Week 4: France

Bonjour mes amis! Hello from Cherbourg, France everyone!

We pulled in to Cherbourg, a quaint sea-village in the northern part of France on Monday and let me tell you, it was soooo nice to be on land again! As soon as they put down liberty call, I left with Shawna and Erin, two of my roommates on the ship, to see what this place had to offer. The ship arranged for us to have a bus take us from the ship to the centre ville (city center) every hour, which really helped save on cab fare. We went into town, found a great little cafe, and had some pate and wine! Then we wandered around the town, looking for an actual meal (and more wine) and found both in abundance! I even remembered some of my high school French, so we were able to figure out the menus and talk to some of the locals!

I had duty Tuesday, so I was stuck on the ship....

Wednesday, Erin, Shawna, and I took a bus trip to Normandy to see the beaches and get a little culture. After lunch near Omaha Beach, we left our tour group and had quite the adventure! We made a visit to the local tourist advisory center and got a bus schedule, which I translated, and then we took a short bus ride to Bayeux, a very quaint adorable little town. Once in Bayeux, we went to another tourist advisory, got a list of hotels and restaurants, and found a cute little B&B to stay at. After checking in, we wandered up and down the streets looking at the local markets, and decided to relieve some stress by getting massages. After we were refreshed, we headed back to our hotel, changed clothes, and ventured out for a wonderful four course meal! We started with a crab mousse, then fois gras (goose liver) and bread. The main course was a wonderful rotisserie chicken breast in a local cheese sauce with sliced sauteed potatoes and plums and salad. For dessert we had homemade pistachio ice cream and raspberry sorbet....and once again, plenty of yummy local wine! After dinner, we absolutely FELL into our beds!

After sleeping in today, we checked out of the hotel and wandered around Bayeux. We saw the famous 1000 year old Bayeux Tapestry which depicts William the Conqueror's conquest of Normandy and the Cathedral de Notre Dame Bayeux, which was built around 1047!! Absolutely beautiful! Then we had lunch at one of the wonderful little cafes in the main square, headed back to the hotel, and collected our bags. We got directions to the train station, and made the trek back through town and found out way to the gare (train station) where I spoke some more broken French to get us tickets back to Cherbourg!

Now we're safely back on the ship, getting ready for a reception and cocktail party on the ship this evening. Then we're going to try to head out again this evening to mail postcards and pick up a few more souvenirs before we leave tomorrow morning.

Enjoy the pictures from our trip!! Next week I'll have a whole new country to tell you about!!

A bientot! (See you later!)

Kate