BigWeather's Blog

Our alarms (yes, alarms) were set for 6a but we didn’t roll out of bed until 6:30a.  Headed down for breakfast shortly after 7a and ate breakfast at Hotel Phileas.  It wasn’t bad at all — baguettes, cold cuts, jelly, eggs, chocolate croissants, etc.  On a scale from Holiday Inn Express (1) to Full English breakfast (10) I’d give it a solid 7, better than the typical Continental breakfast.  After returning to the room we napped for a few minutes before packing our two backpacks for our one-night stay in Bayeux.  We checked out of our room and handed our two suitcases to the hotel to keep in safe keeping until our return on Tuesday evening.

Michelle and I went to Gare Saint-Lazare across the street and waited for our train.  While waiting we bought a few snacks (some strawberry breakfast bars and chips) and I popped outside to take a couple pictures of the station’s exterior now that the weather was much more photogenic.  Eventually a platform was assigned for our train, 24.  Heading that way we encountered a large line that thankfully moved right along and we were seated with plenty of time to spare.  The train was nice, if a little warm, with nice padded seats and ample leg room.

We pulled out of Paris Saint-Lazare and were zipping along in short order.  Though Michelle slept most of the way and I nodded in and out we did see some neat things.  We saw a few neat skyscrapers, including one that had trees and green areas every ten floors or so.  Our route crossed the Seine a few times and also passed through a few forests (set aside as “wilderness areas”) — though the forests were minor compared to the sprawling mass of trees that is eastern North America it was still nice to see.  There were a succession of small towns each with a quaint church in addition to some farms / manors with protective walls.

We arrived in Caen in about two hours and Bayeux about a half hour after that.  In Caen we saw a train with the Normandy coat of arms — two yellow lions reposing on a red field — and in Bayeux I noticed the symbol for our train’s region, Basse-Normandie — the shape of the region itself represented as a Norman Longboat’s prow.  I had never noticed that it was shaped like that but now I can’t unsee it.  That is how you do graphic design, though it still doesn’t beat this absolute stunner from our trip in 2010.  As we were getting off the train we noticed a large group of elementary school students getting off the coach ahead of us — whew, dodged a bullet not being on that one.  Bayeux’s station being a tiny two-track affair we climbed some stairs to cross the tracks and descended on the Bayeux side and began the short walk into town.

The walk was very pleasant not only due to the near perfect photography weather of blue skies punctuated by puffy white clouds but also a variety of interesting buildings and pleasant gardens.  Downtown (downvillage?) itself was also very charming with narrow streets and interesting signage (seriously, why is this not a thing in the United States?).  We also saw Bayeux Cathedral’s towers dominating the town’s skyline.  It’s astonishing how much power it projects even now, can you imagine the effect it had during Medieval times?

We located our lodging for the night, the Churchill Hotel, and after a quick check-in went to our room to freshen up.  Not quite as nice a room as Hotel Phileas but not bad.  One unusual thing was a large 5 foot by 8 foot or so picture of Bayeux Cathedral hanging above the headboard of the bed.  We’d later discover it had a backlight.  Odd.  Anyhow, headed out after freshening up and walked around a bit in search of lunch.

We first walked out to the Place de Quebec behind the hotel before walking across the Aure River, the raison d’etre for the two thousand year old town.  We passed some souvenir shops, a creperie, an ice cream merchant, and some other small stores.  The ice cream store was adorned with the “bomber art” popular during World War II.  The whole town is an interesting mix tourist attraction-wise — on the one hand it’s a beautiful Medieval town with a mill, half-timber buildings, a cathedral, and the frickin’ Bayeux Tapestry; on the other hand it was the first town liberated by the Allies in 1944 and is the closest main town to the D-Day landing beaches.  An embarrassment of riches.

We turned south and walked along another street looking at restaurants (some fancy, many not-so-much) before settling on a small snack restaurant with crepes, burgers, hot dogs, paninis, etc.  Michelle had a ham and cheese (jambon et fromage) crepe while I had a ham, cheese, and egg (as Michelle’s but just add an oeuf) crepe.  We shared a generous portion of fries and a bottled water as well.  Afterwards we headed back to the room briefly then set out for the museum that has the Bayeux Tapestry on display.

It was a short walk through the Place de Quebec and along the Aure River to the brown stone building with a courtyard flying both the French and Norman flags.  We shelled out EUR 9.50 each for admission and got an audio guide that lead us through each of the 50+ sections of the tapestry (really an embroidery).  A brilliant move on their part as it kept us moving through the 220 foot length of the tapestry, first in one direction then around a sharp turn and back to nearly the original point.  It portrayed the saga of William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, King of England from 1064 through 1066.  In brief, King Edward of England sent Harold to inform William that William would be the heir to the throne.  William was in a war with Conan (yep), a duke in Normandy and Harold assisted him.  Harold then swore fealty to William and returned to England.  Upon Edward’s death in January 1066, however, Harold did not honor his oath and succeeded Edward.  This caused both Harald of Norway and William to march on Harold’s army.  Harold managed to defeat Harald but was unable to defeat William at Hastings in October 1066.

The Bayeux Tapestry shows these events in incredible detail, from William rescuing soldiers caught in quicksand to Harold swearing fealty with one hand on relics and the other on an altar to Halley’s comet appearing and being interpreted as an omen that Harold’s reign as King of England was doomed from the get-go.  Craftsmen fell trees and construct the fleet while arms, armor, and horses are assembled.  A feast where the common soldiers are using their kite shields as platters.  The landing party pillages in order to feed itself (and get a little rich, I’m sure) until Harold’s scouts see them.  Shortly thereafter the fourteen hour battle is engaged and depicted in gory detail — decapitations, slain horses, Harold taking an arrow to the eye, etc.  The main panels are not just pictures but also Latin text that narrate the whole affair.  Above and below the panels are much smaller (a few inches high each) depictions of various things — bodies strewn about as a result of the battle, fantastic creatures, victors stripping dead soldiers of their armor, and even an odd Adam and Eve vignette.  Odd.

Afterwards we waited about thirty minutes for a sixteen minute English film to begin.  It was decent though I must admit I slept through a wee bit of it.  We headed down to the first floor (American second) for the final part of the museum, several exhibits that showed how the tapestry was made (including the three plants that led to the ten colors found) and a discussion of the various theories as to who made it.  General consensus is that it was made in southern England (likely Cambridge) as the embroidered lettering matched that of earlier Anglo-Saxon work.  Compelling theories, however, exist for it being made in Normandy.

More remarkable (to me) than how it was made and by whom was that this nearly one thousand year old piece managed to survive to the present day.  For centuries it was displayed in Bayeux Cathedral for two to four weeks in the summer and placed in a chest the rest of the year — and somehow surviving two fires that ravaged the cathedral.  During the French Revolution it was used as a tarp for a weapons cart to be sent to Paris and was rescued at the last moment.  Additionally, there were even plans to cut it apart to decorate a parade float in the early 1800s.  Also on display was a replica boat similar to the ones the Normans used as well as weapons and armor and a couple of dioramas showing Norman castle building techniques (Motte and Bailey, etc.), the Tower of London, and an English Manor.  There was also a replica Domesday Book that was neat to see (the Domesday Book being a full accounting of all of the property in England ca. 1070s and the best record of an early Medieval kingdom.

By the time we stepped into the late afternoon air it had gotten quite chilly.  We swung by the Bayeux Mill with its water wheel and sluice gates and idyllic location then Bayeux Cathedral.  It is impossible to capture the enormity of a cathedral on camera, the best you can hope for are a couple of wide shots then trying to find interesting details or angles to take pictures of.  This one had interesting details and angles in spades — gargoyles (and wailing nuns!) as rain spouts, flying buttresses, a moss-covered roof, etc.  While I was just trying to soak it in and get interesting pictures with the interesting dusk light we were treated to the bells ringing the hour.  Very neat.

We walked back towards the hotel looking at restaurant menus but coming no closer to a decision.  We decided to eat at one of the smaller snack stands again but they all had closed.  The concierge at the hotel recommended La Table du Terroir (no, it isn’t “The Table of Terror”, though that’d be interesting!) but a short walk from the hotel.  We lucked out and were seated despite not having a reservation.  Michelle had chicken fillet done Normandy style (apple and mushroom sauce, lightly breaded) with a green salad and fries (they LOVE fries, even at fancy restaurants!) while I had the rib steak au poivre with fries and an onion soup (really French onion soup, but they drop the “French” part).  It was great!  For dessert Michelle had a lava cake with vanilla ice cream that she loved while I had two scoops of coffee ice cream that was decent — not the best but far, far from the worst.

Satisfied, we walked back to the hotel, stopping first at Carrefour City grocery for two bottled waters.  I blogged while Michelle slept, though sadly I couldn’t actually back up nor upload the blog due to abysmal upload speeds.  Grrrr!  Finally slept about 1a.

We awoke early, about 6:30a on Saturday, September 22nd, to pack for our trip later that day.  In what must be a first for me I actually had a full night’s sleep as I had already earlier in the week handled all of the photo prep work for the trip (mainly offloading photos, backing them up, cleaning off the cameras, and ensuring the Surface has sufficient room to hold the new photos to come).  Gathered stuff up and also completed a few tasks in the yard as well as letting our neighbors know that we’d be out of town.

Genetta arrived at shortly past 9a and the three of us (Addison having chosen to skip) went to breakfast at Gypsy’s Shiny Diner.  Service was prompt and the food delicious and we ended up getting out of there by 10:20a or so.  A quick stop by Best Buy to buy (yet another) charging brick for the phone and we were back home and packing frantically.  I had hoped to leave by 11:45a but it was about 12:15p before we finally hit the road, Genetta driving us to the airport for our 2:43p flight.

I needn’t have worried.  As we arrived I noticed that it had been delayed to 4:20p.  Now, I kind of expect that so I left a hefty three hours layover in Chicago to ensure we made the flight from there to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport.  The ticketing agent wasn’t sure, nor was the lady helping with the check-in kiosks, so we were referred to a customer service agent.  As our arrival and departure terminals and concourses were the same and the gates fairly near he decided it’d be better to stick with the current plan rather than re-route through Charlotte or Philadelphia.  I was on board with that as I didn’t want to lose the seats we had picked (and paid the upgrade for).

It was a tense couple of hours at RDU as the flight kept getting delayed later and later, apparently crew disruption due to a round of severe weather the day before in Dallas (from whence our plane was to come).  Finally the the internet showed that the flight had left DFW for an arrival slightly after 4:30 in RDU, with a subsequent departure at 5:10p.  As that wouldn’t arrive in Chicago until 6:36p and our flight left (not boarded) at 7:10p it was very tight.  As there were only 37 on the plane to Chicago (nearly everyone had already bailed to alternate flights) a quick board and de-plane (and quick flight due to a lighter load) made it seem possible.

The Super 80 we flew up to Chicago wasn’t in great shape but it did the trick.  They were plying us with snacks and drinks as there were so few of us on board — even the fancier first class treats made an appearance in economy!  As we were in the rear of the plane I was nervous about a delay in deplaning (even with only 37 on board).  The steward motioned us to the front of the plane (first class!) for the final 20 or so minutes of the flight.  I sat next to a nice lady from Chicago who was returning from participating in the Dragon Boat races in Cary.  We discussed our prior trips — she had just gotten back from Hong Kong in the last month and was leaving for Sydney on Monday.

Michelle and I deplaned quickly and walked the three gates from K8 to K5 whereupon we encountered final boarding for our flight to Paris.  Luckily there was still quite the line to board so we had just made it (though I did still have momentary panic when the screen showed “Boarding Completed, Plane Closed”)!  We had upgraded to the very last row, left side, of the plane as it was a) far from the bathrooms (in retrospect, maybe a little closer would have been good) and b) only two seats so Michelle and I didn’t have to share.  The legroom wasn’t great but it was just enough, especially with a little space between my seat and the bulkhead to stretch in.

Planes sure have come a long way since my first flight to Europe in 1988.  The Boeing 787 was really nice with ambient lighting, back-of-seat entertainment options, and these amazing windows.  They didn’t have a shade, rather a button let us choose the transparency of the window — from totally opaque to transparent.  It was amazing, practically magic.  The only thing more magical was flying 300+ people over an ocean in one night’s time — something that would take months and had a high chance of death only a couple centuries before.  Amazing.

As we took off from O’Hare I started getting excited (the worry of not making the flight now passed).  Still, it is a long flight (just over seven hours due to the tail wind) and we’d soon all settle in.  We flew across Michigan, southern Canada, just south of Ireland and Britain, then over Normandy to our destination.  Hitting an altitude of 39,000 feet and an external temperature of around -80F and speed of nearly 600mph.  Magic.  Michelle watched Avengers: Infinity War while I watched Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Deadpool 2, and some of Solo.  Bill & Ted’s was particularly appropriate as they kidnap both Napoleon and Joan of Arc for their report.  “Something strange is afoot at the Circle K”, indeed.  Dinner was OK, my entree was pasta with tomato sauce and Michelle’s was balsamic chicken with couscous.  Accompanying that was eh bread, decent Swiss cheese, a small garden salad, some crackers, and a sea salt caramel chocolate brownie thing that wasn’t too bad.

With about 1h30m left to go in our flight and the sun haven risen above the thick layer of clouds we were cruising over they served us breakfast — yogurt, some oats to mix in, dried berries, and a berry muffin top.  The muffin top didn’t suck, at least.  Landed just after 9a (an hour ahead of schedule) to a very wet Charles de Gaulle airport.  Passport control took awhile but that just meant our luggage was waiting for us on the carousel.  Yay!  Got into the line for the taxis just outside and in short order we were routed to the next available one.

During the drive of nearly an hour to our hotel the taxi driver and I talked about various things like his trip to America (New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles).  He remarked that we talked a bit fast for him to keep up, which was amusing because, as Southerners, we’re often said to talk too slowly.  His English was decent, better than my French at least, though we did lose the meaning of his conversation at one point — something about a dry cleaner in Australia not understanding him or something.

We also talked about the world of work in the US vs. France (spoiler alert: US works longer and takes far fewer vacation days) and he mentioned that young citizens in France have the option of receiving 800 euros a month rather than work (as France is struggling with having enough jobs due to automation — he mentioned a Mercedes factory just built in France that needed only a handful of people).  He felt it was a trap, though, as once on that list it kills your chances of getting a job down the road and while 800 euros a month may seem like a lot at eighteen years old it doesn’t hold up over time.

He had also severely injured his hand a month or so ago when a customer closed the trunk on his hand by accident — looked gruesome, even now.

The suburbs had transitioned to the beige stone rows of buildings characteristic of Paris and we were at our hotel, the Hotel Phileas on rue d’Amsterdamn, in short order.  Reception was very polite and efficient and actually got us in a room early (it being 11:30a and check-in being officially post-2p).  While we waited we briefly discussed the weather — apparently Paris used to have warm Septembers but now it was mainly rainy.  I mentioned Florence as well, which he had heard of.  They then took our luggage to the first floor (America’s second floor) where we waited in the breakfast area until the room was ready.  Hopped in the elevator for the sixth floor, room 66.  The room was nice and a bit bigger than we had expected.  We were momentarily confused by how to get the lights on but then remembered that Europe loves the “put your keycard in a receptacle when you enter” system.

We napped until about 3:30p as we were exhausted.  Headed downstairs and on the recommendation of reception headed for Le Certa, a restaurant not far away on rue de l’Isly.  It was pouring on the way, however, necessitating us to duck into the recessed entrances of closed (it being Sunday) businesses.  While it was a bummer that it was raining it was neat to see Paris in the rain and we didn’t have a busy day scheduled regardless.  We saw the train station, or gare that we’d be leaving from the next day — Gare Saint-Lazare.  Very neat building with a sculpture column of pocket watches in front.

Le Certa was cozy, with room for maybe 30 or 40.  It was set up for a Sunday buffet but we decided to order from the menu.  Michelle had a chicken Caesar salad that was very tasty and a generous portion — though I raised an eyebrow at the poached egg on top.  I had onglet de boeuf, a piece of undercut beef with fried onions on top with a garden salad and French fries (can’t they just call them fries here?).  It was excellent.  We saved room for desert and were grateful that we did.  We each had tarte fine aux pommes, basically a thin and very delicious pastry with many thinly sliced green apples layered upon it and a small (but great) scoop of vanilla on top.  It was served on a slate tile with some confectioner’s sugar and was wonderful.

Left Le Certa at about 4:30p and headed out to find a ATM.  We came upon a nice plaza, or place, then turned south toward the ATM but turned around as Michelle needed to return to the room.  We saw a barber shop with a weird cartoonish statue with the right half missing the skin and showing muscles and bones.  I really don’t know what point they were trying to get across with that, but I’d stay way clear of anyone wielding a straight razor in that shop!  On the way back we saw a theater, Theatre Mogador, hosting performances of the musical “Chicago” as well as a cinema that seemed rather lower-brow with some (for America) more risque movies.

A few things we noticed: Parisians love smoking, even now, I’ll never get used to the oooaaa oooaaa sound of European emergency sirens; and we saw many police cars and each had at least two officers in them.  Also there were lots of scooters, blades, and Segway type modes of transport.

Hung out at the room for awhile before heading back out for the ATM.  After going north a little bit (and seeing one of the advertising columns seen throughout Prais) we went through Gare Saint-Lazare to ensure there’d be no surprises in the morning.  Pretty standard European train station, complete with a throng of people craning their necks gazing at the departures board waiting to get the platform they need.  As the station was also a bus, Metro, etc. stop it had quite a few shops (50+) arranged in a three floor arcade.  One of the stores had bandes dessinees, a popular form of hardcover comics (often of a historical nature) found in Europe.  Exiting the station we walked to the ATM.  Across the street was an Au Printemps, a very large (multi-building, multi-block) Parisian department store.  On the way back we walked along a road parallel to ours which was little more than a cobblestone alley.  It had four or five Chinese restaurants along it and also a place called “Sandwich Grec” that I originally read as “Sandwich Greg”, haha.

Made it back to the hotel shortly after 7p and napped, offloaded pics, and blogged while Michelle watched some TV (including an episode of Lucifer translated into French) until finally going to bed shortly after midnight.