France - Land of Pain au chocolat and the Eiffel Tower

The second blog installment of my European adventure. Once again I am so sorry this is so long but there is a lot to talk about. At the end of all of this madness of words there is a slideshow of France pictures. Also I will soon be writing a knitting post because there has been some during these several months I've had off from school.

June 7th
Today was packed with events. We hopped off the ferry and onto a coach bus for our whirlwind tour of Normandy. We picked up our guide and she began to explain the history of the area to us. On our way to Normandy we were able to stop at a local French bakery for Croissants and baguettes and it was an amazing start to our day. Being in Normandy was another pinch me day. The area has such deep meaning to so many people because of the battle fought there and has become idealized and romanticized through the use of Hollywood. Yet being there was not disappointing, it was sobering and gave me a need to just reflect on each place we went no matter how short of a time we were there.
We began our tour at the Port de Hoc Range which was a German battery. Craters are everywhere, from the allied bombs, as well as remnants of the fortifications that were there including concrete, barbed wire, and metal. Walking through the are was frightening and fascinating because this one of our first really battlefield type place we went to, and to see how the war so dramatically changed the landscape of an area was mind blowing. It is so different from battle fields in the states from the civil war which are basically empty fields, but the civil war did not involved the same military technology to create such vast destruction. While I was there I began to understand how much the allied troops had to go through to get past the German fortifications. Then we headed to Omaha Beach which everyone was excited to see and disappointed when we were only given 5 minutes. The beach had two memorials on it that I am assuming were both for D-day. One was actually in the sand and the other one was by the road. I was really excited to go the beach and just see it and maybe receive a little taste of the day over sixty years ago. One of the only things I could think about there was the comment made by someone that with Saving Private Ryan there was one thing wrong with the beach and that in the movie you can see sand. On D-day the sand could not be seen because of the massive amounts of bodies. The sights of Normandy all felt very sacred to me and the beach was not an exception. Next up on the agenda was the American Cemetery. This famous cemetery holds many graves and I believe that the average age of a soldier buried there is early 20s. I could have stayed there all day long and just wandered around and read the grave stones, because for me each gravestone is of a person who has a story and I want to know who they are and what their story was. As with many places the cemetery was also a heavy emotional spot because so many American men gave up their jobs and joined the military, fighting for their country. On our way into the cemetery we spotted three older gentlemen who were veterans of D-day and we were able to take a picture. I wish we had time to talk to the men but alas we needed to move on. With a lot to see and not enough time to really explore, I headed to the small chapel in the middle of the cemetery and then back to the main memorial near the entrance which contains on a monument Operation Overlord. We left the Cemetery after only twenty minutes and headed to see Batteries de Longues which were pill box style German bunkers. These were different because two of the three still had guns that were intact. The previous site and this site were remarkably intact but also looked like no one had really done anything to them after the war and someone asked how all of this was still there. Our guide said that the French were basically tired of war and decided to just leave everything where it was because it was much easier than trying to clear and build something else. Also there is a possibility of an unexploded bomb somewhere in the craters.
Our next stop was the little town of Arromanches where we were able to wander around and have lunch. There was a D-day museum but many of us decided that it was not really worth it because of the other museums we had been to. My group headed down to the military shop that was supposed to have really interesting artifacts from the war. I went in not expecting to find anything spectacular and was going to buy one of the old magazines that the troops would get. However, I decided to ask the owner if He had anything related to women in the military and he said that he did. It turned out to be a WAC officer winter dress hat. The coolest part was that there is a number written on the tag inside that appears to be the ID number of the WAC who wore the hat. I am in the process of finding out who the hat belonged to. Regardless it was the coolest find of the day in my opinion, when he showed it to me I about died I was really excited. It was definitely something that I could not pass up. Arromanches itself was also very important during the D-day invasion and in their harbor the floating docks are still there. The docks were used by the allies in order to transport heavy cargo and machinery to shore so that the larger ship would not get stuck.
We headed back to Caen to drop off our guide and to go to the Caen memorial museum. When we got there a film was about to begin so we headed in and watched a very visual film with very little words about the rise of Hitler and the beginning of the war as well as a section of pictures of France. The film was excellent because it gave a lot of information, was entertaining and people of all languages were able to watch it because there were very few times where anything was spoken. I thought that was a good use of their resources rather than having something for everyone in their own language. After the film we headed towards the exhibit which employed a clever use of a circle space to highlight the entrance into war as well as the change of color from white to black. The exhibit was excellent and I enjoyed the artifacts and informational boards throughout. One of my favorite and most memorable parts of the exhibit was just an artistic element. A brick wall with posters in the upper left hand corner peeling because they have been there for a while and a bike chained to the wall. To me those small parts add great value to an exhibit. They help to establish a sense of place into what you are looking at rather than just have the artifacts strewn all over the pace with random text panels. I was disappointed when I realized I had only gone through about one-third of the exhibit and then it was time to meet up with the group. After spending only a few moments in the exhibit I knew that I wanted to see everything, but there was not enough time for everything.
From the museum we headed to our hotel in Bayeux for the night. We ate dinner and then heard from a gentleman named Jacques who . I was disappointed when I realized I had only gone through about one-third of the exhibit and then it was time to meet up with the group. After spending only a few moments in the exhibit I knew that I wanted to see everything, but there was not enough time for everything.
From the museum we headed to our hotel in Bayeux for the night. We ate dinner and then heard from a gentleman named Jacques who lived in the Bayeux and was six when the Americans liberated the town. Although he did grow up during German occupation he was a very young boy so did not remember much about that, but he told us what he remembered. He remembers small things like the candy from the American soldier and the great dislike his mother had for all Germans. While now he can separate the German people from the Nazis, he mentioned that his parents and many of the older people never could. I think he enjoyed talking to a group of young people who seemed to be genuinely interested in the stories he had to share.
June 8th
After a lovely nights rest in Bayeux we packed up and set off for Paris, but not without taking a detour to see the most famous piece of fabric in Bayeux, the Bayeux Tapestry. The tapestry was made by women in Bayeux after 1066 and depicts the success of William the Conqueror in the area. No one knows exactly who made it or why, but it is one of the most skilled pieces of embroidery I’ve ever seen. I also was impressed at how well something that is almost 1000 years old has been preserved. Apparently the tapestry has been stolen by Napoleon and other Kings since it was created which adds to the impressive nature of the preservation. The museum has an audio guide for the tapestry which explains each scene. I was really grateful for that because I would not have known the story if it was not for the audio guide. I was really glad for this detour into medieval European history and to experience a beautiful piece of art and social history that was not originally on our itinerary.
From the tapestry we boarded out bus and headed for the lovely town of Rouen. The town is famous because it is where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. So that is where we went first. The memorial was very simple I thought. A large cross in a little garden, but the actual cross part was several feet high so that the bottom almost looked like a stake to me. The town had built a small chapel as well dedicated to Joan of Arc and there was a small museum about her. We decided not to go in even though it was a good price, because Lauren wanted to get to the Cathedral it was the only thing she wanted to see. Before we went we got lunch at a little shop and practiced our French. Lauren and the owner were very helpful in teaching us how to pronounce what we wanted to order. We made it to the Notre Dame Cathedral, which I found out that all Cathedrals in France are named Notre Dame because they are all dedicated to our lady. The Cathedral was beautiful and very intricate. It is so hard to imagine that the builders did all of that by hand and totally understandable why it would take a couple hundred years to build the Cathedral. The most fascinating part for me was their handling of the damage created by World War II. The church was severely damaged by bombs during the war, they have pictures inside the Cathedral where you can see the damage. I am sure one of the most devastating loses was the stained glass, but instead of replacing the glass they installed white glass. It was almost a memorial to the suffering that World War II had on the everyday life of the people, even the church. The town also took great pains to rebuild after the war. There was an effort after the war to rebuild in the medieval style of architecture and I am glad that they did, because it was their heritage that they were losing if they did not.
From there we headed on to Paris. Everyone says that you will either love Paris or hate Paris that there is no in between. I was worried about being disappointed by Paris and not loving it. However, I can say that I do not hate Paris, but we were not really there long enough for me to love Paris. I was disappointed in the fact that we were not there long enough to really experience Paris, but that is a nother trip for another time. We got into Paris and went to dinner at an adorable French restaurant and had a very French meal. After dinner, we went to the Pantheon in Paris which is located in the Latin Quarter and is the resting place for French royalty and those who have made significant contributions to France. From there we walked to the Metro station to see the Eiffel Tower. The one thing I was looking forward to the most of this trip and it did not disappoint. I was worried about pickpockets on the Metro and at the Eiffel tower, but I never had a problem which was exciting. We got out of the metro and walked straight up at the base of the Eiffel tower. The first thing we encountered were tons of men trying to sell us souvenirs. They were a lot like vultures in a way constantly coming up to us and asking us if we wanted to buy something for a Euro. We successfully avoided them, got our tickets and proceeded to the top. We took the first elevator to the first deck walked around, took some pictures, and then got in line for the next elevator. I am pretty sure that half of our time was spent in line for the elevator. We finally made it to the top and the views of Paris were incredible, I could have spent much more time up there just taking in Paris. However, it was time to leave so we once again stood in line for an elevator. Once we got down to the bottom we headed to the middle of the park that is around the tower to take more pictures. The tower was really beautiful all lit up at night and I can see the romance that Paris is known for. After the tower we went back to our hotel and rested up for our full day in Paris.
June 9th
I was really excited for our tour of Paris. We picked up out tour guide Katherine who was so knowledgeable about Paris and was just very French to me. We drove around Paris in our bus and saw so many things that I really can not remember them all. The building in Paris were so beautiful and so many survived the war because Paris was never really bombed. As our guide said no one wanted to be the one who destroyed Paris. The tour mainly focused on Napoleon and the French Revolution which I was slightly disappointed about, I wish there had been more of a focus on the World War II history in Paris but the tour was still awesome. We saw the statue of Joan of Arc, the Arc de Triumph, and one of the most famous squares in Paris Place de la Concorde where many died during the French revolution at the blade of the guillotine. One of the most interesting and surprising parts of Paris was the two thousand year old roman bath. I think many of us were shocked to find out how far the roman empire expanded and how their remnants are still around today. We also saw the square where the Ritz hotel is located, where Princess Diana stayed. The square is dedicated to the Sun King, Louis XIV and contains some of the most expensive stores in the area including the first Cartier store. After our tour of Paris we made our way to the Palace of Versailles. I overheard Margaret ask why we chose to go to Versailles since it was a World War II themed trip. But the palace does have connection to our trip because the Treaty of Versailles was signed there which was a reason for World War II starting. The palace was beautiful and I could just picture the opulent furniture and people who lived there during the 18th century. Having Katherine as our tour guide was great because we were able to have a nice detailed tour of the palace, but I do felt that we rushed through the rooms a little bit. The palace has about 2,000 rooms inside and we saw maybe a little over fifty. I wish they had more rooms open to the public including the private apartments of the King and Queen. The public rooms were amazing and I cannot imagine having to do everything in public like they were required to. They not only had to sleep in public, but get dressed, eat, and just about everything else. After our guided tour we were able to explore the apartments of the Dauphin Prince which were very opulent and numerous for such a small person. Then we took some time in the gardens. Because it was raining and we were short on time we did not fully explore the gardens but we did go to the back of the palace and the gardens just went on forever. I cannot imagine the upkeep a garden like that requires, but it was opulent like everything else.
We left Versailles and headed back into Paris where we had some free time before dinner so we went shopping. I bought some cute stuff and we all headed to dinner at a pizza type place. It was a really good dinner and was a welcome rest from the whirlwind of the day. After dinner a group of us headed to the Latin Quarter to hang out. I do not actually think my group made it to the Latin Quarter because we split off from everyone but we had a fun time. We kind of lost our bearings on the way back to the Metro but everything was fine and we made it back to the hotel safely. One thing I regret about Paris is that I felt that I did not get to truly experience Paris in the way I would have liked, but EF trips are about tastes of places so you know what you would like to go back to. Paris is one of those places for me and I fully intend to go back in the near future to truly experience Paris.
June 10th
We left Paris and traveled most of the day but for me this was one of the most impactful days of the trip. We paid a surprise visit (for us anyway) to Mumm’s Champagne House. Apparently the Champagne region of France is the only place that what we call champagne can be made and actually called champagne. Everyone else that makes it, even if they use the same technique cannot call it champagne. Making champagne is a very intensive process and they take great care to ensure that the champagne is the same quality that they have produced for decades. They also have kept a lot of the historical equipment throughout the years which I thought was really cool. After the fun detour from our history emphasis we headed to a World War I battle site of Verdun. The site was of the longest and bloodies battle of World War I. We got to the area and stopped at spot that was covered in craters and the remains of trenches. I did not realize until later that the site we were at was a town, and the street names were actual streets. There were little plaques where houses once stood and several memorials including a chapel that had been built. It really hit me as I walked around by myself that the area was a battlefield and that mend died and were probably still buried beneath my feet. In the quiet eerie stillness I could almost picture the battle. World War I really changed the landscape and geography of Europe. In the whole area where the battle took place there had been nine villages, but they were all destroyed in a matter of weeks. Also the land is now basically useless and nothing can be built on it because no one knows if there is an unexploded bomb in the area. Yet I do not think the area should be rebuilt, to much happened for anything but a memorial to be on the property. Standing there on the bath with craters all around me I realized that is why I came on the trip. To stand in these places and get a glimpse of what it was like for the men who fought these battles we learn about in our history classes. I also was able to see why there was so much appeasement for Hitler prior to World War II. I could see the devastation that Europe wanted to avoid again.
We left the area and made our way to the Fort de Douaumont which was built in the 1880s and continually reinforced through the early 1900s. The fort was used by the French and the Germans. In the early part of the Battle of Verdun the Germans had a hold of it in 1916. But the fort was continually bombed and the French later recaptured it after heavy losses for both sides. Craters were everywhere and so was the rubble. There were several holes blown into the fort including one in the roof. The fort was built into a hill which I am sure helped to conceal it somewhat as well as make it harder to capture on foot. Unfortunately we did not have a lot of time there, but if we had more I would have paid the small fee to go inside and explore the fort. This area was the first battle area I have ever been to that looked like it had been through war. All of the battlefields in the United States are basically big open fields with little evidence people died there, but that is mainly due to the technological advances. The destructive evidence of war was clearly seen.
Our last stop at Verdun was the cemetery and Douaumont Ossary. It was a cemetery of the French soldiers with a memorial to the unknown. There was also a memorial to the Muslim troops mainly from Algeria and other French influenced countries that fought for France. The memorial has a very Moroccan architecture and I think it was really cool that the memorial was there. We often do not think of people of other faiths fighting in wars except for the difference between Christianity and Judaism. They were also buried in an area separate from the other troops. There was a fence around their graves and a sign in French that basically said that it was against their religion for people to walk on their graves. I thought it was great that they were not left out of the commemoration to all the people who fought and died in the battle. The building on the site was a tower and held memorials to the unknown soldiers that were found. I walked around to the back side of the building and saw windows near the sidewalk. I looked in them and there were piles of bones which shocked me to no end. I still do not know why they left them exposed like that, it almost seemed irreverent in a way. My only conclusion was that maybe they were the bones of the unknown soldiers that were memorialized inside the building. I walked through the French graves looking at the names and half way searching for anyone with my last name. I did not see anyone but I enjoyed looking through the graves and just seeing the names. One interesting thing about the cemetery was that the general was at the head of all of the graves, separated from everyone else which is a sign of the general’s ranking and importance in the group of soldiers. The cemetery was a peaceful place and holds over 15,000 french soldiers who fought in World War I. Cemeteries are always impactful for me because of the history of the people buried there and the untold stories represented only by a name. The whole day in Verdun was just really impactful for me and was one of the best days of the trip.
We headed to our hotel and passed by two very interesting sites on the way there. The first was a German cemetery, which was very different from the other cemeteries we had visited. The graves were marked by black slate crosses and there were not any memorials in the area that emphasized it was a German cemetery. We found out that this is typical for all German cemeteries and I can see why they would be understated in France because of the negative connotations. Then as we were driving through the countryside we spotted a bunker in the middle of no where. The funny part about it was that it was being used as a stable. I thought it was interesting how the people have turned the various things left by the war into something useful for them today. We stayed at our hotel in the middle of nowhere, France but had a wonderful time. It was defiantly a night that I do not think anyone will ever forget. We all had a lot of fun hanging out and Margaret taught us a hilarious game called Ibble Dibble that I am sure will be a new St. Augustine staple.