May 4 & 5 - Lille

 May 4 

We left Honfleur after breakfast and drove via toll roads to Lille which took about 4 hours and cost about 38 Euros, so - not cheap. We stopped en route for a coffee and a yogurt.

We had some difficulty getting into the flat in Lille as the directions were extensive, but not particularly clear. We understood that we'd have to get into the parking first and then pick up the keys. We simply could not figure out where the parking was and eventually called the concierge service and the woman explained that we had to get into the building first and then open the doors to the parking place inside. This all took quite some time as she did not call right back and we were getting frustrated.

 We did get in (4 rue l'entrepot) and the flat is pretty disappointing - very sparse and cheap. Examples: 2 towels, a hanging lightbulb, a missing lightbulb in laundry nook, 2 rolls of toilet paper... But, the worst was that the WiFi did not work. So, we had to call back. As calls cost us, the concierge and Barbara eventually switched to What's App. We had to take photos of the modem etc etc. Someone had changed the name of the network and the password! After about half-an-hour, we were "on." It was rather a discouraging start with a lot of wasted time.

The neighborhood seems a bit dingy and rundown, too and not what we expected.

But, we took a walk to the nearest little grocery store and things began to look up. In those few blocks, the neighborhoods dramatically improved. Students were everywhere and we heard music being rehearsed at a school for music and drama.

Note: Jecca accomplished her first leg of her hike in Cornwall, going from St. Ives to Zennor.

May 5

Today we set out for an outdoor/indoor market in Wazemmes, a district of Lille. It was huge and raucous and crowded. It was largely cheap clothing and housewares, but also stalls and stalls of fruits and vegetables with hawkers outdoing each other in their calls for customers. We heard a lot of Arabic and it felt a little bit like Egypt.

We bought potatoes and tomatoes and wandered happily, despite being quite chilly. 

We had a delicious meal at a Thai restaurant near the market. 

Then, we drove back to our flat and took a walk to Vieux Lille, a surprisingly short distance. It is somewhat pedestrianized with an eclectic group of buildings from various eras. 

We also went into the Notre-Dame-de-la Treille Cathedral which is quite unusual. It is on the site of a very old chapel, but in the 1850s a group decided that Lille needed a big church.

They wanted it to be Gothic in design. For many reasons, including war and money problems, the church was not completed until 1999! Parts of it look old and Gothic and parts are quite modern.

We wandered the old quarter and came "home" to have nibbles - baguette, cheese from Pont l'Eveque, butter from St. Malo and some small potatoes with that delicious butter we've been saving.

May 3 Honfleur on a rainy day

Looking down at Honfleur from near our hotel

Today we had another nice breakfast at the hotel. 

Then we took off for the big beach below Honfleur where the is the Garden of Personalities with heads/busts of famous people associated with Honfleur. We got about a mile into our walk when the heavens opened up and it bucketed rain.

Tanker going by while we huddled under a tree trying to be out of the rain, but we got soaked!

We had no choice but to walk back and got completely soaked. It was not too cold (low 60s) and no harm done. 

Before the downpour!

We sat in the car and warmed up and then drove to Pennedepie, a small village outside of Honfleur where we found an Argentinian bistro, Moulin St Georges. Mark had a huge burger with fries and Barbara had 3 tapas. All were good, not spoiled by our wet legs and feet.

Moulin St Georges

Jecca arrived last night in Portsmouth and today is taking 3 different trains to St. Ives where she will start her hike on the Coastal Path in Cornwall. Fingers crossed she won't get much rain.

Jecca's photo from the Coastal Path

May 2- Honfleur

 

Today we had breakfast with Pete and Shirley before they left for home. They drive their car onto the Eurostar and it's only about 35 minutes under the Channel.

 We drove down the hill into Honfleur and found a parking spot by the garden on the outskirts. As it's a bank holiday weekend for May Day, there were crowds of people. We were lucky to get a parking spot, for sure.

  Anyhow, we wandered the streets looking for a vegetable market, but mostly found stalls of clothing and souvenirs. It was a nice wander, though.

Then, we picked up a sandwich to split and went to a bench in a park before heading back to our hotel where we spent several hours reading before going down for a meal. We took walks before and after the meal looking at the big estates in this neighborhood as well as the small chapel built in the 1600s.

Steeple across from its church!

May 1 - May Day in Normandy - Trouville

 Today we ate breakfast at the hotel and then we took off to Trouville, another seaside town in Normandy. It was crowded as it is a three-day weekend holiday, but we managed to find a good parking spot. We then strolled to a beach-side cafe and had coffees.

   

Afterwards, Shirley and Barbara put our toes in the cold water, but the sand was fine and warm. These beaches are so side that they absorb a lot of people without seeming at all crowded.

   We walked a bit of Trouville and found a place for lunch; I think we all had salads so that we'd have room for dinner. Then, a bit more strolling but rain was imminent, so we went back to Honfleur.

    Shirley and Barbara walked to a 15th Century tiny church nearby and got back just in time for a thunderstorm

April 30 - On to Honfleur!

 Today we had a nice easy start with breakfast at Chez Claire and Barbara walked into the village for photos.

Church we passed today

 

Road in Normandy

Then, we drove to Honfleur on the coast of Normandy to meet up with Pete and Shirley at a hotel above the town. First, we stopped at Pont l'Eveque and got some of their famous cheese. It was sunny and warm enough to break out sandals and shorts.

   

Mark drove us all into town and we strolled the harbor and had a nice lunch.

In Honfleur

      We talked and talked.

      We all ate dinner at the hotel, Le Ferme de la Grande Cour. Very delcious!

Dining Room with Shirley, Pete, Mark

April 29, another day at the seaside

Today we had another nice breakfast at Chez Claire's with homemade bread, yogurt and jams. 

Beuvron-en-Auge

We got a nice early start and headed toward Plage de la Redoubte on Claire's recommendation for a quiet beach. It is just outside Merville-Franceville-Plage and on the Orne Estuary. We walked about 800 meters to the beach, hoping for a picnic spot, but it was windy and no place to sit, so we walked around and heard many birds, but could only identify a few via Merlin and descriptions. It is a place where 3 different plovers nest and is a protected area.

It is called Redoubte Beach because of all the bunkers left there from WWII, also called redoubts. Grim reminders abound in this area.

From there, we drove into the nearby town, Merville-Franceville-Plage, a long name for a small seaside town which we liked very much. We walked along the promenade; the wind calmed down as the day went on and more and more families showed up to enjoy the beach. As tide was out, the beach was very, very wide. 

We had our picnic there - the usual - baguette, cheese, tomato, pate, oranges. This time we added a sparking rhubarb water made across the street from our guesthouse. (We bought another bottle today to take with us tomorrow)

After sitting there quite a while, we had a coffee and tea and the drove to the outskirts of Cabourg where we stopped yesterday, but were driven away by the cold and the wind.

We walked the promenade; today the beach had a lot more people as the weather was sunny and warm. There were walkers and bikers on the promenade. We watched kitesurfers and saw 4 sulky drivers and horses trotting by the water's edge which was very cool. We could envision spending time in Cabourg in the future.

Chez Claire's

Then - back to our guesthouse, Chez Claire. But, we left our key in our room as we'd done every day. But, today is Claire's day to close the cafe and she was busy taking two of her children to lessons- piano, violin, tennis. So - it was locked. We tried email, but knew she'd be unlikely to check it. Barbara tried putting in the one number we had to What's App and to call it - no avail. (We think it was the centralized number for the Chambres d'Hotes) After sitting in the car for 45 minutes, we decided we'd go into the village and eat, although we weren't hungry. But, then we saw a number on her sign. Barbara called that, and lo and behold!, Claire answered. She told us that there was an unlocked door around back. Whew! So, we got in and we had our left-overs from today's picnic sitting in the lovely front garden here. We'd have waited a long time if we'd have had to wait for Claire to get home.

 

April 28 - Beuvon-en-Auge - visit to the seaside

 

Little church next to Chez Claire

Today we had a nice breakfast at our guesthouse, Chez Claire. Claire, is a hard-working mother of three who runs the guesthouse and her restaurant by herself. The bread was homemade as were the yogurts and the jams. Her family also made the apple juice. 

  She recommended that we take a trip today to the seaside, so we took her advice and went to the towns of Cabourg and Houlgate which are side-by-side, separated by the River Dives.

 

  Both have huge, tidal sandy beaches and home from La Belle Epoch, from around 1870-1900. They are a bit reminiscent of the mansions of Newport, but French style. It was very windy walking the promenades of both towns, but we did. We walked by the Grand Hotel in Cabourg and then the wind and chill made us leave and walk up the main shopping street.

     We drove to Houlgate where it was still windy, but it had warmed up a bit. We parked on the outskirts of town and walked a good deal of Roland Garros Promenade and gazed at more impressive Belle Epoch mansions.

  As always, we wonder at how many working class people it took to support the few rich ones.

    We watched windsurfers in Houlgate for quite some time.

    We walked into town and had a light lunch which was delicious - a scallop veloute soup. It was unlike any we'd ever had. Not heavy, but smooth. With some French bread, it made a great lunch.

    We drove back through some very secondary (tertiary) roads with big hedgerows and by some huge estates of horses. This area is known for its horses. Claire, our landlady, has a horse (not here) and her eldest son will work with horses when he finishes school.

 

Beuvron-en-Auge village

 We walked through the little village, bought some bread, looked at some horses just outside of town and also bought some rhubarb sparkling drink to try from a man just across the street here.

Rhubarb sparkling water

   We ate at Claire's restaurant. To keep it simple, she does not change her menu. Mark had an andouille quiche and Barbara had a vegetable quiche. The quiches are very light and, with a salad, it made for a nice dinner. Maybe tomorrow we will try one of her desserts.

April 27- onto Beuvron-en-Auge, Normandy

  

This captures why we remember, and must remember, history

Today we left Bayeux and La Maison Victoire, both of which we thoroughly enjoyed. Frank served up another sumptuous breakfast and also carried our luggage down the stairs which was appreciated.

    Mark drove through Caen en route, but just passed through. It has a chateau, castle and several large churches which we passed by. If we could have found an easy place to park, we might have walked about.

   

The front of our guesthouse "Claire's" in Beuvron

St Martin's Church behind our guesthouse

 We drove to a very small village, considered one of the prettiest villages in Normandy. We had stopped at a SuperU to get the fixings for another French picnic, this time we added some pate to it. We ate by a field by the Bureau de Tourism and we got some maps and suggestions there. 

Flowers in the front of the guesthouse

    We are staying at a very modest Chambre d'Hote in a small bedroom room off the kitchen and laundry room of a tea room run by Claire, a very nice woman who serves lunch every day in the garden in front.  Our bathroom is only for us, just outside our door. The bathroom only has a curtain.

     

 After we settled in, we took a walk around the village which has many half-timbered houses, and an area where crafts are demonstrated and sold. We stopped in shop nearby where the man makes ciders (alcoholic and non) as well as sells various edibles made in the area. He has sparking rhubarb on offer now.