Goodbye London, Goodbye Subway turkey sandwiches (on wheat)! Bonjour France, Bonjour croissants and sandwiches with 'who-knows-what-that-is' on them!

So, we departed London in the wee hours of the morn on Wednesday (4am!) and, after a long train ride, stormed the beaches of Normandy via ferry around 3pm local time. We picked up a rental car in Caen and, many roundabouts later, finally arrived at our quaint little hotel, the Hotel Le Canada. It is situated near Juno beach, the home of the WWII Canadian cemetery, in the town of Ouistreham. Unlike the hustle and bustle of London, this small town was rather quiet and good eats were hard to come by. Ultimately, and probably not surprisingly, we opted for "American-style" pizza. Actually, our diet while in France has mostly consisted of things that will really do a number on one's blood sugar...Honey Smacks cereal, bread, apples, peanut M&Ms, and the French equivalent of Pepto Bismol! C'est la vie!

At any rate, yesterday we visited the American WWII cemetery at Omaha Beach just west of Ouistreham. What an awesome experience! First, we watched a short film narrated by WWII soldiers as well as family members of those who gave their lives. Next, we walked the grounds and took in the breath-taking beauty of the cemetery before heading down to the beach. While the cemetery and memorial were beautiful, the beaches left a lot to be desired, as they were littered with all sorts of debris (soda cans, bottles, fish nets, even a garden hose!) that made Santa Cruz look pristine. What a shame to have such an awe-inspiring, well-kept memorial to our troops while literally yards away at its feet lies a landfill.

After visiting the cemetary, we made our way east to the town of Behoust. The drive went surprisingly well with two major exceptions. Of course, if you know us, you would have to know that there were some mishaps, right? So here is our confession. #1 occurred at our first tollbooth encounter. As we approached and frantically searched our wallets for the correct coinage, we noted the sign above the booth which read "cartes". We confidently assumed this translated into "cars" in English. So we did not follow the big trucks in front of us to their booth and instead pulled up to the one that read "cartes". No sooner did we arrive at the crossbar blocking our way, and we realized our error for there was no slot to insert the coins we had so desperately rummaged for. And there was no human being to assist us either. There was only a place to insert a card. Meanwhile the line of cars behind us grew and grew and grew. There was some honking. And finally a woman stepped out of her booth across the way to assist us with the unhappiest of expressions and speaking sternly in French. After being freed, we drove on laughing hysterically for we had realized the error of our ways.#2 We made it nearly the entire way to our destination, the "chateau" (more on that later) of our friend's parents, when... We found ourselves lost in the French equivalent of the slums of Oakland! After driving in circles and passing the same Rue du Something many times, Aimee finally convinced me to "just pull over and ask Le monsieur for directions." We found a pharmacie and aimee ran in to seek assistance. Meanwhile Sarah, all by her lonesome, remained in the car. Fiddling on her brand new IPad, she realized there were some questionable Monsieurs pacing near the car and peering in at our overstuffed suitcases and backpacks. Aimee managed to get directions in the nick of time and we narrowly escaped the thugs, who, by the way (no joke) were carrying man purses. Guess every thug has their thing. Ha ha ha ha...

We arrived safe and sound at the lovely home of Andre and Giselle, the parents of Delphine Robbe and grandparents of Otis (a student in Sarah's class this year). The home looked like something out of Sunset magazine, and we quickly nicknamed it The Chateau. It had a gated entrance, landscaping that included a huge yard and two large gardens full of vegetables, and a separate guest house just for us. The home was filled with the most wonderful antiques. Andre and Giselle welcomed us with a delicious homemade French meal. It was the best we have eaten since leaving the States. Despite the language barrier, the conversation lasted well into the night. It will definitely serve as one of the most memorable experiences of this trip.


Au revoir for now!