Paris and the Heart of Normandy Captured Our Hearts! Full Trip Report - Viking Rolf

[Sleep7]

 

 

[Sleep7]

Whoops! How could I forget the Grand Marnier crepe! Mmmm...

 

Also.. who knew that there was a quarter-scale replica of The Statue of Liberty in Paris?

 

:oWe didn't.. until we saw it on our bus ride back to the ship. It sits on the southern end of Île aux Cygnes near the Pont de Grenelle. The statue was given to the city in 1889 by the American community in Paris to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution.

 

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And just like that.. our 2nd day in Paris had come to a close.

Goodbye for now Paris.. we shall be back though!

 

 

Back to ship.. a full evening ahead.:D

 

 

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6:15pm.. A "top brass toast" to welcome us aboard.:ship:

 

 

Our evening port talk and then down to dinner at 7pm.:D

 

 

By day two we had found our "group" of sweet, smart and funny new pals and all became fast friends. Shout out to you Texas and Mississippi!:hearteyes:

[Sleep7]

Aboard The Rolf the food not only tasted great.. it looked good too!

 

 

 

 

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:DSilly little thing but I must mention that I LOVED that the cabins had outlets both for US plugs and European plugs. We had brought adapters with us so we were able to double the outlets.. and double the charging space!

 

 

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Tuesday dawned and we were docked at Vernon.

 

Mist was rising from the Seine..

 

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Usually on this day of the cruise the included shore excursion is to Monet's Giverny. However.. the house and gardens had just closed the week before for the winter season. Instead we visited the town of Auvers-sur-Oise where Vincent Van Gogh spent the last stage of his life and where he and his brother Theo are buried.

It was very cool to see the actual church in the painting.

As usual the guide was amazing.

Bright sunshine greeted us and it was cold enough for frost.

 

We visited the church and then walked up a hill to the graveyard set among wheat fields.

[Sleep7]

 

LOVE this image.. makes you feel that traveling is limitless and so full of potential!

 

 

 

A bathroom break and then we were treated to some chocolate napoleons before boarding the bus back to the ship. YUM!

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We did catch a glimpse of Giverny from the bus on the way back to the ship.

 

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Tuesday afternoon's optional watercolor painting activity in the lounge was awesome! The teacher was super nice, very patient and extremely cheerful. One could get as much as as little help as they wanted or needed. She supplied the brushes, the paint, the paper and lots of suggestions of how to create your impressionist masterpiece. I actually chose to paint what was right in front of me.. fun!:D

We also attended her enrichment lecture on "Painters Along the Seine." Thank goodness we were sitting in the back for that as I fell promptly asleep. Nothing to do with the presentation or the content.. maybe it was that large glass of wine at lunch?:o

 

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Wednesday.. Rouen.

 

Loved the city of Rouen! Even though it is on the "other side" of France it very much reminded me of Strasbourg or Cologne. Lots to see and do there.

After going nonstop for 3 days it was wonderful to have a morning at leisure. We ate a relaxing buffet lunch and then went on the walking tour of the city at 1:45pm.

Didn't bring a red Viking umbrella but there was a kind couple who had brought two and gave us one when the rain drops started falling midway through the tour.

 

 

 

 

 

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More from Rouen.

 

 

 

The "Tears of Joan of Arc." The signature candy of Rouen.

 

 

There were also plenty of macaron stores too!

 

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The Cathedral of Rouen.. breathtaking of course. No hunchback was spotted though.;)

 

 

The stained glass panels from the rather modern Church of St Joan of Arc in the background. How gorgeous!

 

Close up and personal with some coquilles from the fish market in that square.

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Rouen has a Synagogue too.:)

 

The Viking Rolf was docked right near the center of town which was super convenient.

I wished we had a little more time there.

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Thursday was a long and fascinating day full of emotion.

We were on the buses promptly at 8am for a 2 hour drive to the Normandy Coast and our visit to the D-Day sights and Landing Beaches.

Halfway thru the drive we made a restroom stop at a large service station. All 3 buses arrived at the same time and the line for the lady's room was about 100 ladies long and I was #100 on the line. Amazingly that line MOVED! 20 minutes later everyone was back on the bus and ready to go.

We drove past Juno, Sword and Gold beaches on our way to our first stop at Arromanches, which is the site of the artificial "Mulberry" harbor. A genuine feat of pre-planning and engineering it was completed in miraculous 10 days after the Allies landed. It allowed for our troops to be resupplied with food and weapons which were essential to phase two of the invasion. Pieces of it still remain in the

water over 70 years later.

 

 

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We had a short visit to the museum there and a delicious 3 course lunch with wine at a local restaurant.

 

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Our next stop was high on a bluff set back from the coast to see 3 German battery fortifications near the village of Longues-sur-Mer. They were part of German's "Atlantic Wall."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Our next somber stop was at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer. The cemetery is located on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach and the English Channel. It covers 172 acres and contains the remains of 9,387 American military dead, most of whom were killed during the invasion of Normandy and ensuing military operations in World War II.

It started to rain.. it was seemed appropriate..

There was a short heartfelt ceremony where the Star Spangled Banner and Taps were played and everyone had tears in their eyes thinking about the sacrifices of these young soldiers and their families. We were each given a rose to place on a grave as a sign of respect and gratitude. Both our fathers had been in WWII so we each chose a soldier who had the first name of each of our fathers. Mine - Joseph and Sam's - Manuel.

 

 

 

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Then onto our last stop of the day which was Omaha Beach.

 

 

 

 

[Reesaroo]

Wonderful report! I feel like I was on the trip with you!

 

 

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[Sleep7]

Oh geez.. it is Friday already? Where has this week gone? Time has literally flown by.. or should I say sailed by?

 

Never too old for a towel animal to make you smile!

Our very underused balcony.. had it been the summertime it would have been delightful to have!

 

Going thru a lock at Ecluses D' Amfreville.

 

 

A visitor just outside our cabin.

 

[Sleep7]

Thanks Reesaroo!

[MikeyB]

Thank you Sleep7, I did this three years ago on Viking. Great to see it again!