A little relaxation and Paris

I’ll backtrack a bit here and show a few pictures of us relaxing! Yes, it was quite hectic trying to get in all the sights we wanted to see in two weeks, but we did actually stop and just hang out a couple of times. The day we left London for Portsmouth to take the ferry across to France, we had almost a whole day to kill before our train left, so we hung out in St. James Park. With our big backpacks on, it’s not so enjoyable to do a lot of walking and sightseeing! As luck would have it, it was a beautiful day and there just happen to be a “practice parade” happening right on the street in front of us (a rehearsal for the Queen’s birthday parade a week later). We seemed to have good parade-karma because Alexis and I would stumble upon another parade a week later in Ambois, France! At any rate, we spent the whole afternoon hanging out reading or listening to IPODs (Andy and Alexis). It’s a good thing we rested up, because as you can see in the next picture, Alexis and Andy fell sound asleep in a parking lot after our all-night ferry ride to France! I don’t think Andy was prepared for how physically demanding this vacation would be - carrying 35lb backpacks, walking miles every day, bicycling hilly countryside, staying up late and getting up early, climbing endless stairs, etc.).

We saw lots of cool things while we were in Paris. We spent a good amount of time exploring the palace and gardens of Vasaille (picture is of the well-manicured gardens) and two major museums- Musee D’Orsay and the Louvre. We all really enjoyed the Impressionism and Post-Impressionism art at the Musee D’Orsay. Andy liked the colors in Gauguin paintings and we all stood in awe in front of Van Gogh’s works. The Louvre proved to be a full day with each of us taking away our own favorites in our minds. It’s hard to justify spending all our time in museums, however, when most of the architecture in Paris could qualify as art in and upon itself. Case in point- Notre Dame Cathedral. Although there wasn’t a very sacred feeling with the throngs of tourist bustling about inside and outside (quite loudly sometimes), it’s impossible to not stand with mouths agape in front of the stained glass windows. Alexis really liked the gargoyles all around the building and we all got a chuckle out of some of the statues along the entryway.

Hope you’re enjoying the “catch-up” of our trip; I’ll try to do a couple more very soon.

Ferries, Beaches, & Towers

A few apologies right off the bat. . . excuse the spelling (French keyboards have letters in different places!), excuse the tardiness (haven,t had internet access in a while and it's costing 5 dollars for 30 minutes right now), and for all that money, I can't post pictures!

From where we left off. . . we took an overnight ferry from Portsmouth, England to Caen, France. The ferry ride was great; the room was tiny, but we had our own cabin with a bathroom (most luxurious ferry accomodations I've ever had!). Therewas a full moon and the xater was perfectly calm. Alexis and I got up at 4:00 am and watched the sun rise over the English channel. Boyh Andy and Alexis were dumbfounded over the size of the ferry (there were several shops and a couple of restaurants in addition to all the 18 wheelers we saw drive on before we left).

Once we arrived in port in France, the adventure really began. Specifically, Andy and Alexis made it through customs fine, but I was detqined by French authorities! No, they didn't have records from my Navy days, they just didn't like my passport. On a similar backpacking trip I8 made alone in 1997, I was robbed at a trainstation and relieved of my passport. The temporary one I was issued at the American embassy in the Czeck ,Republic got extended by the Navy and has been my permanent passport for the last 9 years. My unusual looking passport has caused delays before, but not even the Chinese detained me! After sufficient posturing by the French authorities and adequate tongue holding by me, I was finally stamped into France with an admonishment to replace the passport ASAP.

D Day Beaches. We stayed in a great little town called Bayeux where we based ourselves to explore the beaches and museums. We saw an original 11th century tapestry and Andy had what he's deemed "the best ice cream and sandwiches he's ever had"! The only word I can use to describe the experience of standing on the beach at Normandy is INTENSE. I'm not gonna lie and say I did't shed a tear at the Americazn cemetary at Omaha beach. I took off my shoes and waded into the waters at that infamous beach. I did it not just because I am always drawn to large bodies of water, but also because I needed a sensory connection with the men who fought and died on those beaches. It was unsettling to see a handful of sunbathers on the beach; it just didn't seem right to be recreating on such sacred ground.

Paris. I thought Alexis was going to jump out of her skin during the 2.5 hour train ride from Bayeux to Paris! Andy had no particular destinations in mind as we planned this trip, but Alexis had been waiting to see Paris for several years. As we pulled into the train station, I wish I could've had my camera ready when she looked at me and asked with some trepidation, "This is Paris?" After having pulled into many different train stations in many different cities, it has been my experience that they are all pretty much the same from the tracks; graffiti and gargage strewn. It was worth it though to see her face absolutly light up when she got her first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower loomong over the ,Seine River as our metro carried us to the center of the city. We've been non stop ever since. I introduced them both to chocolate Nutella crepes (remember those Mom?!). We went to the top of the Eiffel Tower, xatched the cracy traffic go round the Arc d'Triumph, toured the palaces of Versaille, and took in some Impressionist masterpieces at thr Museum d'Orsay. So tonight, we had xashed down steak with red wine and are calling it an early evening. We're gearing up for a big day at the Louve tomorrow!

Time starts here

Friday was a day of education. We started off at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. This is where the problem of maritime navigation was largely solved. From this observatory, the constellations were meticulously recorded and mapped for mariners to use in determining longitude. The prime meridian, 0 degrees longitude, runs right through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. We actually stood over the prime meridian with one foot in the eastern hemisphere and one foot in the western hemisphere! This is also where Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), or Zulu time for my militry friends, starts. The museum was packed with astrology and chronography history and exhibits.

Our next stop of the day was the Natural History Museum. We were awestruck by the building as we were approaching it from the underground system. The first picture is of the inside of the Museum. We spent several hours exploring interactive exhibits and enjoying the diversity of so many collections. After the museum, we went in search of the ultimate English meal- fish and chips! We found it at the Cambridge Pub and Restaurant. The green stuff next to the fish and chips is mashed green peas. I thought it was yummy, but Alexis was not impressed! Andy ate "sausage & mash" which was large breakfast sausages over mashed potatos swimming in a brown gravy. Not to worry, parents of my travel companions, that beer next to the plate is mine!

It's amazing how easily we skoot around this city. Andy had the underground (subway) system figured out as soon as we got on it. Alexis is getting more confident by the day on getting us from point A to point B and has a really good sense of direction. Hostel living isn't always conducive to a good nights sleep, but both of them have been enjoying everything about this adventure. It's been great watching them start to recognize and appreciate the differences between here and the U.S. I don't think either one of them will ever take water for granted again- there are no public water fountains, and pretty much no free water. If you want it, you have to pay a good bit for bottled water (tap water is mostly safe, but tastes aweful).

Today we leave London. We're taking a train down to the harbor town of Portsmouth and taking an overnight ferry across the English channel to Caen. My next post should be from France!

Cycling in the English countryside

After a decent cup of coffee (not as good as Ravens Nest though), we took off for Salisbury. It's a town about a 1.5 hour train ride away. The train ride was nice, our first glimpse of the English countryside. As we glided along the tracks, we talked and dozed. I opened my eyes and looked out the window to see at which terminal we were stopped. Wake up, this is our stop! We jumped off and headed towards the center of town. We found a bike shop that rented mountain bikes and started our 9km bike ride through rolling English countryside to Stonehenge. Everyone told us that the hype was much more moving than the actual rocks, but it's one of those things you've got to see for yourself. After seeing the 5000 year old rock arrangement, we all agreed that in this case, the journey was just as good as the destination. We really enjoyed the scenic ride and were very happy we did it. We hadn't gotten to the bike rental shop until just around lunch and we have to have the bikes back by 5:00 p.m., so we had to pick up the pace a bit on the way back. We rolled into the bike shop at 4:55 p.m! I hate being on a deadline when I'm on vacation!

So, today's a new day and we're off to see a little more of London itself. We're not sure how much longer we'll stay in England, we'll see how today goes and if we are moved to head towards France yet or not.

Hey, they speak English!

Wow, what a trip so far! I'm using the internet in our hostel, but I can't download pictures on it, so you'll just have to be satisfied with my commentary. I wanted Alexis and Andy to add a few comments of their own, but they're both still sleeping right now (it's 8:00 a.m.). The first day is always a struggle since I can't sleep on a plane because of my neck (I know, I'm gettiing old!) and the first whole day is spent battling fatigue since you don't want to fall asleep before a decent bedtime on the new time zone. Andy and Alexis have been great travel partners so far. All day long, even though we were all a little cranky from lack of sleep, we all seemed to be on the same page about what we wanted to see and do.

As soon as we arrived in downtown London after a 45 minute metro ride from the airport, we got coffees and evaluated our next move. I think the lady sitting next to Alexis on the flight got her nervous that we wouldn't be able to find a place to sleep since we didn't already have reservations, so our first move was to find some lodging for the next few nights. While waiting for the Information Office (the European version of a tourist office) to open, we strolled along St. James Park over to Bukdingham palace. This was where the real test of our packing skills came into play because we still were sporting our full-sized backpacks while strolling around!

Buckingham Palace is spectacular from the outside, but we couldn't tour inside the gates since it's only open from July to September. We couldn't try our hand at distracting the guards since they were inside the gates! Back at the Information Office, we found a youth hostel without an age limit (they usually cap "youths" at 35 years old!) at which to stay for the next 3 nights. London is rediculously expensive ($100 = £55) and it cost £19 a night for a bunk bed in a room of four people with a bathroom down the hall. We lucked out though, and it's only the 3 of us in our room.

We rounded off our first day in London by checking out Westminster Abbey, Houses of Parliment, Big Bend, Shakespear's Globe Theater, and London and Tower Bridges. We spent much of the day exploring the banks of the River Thames, so we stopped by Waterloo Pier where the huge ferris wheel is (I forgot the official name of it). It's gigantic, and looked like great fun to ride, but it cost £30 to ride (over $60 US), so we passed on it. Alexis and Andy made it through the first half of the Shakespearean play Titus Andronicus at the Globe Theater, but I was falling asleep standing up, so I went outside and visited with one of the theater volunteers. It's not too hard to stay awake when you're moving around, it's when you stop that the struggle with exhaustion gets fierce! If our first day in London was any indication of how our trip will flow, we're in for a great vacation. Even after being awake for well over 24 hours, we all got along very well and were willing to roll with the punches!

That's our first day in a nutshell. If I can find another computer later that will allow me to post pictures, I'll add some. We'll see what Day 2 brings now!