Normandy –Day 5. D-day beaches part 1.

 

The day started with an overcast sky and spots of rain that progressively got heavier, so once again the play barn with all it’s facilities came to the rescue. Sylvia and I took on Helena and Naomi at table tennis doubles, we won both matches but the way the girls have progressed that will not be a foregone conclusion for long. With the extra bats that we had purchased yesterday both tennis tables were being utilised together with the table football machine while the toddlers and Poppy played with the multitude of other toys available. What a great asset to have for a rainy day!

Today is July 14th, Bastille Day, and so the main shops all close at lunchtime as it is a national holiday. Sylvia and I decided to go for a drive and to stop for some bread and cider on the way, the rest opted for a quiet day at home walking and playing. We would eat out while Victoria was going to cook pasta for the remainder of the Robbins’ house.

We headed north to visit some of the D-Day museums, the first stop being the Pegasus Bridge.

The Pegasus Bridge was the site of the first landings on D-Day by the glider corps of the British army and was a vital crossing point of the canal system. The museum acts both as an historic record of these events and as a memorial to the thousand lives that were lost in the ensuing battle. In addition to containing large memorabilia from the time such as this jeep…………. 

and half track……………………………………………………

the museum also contained many moving personal remembrances including letters written by soldiers to their loved ones at home.

The original bridge had to be pulled down in the early 90s but is preserved within the museum and this is me walking on it.

Across the canal sits the first building liberated by allied troops which is now a cafe, we had a look at eating here but decided on the much cleaner newer establishment over the road.

After a light snack of Croque Monsieur [Sylvia] and Croque Madame and chips [Me] we returned to the car to continue our journey along the coast. We passed Sword and Juno beaches but as the traffic was now getting busy with bank holiday visitors to the shore we decided to return home and save the remainder for future days. As we drove down the suburban roads a camel followed by a zebra came into view both tethered by the roadside, the circus was in town.

At the close of the day we could hear fireworks being let off in the distance in celebration of France’s national day.

Normandy – Day Four – Argentan.

After several days of glorious sunshine , it was almost inevitable that we would have rain today. I think that it had been raining in the night as the bench I sit and compile the blog on needed a wipe clean and as I sat putting yesterday’s words of wisdom together a few fresh spots of rain hit my screen. This turned to a rather heavy shower. This was not a total disaster as everyone made their way to the play barn to take part in a number of games including table-tennis and fuss ball. A brilliant facility at the cottages.

The rain lasted an hour or so and made everything fresh, including the flowers that Tyson was smelling.

The Robbinses decided to go South to find something to eat while the Hewitts re-visited Falaise. After a drive through some country roads via Trun we arrived at Argentan the birthplace of Eleanor of Aquitaine. We quickly found car parking spaces albeit next to a mad Frenchman who was telling us that his car seat was too low as he had a bad back. I know, it didn’t make any sense to us either.

We walked through a small market where Diarra bought sunglasses and Poppy a Noddy [or Oui-Oui as he is known locally] ball and bat. Eating establishments were a little sparse, the first one we entered had a dirty floor so we finally settled for a pizza. It was actually a really good choice as they were very welcoming to the children, in fact Joseph kept winking at the waitress. They start early in the Shingler family!!

After a detour to the hyper market to pick up even more cakes for tonight's meal we made our way back to the cottages. This time Sylvia’s navigation took us through smaller villages and narrower lanes getting a good impression of the local scenery.

The late afternoon meant the customary swimming session for most of the housemates and Poppy decided to give it a go with her Auntie Helena.

Meanwhile Joseph  decided on the much more leisurely pursuit of wheelbarrow riding.

 

This area of Normandy is famous for apples and the drinks made from the fruit are a speciality. I grew up in Herefordshire, England’s greatest cider making area and due to an experience in my teens [for another time] I haven't tried the drink for many years. The cider here though is less strong, only 2%, and is therefore a very pleasant and refreshing drink. The same can not be said for the other apple based product , Calvados. This is a very strong spirit which we sampled for the first time today. It tasted in my opinion like a cross between paint stripper and meths but with none of the finesse. I won’t be sampling that again.

Normandy – Day Three – Falaise.

Falaise is the nearest town of any size, situated about 5 kilometres away from the cottages. Although much of the ancient town was destroyed during World War Two the castle and some of the town’s walls are still in place. Falaise has a special place in British history as it was here that William the First [The Conqueror] was born in 1027.

Sylvia and I decided to explore this historical town on our own and after parking near the information centre made the short walk to the castle. There are extensive building work going on around the monument but the tower and some of the battlements are still in evidence.

It was good to get a French perspective on the historical events leading to the Battle of Hastings as these were depicted on various AV presentations through the visit.

The castle gave superb views across the town although we were not brave [or fit enough] to take the large number of steps to the top of the tower. This view being taken from the battlements.

After walking around the town and castle, it was time for lunch. We found a small restaurant on one of the town’s squares which appeared to be very popular with the locals. It offered the following ‘menu du jour’.

Although we could understand most of the menu the initial starter eluded our language skills.The waitress also had a problem with the translation so she disappeared into the kitchen and returned with two large shelled creatures on a plate. That’ll be two chefs salads then please!!!

[Google has since provided me with the translation – they were in fact WHELKS!]

The lunch was magnificent. The salad was a combination of cheese, olives, tomatoes and greens liberally dressed with olive oil. We both chose the duck for main which literally fell off the bone. This was accompanied by a huge plate of ‘frites’. For dessert Sylvia had a beautiful Crème Brule while I had a very rich and creamy Chocolate Mousse. A great lunch.

After a short walk along the old town wall followed by a visit to the supermarket to stock up with cakes and pastries for tea, we returned to the cottage to await the arrival of Helena and Diarra. Here I relaxed planning future journeys…………..

and Sylvia patrolled the grounds taking more photographs.

After the arrival of Helena and Diarra and the introductions that followed we all decided to go for a swim. As Rosalind was one of the few who didn’t partake I asked her to take a few photos on my camera. The following are just a mere sample of the 85 pics she took!!!

Everyone in the pool [no-one looking at camera]

Tyson splashing his mum.

Joey joining in the fun.

Poppy and her Dad and caterpillar.

Matt demonstrating his diving technique.

Another great day!

Normandy – Day Two

A lazy French Sunday.

The sun shining through the window and the dawn chorus started this morning in France. After the rigours of travelling from the various corners of the world a quiet day was called for. France on a Sunday is much like Britain twenty years ago with the majority of shops closed and the day seems to be treated very much as a family occasion. So when in France do as the French do.

Firstly a walk to the local village to the only shop that is open, the boulangerie, to collect the breakfast requirements of bread, croissants etc. The village is situated around about a mile from the property, a lovely walk down a long lane bordered by fields of wheat on one side and barley on the other. The edges of the fields scattered with poppies and other such flowers giving a very French feel to the walk.

After breakfast, apart from a visit to the one supermarket in Felaise open on a Sunday, the day was spent lazing on the lawn or utilising the facilities of our holiday home.

“La Hamberie”, where we are staying is a 17th Century Normandy farmhouse that comprises now of five gites that form three sides of a rectangle around a central lawn. The four side is occupied by out-buildings that include the massive play barn. We are staying in two of the gites, ‘La Demeurre’ [the home of the Hewitts and associates for the next fortnight – shown below]……….

……….and ‘Le Foumil’ the Robbins residence for the duration here.

 

Virtually all the bedrooms in both houses have en-suite facilities and they are well equipped for all one’s everyday needs. Inside the play barn are two table-tennis tables, a table football machine together with numerous toys for children of all ages. Even if the weather turns nasty there will still be plenty to do. The extensive ground of the complex boasts a field for playing football and badminton plus an outside play area with swings and slides. The centre of attention today though was the swimming pool where nearly everyone had a swim [ I was one of the few abstainers]

Josh demonstrated his diving techniques while Oliver need a little assistance from Poppy’s armbands.

 

 

As the day got warmer all most people wanted to do was to sit on the green and soak up the sun, while Sylvia sketched in the background.

 

 

When the holiday was booked I had a clear plan of what I would be doing this evening, this involved finding a local French hostelry with TV access and watching the World Cup being returned to it’s rightful home, England. However due to a rather pathetic performance by our national team two Sundays ago that was no longer a consideration. Despite the fact that an English team were taking part in the final, I felt that an English referee and two assistants were not a reason to venture out into the French hinterland after dusk. We attempted therefore to watch the match on the laptop but due to “copyright issues” this became very difficult to achieve. After much sterling work by Oliver we watched the match albeit with a French commentary [ who said that geeks can’t be useful].

Our efforts of finding the match were not matched by the 22 players on the pitch in what turned out to be a very boring final. An indication of the boredom level can be demonstrated by our discovery of  the “25 facts about carrots” website, where we learnt that orange carrots were invented by the Dutch, that carrots were the third most popular vegetable in the UK [sprouts being the LEAST favourite] and that the longest carrot ever grown was 17feet long. If we get bored tomorrow we may visit the “20 facts about celery” or “15 facts about eggplants” sites. Watch out for these facts in future quizzes.

 

Tomorrow we will intend to discover some of the local area while we await the arrival of Helena and Diarra the final members of the party.

Nous sommes arrivés en France.

or “We have arrived in France”.

 

The holiday has begun after various members of the party travel from across the globe to meet in La Hamberie. We left Wales yesterday morning and spent the night in an hotel in Portsmouth. The hotel itself, a Premier Holiday Inn, was fine but the temperature was almost unbearable. There being no air conditioning we had to sleep with the window open and it was a very busy road outside. Sylvia and I didn’t do too badly for sleep but I think that the Shinglers with four in a room suffered a little.

A bright start was needed to catch the ferry and we meet outside at Seven for the short journey to the ferry port.Oliver, relying on his “Tom-Tom” immediately took a wrong turn and arrived about 5 minutes after us at the terminal. So much for new technology!!

The ferry journey was a great way to start the holiday with Poppy disappearing after a few minutes into a soft play area and effectively staying there for the whole 6 hour journey. She did make a couple of excursions out, firstly to get her face painted -

- and then to meet “ Pierre Le Bear”

Joey joined her in the play area but also spent time on deck with his parents - [Oliver’s the one with the phone in his hand!!!!!]

but did get a chance to meet the bear.

My journey almost when without incident except that I mistimed sitting on a seat and landed on the metal separating arm. It brought tears to my eyes and bruised more than my ego, but it did bring amusement to the rest of the family. Here is the offending arm……

 

It’s been a while since I’ve driven on French roads but after a few apprehensive minutes it was like I had never been away. The route to the gite was plain and simple and very well described by the owners. When we arrived all the nieces and their families were already there, just waiting on Paddy.   Rooms were quickly sorted and after a small expedition to the supermarket it was time to eat.

Just like the holidays of old, the first meal consisted of cooked chicken, salad, French bread, followed by tarts of various descriptions. Of course wine and local cider completed the feast.

After a quick game of table tennis the various families retired to their cottages to rest after a long day of travelling. More about the  place tomorrow.

A Normandy Quiz.

Thanks for all your comments on the last blog post, it really shows how much you remember about previous French holidays., but how much do you know about the place we are about to visit, Normandy. There’s only one way to find out…………QUIZ!!!!!

1. The author of the classic French novel, “Madame Bovary”, was born in Normandy in 1821. What was his name?

2. How would you prepare “Moules a la Normandie”?

3. How many leopards appear on the traditional flag of Normandy?

4. In which Normandy town would you find this place of worship? 5. What are the two departments that make up Upper Normandy [Haute-Normandie]?

6. Normandy is famous for it’s cheeses, can you name three types that originate in this area?

7. Which famous artist painted a series of studies of Rouen cathedral?

8.What were the code-names of the beaches used in the D-Day landings?

9. Which place in Normandy is France’s second most popular tourist attraction, being beaten only by the Eifel Tower in Paris?

10. Name these famous Normans -

[a]   

[b]

[c]

[d] Especially for our American readers.

There will be a prize of a bottle of wine for the best entry, only for those going to France unfortunately.

Don’t forget that if you like quizzes there are hundreds on my web-site that can be found at http://www.kensquiz.co.uk/.

Bon Voyage

Memories of France

or it’s like déjà vu all over again!

 

As this year’s holiday approaches Sylvia and I have been looking back at the family albums and remembering previous French holidays. Here are a few photos and some of my memories of the various places.So  feel free to chip in with yours.

Jaulgonne, July 1995

This was the first time that the combined families  holidayed together in two adjacent cottages by the river. Here are the girls pictured outside the cottages.

Visits to the champagne factory in Epernay  ensured many happy evenings drinking and eating late into the night [for the adults of course]. The youngsters being more pre-occupied with visits to the park, to “play” with the local French boys. Here they are returning from one such trip.

I also remember the visits to the WW1 battlefields many of which were close-by, but this was balanced by a visit to Euro-Disney, as it was known back then. The girls really enjoyed this as you can see from this snap.

A really nice holiday, so much so that 12 months later we were to return.

Chamboise, Burgundy August 1996.

A little more of a remote location near Autun, near two slag-heaps that became known as “the Madonna with the big boobies”. This coupled with Naomi’s impersonation of René's Mother-in-law gave this house a real “’ello,’ello” feeling. Again food and drink played a large part of the holiday where Ellie had her first taste of Chardonnay, because Alanis Morissette had sung about it! Here we are enjoying a family meal. The television in the corner provided us with the first viewing of The Spice Girls who were to top the charts with “Wannabe” - The birth of girl power!!! A visit to the local Roman amphitheatre gave the girls a chance to perform in their own right. This picture was taken there.

Guyan – Vennes July 1997.

The third holiday in the sequence came twelve months later, this time in the French Alps near the border with Switzerland. So close in fact that regular excursions were made over the border to the town of Neuchatel.

Later in the holiday The Robbinses decided to take a trip to Italy, and as Briony had decided to study Italian at university she came too. Finding Milan was easy, parking the car was fine, a hotel was located swiftly but to move the car the 200 metres from car park to hotel took hours. I kept driving past the same places but not getting any closer. The  girls enjoyed the visit and looked very sophisticated at dinner that night.The same could not be said for the way they looked on our return, sharing a lolly that we had bought in the St. Bernard’s Pass. 

Other highlights included the village parade, the cycle race and the summer luge – a great holiday.

 

What do you remember???????????

Normandy Invasion 2010

 

It was back in July 1997 that the Robbinses and the Hewitts last made a combined expedition to France. On that occasion the lucky town was Guyan-Vennes near the Swiss border, now thirteen years later it’s time for France once again to be on it’s guard. The 2010 invasion of Normandy is about to begin.

This time the families will be reinforced by husbands, partners, children and various other hangers-on to form a total of (at the last count) seventeen. The troops will arrive in three main waves, the South-East Asian contingent [Vietnam & S. Korea] will be joined by the USA and form an Eastern flank. The Irish having made a short journey through the Chunnel will approach from the North-East while the 2 units of Welsh will move in from the North. The English medical corps will follow on two days later to ensure that any casualties are well cared for.

The centre of attention will be the small hamlet of Fresne la Mere, just outside Falaise, in the Calvados area of Normandy. Here, for the following two weeks, will be the home for this intrepid band of  travellers,apart from a few days at Disneyland Paris for some of the youngsters.

Sylvia has started her lists, Rosalind is on the way and Briony is so excited “she could pull her face off”, so it must be getting close. Hopefully there will be much to write about and lots of FOOD to describe, so watch this space.