Le Mans

Well I made it to Caen, unfortunately Caen does not equal Normandy Beaches, which were another 45 minutes by car. Since I was lacking a car, and renting a car or motorcycle would probably break the bank I decided to go to the Memorial de Caen, which is a WWII memorial plus a memorial to peace. It was a very interesting experience, but it was lacking on D-Day information, which was a bummer. Finding a taxi to the memorial was easy as most of the taxis tend to hover around the train stations. Getting a taxi from the memorial was another question all together… So what did I do, I began walking…. well due to boy scouts I am pretty good at land navigation, even in a foriegn country, because I didn’t see a taxi until I had walked nearly back to the Gare de Caen…. a mere 4.6km. From there a beer at a small pub outside the station, a cafe and sandwich in the station, and I was off to Le Mans, where I checked into out Bed and Breakfast, and then took a taxi to the track, where after a bit of wandering around, and some help from a very nice lady I was pointed in the correct direction of the Media tent.

Public transportation in France is second to none, however public transportation at a racetrack is usually hectic at best. I called a taxi, and after 20 minutes I never say it, though I suspect it was hijacked by another group. So I took the bus
spécial 24 du mans, back to the Gare Le Mans, to grab a taxi, about 45 minutes in total.

I made it to Rouen today. I walked from my hotel in Paris, along the Haussmann Boulevard to the Gare St. Lazare, where after much searching I figured out how to buy a ticket to Rouen. Boarded the train, and with a little hesitation, was off. The trains in France, are pretty cool, but as far as I can see are not very intuitive. I did manage to get my ticket punched before entering the train, however I am still unsure if the 18.90 Euros I payed for a ticket is a round trip. I do not see “retour” or anything like that stamped on the ticket. It seems like it is only good for one way, however I could have sworn that I saw Paris-Rouen 9,50E on the window… then again it could be the Jet Lag talking.

Rouen is pretty neat, although quite touristy. My Hotel is about 900 meters from the train station, and about 2000 from where Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) was held before and during her trial.

From there I saw a huge spire, off in the distance, and with little trouble I found my way to the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen (Rouen Cathedral) only stopping once at an “Irish Pub” to grab a beer.

Upon entering the Cathedral, you can’t help be simply blown away. The Cathedral was the tallest building in the world from 1876 until 1880, and was bombed several times in 1944.

It contains the tomb of Richard the Lionheart, which only contains his head. From there I walked around looking at the shops, and people, and finally back to my Hotel, where I got cleaned up, and went out for dinner at an Indian restaurant around the corner from my Hotel.

Tomorrow it is off to Le Mans, however I am going to try and take an early morning train to Caen, and to the Normandy beaches, as there wasn’t any sort of tour bus from Rouen. I would upload pictures, but since I am using my cellphone as a modem, and I feel it would severely overwhelm the sensitive French cellular network here in Rouen, I will try and post pictures tomorrow.

Some things on my mind: Is there a difference between un café svp and un espresso svp, both seem to taste the same, and are in the same size cup.

More from Le Mans, and maybe Caen tomorrow

Well I made it, Paris France. The weather was far more humid then I figured it would be, with 94% humidity. My plane landed at Paris – CDG International airport, and from there I took a cab to my hotel. Traffic in Paris is crazy… Stop signs and lights seem to be taken as suggestions. Motorcycles and Mopeds split lanes with reckless abandon. Zigging and Zagging in front of cars, onto sidewalks, and anywhere else that will put them ahead of the next person on the way to their destination.
Unfortunately my plans for Paris was to check into the Hotel, grab a quick Lunch and then hit The louvre. Well that didn’t end up happening, I grabbed lunch, then went back to my room to look up the best way to get to the museum, when I was attacked by jet lag, being awake mostly for the last 24 hours with only a couple hours of sleep, I closed my eyes for a few minutes and woke up a few hours later.

So I did what anyone would do… I went for a walk from my hotel at 36 Rue De L’Echiquier and must have walked about 5 or so Miles. Walked up all around managing to get lost 3 or 4 times. Paris is one of the only places that I have been too that 4 left turns puts you in a completely different spot then you started. I had a lot of fun walking around the area I am staying. In the evening I spotted a bunch of lights from my hotel, and walked up to it, about 8 city blocks, and found Paroisse St Vincent de Paul. Tomorrow if all goes well and I can figure out where to catch my train, I will go to Rouen, check into my hotel, and then find a way to get up to the Normandy beaches, and see some of the WWII Memorials.