Flew into Dublin for 3 days to power though jet lag with the help of Guinness and Bushmills. I have to say Dublin was awesome. I stayed in Dun Laoghaire at The Claremont House B&B which was great. First day was just wandering the streets of Dublin, the Temple Bar district, and going to the Jamison "distillery" for the Jamison experience. A lot of soaking it in with pints and loving the great weather. Day two did more sightseeing, the Killmainham Gaol, Trinity College, and more pub hopping. Killmainham was powerful, stories of people sacrificing so much for freedom and independence always move me. Great guide. A lot of walking that day, I like to wander the cities when I'm overseas. Had planned on the Guinness tour but it wasn't a real brewery so I skipped it. Last day did a day tour to Wicklow and stopped at Glendalough. I love the countryside of Ireland, its up there with Scotland in that regard for me. Best thing was sun and almost no rain the entire time I was there. Not sure how many pints of Guinness I drank but they were many. Not sure it tastes any different over there either, but draft Guinness is always wonderful.
Flew to Paris to get my car and drive to Port-en-Bessin-Huppain. Vastly under estimated the time I took to drive there but my small apartment I was renting, Maison en Pierre, was perfect for my needs and despite me showing up late and the hosts speaking as much English as I do French I got in fine, though I lost some time I thought i had to check things out. Instead I wandered the town for a bit and got ready for the next day. I was here for D-Day sights and boy did they deliver. Overlord Museum, Dead Man's Corner/D-Day Experience museum, Omaha and Utah Beaches and museums, Point Du hoc, the various batteries and bunkers, going to the monuments all over, Caratan and Sainte-Mère-Église, etc. Oh my. And the American cemetery, which I will admit got me teared up. A very powerful experience though due to a lot of rain you couldn't walk down the rows...or weren't supposed to. Many ignored that and just stepped over the ropes. Disrespectful IMO. Got a rock from each US beach as a souvenir. Wish I had more time for the British and Canadian stuff but ran out of it.
Then I went to Saumur to see the tank museum and spend the night. That was off the charts cool despite the Tiger II not being there. Must have been in maintenance, like they usually were during the war. After that I just got some dinner and some drinks and got an early nights sleep.
Then I went to Amboise and stayed at Iris des Marais, which Rick recommended in his book. Very nice establishment that I would heartily recommend. Went to that château and then to Château de Chenonceau, which were both very interesting, but I'm a fan of castles. Should have taken Rick's advice about getting reservations as I missed on some eating spots I wanted.
Off the Paris for the last two days. Stayed in Hotel Prince. There is a reason its that cheap that close to the Eiffel Tower. Worst hotel room I've ever stayed in. If I was in that place here I'd assume I was going to be rolled as soon as I fell asleep. But wasn't there to stay in my hotel so I just dealt with it. Driving into Paris was a pain as was returning the car but it got done. Dropped my stuff off at the hotel and went for a pint at that Irish pub Rick recommend. 8,50 for a print is criminal but then again so were most prices in Paris I found. Didn't have a full day so I went to the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées stroll. Very cool though I didn't buy anything. Traffic around the arc was insane. Day 2 was Notre Dame in the morning. Amazing, I love old European churches. Skipped Sainte-Chapelle though. Went and had a 8 dollar coffee before heading to the Catacombs, which I really wanted to see. continued