Ten Days - France; Goodbye USA - Hello France. Worrall Traveler Days (WTRD) 1-3

WTRD 1 - June 7, 2018 - Goodbye Vermont.

After a delightful three weeks with our family in Vermont, we were off to the Burlington Airport by 1:00 and in the air headed to Iceland with a plane change United Express to Icelandic Air at Dulles in D.C.  

Lucky us, once again we were bumped from Economy plus to Saga Class and received an invitation to the Air France Lounge where we spent a few enjoyable hours waiting for our plane eating lots of wonderful French Bread, cheese, meats, petite desserts, fruit, and wine.  We boarded our plane and settled into our large comfy seats, greeted with steamed towels and a glass of sparkling wine at 7:30.  In the air by 8:00 we settled in for dinner and a short night (5 hours) to Iceland.

A ribbon of crimson orange hugged the horizon as we skirted over the arctic and the midnight sun dipped and rose again.

WTRD 2, June 8, 2018. - An Awesome Dawn.

At dawn, our plane had begun its descent and we were between a layer of high stratus and the tops of lower clouds in a magical realm above the earth where mountains of white shape-shifted and sunlight shone from their puffy tops, shaded the wispy slopes, and reflectively pooled in golden valleys.

What an awesome way to start the day.

When we arrived in cool, misty Iceland where summer had yet begun and had just enough time to weave our way through the the throngs of red-eyed passengers and passport control and board our plane to Paris.  We gained back a few hours and arrived in Charles De Gaulle Airport around 1:00 pm.   It was cool and foggy.  The airport was teaming with people from all parts of the world, most dressed in modern day western attire, but many wearing ethnic and religious attire.

Airports are fascinating intersections of life moving simultaneously in singular and collective cross directions.













Anxiety, excitement, exhaustion, impatience etched in faces as passengers crowded on to elevators,

waited for anticipated luggage, searched for friends, and shuffled through slow moving lines at passport control.  Snatches of French, German, English,  and occasional bursts of laughter and children squealing rose above the bustle and white noise.

We reclaimed our bag, rented our car, (brand new, Toyota Hybrid), setup the the navigation system from French to English, keyed in our address of our AirBnB accommodations in a small village outside of Paris, and were on our way.

Arriving in Bouffemont around 3:00, we found our little flat in a quaint village.

It is wonderful little gem of a place in the old section of the village.

Right hand door, inches from the street, leads to our flat.

The entry door is less than two feet from the narrow street.  Our host Alan, opened up for us.  The flat is impeccably clean,  comfortable, smart, modern, retro, and fun. Fridge is filled with cheeses,  juice, eggs, and yogurt.  The tables have a bowl of fresh fruit, baskets of bread and pastries, and a bottle of Bordeuax.

After settling into our flat, Russ and I wandered around a little in the village.  We extracted some Euros from the ATM, bought a few items for dinner, headed back to the flat, ate, reorganized our bags for land travel, drank the wine, and went to bed. 

We are heading towards Normandy tomorrow.

WTRD 3 - June 9, 2018 - France Day 2 of 10

Russ slept through the.night.  I woke up at 2:00 am and couldn't get back to sleep.  Finally decided at 3:00 to get up.  I thought a cup of tea would help.  It didn't so I amused myself by reading.  Went back to bed at  4:00, tried for another hour to sleep, and finally got up at 5:00 for good.  Oh well, guess it will take me a few days to adjust to the time change.  I took advantage of the time by starting our blog while Russ slept on.

When we were both awake, we dug into the pastries.  Oh yum!

Can't do that every day or we'll balloon up!  After breakfast, we packed the bags to the car, said goodbye to our cute little flat which we will be returning to at the end of the week, turned in our key, took a morning walk through the neighborhood and got on the road.

Claude Monet Gardens in Girveny

Our first stop of the day was to visit Monet's home and the surrounding gardens that gave him inspiration for so many of his paintings.  They were indeed inspirational.  We were too late for the irises, but day lilies, poppies, roses, and water lilies were abundant. We were one of thousands of visitors...get there before the tour busses arrive from Paris.

Chumond

We passed through this picturesque little village and decided to stretch our legs and take a few photos.  Caught the tail end of a wedding.  

Jumieges Abbey

Our last stop of the  day was at the ruins of one of the oldest Benedictine monasteries in Normandy. The abbey took 26 years to build from 1040-1066 and endured the ravages of time and change, and lack of funding for repairs after the 100 year war and the French Revolution.  It was sold to a private party in 1796 and the materials were quarried.  What remains are the architectural bones of the grand abbey.

After our walk through the ruins, we found a cute sidewalk cafe in the shadow of the Abbey and had our dinner, sharing an omelette and salad, and a glass of wine.

Accommodations for the night are in a lovely chateau on the River Seine.

Another  great place!  I am sitting in front of an opened window looking out at the river as I write this blog. 

Very nice. Continuing on after breakfast tomorrow

All is Well with the Worrall Travel R's after our the third day of travels and our second day in France.

Love to all.