner, we explored the lively market place, followed a marching band who seemed to have a set of 4 songs, and watched an ice cream kiosk employee that made homemade curly ice cream. Here ends another wonderfully busy day in France.

July 6

Today turned out to be the first really hot day we have experience in France. Temperatures reached 37 degrees. Our first stop was the sea side village of Etretat. Etretat boasts beautiful chalk cliff and arches. Some of the cliffs are as high as 300 feet. We hiked up to the top of the cliffs which gives a dramatic and impressive view over the English Channel. Back down on the rocky beach, Kim, Abby, and Calvin jumped in the water for a refreshing swim!

Tim marked a place on the map between Etretat and Dieppe (our final location for the day) and found Veulettes-sur-Mer, which became our perfect stopping point for lunch on the waterfront.

A short drive later and we arrived in Dieppe. Dieppe boasts a large and rocky covered beach. It was also the location of a disastrous battle in 1942 - 73% of the men who took part in the battle were killed, wounded, or missing in action. In the middle of the beach, there is a small and important monument to the Canadian soldiers who battled and lost their lives on the beaches of Dieppe. Our main objective in visiting Dieppe was to swim. And so, with Sharon watching on, we all jumped in the chilly but refreshing English Channel. A wave of appreciation is extended to all of those who battled so fiercely so that we could swim freely in these waters in 2017.

Here ends our first mini excursion of the summer of 2017. Our journey home to Lille took us about an hour and a half. After returning the van to the rental garage and picking up some groceries on the way home we ended our day watching the film Saving Private Ryan. Although most of us had seen the movie before, it sure took on a deeper meaning after all that we had just witnesses and learned.

Lisbrin and Around

And just like that we were on our way to our last castle of our vacation. So unbelievable. We had five nights booked on the North Atlantic Ocean in a small area of Ballycastle called Lisbrin. This was about a two and half hour drive away from Killybegs. We were all sad to see the end of our time at Driftwood cottage but we were definitely looking forward to our next cottage.

We drove through Sligo and had to make a pit stop at Hertz to deal with a wee issue. It was a bit of a challenge finding the exact location of the Hertz rental store as we were told to head to the airport. The airport was extremely small, far from international. When we went inside, it was deserted of people. Fortunately, there was a number at the Hertz counter to call and we were given directions to head back to town. Once we found that location, Arlyn dealt with the issue and we were back on the road.

We arrived to a beautiful cottage. Two of the walls on the house were floor to ceiling windows. These looked directly over fields and down toward the ocean. The views were breathtaking. Calvin, Abby, and I stayed at the cottage while Arlyn and Kim headed back to Ballina to get groceries for the next 5 days. As Calvin curled up in bed, Abby and I went outside to explore the barn and visited with our neighbours (cattle and horses) and got completely soaked. It was definitely a short exploration. We dried off, Arlyn and Kim returned and we enjoyed our first dinner at our cottage.

View from our cottage.

The wind howled all night long. Sunday, we woke up to more wind and rain. It was a was a very lazy day. We all huddled around our books and curled up on the chairs, couches, or in our beds and read (or watched YouTube if you were under the age of 40)! I continued to read Dragonfly in Amber all morning. I enjoyed some Suits in the afternoon.

Around the dinner hour, we all emerged from our various cocoons and decided it was time to head into the village and have a meal at Mary’s Country Kitchen, a place that had been recommended to us by the cottage owner. Mary’s Country Kitchen is a well known eatery and is situated in a very small and cute old cottage style home. Homemade dinner was the name of the game.

After a lazy Sunday, we were geared up to get back into our touring pace on Monday. First stop was to head west a bit down the road to Ceide Fields. Ceide Fields was discovered in the 1930s by a local man named Patrick Caulfield. Patrick was digging in the bog when he noticed a pile of buried stones. Exploration of the area began 40 years later by Patrick’s son, Seamus. Ceide Fields is considered one of the world’s most extensive Stone Age monuments. Essentially, this area is the remains of a farming community from 5000 years ago. There is a wee museum in the centre that explains how bogs are formed and about the farming community that would have lived here. There is also a 20 minute movie that tells about the land, rock formations, and the discovery of the site.

Rock walls at Ceide Fields

After watching the movie, we geared up for a guided tour of the site. We got to our first stop and the rain started moving in horizontally. It was freezing. One by one, our group of interested tourists lost interest and headed for shelter. I really tried to stay to listen but I was getting soaked and it was just so cold that I had to politely run for cover.

We had a hot tea and a wee snack in the cafe and by the time we were done, so was the rain. For now. So, we headed back outside and walked the site independently. Unfortunately, without the guidance of someone in the know, what we saw was basically piles of stones that we figured used to be fences or the base of walls for buildings.

We left Ceide Fields and started heading east, back toward Lisbrin. Before we even made it back to the Lisbrin area, we stopped and found a standing stone that was in the middle of an old grave yard. The stone was marked with a couple of stylistic crosses.

 Standing stone

The next stop for the day was the Ballina Tourist Centre. Calvin really wanted to find a spot to fish and we were told that the employees would be able to help us out. We did receive some information from the BTC but best yet, across the street was Costa Coffee! Sweet justice. We collected all of the information and sat in Costa and enjoyed our coffees. Arlyn and Kim made a couple of calls regarding fishing and horseback riding. When we were finished with our coffees, and walked down to the River Moy in order to meet Gary at the Tackle shop. Unfortunately, the shop was closed. There was, however, a number on the door to call a tackle shop in a different town. Arlyn did that and the person who answer told Arlyn that Gary had a bad back and sometimes didn’t open the store but we were welcome to visit him in Foxford. We hung about the river for a bit and watched some fly fishers casting and recasting their lines.

Foxford was actually the next stop on our list for the day as we had heard that there was a woolen mill there. This mill/shop did not hold a candle to the shops we had visited in Donegal. We all left with “full” wallets! But the tackle shop came through from Calvin. We were able to set up a time for him to rent a rod the next morning. Luckily, we also got a call in to the horseback riding farm and set up a time for riding the next afternoon. Tuesday was now planned.

Driving home we were looking for stone circles and standing stones that were highlighted on a North Mayo County map. We found a stone circle and visited the remains of Rathfran Abbey. But we discovered that the map we had was rather useless. Even a local walker could not interpret it for us. So the poor map decided for us that it was time to return to Lisbrin, the cottage, and dinner.

 A wee stone circle.

Tuesday was an early rise day. We set off for Foxford to get Calvin set up for his fishing expedition. The drive took about one hour and was very quiet. I think that we were all a bit tired. It was earlier than our usual time of departure and we had been travelling for 5 and a half weeks. I may have even had a wee nap on the way!

One in Foxford, the tackle shop set Calvin up with a rod, tackle, and a very large (hopeful) net. Arlyn and Calvin stayed on the river as Kim, Abby, and I returned to Ballina.

I promptly deposited myself at Costa Coffee, bought a hot coffee, and read for an hour or so! Bliss. Abby and Kim took of for the shops. After the hour, they met me at Costa with shopping bags bursting with new purchases. We picked up some lunch items in order that we could have a picnic lunch between fishing and horseback riding.

We return to Foxford and met Calvin and Arlyn at the river. We spent some time watching Calvin fish. We saw a few salmon jumping in the river but Calvin had not luck, even with all of his inventive fishing stances, and super speedy reeling.

The owner of the tackle shop recommended a great area where we could enjoy our picnic lunch. A short drive away from Foxford was a small beach on Lough Cullin. This was a beautiful location for us to enjoy an outdoor meal.

Lough Cullin

Our next stop was Iceford Stables and horseback riding. Now, I have not been riding since I was a kid. I used to ride just about every weekend when I was in grade 3 and 4. And, I remember loving is so much. Now, as a 40 year old, I can tell you, I was a ball of nerves. I was worried about riding. But I did keep in my mind the thought that I should not be held back by things that I am afraid of. It was time to face this challenge!

Horseback riding

The employees at Iceford Stables were all very professional, supportive, and encouraging. And, they were 12 years old. They assured me that Casper, my ride, would be fine and would provide me with a comfortable and enjoyable ride. With the assistance of a step, I hopped up on Caspar and was ready for our trek. Once all of us were suited up and ready to ride, Liz, the leader, asked our guides to lead us around the barn for a couple of turns. We were instructed on how to lead our horse, how to instruct them to stop and how to instruct them to move faster. After we had completed this, it was off for our outdoor trek. We walked along the road outside of the stables. Moving slowly along the road and enjoyed the beautiful scenery and conversation with our guides. Next it was off to walk in the fields of the stables. In the distance, we were able to see the beautiful Ox Mountains. Everywhere you look, Ireland pleases the eyes. Finally, we returned to the barn and were given the opportunity to trot with our horse. That was fun. After our pictures were take, it was time to dismount. I can’t say that my dismount was elegant but I got down safely. It was truly an enjoyable way to spend the afternoon.

Our last stop for the day was on our way home at Downpatrick Head. Downpatrick Head was an area/landform of Ireland that had been described to us in the movie at Ceide Fields. Named after the time that St. Patrick founded a church here, Downpatrick Head is a beautiful, rugged, area of natural beauty. Dún Briste sea stack sits just off shore and is a beautiful feature of this area. Downpatrick Head was also a World War II lookout post. It was super windy at the edge of the cliffs. The views were breathtaking.

 Downpatrick Head

After dinner back at the cottage, Kim, Abby, and I decided it was time to investigate the abandoned house that was located between the cottage and the shoreline. We made a couple of attempts to get to the house but were blocked, first by the shoreline, then by a bull, and then by the electrified fences. We were able to get fairly close to the house but were stopped by the fencing. So our exploration could not occur. One the way back we were walking near bogs. I walked a little too near the bog. Actually, I walked in the bog and my boot got sucked into the bog. The only way to get the boot out was to release my foot from the boot and, while standing on one foot, retrieve it from the sucking mud. Thankfully, no muck actually got into the boot, but it really was covered. Once again, rain forced us back to our cottage and shelter. Another busy day came to a close with some exploration and good laughs.

Wednesday was a day to explore some ancient stone structures. We had a later start to the day. Our first goal was to head to Carrowmore. Carrowmore is the largest Stone Aged cemetery in Ireland. The visitors centre has some information about the cemetery and you can rent a laminated map of the area that helps you to follow a path around the site and read about what you see as you journey. One the site are dolmens and stone circles. There is also a large reconstruction of one cairn that you can enter. Again, we were foiled by rain. Although I was able to read all of the information about the site and the stones, it was definitely a quick tour.

 Dolmen at Carrowmore

We ended up at a roadside pub for lunch that was between Carrowmore and our next site, Carrowkeel. We dried off and warmed up with a cup of tea. And then we were off to Carrowkeel. After parking our car, we hiked up the 1 km, on a path lined with sheep, to the top of the hill. I feel like I keep writing about how the landscape of Ireland is so beautiful and breathtaking, but it really is. It makes me happy to be outdoors in this country. It was a good spot for our last true adventure in Ireland. It was fitting to be hiking the countryside surrounded by sheep, rocks, wind and green. Carrowkeel is located at the top of Bricklieve Mountains. It is an ancient sacred site. Like Carrowmore, Carrowkeel has dolmens and cairns scattered around the site. We all spent time sitting and enjoying the scenery.

 Cairn at Carrowkeel

By the time we got home, the inevitable was staring us in the face. It was time to pack. We spent the evening trying to stuff all of our wool purchases into essentially the same amount of suitcases that we brought with us with varying degrees of success. In the end, we all managed to happily fit all our purchases in our cases. My case was 0.5kg underweight. Yikes!

Our flight was Friday out of Dublin. Kim had booked us a hotel room for Thursday night so we were not rushed on Friday. We had to drive from the west to the east of Ireland in a sub compact car with more luggage than was strictly necessary for 5 people. So, we decided to cut the journey in half by stopping at the Famine Museum in Strokestown. This museum was located on the site of Nicholas Mahon’s manor home. We opted out of touring the mansion and focused only on the Famine Museum which had been set up in the old stables. The museum provided information about the social structure of Ireland in the 1800s, the importance of the potato, the devastation of the Potato Blight of the 1840s. Also of interest was the information about the emigration of the poor and starving to the New World. So unfortunate were their lives in Ireland, the journey to the Americas took place on what became known as coffin ships. The landlord during the potato famine evicted starving peasants and chartered boats for them. A shocking 600 out of the 1000 people  died on the overcrowded ships. The last part of the museum focused on the early fight for Irish freedom and independence.

The last leg of our journey took us to Dublin. We had made a full circle in two week. We checked into our hotel and rested for a bit before we headed out to The Old Schoolhouse pub for our last dinner together in Ireland.

Friday morning we took our final group selfie outside of the hotel with as much success as could be expected for our group. We hugged and said our goodbyes. Kim and I hopped into our taxi. Arlyn, Calvin, and Abby were leaving from a different Terminal so they waited for a second taxi. And that was that. We were off to the airport.

Of course, as soon as we cleared security, we visited the Irish shop in the airport and made some final purchases. Apparently no day in Ireland is complete without some significant spending!

It is rather difficult to sum up. This post is entitled “Lisbrin” and it is about our final cottage stay but it is also the final post for this 6 week wonder trip. How do I sum it all up? Maybe the best thing to do is a top ten list???

Top Ten List

10. Travel. We are a privileged people. We live in an amazing country. But we also have the privileged opportunity to leave home and explore our world. Plane, train, taxi, boat, car, subway, tram, bus, and lots and lots of walking. These were all the means of our travel. But the means of travel are not really as important as the destinations and the experiences. Travel really opens your eyes to the way that people exist around the world. Travel also helps you to reflect on the way you live back home. Travel expands horizons. It opens eyes. Travel makes you see that people are more alike than different. Travel makes me grateful to be able to return to our amazing country, Canada. And finally, after you have returned, travel makes you hungry for more travel!

9. Education. This trip was a true education. I learned so much about World War II from the Eastern European perspective. I learned a lot about the horrific treatment of Poland during this time. I learned about the history of a number of cities. I learned about historic people that I had never heard of before in my life.

8. Food and drink. Of course a big perk of visiting other places is being able to experience some of the food and drink of the area. Perogies. Lody, 99s, Guinness, sausage, fresh fruit, scones with butter and jam, McVities, Sauerkraut, dumplings, beef stew, crepes, soda bread, Pogácsa (cheese biscuits), Galaxy chocolates, chocolate snails, trdelníks, Żywiec beer, McGargles beer, Lech beer, radler, Bailey’s, coffee, tea, and I am sure I have missed so much more. All enjoyable!

7. Differences in cultures. Most places we went in Poland, Czech Republic, and Hungary, and Austria we had to pay for the use of the toilets. Sometimes there were attendants (what a job). But Ireland, toilets were free of charge. While in the cities, we were all very aware of the amount of people who still smoke. It was rather astonishing. We learned about tipping practices in different cultures. We experienced customer service in different countries. Sometimes attitudes were rather abrupt. Other times, very friendly.

6. Beautiful, old buildings. If you check out my Instagram account @tdotmcgdot you will see what I mean. Everywhere you look in Europe, you see buildings that have seen thousands of years pass by their doors and windows. It is truly mind boggling to learn that a building has been standing in the location you are visiting for more than 500 years. Sometimes it is difficult to fathom.

5. Wandering. I love wandering. It is one of the best things about travel. When you don’t really make a plan but choose to wander. It is amazing what you find when you travel this way.

4. Ireland. I have visited Ireland a few times before. I love it more and more each time I visit. Maybe my soul knows that my ancestors were from Ireland, there is a connection, it just feels like a coming home. The Irish are truly the friendliest people that I have ever met on all of my travels. They have a quick wit, are always willing to laugh and tell a story. They are helpful and full of life. It is a joy to meet an Irish person.

3. Auschwitz. I feel very privileged to have been able to walk those hallowed grounds. See my blog post for more: here

2. Laughter. Man did we have some good laughs. From Calvin’s shanking with the wee thistle prick at the Dark Hedges to Arlyn’s spread eagle on her horse to the multiple fails of our group selfies to the inventive hashtags, we spent a lot of time laughing.

1. Family. The top experience of this trip is the most obvious to me. It is having the opportunity to spend time with the wonderful Newbery/O’Driscoll clan. This family has welcomed me, with open arms, into their tightly knit family. It is one thing to be included in a family celebration. It is another thing completely to invite someone to travel with their family for six whole weeks. I am eternally grateful that I was invited. I am eternally grateful that I was included and treated like family. I am privileged to know each member of this family. I am lucky to be able to consider them apart of my extended family.

“Traveling - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”

~Ibn Battuta

I know that I was left speechless many times over the past 6 weeks. I hope that this blog has been a great storytelling forum and has communicated the experiences in an interesting way to all those who read this.