We headed for Bayeux. This time we only crossed the Seine once as we drove out of town. We arrived in Bayeux with lots and lots of other people. It is June 4th and there were tributes, signs and flags everywhere in anticipation of the 80th anniversary for D-Day on June 6th. We read later that there are events every day for the week leading to June 6th. 
Motorcycle groups in military uniforms drove by us on the streets.
Current service personnel are present everywhere, eating in restaurants and doing some sightseeing. President Biden will attend the events on June 6th. You can feel the anticipation of this 80th anniversary.
We were in search of parking close to the Bayeux Museum. There were so many people in town that we had almost given up hope of being able to park when Gayle spotted someone pulling out. We have been navigating fairly well in a country in which we don’t speak the language, but trying to figure out the ticket machine to pay for our parking stumped me. We stepped out of the way to let others use it. I hovered near by to watch what they were doing. I was a bit relieved to see that even the French speakers found the process confusing. I felt weirdly proud of myself for accomplishing such a mundane task.
There were so many military jeeps and motorcycles I wondered if people could rent one for the weekend.
Our goal was to see the Bayeux Tapestry, which is an embroidered cloth that is 230 feet long and depicts events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England. We entered a long, dark room with audio guides provided to use in English. We took our place in the solid line of people slowly moving along beside the tapestry. It tells the story from the perspective of the conquering Normans and some of it feels comical. There are laughing horses; men wading into the water to board boats without their pants on; and spies lurking behind pillars. I was delighted to be able to see it. This is a replica version of one small piece of the tapestry that you can buy from the gift shop.
We had hoped to head to the American Cemetery and Omaha Beach but seeing the crowds of people in Bayeux we decided not to go. We ate lunch in Bayeux in the pretty little courtyard of a restaurant called Selma Alabama.
I know it seems weird to choose a restaurant in Normandy named Selma Alabama but it was highly rated and promised brunch food. I love to go out for breakfast. The restaurant owner’s name is Selma. She always thought it was a strange name until she learned about the significant events of the Civil Rights Movement in the US that happened in Selma Alabama. She has never been to Selma, Alabama. She doesn’t know anyone from Selma, Alabama. But she named her restaurant in Bayeux after a Southern town in the US. On the wall she has a depiction of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the site of “Bloody Sunday.” The reason for the naming of her restaurant was written out in a sign on the wall, written in English. Oh, and the food was delicious.
…with another incredible cathedral. But we were anxious to get to Mont St-Michel. The gravitational pull was not strong enough to make a detour into the church.
The drive to Mont St-Michel was beautiful and uneventful. We knew we were close when we could spot the island across the fields.
We pulled into the parking lot for hotel guests staying on Mont St-Michel just two minutes before Brett pulled into the same parking lot. Brett is spending two weeks driving around Normandy and Brittany, tasting food and visiting creameries. We had planned to spend one day together on Mont St. Michel. Brett has been keeping tabs on my movements through location sharing on iPhone. He wanted to help his mother and aunt get to the island with their luggage. We had made sure that we only had to take on a backpack and purse for each of us. He put my backpack on his back and ushered Gayle and I to the shuttle that would take us onto the bridge and most of the way to the island. It is still a bit of walk but the walk gives you an opportunity to see the full scale of the island.
There is a doorway to the island…
…then a drawbridge…
….then a significant climb to the lobby of our hotel, which happened to be the first hotel off the Main Street when you enter the island The “street” was filled with tourists.
Brett had gone ahead of the aging women in his family and had us all checked in by the time we got to the lobby. The women at the desk jumped up to show us to our room. We climbed a set of stairs and then out through a door that led outside to the ramparts. We walked along the rampart for a while, down a set of stairs, into the building and up two flights of stairs to our rooms. I was so glad that Brett was my Sherpa. This is the view from our room.
This is the view from Brett’s room.
I just moved from room to room depending on the view I wanted. Mont St-Michel is a tidal island that used to be accessible only during low tide. It was low tide when we arrived. While Gayle rested, Brett and I headed out to explore. We wanted to walk out onto the silt. I had heard that it can be a bit dangerous and that you shouldn’t go out without a guide. We didn’t venture too far, just enough to see all the seashells on the ground, evidence that the sea had been here and would return.
We got back onto the island and decided to head up the “street” and come back by the ramparts. On the way up there is a little church called Eglise Saint-Pierre. When Bryan and I visited Mont St-Michel 10 years ago this little church was right below our hotel room. We had gone to the American Cemetery on our way to Mont St-Michel because Bryan’s father was drafted at the age of 29 and had arrived in Normandy via Omaha Beach. Bryan was in a deeply contemplative mood when we arrived on the island. I remember going down with him to the little church after sunset. Bryan lit a candle in his father’s memory and we sat quietly in the sanctuary for quite some time. Brett and I entered the church. The priest was behind glass in a confessional room, working on his laptop. It felt like a photo of our modern times.
We bought a candle, which you can select on a screen and pay for with a credit card — another photo of modern times. We bought one the old fashioned way…with cash.
We lit a candle in Bryan’s memory and I thought of him with deep love and gratitude. I miss him every day.
We returned to our rooms via the rampart.
On his way to Mont St-Michel, Brett had purchased three banh mi sandwiches. We sat in our hotel room to munch on sandwiches. Then we decided to find a restaurant and order frites and dessert. The restaurants on Mont St. Michel are not top rated so we opted for a place with a view, not too far from our hotel. The tide had returned and it was astounding to see the area Brett and I had walked on earlier covered in water in such a short time.
The sun did not set until 10 p.m. but I was determined to see the lights of the abbey come on. Gayle headed for bed and I went to Brett’s room where I could get the view without doing more stairs. It is a truly magical sight.
I returned to my room and nestled underneath the duvet with the windows open. I fell asleep to the sounds of the tide and the seagulls.
Motorcycle groups in military uniforms drove by us on the streets.
Current service personnel are present everywhere, eating in restaurants and doing some sightseeing. President Biden will attend the events on June 6th. You can feel the anticipation of this 80th anniversary.
We were in search of parking close to the Bayeux Museum. There were so many people in town that we had almost given up hope of being able to park when Gayle spotted someone pulling out. We have been navigating fairly well in a country in which we don’t speak the language, but trying to figure out the ticket machine to pay for our parking stumped me. We stepped out of the way to let others use it. I hovered near by to watch what they were doing. I was a bit relieved to see that even the French speakers found the process confusing. I felt weirdly proud of myself for accomplishing such a mundane task.
As we headed to the Bayeux Museum I was struck by the display of the flags of the allied countries who landed in Normandy. They were everywhere.
There were so many military jeeps and motorcycles I wondered if people could rent one for the weekend.
Our goal was to see the Bayeux Tapestry, which is an embroidered cloth that is 230 feet long and depicts events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England. We entered a long, dark room with audio guides provided to use in English. We took our place in the solid line of people slowly moving along beside the tapestry. It tells the story from the perspective of the conquering Normans and some of it feels comical. There are laughing horses; men wading into the water to board boats without their pants on; and spies lurking behind pillars. I was delighted to be able to see it. This is a replica version of one small piece of the tapestry that you can buy from the gift shop.
We had hoped to head to the American Cemetery and Omaha Beach but seeing the crowds of people in Bayeux we decided not to go. We ate lunch in Bayeux in the pretty little courtyard of a restaurant called Selma Alabama.
I know it seems weird to choose a restaurant in Normandy named Selma Alabama but it was highly rated and promised brunch food. I love to go out for breakfast. The restaurant owner’s name is Selma. She always thought it was a strange name until she learned about the significant events of the Civil Rights Movement in the US that happened in Selma Alabama. She has never been to Selma, Alabama. She doesn’t know anyone from Selma, Alabama. But she named her restaurant in Bayeux after a Southern town in the US. On the wall she has a depiction of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the site of “Bloody Sunday.” The reason for the naming of her restaurant was written out in a sign on the wall, written in English. Oh, and the food was delicious.
Bayeux is a beautiful town…
…with another incredible cathedral. But we were anxious to get to Mont St-Michel. The gravitational pull was not strong enough to make a detour into the church.
The drive to Mont St-Michel was beautiful and uneventful. We knew we were close when we could spot the island across the fields.
We pulled into the parking lot for hotel guests staying on Mont St-Michel just two minutes before Brett pulled into the same parking lot. Brett is spending two weeks driving around Normandy and Brittany, tasting food and visiting creameries. We had planned to spend one day together on Mont St. Michel. Brett has been keeping tabs on my movements through location sharing on iPhone. He wanted to help his mother and aunt get to the island with their luggage. We had made sure that we only had to take on a backpack and purse for each of us. He put my backpack on his back and ushered Gayle and I to the shuttle that would take us onto the bridge and most of the way to the island. It is still a bit of walk but the walk gives you an opportunity to see the full scale of the island.
There is a doorway to the island…
…then a drawbridge…
….then a significant climb to the lobby of our hotel, which happened to be the first hotel off the Main Street when you enter the island The “street” was filled with tourists.
Brett had gone ahead of the aging women in his family and had us all checked in by the time we got to the lobby. The women at the desk jumped up to show us to our room. We climbed a set of stairs and then out through a door that led outside to the ramparts. We walked along the rampart for a while, down a set of stairs, into the building and up two flights of stairs to our rooms. I was so glad that Brett was my Sherpa. This is the view from our room.
This is the view from Brett’s room.
I just moved from room to room depending on the view I wanted. Mont St-Michel is a tidal island that used to be accessible only during low tide. It was low tide when we arrived. While Gayle rested, Brett and I headed out to explore. We wanted to walk out onto the silt. I had heard that it can be a bit dangerous and that you shouldn’t go out without a guide. We didn’t venture too far, just enough to see all the seashells on the ground, evidence that the sea had been here and would return.
We got back onto the island and decided to head up the “street” and come back by the ramparts. On the way up there is a little church called Eglise Saint-Pierre. When Bryan and I visited Mont St-Michel 10 years ago this little church was right below our hotel room. We had gone to the American Cemetery on our way to Mont St-Michel because Bryan’s father was drafted at the age of 29 and had arrived in Normandy via Omaha Beach. Bryan was in a deeply contemplative mood when we arrived on the island. I remember going down with him to the little church after sunset. Bryan lit a candle in his father’s memory and we sat quietly in the sanctuary for quite some time. Brett and I entered the church. The priest was behind glass in a confessional room, working on his laptop. It felt like a photo of our modern times.
We bought a candle, which you can select on a screen and pay for with a credit card — another photo of modern times. We bought one the old fashioned way…with cash.
We lit a candle in Bryan’s memory and I thought of him with deep love and gratitude. I miss him every day.
We returned to our rooms via the rampart.
On his way to Mont St-Michel, Brett had purchased three banh mi sandwiches. We sat in our hotel room to munch on sandwiches. Then we decided to find a restaurant and order frites and dessert. The restaurants on Mont St. Michel are not top rated so we opted for a place with a view, not too far from our hotel. The tide had returned and it was astounding to see the area Brett and I had walked on earlier covered in water in such a short time.
Once again we used the rampart to return to our room.
The sun did not set until 10 p.m. but I was determined to see the lights of the abbey come on. Gayle headed for bed and I went to Brett’s room where I could get the view without doing more stairs. It is a truly magical sight.
I returned to my room and nestled underneath the duvet with the windows open. I fell asleep to the sounds of the tide and the seagulls.
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