European Adventures 2013: Paris!

We're having our second blizzard in as many weeks and I'm stuck inside so it seems a good time to write the last in a series of posts about our trip to Europe last summer. After a week in Malta, a week in Provence, and several days in Normandy, Husband and I boarded a train to meet up with our good friend, Kirsi, for a few days in Paris before flying home.

European adventures: Lest we forget Normandy

As we were leaving France in August 2012, we passed through the city of Caen and were introduced to the beaches of Normandy. We decided then that we'd stop to visit the area if we returned to France this year.

Upon arriving in Caen, we checked into our delightful B&B housed in one of the few 16th century buildings that wasn't destroyed during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.

Our first stop the next day was the Memorial (a large museum), where we planned to spend a couple of hours boning up on WWII history in preparation for a 5 hour guided tour the following day. 

As it turned out, we only managed to drag ourselves away 6 hours later when we were too exhausted and emotionally drained to absorb more. We learned a lot we didn't know about WWII and the events leading up to it - not to mention the horrific price paid by all involved. 

Details that have stayed with me include:

• a photograph of the smiling staff of a German "hospital" where 10,000 people with disabilities were "euthanized";
• photographs of Caen which was largely destroyed by allied bombardments before the city was "liberated"; 
• a photograph of a 16 year old girl, a member of the French Resistance, hung by occupying forces; and
• chilling video testimony from the Trials of Nuremberg.

When we left the museum, we wandered outside for an hour or more exploring the Canadian Memorial Gardens, a tribute to the 5,000 Canadians who died during the campaign to liberate France. 

I had been worried the Memorial would glorify the war - or at least Allied involvement in it - but I really don't think that it did. To the contrary, its exhibits were careful designed to emphasize how brutally the war was waged by all sides. 

That said, I came away from our visit truly believing for the first time that the war was a "just" one - or, at least, that it was as just as war can ever be. Hitler and company came frighteningly close to achieving their objectives and, had they done so, our lives would be very different today. 

The next morning, Husband and I both felt in need of something to soothe our souls before we embarked on a tour of D-Day sites, so we opted to spend the morning at the Musee de Beaux-Arts, where we took in an exhibition of Impressionist paintings inspired by the Norman seaside, and the Musee de Normandie, where we admired photographs created around the same time period. I was especially intrigued by the photographs. Even with what we would now consider rudimentary tools, the featured photographers captured gorgeous images of life in Normandy.

A photo by amateur photographer, Gustave Gain

Our visit to the Musee also provided an opportunity to wander round the ramparts of William the Conqueror's ancient castle and take in views of the city below. 

After lunch, we took a bus back to the Memorial and joined our guide, Jean-Francois, for called "Follow the Steps of the Canadians". Our first stop was Bernieres, the site of a large monument to Allied forces and the centre of great deal of Canadian activity following the D-Day landings. This house is purported to be the first liberated by Canadian forces.

We also visited several other key sites along the beaches...

...and spent about an hour and a half exploring the Juno Beach Centre. 

The Centre contains a variety of exhibits that describe the many roles Canadians played in the war effort - from supplying troops to manufacturing weapons to transporting supplies across the dangerous waters of the North Atlantic - so we'd have been glad to spend more time there. There really aren't words to describe how deeply moving it was for everyone on the tour. 

Our next to last stop was the Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery where more than 2,000 Canadians who died during the Battle of Normandy are buried. 

The cemetery is still meticulously cared for by local people - which seems extraordinary after so many years - particularly given the price the locals paid for their liberation. In the city of Caen alone, more than 1500 residents died as a result of Allied bombing! Nonetheless, monuments like this one are scattered throughout the city.

Our final stop was the Abbaye d'Ardenne, where 20 Canadian prisoners of war were killed by German Panzer forces, and the Garden of the Canadians, a monument commemorating the massacre. I was surprised to see the Nova Scotia flags adorning the site until I learned that five of the murdered men were North Nova Scotia Highlanders. 

On this Remembrance Day, I'll be thinking of all those young men who died or were injured in Normandy in 1944 and whispering prayers of thanks for their bravery and sacrifice. Over one million Canadians served in WWII - roughly 45% of Canadian men aged 18-45. One million. And, of that number, nearly 47,000 died and many tens of thousands were injured - all in the name of protecting the freedoms we too often take for granted. 

Lest we forget. 

For more photos from our visit to Normandy, you can follow this link to my Flickr set. 

European Adventures: Provence 2013

It's taken me awhile to get around to writing this post - largely because it took so long to review and edit the roughly 900 photos we took during our six glorious days in Provence. We were blessed with fantastic weather and crammed as much food, wine, and sightseeing into our time there as possible. Rather than bore you with a recitation of what we did each day, here's a brief overview of the things we liked best.

Food and wine
Over the years, I'd read a lot about the wonderful food and wine in Provence and we weren't disappointed. From our first lunch at the fabulous La Tartinerie the day we arrived in Avignon, we were delighted by the local fare. My first meal was a hearty, salad with slices of roast duck, crisp green apple, warm new potatoes, salad greens, nuts and cheese - all washed down with a couple of glasses of excellent rosé. When I close my eyes, I can still taste it!



And, I followed it up with three tiny desserts and delicious dark coffee.

Most days, we ate breakfast in the apartment we'd rented in the centre of the old walled city, had a hearty three course lunch at a local restaurant or bistro and, in the evening, snacked on treats from the city's main market (Les Halles) located just a few blocks away.



Beautiful, peaceful spaces
Another thing we enjoyed about France generally, and Provence in particular, was the way folks created beautiful, peaceful spaces wherever possible - little islands of serenity to offset the claustrophobia one might otherwise experience living and working in such close proximity to one another. Micro-gardens, balconies and entryways were often transformed into enticing spots to pause and savour the beauty of the day.



History and culture
Provence has a long and fascinating history and, fortunately, many artifacts and historic sites from its different eras have survived. During our few days there, we visited numerous art galleries, museums and ancient buildings in Avignon, Villeneuve-les-Avignon, and Arles. Here are photos of a few of our favourites.

The Roman Amphitheatre, Arles


The Roman Colosseum, Arles


Le palais des papes (Palace of the Popes), Avignon


Le pont d'Avignon (Bridge of Avignon)


A view of the palais des papes from Villeneuve-les-Avignon


Chartreuse du Val de Bénédiction, Villeneuve-les-Avignon


Charming cityscapes
Avignon was a beautiful city for walking, but we were even more impressed with Arles, which was smaller, quieter and oh-so-picturesque.

 





The luminous landscape
Finally, of course, there is the incredible landscape. There are good reasons why so many great artists have chosen to spend time in Provence. The light, especially late in the day, is truly remarkable. On this trip, we didn't spend as much time exploring the countryside as I'd have liked but I managed to capture a few images en route back from the wine tour we took our last day.





Would we return to Provence? In a heartbeat. This brief account barely skims the surface of all we experienced during our time there. (For instance, I haven't said anything about our apartment, which was charming, or about the people, who we found to be physically beautiful, warm and kind.) The long and the short of it is that we loved it and would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys food, wine, walking, art and history as much as we do.

For a selection of a few dozen of my favourite photos from Provence, follow this link to a Flickr set called "Provence Favourites". A larger set that will give you a better sense of all that we did and saw is available by following this link.

European adventures 2012: Paris!

It was my first trip to Paris (that is, if you don't count the brief visit I made in 1982 when I only stayed long enough to change trains en route from Amsterdam to LeHavre where I was catching a ferry to Ireland to meet a handsome young Californian) so I wasn't sure quite what to expect when Husband and I boarded our Icelandair flight. I'd heard mixed things about the city. Most people seemed to love it, but some told stories of pickpockets, rude locals, dirty streets and outrageous prices. As it turned out, we completely fell in love with it - the food, the people, the beautiful buildings, the Seine, the art, everything!

Of course, it likely helped that we stayed with an old friend in his very comfortable apartment a short train ride from the city centre. Though just home from a month in North America and suffering jet lag himself, Marc was exceptionally hospitable and gracious and offered lots of excellent advice that helped us make the most of our time there.

We only had four full days in the city and needed to overcome the effects of the five hour time difference, so opted to be very selective in our sightseeing and leave a lot (including the Louvre) for "next time".   

Day 1

On Marc's advice, we spent our first morning walking from Montparnesse train station to the Eiffel Tower getting a sense of the city, and taking in a few sights along the way. 

Our first stop was the Hotel des Invalides - notable for, amongst other things, being Napolean's final resting place - and its lovely gardens.

As we approached the Tower, we picked up a picnic of delicious hot sandwiches and cold drinks and ate them sitting on a park bench admiring the Tower in the distance.