Playing Catch Up, Part 3 of 4
Day 7: Fri. Oct. 28th -- AMBOISE, PARIS, ROUENDid I mention Amboise was my favorite European city yet? I liked it quite a lot. I’m going to go back there someday. This was the part of the trip where it began to be very apparent that Mary Ann and I hadn’t planned ahead much. :o) We found out we couldn’t “just pass through Chartres on our way to Rouen”. We actually had to pass through Paris to get there, which was a little out of our way and didn’t allow for us to see Chartres at all. Shoot. (It was weird, too, because we had to take the metro and change train stations and everything in Paris.) We got to Rouen, Normandy (I sang the song all throughout my stay) in the late afternoon and booked whatever transportation we were sure we needed at that point. We found out that we also couldn’t “just stop through Mont Saint Michel on our way to Bretagne” -- meaning its elimination as well. Double shoot. We really wanted to see that! Oh well. We were introduced to Rouen’s métrobus, which was a nice and handy service. We hit the Office de Tourisme, which we decided by the end of the trip really makes or breaks one’s visit to any unknown city. We self-consciously went to a Tex-Mex place for supper, which was bizarre because, 1) “Tex-Mex in France?” and 2) “Tex-Mex in France mere days before Halloween??” They were wearing costumes, had a cauldron full of “witches brew”, and were playing lively Mexican music -- which I loved. Ran-dom.
see my “Rouen, Normandy” photo set
Day 8: Sat. Oct. 29th -- ROUEN, VERNON, GIVERNY
Giverny was one of the first things I remember wanting to visit way back when I first started learning about France. The other thing I knew early on was that I wanted to visit the Loire Valley’s châteaux. Done and done! Giverny was everything I thought it would be. The house was interesting and the gardens were beautiful. We had good weather and it wasn’t crowded. We had time for lunch in town and a quick trip to the church where I believe Monet was buried. Mary Ann and I got back with time for a full evening, so we filled it. :o) We walked the shops for a while. I finally found a salon with an opening (I’d been looking all this time) and got my hair cut. We went to an Italian buffet (both “Italian” and “buffet” meaning things slightly different than usual) and ate supper to French Halloween music for kids: odd. There was a “fun fair” going on across the Seine, so we walked the river for a while, taking in the sights and sounds. It was a beautiful night. It was at times like this that I would turn to Mary Ann and say, “No offense, but I really wish you were a good-looking Christian guy.” The feeling was mutual.
see my “Giverny” photo set
posted by Kate @ 3:58 AM
9 Comments:
Wow, Kate, thanks for the posts. These photo sets are really nice. You have a natural eye for interesting composition -- these are really good photos.
You all are so sweet with your compliments! I’ve never considered myself a photographer, but I find that I like being “obligated” to document the places I visit. But please do keep in mind that there are bunches of bad pix that will never make it out of the recesses of my computer. Never. :o)
But really, they won’t. :o)
Seriously Kate, those are some fantastic pictures. I've tried for years to gain an "artistic eye" in photography and have since given up and loudly say "I'm doing an arty shot" when I'm trying to capture the sunlight in the trees or something so I don't feel like such a poser.
Do you mind if I turn a few of your pictures into prints to hang on my wall? I promise to tell anyone who asks that it was you, not I, who took them.
Yeah, I want Giverny13 to be turned into a jigsaw!
--JEG
Dude -- am I blushing! Do whatever you want with those photos. I'm just jazzed to share them with you all.
I LOVE the jigsaw puzzle idea.
And thanks for linking to that Muppet song. I think I love it even more than Rainbow Connection, and that's saying something! Boy, I haven't watched The Muppet Movie in forever.
BESS
TMM is the best muppet movie. TGMC is good, but not as good.
This is why I own TMM on DVD and some other sucker in the Ghormley family bought TGMC.
:o)
Stand back, I've actually given this some thought. While I agree with you, Anne, that TMM is probably the superior movie objectively speaking, I would still have to say that TGMC is my *favorite* muppet movie. Although the songs, for one, in TGMC aren't as good as TMM's, I just think it's livelier and funnier on the whole. Plus, I can't get enough of Charles Grodin's lovestruckness of Miss Piggy.
BESS
I love ya, Annie, but I'm gonna have to side with Bess. :o) Although it has been far too long since I've seen TMM. Wow, our list of movies to watch when I get back grows longer every day!
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