Our 60 Day Road Trip Begins

Our Peugeot Pick-up

After the experience we had of lugging our luggage through the Paris Metro, we grabbed a taxi to take us to the Peugeot Dealership to pick up our brand-new car. It was a very positive experience as we checked in with the receptionist and were welcomed by our personal representative. We sat down at her desk and went over the details of the contract, insurance and the car itself. We have a very compact and responsive silver Peugeot 207 turbo diesel hatchback. The only weird thing is the red “tourist” plates that are on the car. Normally European license plates are either white or yellow. You really stand out and I asked our representative if this does not make us a bit of a target. She said yes and that we need to make sure not to leave anything in the car. However, she said the biggest risk we face is to ensure we only fill the car with diesel and not regular gasoline. Apparently, this happens on occasion and the car engine is completely ruined. The bad news is that the insurance does not cover this. Rita has been repeating Diesel, Diesel, Diesel to me for hours now.
Headed out of Paris to Bayeux in Normandy, this is normally about a 3 hour drive. It took us 4 hours, thanks to our Tom Tom GPS system. For some reason it sent us through several towns instead of staying on the freeway. I think I programmed it wrong!!! We will be checking Tom Tom out tomorrow. Our farm house is about 10 km outside of Bayeux just outside a small village called Juaye- Mondaye. The directions we were given told us we would pass the “Abbey on the left, turn left at the War Memorial, go down the hill and past 3 poplar trees. The house is just past the trees on the left…” There it was. Amazing, why do we need Tom Tom’s when we have directions like this?

Bayeux Farmhouse

Farmhouse bedroom

The farmhouse is wonderful and very spacious and has a large apple orchard. The owners have left us a basket of goodies to get us started and they have a wine rack with the prices on the bottles and a cash box for you to put your money into, very civilized. Tomorrow we will go to Bayeux to explore the town and take in the Saturday market and get some fresh fruits and veggies.


Au Revoir….Geoff & Rita

Versailles

Rita in the line-up to enter Versailles

Our travel book stated that we needed to get to Versailles before 09:00 to avoid the crowds. As you can see, we made it by 11:00 along with everyone else!! The line-up was only about 20 minutes and Versailles is such a huge place that it absorbs thousands of people without it feeling overcrowded. You hear about Versailles and most of us have seen pictures, but until you see the place for yourself you really cannot appreciate the absolute decadence of it all. The wall that safeguards the palace is 25 miles in length. The Grand Canal was big enough to float a 30 gun warship and a river was diverted to supply enough water to the Canals and fountains. King Louis XIV spent 6 months of the richest country in Europe's entire budget to build Versailles. You can see why the French public finally had enough of the Royal families extravegances and stormed the Bastile and removed the Monarchy. Having said that, it makes for a great tour to look at such a wonderous place that was the envy of the world for over 100 years starting in 1689.

Hall of Mirrors

Grand Trianon

Chappel at Versailles

The Latona Fountain and Grand Canal in the Background

Tour du Paris - Day 2

Definately felt the walk yesterday, but that is why we brought the Advil !! Another big day today as we want to visit the Louvre, Eiffel Tower and end up at the Left Bank for dinner. Rita was studying up on what to see at the Louvre before we headed out for our big day.

The Louvre is an amazing place. I had visited it three times before and seem never to tire of its amazing displays and artifacts. Ever since my first visit, my favorite piece of art has never changed and I always enjoy seeing it. No, its no Mona Lisa, although they have moved her to a better viewing spot. My favorite is the ancient Greek Statue "Winged Victory". Perhaps its because of the wonderful location they have given her. You can see her from the bottom of the stairs as you start to climb towards her. I am really attached to how she looks as I feel she is standing strong, free and unstoppable. She originally stood at the top of a hill in Greece to celebrate one of their key naval victories.

After 5 hours wondering through the Louvre we headed to the Eiffel Tower. If you look closely at the picture you will see a big screen promoting the Rugby World Cup. They will play the games on this screen.

We arrived at the Eiffel Tower around 6:00pm and the line-up was only about 15 minutes. We purchased a ticket that would allow us to go to all three levels. The top level is 900 feet off the ground and the platform is quite small. Actually, the elevator ride to the third floor from the second floor, which is 400 feet off the ground, is the scary part as you can see straight down while the lift is taking you up. However, the views are amazing and on a clear day they say you can see up to 40 miles away.

After a wonderful experience at the Eiffel Tower we set off for the Latin Quarter located on the Left Bank. On our way there we had the pleasure of watching a Paris sunset from one of there many bridges.

The Latin Quarter is quite a place as it has lots of different restaurants representing countries from all over Europe. Lots of people walking the streets and vendors from the restaurants calling to the people their specialities and prices. Its a wonderful people watching experience. We ended up at a French/German style restaurant that served Greek beer. It was an excellent dinner and we headed to the Metro will full stomachs and aching feet. Tomorrow Versailles.

First Day Touring Paris

After a great sleep we both felt well rested and ready to put on our walking shoes and take on Paris. First stop the Marais neighborhood. Its medieval Paris and has not changed much since the 1800's.

After walking through the Marias it was of to Notre Dame. On the way we passed Paris City Hall where they had put up a big screen to view the Rugby World Cup games. What I thought was very creative was they dressed the statues with the French Rugby jerseys.

Walked around outside and then inside of the 700 year old Notre Dame Cathedral. What a marvelous and very spiritual place it is.

Crossed the Bridge and made our way to the Left Bank where we walked the many small pedestrian streets and enjoyed the shops, cafe's and many of the market stalls in the area.

Picked up some food and wine and took it home and enjoyed a relaxing evening in the apartment.

London to Paris Hungover

Rita on the stairs of our 4th floor Paris apartment


Wake-up to an 08:00 alarm and know its not going to be a good day. My mouth feels like it is stuffed with cotton batton and my head feels like its been used as a battering ram all night long.

Shower, finish packing, have some toast and tea, say farewell to my Aunt, cousin and Holly and head off to the Beaconsfield station to catch the train into London. We miss the direct train as I thought an extra 10 minutes sleep was a great idea and ended up on the train doing the milk run (stopping at every station). Get to Waterloo station in time to catch the Eurostar to Paris. While Rita is standing in line to check-in I go and grab some coffee, water and sandwiches for the trip. Get back just in time to go through the check-in counter and we are told that you cannot bring open beverages through security. After one sip, dump the coffee and proceed to security. Rita and her luggage pass through but my bag is stopped and am pulled over to a side station where they remove everything from my luggage, send it through in 3 seperate containers and then check it for explosive materials. Nothing is found and they ask if I want to repack my bag. I said no and watched the security person put everything back into my bag. Both of us were not happy. Finally get to the train and our seats to find out we are sitting looking backwards. This is not normally a problem for me but after we started moving I realize I do not like this positon when hung over. After an uneventful 2 1/2 hour trip we arrived at the Paris train station. Grabbed our luggage and got off the train and saw that the station was heaving with people. I then realized the impact of France hosting the World Cup of Rugby was having on this city. We went to get a taxi to take us to our apartment as we were advised that the Underground has lots of stairs and it not very good if you have luggage. Got to the taxi area and saw the line for cars weave around the building and decied that we would tackle the underground even with our luggage. This was a mistake. We thought that London underground had a lot of steps but Paris has steps everywhere and vey limited escalator service. Found the ticket machines and only one was working and that only took credit cards. We figured out how to get the ticket machine to work and put in my Visa and guess what, it was rejected!! Went and stood in line at the Information desk and after about 15 minutes we ordered our tickets with the same credit card without a problem. Started the process of climbing up and down stairs to get to our platform and got on the train only to find out we were going the wrong way. Get off at the next stop and climb up and down stairs to get to the correct platform and get on the correct train. Get off at the right stop to catch a connecting train (that's right, up and down more stairs). By this time, I was sweating quite heavily and everyone else on the train were wearing coats and jackets. Finally got to our final stop and made the final exit up a couple of flights of stairs and int0 fresh air. After a 10 minute walk we found our apartment and guess what, its on the 4th floor and the building does not have an elevator. Rita was finished and made it up to our apartment without her luggage. After lugging mine up the very steep stairs I went back down and brought up Rita's bag. Collapsed onto the couch for a few minutes rest and then went right into shower.

The apartment is very nice and the neighborhood is fantastic with lots of great cafe's, restaurants and a pedestrian street with a daily market of fruits, vegatables and meats.

Went for a walk about and ended up at a small little restaurant and had a very nice dinner with a bottle of wine and back to the apartment where we were in bed by 9:30. Will be ready for a great day in Paris tomorrow.

Party Time

Holly's 21st Birthday Party was a blast. Lis, her Mom, did a wonderful job of putting a great evening together. It was in a private room at a night club called Revolution. There were just over 90 guests and it went on till 2:30 in morning. Rita and I managed to stay until 12:30 and for those who stayed to the end I don't know how they managed to get themselves to work on Monday morning. It was hard enough for Rita and I to get up at 08:00. The party had everything from a magician doing card tricks (this is why Rita is holding the 2 of hearts in this picture) to 3 gaming tables (roulette, blackjack and poker) with Hollybucks for currency. The gaming tables stopped at 11:00pm and the DJ started and apparently went to the bitter end. Rita and I did get up and dance to one number but we had not heard of any of the music he was playing and had no idea how to dance like the rest of the people on the dance floor. It reminded me of watching my parents dance to Perry Como!!!!!

Our 3 nights in London were a great way to get us back to all of our bad habits. Too much food, no exercise and no sleep. By the end of it we looked liked we needed another vacation. And so its onto Paris.

21st Birthday Preparations

In Beaconsfield about a 35 minute train ride outside of London. Its a beautiful old village that has become a bedroom community of London commuters. We are here to celebrate my second cousins 21st Birthday. Holly and I have been very close since I was stationed in London from 1996 - 1999 for TBC. The party has been going on for a couple of days as it started with a family only gathering and ends tonight with a black tie "Casino Royale" themed party at a nightclub they have reserved for the evening. Unfortunately, I don't think I will be able to keep pace with the 90-odd yonger guests. But as you all know, I will give it a good effort!!!!

Rita and I will be heading for Paris on the Eurostar train in the morning. It's faster than flying as the train leaves from downtown London and ends up in downtown Paris in under 2.5 hours. It's a high speed train that goes under the English Chanel and reaches speeds of up 300 kmp. It should be an exciting start to our French and Italian adventure.