Paris - Our 3rd day in France

STRIKE! We had heard there might be one...and sure enough, France is striking, and especially Paris! I want you to all know we're safe...the only part of the strike we saw was the many police wagons driving down the freeway going to keep order. The strike is over raising the retirement age. In France, the retirement age is 60 and the govt wants to raise it to either 62 or 64...and the French are mad! Jeannette told us that the French don't mind striking at all...the last big strike lasted ONE MONTH! Oh my! Public transportation was basically shut down today, the post office...and for us, the Palace of Versailles:( We didn't know if we would be able to get to our guide in time for our city tour. Because the public transit (metro) was shut down...and busses...the traffic was unbelievable. What normally takes 10 minutes to travel, was taking an hour. Fortunately, our guide was having just as much trouble as us, so we both ended up arriving at the same time. We had our tour...always keeping in safe areas. Our first big stop was Notre Dame. Our guide, Annalisa, talked to us about how it was built...both the actual construction to the functions of each part. As beautiful as it is, each part of the Cathedral has a purpose..except for one small statue of the Hunchback! We toured all around the city...ending up at Sacre Coeur, a white basilica that sits on top of a hill. We ate lunch in and toured the artists district Montmartre, which was a haven for artists and writers even before WWI. We had also told the delegates about the gypsys, about the people who are so persistent trying to sell you their wares...I'm not sure if they had believed us, but they certainly did after today! It was definitely a cultural experience for them! The area directly below Sacre Coeur is full of shops...souvenir shops...so a bit of time was spent there. If you're reading this, you may be the recipient of something from that area.

As I said, the Palace of Versailles was closed because of the strike, but we drove out there anyway so they could at least see it from the outside. Fortunately, the gardens were open so we had plenty of time to roam through there. They are extensive! Jeannette told us that one time she spent 8 hours roaming the gardens and didn't see it all.

Walking to dinner from the palace, we saw a fire truck...well, our restaurant had caught on fire, so we were transferred to another restaurant close by. Fortunately, our food had already been prepared, so they just transferred it to the new location.

Now, here we are back at the hotel...in our last night in Paris. I decided to buy some internet time (if you saw the blog yesterday, I wrote that I wasn't going to do this here...)but because of the strike, I wanted to let you all know we were OK...safe and sound...and ready to take off in the morning for Belgium!

Paris .... Our 2nd day in France

Today, June 23rd, was a great day...probably one of the favorites for many of the delegates. We started at the Louvre...the Musee de Louvre...
There is no way to see everything here...it's massive...it's beyond massive! The group was divided...and some went with a guide to see some of the more famous parts of the museum...and the other half was on a quest to find answers to questions involving paintings and/or sculptures. The Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo....Wow! Because the Louvre is so famous...and so popular of a destination, it is PACKED! People are packed in like sardines to see the Mona Lisa...and others. Lunch!!!
Visions of Paris...
After the Louvre...the Eiffel Tower...you should have heard the sounds coming from the bus...or the occupants of the bus...as we had our first views of it. OOOOHHHHHsss and AAAHHHs... I think most were in shock at how massive it is, especially at the base. It's 899 feet tall...and most of us went all the way to the top!

To get to the top, you take two elevators. The first elevator takes you to the main platform...then you get off, get in another long line, and hop on the second elevator. The view from the top is amazing...you really get the sense of how the city is laid out from 899 feet above the ground. The delegates could see how the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs Elysses, the Tulieres Gardens, and the Louvre are all in a straight line...plus, 12 boulevards all come together at a round-a-bout at the Arc de Triomphe...a driver's nightmare!

For the trip DOWN the tower, many of us walked...you cannot walk from the very top, but you can take the elevator down to the level below, and then walk the rest of the way. It's fun...and you get a bit (a lot?) of exercise...someone told me it was about 600 steps, but I don't know if that's a fact. Dinner!!! and so...it was the end of the day...and we were all happy and exhausted!

The Eiffel Tower as seen from my hotel window!

France - Day 1

Opera music...

We woke up to opera music...I don't like opera music...

At 4:45 a.m. this lady started singing opera...and it got louder...and louder...and louder...and the more you pressed the STOP button, well, she kept on singing. I tried to adjust the volume...didn't make any difference, she just kept singing louder. I understand that most of the delegation was in the same boat as I was...not a great opera lover...especially at 4:45 a.m.


After about 10 minutes...seemed like 20...I guess she got tired of singing...because she just stopped. Whew!


That's the ships way of saying GET UP...


We arrived at 5:30 a.m. and disembarked about 5:45. We met our new bus driver, Bjorn, who is from the Netherlands. He'll be our coach driver for the rest of our journey. Great guy! We first had breakfast at the terminal. Croissants, bread, hot cocoa or caffe...oh yeah, and butter and jam. We all kept waiting for the rest to come...

"Ah, that's a typical French breakfast!" was the reply from our delegation manager, Jeannette.

We took off in the bus and headed toward the Normandy American Cemetary, which overlooks Omaha Beach...the site of the worst D-Day battle. We first viewed a video about D-Day...then wandered into the cemetary where there are over 9000 white crosses perfectly aligned...overwhelming! Most of us walked a good ways down a trail, downhill, to the beach below. Many were lost in their thoughts...I know I was. When we came back up, we walked around for awhile and Steve had brought little American flags. We put these by some of the crosses.

We then drove into the town and met the mayor of Saint Laurent-sur-Mer. They had drawn a line in the sand where we stood, facing the beach. Then she spoke to us of the respect, the honor, the deep thanks they feel for us as Americans, for the part we played on that day. After she spoke, an 81 year old gentleman who was 15 on that dreaded day talked to us. His home faced the beach...and he remembers so well the day he looked out and saw the Americans coming toward shore. He and his family fled 4 miles inland, but he gave such a heartfelt thanks and told us of how special Americans are to him...I cannot remember the words...I heard them through tears. At that point, we had 16 students (2 to a flag) go stand next to the 8 flags which were tied down. One by one, each countries national anthem was played and our students raised that countries flags. It was so extremely moving...so emotional for many.

When this part of the ceremony was concluded, they had prepared and gave us each a little bottle with Normandy, Omaho Beach labeled on...and at that point, we went down on the beach and collected a bottle of sand to take home.

As we were wrapping up, the gentleman who financed the memorial on Omaha Beach was there. Jean-Paul and Rosie...(can't remember their last name right now)...they came up and talked with me, knowing that my father had been there on D-Day...Karen's, one of our other leaders, father was also there during that time. We had our photos made together...it was special!

After a typical French box lunch while sitting on a wall facing the ocean, we took off for Caen. There we went to the Memorial Museum. This phenomenal museum covers the causes of the 1939-1945 conflict and its multiple consequences.

After our D-Day experiences...we were off to Paris! A 3 hour bus ride and here we are...