Fall Break ~ Mont-Saint-Michel and Saint-Malo

When I was in fourth grade, we went to Sea World.  My dad took hundreds of pictures of Shamu the Whale.  It was ridiculous, and we teased him the whole time.  Well, that was pretty much me with Mont-Saint-Michel. I was just so excited and in awe of it's beauty.  I really couldn't help myself.  I too was a bit ridiculous.

I've never seen anything like it.  You can see it from miles away.  It doesn't even look real.  It's just out there in the distance all by itself.

Can you see the rainbow to the left?

Perched on a rocky islet in the midst of vast sandbanks exposed to powerful tides between Normandy and Brittany stand the 'Wonder of the West', a Gothic-style Benedictine abbey dedicated to the archangel St Michael, and the village that grew up in the shadow of its great walls. Built between the 11th and 16th centuries, the abbey is a technical and artistic tour de force, having had to adapt to the problems posed by this unique natural site. ~UNESCO World Heritage Centre

It was really not that cold.  She will regret the hood when she looks at these pictures in years to come.

Magnificent!

This is the view when the tide is out.  I particularly like this shot because of the shadow of abbey.

Inside the walls.

Editing her pictures.  I don't know where she gets that?? 

Massive fireplaces inside the abbey.

Yes, we reached this point.  He is THAT annoying younger brother.

The cloister is actually on top of the abbey.

Narrow streets in the lower parts beneath the abbey.

This is for Chris.  He thinks I don't notice the Cat machines.

Inside the cathedral

Even this little girl was enthralled with the angelic voices of the monks and nuns (at least I think they were monks and nuns....right?!)

One last shot... :)

Our guide from Monday recommended we visit the town of Saint-Malo after seeing Mont-Saint-Michel.  So, late in the afternoon we made the drive over.  Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in Northwestern France on the English Channel.  Saint-Malo is notorious for PIRATES!  That was all the kids had to hear, and they were ready to go!

It poured rain on our way to Saint-Malo, but this was our reward.  I actually pulled the car over because I could see this in the rear view mirror.  Unreal!

He was hoping to spot some pirates. 

This was a a really beautiful city.  The kids could have climbed on these rocks all day.

Last shot with my favorite hat. :( On our way back to the hotel, we drove past Mont-Saint-Michel to see it at night.  Chris and I switched places, so I could drive.  When I got out of the car I forgot my hat was on my lap, so it must be lying in a field at Mont-Saint-Michel.  Sniff sniff.....

Back to Saint-Malo

Even the shells were stunning.

 We went into the walled part of the city to see the sunset.

Fort National in the distance (where we climbed on the rocks.)

Amazing!  This was one of those pinch me moments.  I was standing on the Northwest coast of France watching the sunset....really?!?!

Walking along the wall.

 And, that concludes another day of touring.  Check back for more beaches, Honfleur, and Étretat.  

Until next time,

Wendy

Fall Break ~ Normandy 2013 (Part 1)

Sunday, October 27th we left for Normandy, France.  This was a trip we had been anticipating since we moved here. 

I am apologizing ahead of time.  There are an obscene number of pictures on this post.  In an attempt to not be too long winded, I will let the photos speak for themselves.

Pont du Normandie

I admit I slept most of the way, but thankfully woke up to see Pont du Normandie.  And, I am sure my mom would be thankful she was not along for this ride as she hates bridges (and she would have really hated this one.)

 Our first stop was Caen, Normandy, France where we visited The Mémorial de Caen (museum and war memorial) commemorating the Second World War.

The museum was very informative, and we all learned a lot.  I'm glad we visited prior to our tour of the beaches.

After a long drive and time spent at the museum, I think we were all ready to relax.  We checked into Hotel Château de Bellafontaine in Bayeux.  Thank you to our friend Karin for the great recommendation.  We did not actually stay in the main house being a family of four.  Instead, we were in the converted stables.  They were terrific with an upstairs bedroom for the kids and beautiful exposed beams.  Sketchy wifi was the only issue.

Hotel Château de Bellafontaine

Monday morning was our guided tour.  Again, thank you to friends here in Brussels for the great recommendation. John was very knowledgable and took us to every location we wanted to see plus more.  It was money very well spent.

We started our tour at Sainte-Mère-Église.  This is the town where paratroopers landed in the early hours before the invasion of the beaches.  John Steele's parachute snagged on the spire of this church where he hung for two hours literally "playing dead".  The only difference between him and the memorial statue there now is that he actually landed on the other side of the spire.

On our way to Utah Beach, we saw our first set of German batteries.  These were painted to look like homes on the countryside.

And, there were rainbows all weekend long.  They were amazing!

This battery had the ability to hit the beaches.  You can see how far the beaches are behind the kids in the photo below.

Utah Beach

Trotters along the beach

Mom's favorite

The roads along the beaches are named after American servicemen.

Our next stop was the town of Sainte-Mère-du-Mont.  It is remains unchanged from 1944.

German soldiers had occupied the belfry of this church.  Two of these German soldiers hid in the confessional and were shot.  The bullet holes are still visible with the exit holes on the backside.

This church was used by two medics from the 101st airborne division to aid troops and civilians.

Blood still present in the pews.

A bomb came through the roof of this church, but it was a dud.

You can see the cracked tile where it landed.

This window was dedicated to the medics.

My favorite stained glass window.

This is the memorial is dedicated to "E" Company or Easy Company.  We are currently watching Band of Brothers, so now this means a lot more to us than it did just one week ago.

We had the opportunity to visit a German cemetery.  It was a much different experience than visiting an American cemetery.

9,000 German soldiers are buried beneath this mound.

Pont du Hoc was our next stop.  It is the 100 ft. cliff between Utah and Omaha Beaches that was successfully assaulted by the United States Rangers.  Personally, this was my favorite stop.

It was like a big playground for them.

A view from inside the battery.

Looking down over the cliff.

The American Cemetery

It was so beautiful and sad all at the same time.  Did you know every tree, bush, and blade of grass was brought over from the US?!  The kids kept commenting on how much they loved the trees.  I think they loved them because it reminded them of home.  

President Theodore Roosevelt's two sons are buried here.  Quentin is the only soldier buried here that died during WWI.

The view of Omaha Beach from the cemetery.

Omaha Beach

These stones once covered the entire beach.  It was one more obstacle for the men to conquer.  Today, most of the stones have been removed.

This field was the landing strip for General Patton.

Longues -Sur-Mer Battery

I'm pretty sure no one thought these would be used for climbing and recreation.

And by some miracle...no one got wet!

Arromanches ~ The Artificial Port

And, a beautiful sunset to go with it.

Remnants of the port are still visible.

Gold Beach

Amazing light!  Very fitting for the end of an amazing day.

After nine hours of touring, we enjoyed time in front of the fire, dinner, and a fantastic dessert.  It was a very humbling day for all of us and one that will always be a favorite.  Needless to say, we had plenty to talk about during dinner.

It was delicious!

Next up,  Mont Saint-Michel!

Until next time,

Wendy