We drove to SSF to our parking space at Dome Construction and Uber’ed to SFO. \240Check in for our BA flight to LHR was easy but TSA was a mess. \240Even with TSA PreCheck, the line was 1/2 hour. \240For those unfortunate poor souls without precheck, the wait must have been greater than 1 hour. \240 Our flight to LHR was delayed by ATC at the gate for 1 hour due to ground congestion. \240 The polar flight was uneventful except that the BPPV, which has been an intermittent issue for me for the past week, reared it’s ugly head when I awoke the following morning. \240 Yesterday had been good so I assumed (incorrectly) I was done with it. \240

After a short flight from LHR, we arrived at Paris CDG around 5:00. \240Due to bad (typical) Paris traffic it took over 1 hour to get to our Hotel Sevrés Saint Germain on thé Rive Gauche. \240It’s a small boutique hotel in the Saint Germain district. \240Our “large” room is large only by Parisian standards but it’s still very comfortable. \240 After a shower and a short rest we walked about 15’ to Cuisine Philippe, a small and very French restaurant which specializes in soufflés. \240We had cheese, Grand Marnier, and chocolate/coffee soufflées which lived up to billing. \240 Now back at the hotel and ready to try to get some sleep.

Donna in Montmartre

Town square. \240Lyons la Forêt

We arrived in Rouen late last night. \240 The city is most famous as the site of the trial and execution (by burning at the stake) of Joan d’Arc in 1431. \240 \240Following breakfast we did a city tour. \240 The city is remarkable for the large number of 1/2 timbered houses, many of which survived intensive allied bombing of the city by the Allies prior to D-Day. \240We walked through the old part of the city with our local guide. \240 Our tour was highlighted by the Cathedral of Our Lady which was constructed during the 12th century and extensively moderated since then. It’s Tour St, Romain, which dates to the 12th century rises to 490’, making it the tallest spire in France. \240We also saw Church of Saint Maclou, the Gross Horloge clock and The Palais de Justice, and the Church of Saint Joan.

Following lunch back on the ship we did an experimental ride of the E-bikes along the banks of the Seine. \240Back to the ship for a rest before a lecture in the lounge by a local school teacher about WWI, preparing us for our visit to the Somme battlefield tomorrow.

We were up early for an 0800 departure for the WWI battlefields around Somme. \240The day was interesting an sobering. \240We learned about the trench warfare which resulted in 100,000’s of deaths on both sides but with little, if any, change in front lines of both sides over the many months of stalemater on the Western Front of WWI. \240The village of Villers-Brettonrux was liberated from the Germans by the Australians in 1918, thus forging a long-standing tie between this tiny French village and its Australian counterpart. \240There is a very moving cemetery nearby where 2000 of the many thousands of allied troops killed in this prolonged conflict are buried.

Following a mediocre lunch we traveled further on to the village of Beaumont-Hammel where the Newfoundland regiment served under British command. \240 Here we saw the trenches in which the soldiers on both sides of the line spent many months during the military stalement. Eventually, the allied forces were able to repel German forces out of France starting in force the eventual defeat of Germany and its partners. \240As bad as conditions were for all soldiers during the war, the expeditionary forces were faced with even harsher conditions manning the trenches which formed the lines between the Allies and the German-Austria-Hungarian partnership. \240The last stop was the site of the Lochnagar Crater where the allies dug tunnels and planted a massive explosive charge, creating a huge crater in an unsuccessful attempt to disrupt the German defenses. \240 Then it was a 2-hour bus ride back to Rouen and the ship. \240

We left Rouen around 0100 last night and arrived outside Honfleur by 0800. \240The capitan did a fine job of backing Scenic Gem around the harbor and through a very narrow lock, into it’s berth in the inner harbor. \240Following breakfast we toured the town which is charming and scenic. \240It dates back to the viking invasions of the 11th century and is now a major fishing port. \240There are remains of ancient shops and more recent modernization of the port. \240The area around the port is rich with restaurants and tourist shops. \240 We were back to the ship for lunch. \240 There were no plans for after lunch so I did 1 hour on the treadmill. \240Prior to diner we made a short trip to a nearby cider and Calvados distillery for a tasting. \240 Then back to the ship where we had dinner at the Rive table in the restaurant. \240It was an 8 course tasting menu and I’m now quite full.

We had a full day touring the Normandy D-Day sites. \240 After driving 1.25 hours from Honfleur, we arrived at Aurromanches les bains, site of a “Mullberry B” harbor. \240Unconvinced that they could capture any of the German’s well-defended harbors with a frontal assault from the sea, and needing a harbor from which to bring additional troops and supplies to support the invasion, the Allies decided to build a pre-fabricated harbor in Britain and float it to France immediately after the invasion. \240 Despite severe damage from an unexpected June gale, the harbor was successfully constructed in Arromanches-les-Bains, from where it was very successful in supporting the invasion forces. \240A small and very crowded museum in Arromanches had very useful displays about construction and use of the harbor.

We then had a short drive to a local restaurant/hotel for lunch. \240After lunch we continued on to the American military Cemetary on the bluff above Omaha Beach, one of the landing sites for the American forces during D-Day, \240With over 9000 graves arranged in orderly neat rows, it’s a tremendous tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice to defend the US. \240 Our last stop, prior to driving back to the ship in Honfleur, was at the actual site of Omaha Beach. \240

We arrived early this morning in Caudebec-en Caux, en route back up to Paris. \240 Following breakfast we boarded a bus for a trip to Fécamp, on the Atlantic coast. \240Surprisingly, as we approached the coast, the morning overcast gradually cleared so that it was sunny by the time we reached Fécamp. \240Our first stop was along the beach boardwalk overlooking the sea. \240Then back on board to the Palais Bénedéctine. \240This is a mid-19th century building done in a mélange of gothic, Renaissance, and other styles. \240It was built by Alexander LeGrand, the creator of Bénedéctine liquour, a cognac-like beverage that has proved to be an enormous commercial success. \240The Palais is devoted to the artwork collected by LeGrand and the Bénedéctine distillery. \240The receipt, which includes 37 different spices, was recreated from what the Bénedéctine monks had created, and then lost, in the abbey several hundred years previously. \240Tasting at the end left me with the impression of Cognac. \240We bussed back to Scenic Gem and left immediately upon our return to continue the voyage back to Paris. \240Since we are now going upstream, it’s not surprising that our progress appears to be significantly slower than downstream. \240

We awoke this morning in Nantes La Jolie with sunny skies and cool temps. \240Our morning excursion was to Giverney, the former home and gardens of Claude Monet. \240 The gardens are magnificent, filled with flowers that are continuously gardened all throughout the tourist season. \240 Probably because of its beauty and proximity to Paris, the place was Disneyland mobbed with tourists and classes of French school children. \240 We spent several hours exploring the grounds and Monet’s house. \240 We were back on board for lunch and a nap. \240Then, after an early dinner, we were back out to Chateau de la Roche Guyon where we were treated to an evening concert, done specially for our group. \240 It was an unusual quartet consisting of a harp, double bass, clarinet, and vibraphone. \240

The weather finally turned nice today; mostly sunny and warm. \240After docking at the town of Poissy (site of a major Peugeot assembly plant), we had a 1 hour bus ride through the countryside to the site of Château Chantilly. \240It consists of 2 parts. \240The Petit Château was completed in the 16th century. \240The Grand Château was destroyed during the French Revolution and rebuilt between 1875-1881 by Henri d’Orleans. \240Is is now operated by a foundation. \240Our tour began with a walkthrough of the Grand Chateau. It is furnished in the style of the 19th and earlier centuries and \240displays , furniture, shops, etc. \240 We were back on the ship by 12:30 and immediately sailed for Paris, arriving around 6:00.

We were back at our wharf in plenty of time for dinner. \240Since it was still relatively warm we were able to go on deck after dinner to photograph the Eiffel Tower in the dark. \240

For our last day aboard Scenic Gem we did a guided walking tour of Paris. \240 Starting at the Place de la Concorde, our guide, a former history teacher, related how Paris was affected by WW I. \240We walked through a district with multiple high-end jewelry stores to Place Vendôme, also very much a part of Paris’ high rent district. \240 The tour was OK but not great. \240At the end of the tour, instead of taking the coach back to the ship, and accompanied by Angela Brown, we did a 5-mile walk back to the ship. \240We walked past the Eiffel Tower and stopped at a nearby cafe for an alfresco lunch in the warm sunshine. \240 Back at the ship to rest and prepare for dinner and departure tomorrow to Bruges. \240

We left Scenic Gem at 9 and transferred to Gare du Nord via Uber. \240It was an easy 15 minute drive in light Sunday morning traffic. \240 Our express train covered the distance from Paris to Brussels in a little over 1 hour at a cruising speed of 180 mph. \240In Brussels we had about 15 minutes to find and get to our connecting train to Brugge. \240The next leg took almost 1 hour at the relatively slow speed of 90-100 mph. \240 Why can’t we do this in California for less than $60-70 billion?

We checked into the Hotel VanCleef which is totally charming. \240It’s located in a converted mansion which is about 500 years old. \240 We were upgraded to a canal view room with a separate sitting room in an upstairs loft. \240 Very nice! \240 We wasted no time unpacking so we could get out to start seeing the city and have lunch. \240 The place is totally Disneyland with massive crowds of tourists in a fairytale like town that, although built mostly in the late 19th century, is designed to look like it must have during midevil times. \240The city used to be on a river connected to the North Sea but now the river has been separated from the sea and converted into a series of canals which crisscross the central city. \240 A 30’ boat ride allowed us to see much of the city. \240 \240

Similar to yesterday, the weather was overcast and cool with occasional drizzle and significant wind chill in exposed places. \240We started at “At Tatties” a tiny restaurant which served a great Belgian waffle and fruit smoothie. \240 As we had some time to kill after breakfast we wandered about the city, finding a home design store which featured African objects. \240We returned later today to buy a sculpture made from shells which comes from somewhere in west Africa (the shop owner wasn’t sure of exactly where). \240 We then met Andy McSweeney, a native of Montreal who is married to a Bruggian woman and has lived here for 16 years, working as a professional photographer. \240 He lead us around the city to photograph sites he has picked out over his years here, all the while providing instruction on composition and technical aspects of photography. \240It was very helpful and I hope will positively affect my photography in the future.

Lunch was very good (much better than yesterday) at Le Pain Quotidien. \240 In the afternoon, we joined another couple from VanCleef for a free walking tour of the city, guided by a local. \240It was interesting but not great and we left early as Donna’s back was bothering her from all the walking. \240

We were up at 7 in order to get a \240taxi to the train station. \240 We had to go early because I left the train tickets at home and there was no option to get an e-ticket. \240Sadly, they couldn’t do anything at the station either and we had to buy new tickets for $50. \240 The train was 1 1/2 hours, direct to BRU airport. \240 Transfer was easy as the station was directly below the terminal. \240 Our trip home was also easy. \24045’ to LHR, a 2 hour layover, and then 10 hours to SFO. \240