Tuesday, 11 July 2023

T stands for This and That

 Hi everyone, we're back from our holiday in France. We started in Normandy, sharing a Gîte with our friends who live in Poitiers then we moved on to Brittany and our friends headed home.

We had some great weather, I took a cardigan that I didn't wear at all and our raincoats only came out once for what turned out to be a short light shower - although we did see some rain(more of that another time!)

We began by sleeping on the ferry to Cherbourg with the idea that could make the best of the first day in France.


We were quite near to the front which meant we were one of the first off the ferry...but not before seeing this through the cabin window.
I had researched where the nearest bakery was and we were eating breakfast by 8.30.

There were lots of Bikers and Cyclists that had beaten us as they were allowed off the ferry first.
As can you see I started with a very naughty breakfast - Croissant and a Beignet(Donut)accompanied by Coffee and Orange Juice.
This is my ticket to entry at the T Club! Bleubeard and Elizabeth are waiting for us to join them at The Altered Book Lover blog for T stands for Tuesday.
We were able to leave our car at the hotel had chosen in Bayeux, so set off for the town - a short walk away. We stopped for another coffee.
We had a plan to visit the famous Bayeux Tapestry in the afternoon so called into the Cathedral





These statues were protected by railings just inside the cathedral
We also visited the crypt




By now it was time for lunch - the place we went to was recommended by the owner of the Gîte we were headed to the next day. 



Hubby was very happy to have a Cafe Gourmand - coffee with small samples of different desserts while I had a layered version of a lemon meringue cheesecake. I had a tonic water while hubby had a Coke. As you can see I also had time to make a mini journal page.
We did visit the Tapestry exhibition and really enjoyed seeing it  - following an English commentary on a device which moved us through too quickly for my liking! No photos allowed, but it was in a darkened room anyway.
We had time for a wander around the old town afterwards.



Then it was back to the hotel


The view from our bedroom window.
The next day, on our way to the gîte I wanted to stop off at Villers Bocage. I remembered this place from passing through it when my ex and I used to camp with our children on the South Coast of Brittany.

Since then I had learned of the history of this town - it was the site of an abandoned battle when the British retreated from German tanks in World War 2 and was then bombed by the British to stop the enemy gaining any more French land - you can read about Villers Bocage here


When we came some 30 or so years ago the buildings looked very old and battered but have had massive facelift over the years.
The American landing beaches are all around this area although we haven't visited any.

The Hotel de Ville has a bug hotel at the front

I'll be back with more about the gîte we shared with our friends next week.
Thanks for looking, Chris














15 comments:

  1. Oh thank you for bringing us so long! Aloha

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  2. Thank you Chris-I love these trips to France-Happy T

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  3. Thank you for taking us with you on yet another trip to France. I love the look of those old buildings.
    Happy T Day,
    Hugs,
    Lisca

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  4. Cafe Gourmand looks like a wonderful place for lunch. I like your view. And how nice you were able to sit there and do a journal page. It just sounds so peaceful. Beautiful photos! Happy T Day.

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  5. Your trips to France are always a pleasure to read about. A while back, I read a book that had a chapter related to the Bayeux Tapestry. I wrote about it here:
    https://maefood.blogspot.com/2023/04/medieval-women-were-powerful.html

    I included a photo of the tapestry that I found online.

    Thanks for the great photos and story.

    best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  6. You were having a very delicious breakfast. French croissants are the best. The crypt is very beautiful, I would have loved to visit there.
    Many years ago when I was still young (early 20's) I traveled Normandy by bicycle for three weeks and loved all the little towns and villages with their timber frames.

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  7. Grand buildings and lovely flowers. Can always tell you two totally enjoy yourselves there. :)

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  8. While you were sleeping on the ferry, I looked up the meaning of the word gîte. I look forward to seeing this gîte next week.

    Your trip to the Cathedral was superb. The statues were beautiful and I was very impressed with how different your churches are than ours. Lovely photos from the crypt, too.

    Your breakfast looked so good. I could eat my weight in donuts, so that looked wonderful. Nice to see your coffees and orange juices, too. It looks so fresh and decadent.

    You had a lovely view from your hotel room. I loved those lights. That sculpture in Villers Bocage is joyful. That is the biggest and best Bug Hotel I have ever seen. And it was great that you ended the post with flowers. Thanks for taking us to France and sharing your first day visiting the Cathedral and the Tapestry Museum, as well as your breakfast and drinks with us for T this Tuesday, dear Chris.

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  9. Thanks for sharing the lovely photo, I will come back for another look later. The third pic with the sun on the sea is fabulous. Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

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  10. Your views are really beautiful Chris. It sounds like you had a fantastic adventure. I am jealous you were able to see the Bayeux Tapestry. That is one thing on my bucket list. I have a couple of books about it...don't ask me why I find it so fascinating, but I do. I'm glad you always take us on your trips with you, even if it is after the fact with your photos, but it works. I'm late, so I hope it was a super T day. hugs-Erika

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  11. Fabulous trip. Your photos are spectacular. Like Erika, my eyes turned green that you got to see the Bayeux Tapestry. I’m looking forward to seeing more of your trip. Happy T Day

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  12. Great photos Chris and I can see that you had a good holiday. I’ve now stepped down from the CI DT, so hoping to blog a little more now that I have more free time to play with my crafty stuff x

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  13. Looks like the start of a lovely holiday, great photos
    Avril xx

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  14. What a gorgeous post, and a wonderful start to your holiday. I look forward to seeing more soon. Happy weekend!

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  15. Great Photos from trip to France!
    Happy sundday, hug Elke

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