Post Report November Paris/Normandy

Saturday 08 Nov 2008
We arrived in Paris (CDG Terminal 1) at 0630. Rented a Car to drive to Mt Saint Michel where we would be staying out first night. I plugged in my Garmin Nuvi with Europe maps and we were on our way. The nuvi shows the location of traffic enforcement cameras also and we saw them flashing taking pictures of violators a few times. I had read the French were aggressive drivers but I found them tame compared to Atlanta drivers. The leaves had changed to there fall color and the countryside was beautiful. I fueled the car upon arrival so it would be ready for the next day and the fuel cost for diesel was $29 euro. We took the fastest road here so we paid tolls also. I had packed a small back pack and had planed to lock our bags in the trunk and take up clothing for one night but the car was a hatch back and the bags were visible so I decided we would haul our bags up. We had packed light with some planed laundry time when we get back to Paris so it wasn’t that bad to get our bags up to LA VIEILLE AUBERGE (Rick’s Book) for our nights stay. A young man grabbed our bags and took them up the off the beaten path to our room with a bay view. The room was small but clean and was just perfect for us. We were off to the abbey and explored it in the afternoon. We took an early dinner at the LA VIEILLE AUBERGE Restaurant and then had a hot shower and crashed for while. I had been up over 28 hours at this point. I couldn’t sleep on the plane and stayed awake the whole trip. My daughter slept the whole trip. If you’re visiting and not rushed for time I would recommend trying to visit during high tide. The tide was low today and was basically a large mud flat around the island. I bet it would be a sight seeing the tide come in. One of the fastest rising tides in the world. The tide is not like ours in the US where you have 1-2, high tides a day.

Hearing the bells at night was beautiful. The crowd is much smaller at night also if you decide to stay on the island. We tried the Orangina drink it often during our stay. I have a Vodaphone sim card in an unlocked GSM phone. Calls to my stateside Verizon wireless number are forwarded to it so, we’ve stated in touch with home.

Sunday 09 Nov 2008
We got an early start from Mt Saint Michael and traveled to Bayeux for a D-Day tour with Victory Tours. I had originally tried to book Battle Bus but they require you to stay in Bayeux or with in a 50 mile radius the night prior to your tour with them. We arrived early and had breakfast at met Roel at 0930. Right away I knew I had picked the right guide. Roel with Victory Tours is Great, knowledgeable, fun loving, sense of humor. He’s just a great guy. If you’re staying for a couple of days I would recommend his B&B. He has a library full of D-Day history books and an armory of D-Day weapons. I could go on and on about the tour, you’ve just got to do it for your self. Roel is just good people. I already want to take my wife back. We remained over night in Bayeux and stayed at Hôtel Le Brunville. It was freshly renovated and the room was huge by European standards.

Monday 10 Nov 2008
We’re headed back to Paris today. We’re turning the rental car in at Orly airport since it’s closer to the city center and will ride the Metro while around Paris. We stopped off in Rouen for an early lunch and explored the Joan of Arc sites. I had planned to ride the Air France Bus to Invalides and then hop the Metro to Ecole Militar to get to our hotel on Rue Cler. My daughters brand new suit case had a wheel knocked off upon our arrival and I thought it might be a hassle doing the bus and metro with luggage and it was raining so we opted for a taxi to Rue Cler. The guy started off at 50€. I talked him down to 35. We make it to the Grand Hotel Leveque on Rue Cler. We had a standard room back side at 97€ a night. The floor squeaked but the room and bathroom was very clean. It was just what we needed, A clean place to lye down at night close to everything. Elisa at the front desk was very nice to us the entire stay. We did laundry around the corner on Grenelle. While there we chatted to an American lady who’s there teaching English in high school. Next we were on the short walk to the Eiffel Tower. The top was closed due to wind but the second deck was high enough. We got there while it was still daylight and stayed until after dark. We walked around awhile before heading back to the rue Cler area. Wanting something close we dined at Café De Marche. The fried duck was great. The price was very reasonable.

Tuesday 11 Nov 2008
We hop on the Metro and start at Saint Chappel. Then we head over to Notre Dame. The line is long to go up top when we came out so over to Ill St Louis we go for a while. We grab an ice cream over there. The caramel taste just like my Moms caramel cake. The line to go up Notre Dame has shorten so we grab a hot dog and drinks to eat while we’re standing in line. We leave and walk around the left bank before catching the Metro to Arc de Triumph. It’s Armistice Day. The top closed early. That’s OK we’ll come back tomorrow. We did get to see an Honor Guard detail standing guard at the tomb of the unknown, which was cool. Back at home base it starts raining so we grab dinner close. We got to LaVarangue. (Ricks Book) It was good/reasonable.

Wednesday 12 Nov 2008
This is the first day I changed the schedule around. I had planed on going to the Louvre in the evening since they’re open late on Wednesdays. We were there when they opened and went straight to all the things we had previously planed to see and then explored other areas for a couple of hours. You really could spend a full day here. We caught the Metro back down to the Arc de Triumph and ascended to the top. Wow another great view. The Metro is easy. Our second day and we’re getting around not even using a map. It was very crowded this morning though with workers getting to work. It was the same way in the evening. We grab lunch at,,,,,McDonalds on Champs-Elysees and then walked the entire Champs-Elysees back to the Lourve for shopping on Rivoli Street. Several locals recommended this area. It’s on the north side of the Lourve. My daughter shopped well past dark. I didn’t get to eat dinner where I had intended. I’ve already got return plans. We tried a place on the corner of Rue Cler and Grenelle. (Café Roussillion) They have a great steak. They have a steak for two also. We had there tiramisu and crème brulee. The guys in there were great. They speak Spanish so we had fun with my southern Spanish.

Thursday 13 Nov 2008
We booked Paris Shuttle at the hotel for our return to CDG. It was 20€ per person. After getting in line at the airport Carrie said, “Dad I left my purse on the shuttle”. Luckily, there was a dear lady that had rode in with us that had there phone number. I called and the guy returned with her bag. He got a very good tip.

We found the French very nice and at no time were we treated badly. We were hassle a few times by panhandlers but no worse than you find in Atlanta. I did give in one time on Champs-Elysees. A guy had his Golden Retriever walking up to people with a basket in his mouth. A few times rough looking people asked if I spoke English and I usually brushed them off with a “yo hobla espaniol”. On a few occasions I pointed out loud boisterous Americans to my daughter. I try to blend in when I travel and stay away from clothing with big American logos etc. One dear old French lady was trying to ask us which bus to take from the metro in French. We always greeted everyone in French and then asked if they spoke English. On a few occasion they didn’t but we communicated with them anyway.
I’ve challenged my daughter to become fluent in a second language. It’s bad when as Americans, know only one and a taxi driver in France knows four.
I brought 2 six packs or Oranggina home, my 9 and 4 year old went through them in 2 days. I wish we could get it here.

Tom, Thanks for the great post on Paris and Normandy. It is very helpful for us planning trips to this area. I will check out your pictures.

Tom, we can get Orangina in stores that carry special and hard-to-find foods, etc. Keep looking -- you might get lucky!