6 hours across France

We left Mont st michel early today, the mont shrouded in mist that soon turned to a thick fog. We battled the GPS and the patchwork of roads and headed across Fance on our way to the Loire Valley, a journey of about 350k.

Enroute we were forever surrounded by verdant green farmland, framed with mossy timber fences and studded with medi evil towns, some with walled battlements and all with a church and steeple from which the bell is rung every day.

The towns and villages are colourless and the fog accentuated this, stone or cream walls, slate roofs or aged tiles, and modern businesses often housed within. We stopped along the road after having our tyre repaired, at a small restaurant. The lady was surprised and pleased to see us. She smiled and laughed and was so welcoming, I don't think too many Aussies must have called there in the past. She put baguettes of the most wonderful crusty bread on the table, cheese, ham, butter and fresh coffee.  What a great breakfast, and then it was onward.

More towns and villages, and with so many 50k and 30k speed limits and because you can't check in until 4pm, we decided to stop for lunch about 2 o'clock. A non descript town called Nuelle, a small bar/come betting agency, we asked for sandwiches.  What a spread was presented to us. A huge platter of ham and salad and pickles and pate and sausage meat , great chunks of cheese and all served with the amazingly fantastic bread.

When the man found out it was by birthday I received a kiss, happy birthday music played over the loudspeakers, and it was such fun.  All the more so because it was unexpected.

Back in the car and we arrived in the beautiful little city of Amboise.  Our accommodation is charming, a very old villa turned into 20 hotel rooms, decor of antiques and red velvet. We explored the streets, lots of shops, restaurants and history to get excited about, luckily we are here for the next 3 days.  A fire was burning brightly in the sitting room, and a few gins and birthday cake and gifts  to unwrap completed a wonderful day.

Mont Saint Michel

No words I write will adequately describe what has been written about by poets and priests and pilgrims and journalists for the last 1500 years, it is truely one of the worlds amazing and unique places.

Our accommodation is 3k from the mont with a view across the famous salt grass flats. They stretch for a km or so before reaching the sea that surrounds the rocky island upon which the village and cathedral have been built.

The region is famous for its lamb, sheep that feed on this grass are herded through the village every morning from their barn and out into the fields. They return through the village each evening, it really is a sight to see.

We caught a shuttle bus from an enormous car park, just one of many which is an indicator of how vast the crowds must be each summer, but luckily for us only a few thousand people were there today.

The view is overpowering from a distance, and as you walk through the village at the base of the mont, (which Max dubbed 'thieves alley'), there are a hundred gift shops selling all kinds of cheap and expensive souvenirs.  After a steep walk through the street you arrive at the base of a few hundred steps which wind their way through chapels and halls and crypts and cloisters until you reach as far as high as you are permitted to walk today. From the battlements you can see for miles, a view which has hardly changed over the ages. Vast flats of silt and quicksand at low tide and a shallow ocean at high tide. It is easy to imagine the pilgrims coming to pray to the Arch angel St Michael, or to imagine the Normans battling and horses caught in the quick sand, or the encampments of the English in the 30 year siege.

Today it is once again a holy place, all be it, the most visited site in France.

Built between the 11th and 16th centuries and perched on a rocky islet in the midst of vast sandbanks exposed to powerful tides between Normandy and Brittany stands the 'Wonder of the West', a Gothic-style Benedictine abbey dedicated to the archangel St Michael, and the village that grew up in the shadow of its great walls. 

On the Road

Our tour guide of the last few days went above and beyond the call of duty, dropped us off at the hire car and led us through the chaotic traffic and narrow streets of Caen back to our hotel in Bayeux. It is a bit stressful driving on the 'wrong' side of the road, especially as the 9 seater van we have obstructs view of the side of the road. With lots of helpful advice, Max managed to get us safely home.

The food has been absolutely beautiful on this trip. So much flavour, unusual foods, and we have all been trying snails and welks and scallops and fish served in a variety of ways. The presentation of the food is so important and each plate is an artwork in itself, the waiters are professional and expert at their job ... I guess you can see we are really enjoying dining out.

Today we visited a tapestry that has survived since 1066. It is 70metres long and tells the story of William the Conquerer and his taking of the the English throne. Exquisite.

Bill and Di purchased supplies for a picnic and off we went, GPS in hand to wind our way along the scenic route to Mont St Michel. Scenery of green fields, rolling hills, medi-evil villages dotting the landscape, and always the two story stone farm houses with shutters. We found a beautiful picnic spot beside the river de la Vire and enjoyed fabulous fresh baguettes with hand made salami or just plain butter, fruit and a glass of red wine.

We travelled through the valley and headed for the Coast. Sadly a bit of a hiccup meant we had to replace a flat tyre. Out came all the luggage, and the boys did a gret job and off we went again. We got quite lost trying to find out accommodation which was pretty frustrating for everyone at the end of a long day, but here we are, only three kilometres from the famous Mont in a small Auberge that has good wine a great restuarant, and a fabulous view of the Mont across the famous tidal flats.

After dinner we strolled out in the darkness to the stunning sight of the lights of the Mont. 

So mixed fortunes for the start of the the next leg of our holiday, a road trip weaving our way from North to South of France.

Normandy

The last two days of our battlefield tour have been in Normandy. Not so much Australian context here as our troops had been called home to defend Australia from the Japanese. It has been days of looking at beaches and gun emplacements and bunkers and hearing stories of ingenious planning, heroic actions by individuals and small groups of men, and unrelenting pressure on the Germans to finally break through and win World war 11.

To see the farm houses and villages that were occupied by the Germans, to hear stories and see recorded images and stories from the people who had to live under occupation, and to visit the enormous monuments and cemeteries has brought the facts of the war together for me, but I cannot say I can understand at all, the fear, courage, hardships, strength, of all involved, it is beyond me. 

I would recommend this tour with BackRoads to anyone, it has been an education and enlightenment and has given me so much more appreciation for the sacrifice of those who were involved.  You see commemorations everywhere for those who die, and rightly so, but I saw engraved on a memorial today something I think should be repeated on every war memorial ...

The dead shall not be forgotten,

The veteran shall be forever honoured.

The Somme

I cannot express all that we have seen, heard and felt today. So much blood, so many lives, so many grave yards one after another. Graveyards in villages, in farmers fields, huge and small, mile after mile. Fathers, sons, brothers, lovers, friends ... Gone. How can you get your head around the fact that in one cemetery over 1200 Aussies are buried, who lost their lives ... In one day! And that is just the Aussies.

And just down the road and over the ridge is another with 10000 graves, so many with no name.
"Known only Unto God". And the brother of the great great uncle I visited yesterday was killed in action. In some ways a worse fate than dieing of wounds, because in many cases your body was then blown up, trampled, and even  if buried and a grave recorded, that area could then be come the next place a huge mortar would land.  This is the case for my ancestor.  A few numbers on his record were enough for our guide to take me to within a half a square mile of where he died today and it is there I left my momento's for him. There is "No Known Grave" for Robert. And the museums and villages that show respect for the Aussies is incredible in this area. We visited Victoria School where there is a huge banner of lettering painted on their school building that simply says "Always Remember Australia". This is located in the village of Viller Bretonneaux.

Our day ended towards sunset on the rolling hill that is the Australian Memorial within sight of the village. Gazing on Robert's name carved into stone with 30000 other names, surrounded by birdsong and a peaceful rural landscape made me think that this is exactly what these men had fought for, the ability for the local people in particular, but all of us, to live our lives with the freedoms and dignity that we all have the right to as human beings. In the words of one grave inscription ...

"To live in the hearts of those left behind is not to die"

Flanders Fields

Our battlefield tour began today near Ypres in Belgium. Back Roads tours provide a guide and a minibus and a program for us to follow the Aussies on the Western Front in WW1, including focus on the battles and lives my relatives faced here. 

Walking the earth that has been soaked in so much blood, seeing the lie of the land that was fought over with such enormous loss of life, and visiting the grave of an ancestor who was wounded in battle and died in a field hospital, was very emotional. After placing a flag and message at the grave of our Great Great Uncle, I found it so sad to walk away and leave him there in the loneliness of a foreign country although surrounded by thousands of other young men  suffering the same fate so far from home.

The ceremony conducted at the Menen Gate was also very sobering, with the inscription of more than 70000 names of men who were killed in just a few short months. The last post, the reading of the history of just one of these men and the laying of wreathes by school children and loved ones, were witnessed by more than 300 people, even though it was a cold winters night. Volunteers organise the service, the local fire brigade provided 4 buglers, the road through the gate is closed, and the men who have died with no known grave are remembered ... Every single night of every single year. What a beautiful way to respect the memories of those who gave their all, and most of those young men from foreign lands.

Forget about the Chips

 We set out early to walk to Our Lady Church and see the only sculpture by Michelangelo that is not in Italy, Madonna and Child. It was cold and raining, but the statue of course was sublime. We battled the icy winds to the town square and caught a cab to the Train. We were on a mission. Back in Aus last year we had seen a show about a coastal tram in Belgium, and buying delicious hot chips ion little paper cones... 

We got to the coast, onto the tram, but could not see the sea. It was behind forests, houses, sand dunes and eventually behind very ugly high rise buildings accommodating thousands of holiday flats. We jumped off the tram in De Haan, and walked to the sea. Max and Bill ventured down the beach to touch the chilly North Sea, and then back onto the tram looking for the  chips. Off again at a huge pier with a restaurant on the end ... no that was shut, back on the tram to Knokke . The chip shop closed 10 minutes before we arrived... well what else to do but adjourn to the nearby bar  'Tracks and Travellers'? Pete the owner was such a character, all charm and humour and we had a great time there for an hour or two. He has an Aussie corner with flag, Vegemite and a few things people have given him. We left him with an Aussie badge and a scarf which he greatly appreciated. He got out his guitar and sang a couple of songs for us, very talented musician who has worked on a cruise ship and around the world. We had lots of laughs and decided that it didn't matter about the chips... the beer and gin might have helped, but we were soon brought back to reality when we got home and had to walk about 1.5k to a local laundrette to do our washing. Our day finished with pizza and red wine and a walk home in crisp moonlit air along streets whose shop windows offer beautifully crafted chocolates and lace products for which Belgium is so renown. Another different day, and a good one. 

Bruge

A 20 minute train ride through the countryside and we arrived in Bruge. The taxi ride to our hotel took us through an enchanting place of crocus just about to bloom in the parks, green spaces, wide squares with huge bronze sculptures, and through narrow streets until we arrived at our hotel. How beautiful it is, Hotel de Orangerie is in the heart of the historic district, right on a canal. We dropped our bags and set off to explore.

A little drizzle gave way to sunshine and we enjoyed Belgian Waffles and coffee before climbing aboard a carriage, tucking under a blanket and heading out for a 30 minute horse-drawn ride around town. Once again the medieval charm of stone buildings and cobblestone streets, no traffic lights, steep pitched roofs on houses, buildings only 2 stories high and a skyline punctuated by huge spires from churches and public buildings and old trees yet to bloom greeted us. 

The boys found, of all things, a beer museum, and we wandered through a beautiful Christmas shop and the oldest square in Bruge dating back to 900AD. Ornate facades decorated with Golden statues and colourful coats of arms surround the square, and after joining the boys for a short while we returned to check into our hotel,

Our room overlooks the clock tower and ancient rooftops, the canal on the other side.
Genuine antique furnishings mixed its very modern comfort and attention to detail, and even our initials on the bed linen on the pillows and lamps in our room. Check out their website to see how beautiful this place is.

Our dinner at a small local cafe turned out to be one full of flavour and local produce, and a walk to the town square revealed a little patisserie where we indulged in local delicacies for dessert.  We have discovered that waiters and staff in shops etc can seem standoffish at times, but we smile, and offer our usual gregarious Aussie friendliness and everyone then has been so charming, friendly, even funny and joking with us.

We wandered home in the cold air under a clear moon, enjoyed time in the sumptuous lounge filled with antiques and a huge open fire, before climbing into bed to the sound of the town bells chiming 9.00pm.

Ghent by Day and Night

Wandering the streets of the medieval district of this beautiful city in the cool fresh sunshine before
breakfast was a wonderful way to start the day. A man in the flower markets gave us directions for a great place to eat and off we went, passing so many chocolate shops along the way. It is also delightful that here they still close all their shops on a Sunday so people can enjoy down time together. As a result the day was filled with family groups enjoying the markets and eateries and churches and museums.

After a great breakfast we boarded a small open boat, blankets tucked across our knees, beanies and scarves firmly in place, and enjoyed a 40 minute canal cruise through the old sections of a town established in 630AD. The guide had a great sense of humour and we really enjoyed our snapshot of history as we explored these amazing buildings from the water side.

We managed to find the boys after a little bit of window shopping, propped in the Beerhuis, a bar that has over 160 varieties of beer. They managed to sample 4 and had quite a glow as we headed to the cathedrals. One has a bell tower you can climb and take in the panorama over Ghent, a bell in that tower was from 1369! We also saw the painting by Van Eyk called the Miracle of the Lamb which has a chequered history, part of which was told in the Hollywood movie 'The Monument Men'.

We walked home in the cold wind after warming ourself in a Chocolate house with an Expresso Chocolate drink and a few chocolates, we'll call that lunch.

A little rest and we were off to dinner, Max chose a Moroccan restaurant for us and our hotst was charming, the food was great and we laughed as we thought we had ordered fried rice, but ended up with French fries.

 We took a promenade on the mild evening air through the beautifully lit streets, uplights highlighting the old buildings and reflecting in the canals. We arrived home just as a few spots of rain began to fall. We had an amazing day.

G'day Mate

9.00am ... bus to airport in Oslo
12.30pm ... plane to Brussels
3.15pm ... train to Ghent
4.30pm ... taxi to Hotel
4.45pm ... saying G'day to old mates and hello to Belgium.

We have met up with our friends Bruce and Dianne from Canberra and Bill and Leonie from Perth. How lovely it  was to see them, and we wandered down the street and across the bridge to a very nice restaurant for dinner and to celebrate the beginning of our holiday together.

What a beautiful place to begin our adventures, Ghent is rated as one of the most authentic destinations in Europe by 'National Geographic Travel Magazine', its ranking at number 7 of must-see places in the world by Lonely Planet, it is a city of 300.000,  a mix of all kinds of people who live and work against a fabulous historical backdrop.

The medieval harbor, the many canals and bridges, the narrow cobblestone streets and the city-like skyline of medieval towers and churches offer a great setting and as we wandered home from dinner. The streets were filled with people looking for a place to eat and drink or just admire the view. I loved seeing the little boats lining the canal, one with a group of friends all tucked with blankets over their lap and champagne and nibbles on the table ready for a beautiful evening cruise. Tomorrow is ours to explore.

Oslo and Goodbye

Rugged up as it is 1degC and drizzling,  and off to explore a little of Oslo. A great day to visit a museum or two. We walked down to the city hall, about 700m away along streets filled with people making their way to work in every description of coat, gloves, beanies and boots.

It was a great day that didn't start out too brilliantly when I slipped on a step heading to the bus stop and down like a sack of wheat, mud on my knees and rolled onto my bum, mud there too. This is the day I decided to wear my light coloured pants! A bit of skin off one knee, but otherwise fine, and no choice but to spend the day looking a bit of a mess!

With an Oslo pass in hand, it was easy to catch busses, trams, and get into any number of  attractions, a great deal for people here for a day or two. We have always wanted to see the Viking ships museum, an incredible collection of boats built in 800AD or so and used as burial vessels for important people, and discovered during the last hundred years.  The most intact vessel, the Oserberg Ship was much bigger than we had imagined at 21.5m long, and in beautiful condition. The skill and artistry of the builders has to be admired, and the seamanship of the Norwegians must take root from these brave men who sailed far and wide in these shallow ships. They have been beautifully displayed in splendid isolation to allow the viewer to soak in the moment, not surrounded by countless photos and texts and stuffed animals, just the ships, and in other rooms a collection of chests and artefacts found with the them. I was amazed to see a perfect pair of leather boots belonging to a queen buried in one of the ships, they looked like you could slip into them and wear them today.

We also went to the Fram museum, the ship that took so many famous voyages to the Arctic andAntarctic. It was the ship that took Admunsen to be the first man to get to the South Pole, just ahead of Scott. It is harboured in a vast museum that tells the story the Norwegians are rightly proud of. We could walk on the ship, it seems fantastic that you could stand on the very deck used by some of the most famous explorers in history.

Our day ended with a wander through the streets, and we came across an ice rink with a young girl spinning and sliding expertly around in amongst laughing teenagers and a mum and little girl being pushed along and giggling delightedly. What a lovely way to finish the day, and our visit to Norway.

We love Norway, it is a very easy country to travel in, here are a few of my observations of Norway;

• The people are very polite, with a reserved kind of friendliness
• Most people speak English if you ask, and are willing to help you out
• Everything runs like clock work, and I mean everything. No rush or fuss, but every train, plane and automobile, show, meal, museum, etc etc, is right on time, every time.
• It is expensive to us Aussies, $20 for a large (600ml) beer, $11 for a baileys on ice, $20 for a hamburger and chips, $20 for a cab that took us about 1km, $100 for a hamburger and plate of spaghetti from room service one night when we were too tired to go out and $15 each for a glass of red wine with dinner.
• Every where has been so clean, from buses and hotels to walking down the street.
• The beds are always made with two separate doonas which I think is a great idea, I can throw mine on and off without disturbing Max, I might chop ours in half when I get home!
• Fish is served for breakfast, lunch or dinner, or all three. I have loved all the different way fished is served and presented, they certainly must not have a cholesterol problem, well that is unless they eat a lot of their delicious pastries, which are also served for breakfast lunch or dinner.
• Free wifi on busses, trains, in airports hotels and many restaurants, fantastic!
• I was surprised to see beggars in the streets of Oslo, this is because since they joined the 
• European Union the borders have opened up to people a guide described as 'Romanies' and they are the ones who are begging.

All in all, it is a place we both agree was well worth visiting, we have enjoyed it very much, so much scenic beauty, and we have been made to feel so welcome everywhere we have been.

Across Country

A long train ride across country today from Voss to Oslo. Touted as a very scenic trip, we were not so lucky today with a snow storm whiting out the view for the first hour or so to the top of the Mountain range, a brief respite to gaze in awe at peaks and valleys smothered in snow before we were back in the storm. Between that and the tunnels through the mountains the view was non existent for quite a way. It was a dull grey day, but as the train track followed the river and many huge lakes that were frozen over, it was interesting in its own way. I imagine a blue sky and a hit of sunshine would have dramatically altered the view, but we enjoyed the quiet comfort of the train and sliding scenery and arrived in Oslo right on time at 3.45pm, caught a cab and were settled back into our hotel by 4.00pm.

We wandered down the street tonight for dinner in a Landerheldens Pub, all rustic wood and beer barrels and of course, candle light. A great hamburger and home for an early night. I'm don't know why but the trip today has really tired us out.

Fantastisk

No, I didn't make a spelling mistake in the headline, FANTASTISK is Norwegian for WONDERFUL.  Today we had another day that is so hard to put into words.

We woke to a low blanket smothering the view and thick snow falling softly but swiftly from the heavens. We were concerned as we had a full day sightseeing today along spectacular mountain roads, on a ferry to the end of the longest fjord in Norway, and onto the world famous Flam Railway for the journey back to our hotel.

We rugged up and set off as the snow stopped. The view was enchanting with its fresh coat over an already winter landscape of houses with roofs of enormous snow pancake stacks, fences with just the top of the posts emerging, rivers rushing through meringue that had been whipped and smothered over every still surface and we alighted at the end of the journey just as blue sky began to peep through.

We stood at the end of the fjord and watched a car and passenger ferry create gently rolling ripples on the mirror surface, to arrive, dock and take passengers precisely on time. Our cruise took us between cliffs that plunged into the sea from 1500m above us. Waterfalls frozen mid stream clung to crags, and snow metres thick decorated the landscape like an impossibly beautiful Christmas Card. We sailed past a tiny church built in 1163, part of a small cluster of homes of a village on the shores of the fjord, the mountains looked like something from Lord of the Rings, you could easily imagine dwarves and gold and horrors inside that immense rock. And then the sun broke through and the landscape glowed in a new light.

Our journey ended at the end of the fjord and waiting for us was a small train to take us on the most scenic train ride in the world, The Flam Railway. Twenty kilometres of twisting track rising 866m. Cliffs, mountains, tunnels, rivers, waterfalls, snow, snow and snow.  We stopped in the middle of the track, were allowed off the train onto a small flat walkway beside a huge drop,  we walked in thick soft snow and breathed in the beauty that surrounded us.

Our journey ended when the train pulled up right outside our hotel, we drifted inside, ordered a drink, and sat trying to absorb the wonder of the day.