2/3
Bonjour à tous! Following my previous post about my adventures
during Toussaint (if you haven’t read it, you can find it here, I am back with the second
instalment of three.
So on
Wednesday the 26th we got up early (or as early as we managed to,
because we were so tired), grabbed breakfast and got back on the road. This
time, Saint-Malo in Brittany was our first destination. There was again a lot
of fog, particularly in the high way (I guess it’s normal for the time of year
and the place?) but we dealt with it. We did have sat nav problems when we got
to Saint-Malo though, because there were some road works and we had to take a
diversion. We ended up in the train station parking lot, but after realizing we
were way too far from the Old Town, we left and made our way to the beach using
Google Maps. We eventually got to the seaside and found a place in a small
parking lot near the Fort National. We were quite lucky because, despite it
being Autumn and a heavily overcast day, the parking spaces were scarce but we
managed to find one. Once parked, we got out and headed down to the beach.
It
looked amazing; the beach is absolutely massive (and sandy, which is a change
around here!). It reminded me a lot of Brighton and Southsea, with the line of
grand houses and the avenue leading right onto the seaside walk with stairs
onto the beach itself. Even though it was windy and cloudy, walking on sand is
always great! We could see the Fort National from there and, after taking some
pictures, headed over to the Tourism Office which was right around the corner. They charge 30cent for a map of the Old Town, and also charge for the use of
the toilet – I swear, is anything not expensive in this place? But the lady we
spoke to was helpful enough to give us a suggested tour- going along the ramparts and then into the
city itself- and she also pointed out where the ferry to Dinard and the
timetables were. The original plan was to visit Saint-Malo and then take the
ferry to Dinard, which is a seaside town just opposite Saint-Malo, before
getting back to the car and driving to Dinan. Quite an ambitious plan. We ended
up giving up on Dinard since we saw the town from the ramparts and it did not
look too interesting (nor it was, according to our trusty travel guide).
Anyhow, we
went into the Old Town (noticing there were some free toilets by the entrance
#rookieerror) and climbed the stairs up to the ramparts. The views were
breath-taking!
You can see the sea and beach, but also all the little off-shore
islands near the coast and the opposite side of the firth where Dinard is.
Honestly, it was beautiful! I couldn’t stop taking pictures! From walking along
the ramparts of the walled city (which started off as a corsaire city) we saw
the Château de Saint-Malo which is now the Town Hall, the different doors
giving entry to the city, the fort where they used to hold the gunpowder (and
which attackers failed to blow up, their boat running aground near the beach
instead), the Grand Bé island where Chateaubriand is buried and the different beaches
with many little boats.
There was low tide and no wind so the swimming pool at
Plage de Bon Secours literally looked like a mirror, it was amazing! We also
saw the house of corsair Robert Surcouf before entering the actual city. We
walked around following the map but every little turn had a different thing to
see. We saw the outside of the Saint-Vincent Cathedral where there was an organ
concert taking place, and had lunch by the Monument to the Fallen.
After lunch
we decided it was time to keep moving so we went back to the car and headed for
Dinan, stopping for fuel on the way (diesel is quite expensive tbh).
Dinan is
one of the best preserved medieval towns in Brittany, and I fell absolutely in
love with it! Finding a parking space was an adventure in itself. First, we
were lucky to get the spot left by a car that was just pulling out – it was
packed! Then, we didn’t know we had to pay until we were leaving and I read
‘Parking Payant’ on the floor. So back we went trying to figure out how it
worked. Apparently, there was a ticket machine on the far side of the parking
lot which gave you a prepaid ticket to display on your car. However, the prices
varied depending on how long you were staying and it was all really confusing.
It took us two tries – a first one before heading to the tourist office to grab
a map – and a second one on our way back from the office. Fortunately, an old
man helped us out and we got the correct ticket and had no further problems. As
I said, all the different towns have different systems and we pretty much tried
them all!
In Dinan we
took the recommended route on our map, seeing tons of medieval houses. It
reminded me so much of Lacock near Bath! All the medieval houses are decorated
with planks of wood and have that protruding second floor to gain more space.
Again a walled city, we had to climb quite a few steps to get to the ramparts
but it was so, so worth it. The sun was setting and there were no clouds, you
could see the forests surrounding the town and the river port in the distance
and it looked straight out of a fairy tale – I fell in love with the place! We
also saw the church in the middle of the town which was as eclectic as can be
with different bits and bobs added throughout the centuries. For an art history
student like me, it was really interesting to see. We then headed back home
since our parking ticket only lasted till 6 and had a mediocre dinner at our
hotel – the menu du jour which was
fish soup, turkey fillet with Norman sauce (which I’ve realized I don’t like)
and grilled apple with salted caramel butter. Sounds good but it wasn’t great.
On Thursday
we were leaving the hotel, so we got up early, packed the rest of our stuff and
checked out after breakfast, ready for the long day ahead. First stop, Bayeux.
For some reason though, the sat nav decided the fastest route was taking us out
of the autoroute and making us go
through tons of little one lane roads frequented by tractors. It offered us
both a picturesque view and a stressful drive, but we eventually reached Bayeux
and were the luckiest people ever finding a free parking space on the road
right next to the Cathedral – what were the odds! After this victory, we first
headed for the tapestry. It was surprisingly good. It is really long and very,
very well crafted for the age it has. They give you an audioguide with your
entry ticket which explains you the different scenes – again, I have been
learning so much about William the Conqueror since I’m here! Looking at the
Tapestry was like reading a comic. After going around with the audio guide, we
went back to the start to enjoy it at our own pace. The hand stitching is
amazing and it is well preserved for it being so old and having suffered so
much over the centuries. There was also a short film and an exhibition about
the tapestry explaining how it was made and more about the history of it –
super worth seeing if you are ever near Bayeux!
After the
tapestry we stopped for lunch near the Cathedral. Nothing special, just some
chicken fingers with fries and a sugar crêpe. Then we went into the Cathedral.
It was a lovely sunny day so the Cathedral was beautifully lit up by the
sunshine creeping through the stained glass windows. It was amazing! I actually
think it was one of the prettiest cathedrals I saw all week – and I saw some
really famous ones! The crypts have some medieval paintings decorating the
ceiling and it is quite well preserved for a smaller town like Bayeux.
After
Bayeux we were on our way to Omaha Beach. I wanted to visit one of the D-Day
beaches while we were nearby, but I didn’t really have any preferences. Omaha
and Utah were the ones that I recalled off the top of my head, and since they
are all packed with different D-Day museums, we simply chose Omaha because it
was nearer. We first went into the Omaha Beach Memorial Museum, where there is
an exhibition about the beach during the war, with tons of original objects and
pictures and papers from the era. It was amazing and moving to read about the
people who fought and lost their lives there. They showed a video explaining
how D-Day took place and actual soldiers gave their account of it and it was
all very emotional. Again, their sacrifice is one that I will never wrap my
head around. In the large scale, it helped win the war but it took so many
lives none-the-less. I really liked the story of Jean and Edouard Tierney – a nurse
who worked in Omaha Beach during the war and who met his husband Edouard, an
aviator, while she was there and who have both made numerous donations of their
personal objects to the museum and have paid many visits. It is the fact of
seeing their faces and learning their stories that makes their sacrifice have
even more meaning.
After the
museum we went down to the beach itself. The beach is massive and beautiful, no
trace of what happened there 70 years ago save for a Memorial Monument with
flags. It was a beautiful place to be honest; kilometres of sand spreading as
far as you can see on both sides.
We then
rushed to the American War Cemetery in Coleville-sur-Mer and arrived ten
minutes before closing time. Fortunately, the lady at the gate let us through
and we had to make a run for it but we made it to the Memorial and first
hundreds of white crosses. I really wish we’d had more time to walk around but
I am happy that we were able to go in and have a look, even if it was only for
a quarter of an hour. We’d gone so far it would’ve been a pity if we’d had to
leave without seeing it. The Cemetery was as massive as the beach itself, lines
of crosses one after the other.
Once back
in the car, we had some snacks and started the long drive back to Fécamp. This
time, we went through the toll roads to save up time. Toll roads in France are
quite expensive when you travel long distances, but they const-effective
time-wise. We stumbled with the rush-hour traffic jam in the Caen périférique but other than that made is
safely back home without any issues. We tried everything during this road trip:
fog, narrow lanes, massive roundabouts, crazy French drivers, congested
traffic, empty high ways, being overtaken by a lorry, the Pont de Normandie and
every kind of toll imaginable – paying on the go to a man, paying a machine,
getting a ticket and paying at another barrier, paying for bridges…
Congratulations to Dad and driving me around even though I know it’s not the
thing he likes best xx We were really tired once we arrived back in the house
but we still unpacked, did some laundry, cooked some dinner with what we had
lying around and planned the following day before a well-deserved sleep.
On Friday
we got up early despite being super tired from the day before. We got ready and
left to go to Amiens. This time we just stuck to the high way despite toll
roads, since Amiens was so far away we had to save as much time as possible because
we were only there for the day. It took us around 2 hours to get there and we
didn’t have any problems until we were actually inside Amiens near the centre,
and the road to the parking lot was closed. We had to loop around a couple of
times until we found our way to the Cathedral parking following the street
signs. It is so stressful to drive through unknown cities! Once we left our car
in 3 Cailloux parking space, we first went to see the Cathedral. Oh my, was it
massive. At the Tourist Office the young man behind the desk suggested going
inside the Cathedral and the heading to the Saint-Leu neighbourhood before
making our way to Tour Perret and Jules Verne’s house. So that we did. The
façade of the Cathedral is a masterpiece, so intricately carved and decorated
with all sorts of statues and gargoyles but without it looking too
overwhelmingly full and heavy. I really loved it; I think it was the best part
of it because I didn’t find the inside to be too majestic in comparison (which
is usually the case though). The relic of the Cathedral is allegedly the head
of Saint John the Baptist, but that is only accessible if you purchase a ticket
and we were going free-style. However, there are many little details inside the
Cathedral that make it clear that it was a rich city.
Once we
finished in the Cathedral we made our way to Saint-Leu, the old neighbourhood,
just behind the cathedral. It kind of looked like a run-down Murano, with old houses
in different colours lined up by the canal. It looked sad though, with the
walls looking dirty and many shops closed and empty. It had the potential of
being a cute version of Amsterdam, but turned out to be a decayed and sad
version of it – I didn’t really like it. We headed back to the square by the
Cathedral and went in for lunch at a random restaurant called Big Ben on the
right of the Cathedral. It turned out to be a hipster French bistrot and we had
the menu du jour which was
to-die-for: proper British fish and chips (fresh cod and home-made chips), a
Liège waffle with salted caramel butter and coffee. So worth it! The place was
jam packed with family and business men, I really liked it. Definitely
recommend it if you happen to be around. By the time we were done with lunch,
it was time to continue our journey and we didn’t have time to see Jules
Verne’s house, but we did get a glimpse of Tour Perret between the buildings on
our way to the car. I have now confirmed that I enjoy much more visiting little
towns than big cities; good to know for future reference.
We were
then on our way to Thiepval. Since we had a car and Dad wanted to go to Amiens,
I thought I would make the most of it and visit one of the locations in the
Somme. Since I was younger I’ve always been interested in the Great War so it
was a dream come true to actually go to the Somme, even if it was just for the
day. I chose Thiepval because it is home for the largest Commonwealth War
Memorial to the missing of the Somme, in the place where the bloodiest of the
battles took place between July and November 1916. We first went to the
Interpretation Centre which has tons of information and a new area that opened
this summer as part of the 100 year anniversary of the Battle. It was very
emotional to learn about the thousands of soldiers who lost their lives there
and the mourning of their families.
We then
headed to the Franco-British memorial itself, a 45m high construction of brick
and stone designed by Lutyens with the engraved names of the more than 70000
British and Commonwealth soldiers who lost their lives during the Battle of the
Somme. Among the names we saw that of one of our ancestors, Leonard Harry
Bedford (d. 18/10/1916; name on Pier and Face 16C), to whom we left a little
poppy cross. There are also a few Commonwealth and French grave stones behind
the monument, with flowers and letters to the Unknown Soldier written by school
children. Despite the long drive, it was a very special place and definitely
worth visiting. The Somme itself looks just like the rest of the country side
we’ve visited, only it is more flat – expanses of fields dotted with clumps of
trees as far as the eye can see, and even a century later, some unfilled shell
holes are still to be seen if you look close enough. The drive back home was
long but, as I said, I am really happy we did it because I wouldn’t have been
able to go otherwise!
I’m going
to wrap up the second instalment of my Toussaint
adventures here. Hope you’ve enjoyed the posts so far and keep tuned for
the last one coming soon!
Zoe x
I love reading it.....just looking forward to enjoying the last chapter...It is a fantastic guide for a future trip...Congratulations!!!
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