Small girl in a small doorway
Pink flamingos at Citadel Zoo
Colourful frogs at Citadel zoo
At the front of the Citadel
Foggy view from Citadel
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Besançon Photos
Small girl in a small doorway Pink flamingos at Citadel Zoo Colourful frogs at Citadel zoo At the front of the Citadel Foggy view from Citadel
Besançon 11 January 2009
It was foggy and cold driving into Besançon (city of my birth) just on sunset. I didn’t think it was a very attractive city initially - lots of tall apartment blocks and heavy industrial area on the Dijon side as we drove in. The city itself is very old, dating back to about 2 AD from the roman days. It’s obviously grown a lot since Mum and Dad were there in the early 60’s.
On Sunday night when we arrived we struggled to find anywhere to eat dinner and ended up settling for pizza from a corner shop guy who said he came from Tunisia. We couldn’t understand a word he said. We just kept smiling and nodding. After we’d collected our pizza and drove off we discovered about 3 other pizza shops close by so obviously pizza is a popular choice for dining in Besançon. The Lonely Planet lists Besançon as one of France’s most liveable cities maybe because of the large numbers of foreign students studying there.
It was a little bit sad being here wondering about what Mum and Dad’s life must have been like when my brother and I were born. Mum and Dad always say how cold and wet and miserable it was. Their main memory is of how hard it was – no money, always working long hours and little time for any fun stuff. I’ve never heard them say anything good about the time they spent here. No wonder they left.
The next morning we were greeted with a beautiful sunny day, blue sky and a frosty -9°C. So we did the normal scraping ice off the car windows before we left. We spent the morning at the Citadel which was a steep climb up a hillside. When we reached the citadel we realised that we could have driven to the top and parked for free. The Citadel was built for Louis XIV in the 16th Century. The admission price included a range of interesting and unusual options - 3 different museums, a zoo, an insectarium, aquarium and noctarium. Not the normal run of the mill things one would expect to come across.
In the zoo, they even had two kangaroos. We felt sorry for them in the freezing temperatures and I wondered how the kangaroos would handle that sort of weather. Ella thought one of the roos looked like it was dead.
The one thing I really wanted to see in Besançon was the clock “The Horloge Astronomique”. It’s an astronomical clock with 30,000 moving parts, 57 faces, 62 dials and tells the time in 16 different places, the tides in eight different ports and the time of sunrise and sunset. The Cathedral area where the clock was located was closed for January.
We also tried to find the house of Madame Degardane who is the lady Mum worked for when they lived in Besançon. We found the correct address but when I knocked on the door no-one answered.
On Sunday night when we arrived we struggled to find anywhere to eat dinner and ended up settling for pizza from a corner shop guy who said he came from Tunisia. We couldn’t understand a word he said. We just kept smiling and nodding. After we’d collected our pizza and drove off we discovered about 3 other pizza shops close by so obviously pizza is a popular choice for dining in Besançon. The Lonely Planet lists Besançon as one of France’s most liveable cities maybe because of the large numbers of foreign students studying there.
It was a little bit sad being here wondering about what Mum and Dad’s life must have been like when my brother and I were born. Mum and Dad always say how cold and wet and miserable it was. Their main memory is of how hard it was – no money, always working long hours and little time for any fun stuff. I’ve never heard them say anything good about the time they spent here. No wonder they left.
The next morning we were greeted with a beautiful sunny day, blue sky and a frosty -9°C. So we did the normal scraping ice off the car windows before we left. We spent the morning at the Citadel which was a steep climb up a hillside. When we reached the citadel we realised that we could have driven to the top and parked for free. The Citadel was built for Louis XIV in the 16th Century. The admission price included a range of interesting and unusual options - 3 different museums, a zoo, an insectarium, aquarium and noctarium. Not the normal run of the mill things one would expect to come across.
In the zoo, they even had two kangaroos. We felt sorry for them in the freezing temperatures and I wondered how the kangaroos would handle that sort of weather. Ella thought one of the roos looked like it was dead.
The one thing I really wanted to see in Besançon was the clock “The Horloge Astronomique”. It’s an astronomical clock with 30,000 moving parts, 57 faces, 62 dials and tells the time in 16 different places, the tides in eight different ports and the time of sunrise and sunset. The Cathedral area where the clock was located was closed for January.
We also tried to find the house of Madame Degardane who is the lady Mum worked for when they lived in Besançon. We found the correct address but when I knocked on the door no-one answered.
Wednesday 21 January 2009
It's middle of the week. The kids day off from school today. I always feel like it's Monday on Thursday because the kids have every Wednesday off school. Andrew has been playing Pokemon card game with Samuel all day which he promised to do. Ella has tidied and packed up her room very neatly. She likes to have things organised.
We're coming into a transition period. We've got a lot happening in the next few weeks and there's lots to organise.
Can you believe the first month of 2009 is nearly over already? We've booked our first ski trip for next week. We've been saying we're going ski-ing for ages and have never got around to actually doing anything about it. So we've booked 4 nights accommodation at Ax les Thermes in the Pyrenees, booked ski lessons and organised ski equipment hire. The kids have all their ski clothes, Andrew and I just have to get our stuff together. We did the rounds of a few sports shops the other day and surprise surprise there's hardly any ski clothes left anywhere. We've left it to the last minute and now there's nothing to buy so we'll have to go for the really ugly stuff that's left over.
We're coming into a transition period. We've got a lot happening in the next few weeks and there's lots to organise.
Can you believe the first month of 2009 is nearly over already? We've booked our first ski trip for next week. We've been saying we're going ski-ing for ages and have never got around to actually doing anything about it. So we've booked 4 nights accommodation at Ax les Thermes in the Pyrenees, booked ski lessons and organised ski equipment hire. The kids have all their ski clothes, Andrew and I just have to get our stuff together. We did the rounds of a few sports shops the other day and surprise surprise there's hardly any ski clothes left anywhere. We've left it to the last minute and now there's nothing to buy so we'll have to go for the really ugly stuff that's left over.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Paris 7 - 11 January 2009
Our first view of the Eiffel driving in at 1.01 pm
Frozen water in the fountain
Frozen fountain again
Andrew and I at dinner
Ella with her chocolate glacé 
Outside the buildings of the Louvre
Ice in the fountain
The kids were fascinated by the ice everywhere
Me at the famous pyramid at the Louvre
Samuel (and the top of Ella's head) in front of the Carousel (we called it the "Paris eye")
Pigeons enjoying the frozen fountain
Pigeons enjoying the frozen fountain
Ella enjoying the frozen fountain
Place de la Concorde
View from Paris Eye
Us with the sun in our eyes
Us on Irene's last day in Paris
Ella eating (again)
Irene on her last day in Paris
Outside Louvre
Arc de Triomphe
The kids in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de TriompheSo exciting!!! So much to do!!! So expensive!!!
It was snowing as we drove in to Paris. The whole city looked like it was covered in a big, white, furry blanket. It was very beautiful and very cold. Our first view of the Eiffel Tower was thrilling as we drove along the Seine River.
We found a great place to stay in the 1st Arrondissement (1er) near the Louvre which I would recommend. We booked 2 double rooms for Andrew and I and the kids (55€ each) and a single room €35 for Irene and value wise I thought it was great value considering Paris prices. (The name of the hotel is Hotel Tiquettone, if you’re interested). We parked the car in secure underground parking and received a discount through the hotel. Parking is at a premium in cities generally. I think the most we have paid was 35€ a day in Barcelona. After parking the car, we walked everywhere which was a big relief for me and our driver too (that’s Andrew).
It was snowing as we drove in to Paris. The whole city looked like it was covered in a big, white, furry blanket. It was very beautiful and very cold. Our first view of the Eiffel Tower was thrilling as we drove along the Seine River.
We found a great place to stay in the 1st Arrondissement (1er) near the Louvre which I would recommend. We booked 2 double rooms for Andrew and I and the kids (55€ each) and a single room €35 for Irene and value wise I thought it was great value considering Paris prices. (The name of the hotel is Hotel Tiquettone, if you’re interested). We parked the car in secure underground parking and received a discount through the hotel. Parking is at a premium in cities generally. I think the most we have paid was 35€ a day in Barcelona. After parking the car, we walked everywhere which was a big relief for me and our driver too (that’s Andrew).
We ate out every night at a different restaurant – it was great. Gee, it’s going to be a bore going home to cook dinner every night after 2 weeks of being waited on.
We walked for miles, well for as long as we could considering the cold and wearing out the kids’ legs. The snow and ice made Paris extra fun for the kids especially when the water in the fountains froze and Andrew let them walk on the ice in the fountain. I was freaking out as per normal because I thought they could fall through.
Paris was very beautiful in winter but it was a little limiting with the cold. While queuing for the Eiffel Tower my feet got so numb I could hardly walk without it hurting. I don’t want to be boring about how cold it was but it really was freezing and coming from Mount Isa we’ve never had that sort of cold before (and never want to again!) But at least it wasn’t raining! Andrew and I had been up the Eiffel Tower before but we wanted to take the kids up.
A lot of my photos look foggy and blurry. That’s because it was all foggy and blurry while we were there. We took quite a bit of video as well but I’m yet to work out how to put that on the blog.
The tourist things we did in Paris were fun but apart from the boat cruise down the Seine I thought they were overpriced especially the carousel. The Carousel on the Champs Elysees (the Paris eye we called it) turned 3 times and we were done and dusted. It cost 9€ per adult and 6€ per child. I was very irritable with that one.
One of the most enjoyable things was the boat cruise down the River Seine in a glass-enclosed boat (read warm) with a commentary in English and also a pamphlet to read describing everything along the way. It lasted about an hour and we could take lots of photos.
We walked for miles, well for as long as we could considering the cold and wearing out the kids’ legs. The snow and ice made Paris extra fun for the kids especially when the water in the fountains froze and Andrew let them walk on the ice in the fountain. I was freaking out as per normal because I thought they could fall through.
Paris was very beautiful in winter but it was a little limiting with the cold. While queuing for the Eiffel Tower my feet got so numb I could hardly walk without it hurting. I don’t want to be boring about how cold it was but it really was freezing and coming from Mount Isa we’ve never had that sort of cold before (and never want to again!) But at least it wasn’t raining! Andrew and I had been up the Eiffel Tower before but we wanted to take the kids up.
A lot of my photos look foggy and blurry. That’s because it was all foggy and blurry while we were there. We took quite a bit of video as well but I’m yet to work out how to put that on the blog.
The tourist things we did in Paris were fun but apart from the boat cruise down the Seine I thought they were overpriced especially the carousel. The Carousel on the Champs Elysees (the Paris eye we called it) turned 3 times and we were done and dusted. It cost 9€ per adult and 6€ per child. I was very irritable with that one.
One of the most enjoyable things was the boat cruise down the River Seine in a glass-enclosed boat (read warm) with a commentary in English and also a pamphlet to read describing everything along the way. It lasted about an hour and we could take lots of photos.
Rouen 5 January 2009
The boys relaxing after a hard day sightseeing.
Andrew in front of the "Paul" boulangerie. Once we saw one Paul we saw them everywhere we went.
Ella in the Park on the play equipment
Rouen Cathedral
This building (Aitre Saint-Maclou) was originally built as a plague cemetery in 1348. Today the building is used as the Regional Fine Arts School.
It was snowing as we drove towards Rouen. Snow flurries they’re called. The fields were covered in light snow, very pretty.
We arrived late and after doing circles trying to find our hotel, Andrew drove Irene and I in to the city to go to the Musée des Beaux Arts before it closed. It was a beautiful museum housed in a magnificent building. It had collections by Caravaggio, Modigliani, Monet and Sisley.
We did our usual routine of walking tour around the old part of the city - trying to spot all the points of interest on the tourist map.
Rouen is the city where Joan of Arc was tried for heresy. Next to where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake there is a Church built as a memorial honouring St Joan.
Rouen was devastated by bombing raids during World War II and has been rebuilt since. It’s a mix of the old half-timbered houses and new look buildings trying to blend in.
We had a lovely dinner at Rouen the second night at a rather posh place. The food was delicious and the kids were given little gift bags which was nice.
Caen 5 January 2009
A textile machine from the Costumes exhibit at the Musee de NormandyCaen has one of the main museums documenting the history of the war (Memorial - Un Musee pour la Paix) and we were one day too late to visit. It closed for January the day before we arrived which was very disappointing. After being at D-Day beaches we were very interested to see the Memorial museum. But we hopefully may get a chance to go there later in the year when we return to Paris.
We went into the Chateau de Caen and walked around the Jardin des Simples which was a small garden of medicinal and aromatic herbs. Inside the Chateau was the Musee de Normandy which showed archaeological finds from the Normandy area and information about the settlement and development of life in Normandy.
On the way in to Caen we had kind of a strange experience where we accidentally took a wrong turn and ended up on the peripherique road which took us away from Caen in the opposite direction. The signs kept showing ‘Port de Bretagne’ again and again. Finally we got to our Etap hotel and it turned out to be the wrong Etap. So off we go again eventually finding the right hotel which just happened to be in the Port de Bretagne region all along.
Bayeux and The Tapestry 4 January 2009
Bayeux Tapestry (all 70m of it)
Interesting water feature
Olden day house in BayeuxIrene and I went to view the famous Bayeux Tapestry which is almost 1000 years old. It's a spectacular wool embroidered linen, an impressive sight at 70 m long curving round a long glass case in a darkened room. It's like a gigantic medieval comic strip telling the story of William, Duke of Normandy who set off to conquer England in 1066.
4 January 2009
Tank outside war museum in Bayeux
British War Cemetery
In the morning we returned to Bayeux to visit a British War Cemetery with 4868 graves of Commonwealth soldiers including 17 Australian soldiers who are buried here also. Almost 100 000 soldiers (40 000 allies 60 000 german) soldiers were killed in Normandy and there are 27 military cemeteries in Normandy. It’s a sombre experience walking along and reading the epitaphs of the men who fought and died in the war and then standing on the desolate beaches trying to picture the conditions at the time and what it must have been like for the soldiers in the war arriving on the beach and the freezing cold and rain and the misery of war. Today the area where we stood is just empty and eerily quiet.
Bayeux 3 January 2009
The beach at Longues-sur-Mer
German artillery in the concrete bunkersWe left St Malo for Bayeux which was 150 km away. The trip seemed slow and ended up taking quite a long time. No particular reason. We made chilly stops at two of the D-Day Landing beaches at Bayeux – Longues-Sur-Mer and Arromanches.
Along the grassy edges not far up the beach at Longues-sur-Mer were these massive concrete bunkers with German guns still in them.
At Arromanches (named Port Winston after Winston Churchill) the allies made prefabricated marinas of concrete blocks which they sunk to form a semi-circular breakwater in which floating bridge spans were moored. The remains can still be seen a few hundred metres out to sea.
The artificial port, codenamed Mulberry was the most important port during the Battle for Caen as it enabled supplies to get through to the troops fighting in the Battle of Normandy.
Along the grassy edges not far up the beach at Longues-sur-Mer were these massive concrete bunkers with German guns still in them.
At Arromanches (named Port Winston after Winston Churchill) the allies made prefabricated marinas of concrete blocks which they sunk to form a semi-circular breakwater in which floating bridge spans were moored. The remains can still be seen a few hundred metres out to sea.
The artificial port, codenamed Mulberry was the most important port during the Battle for Caen as it enabled supplies to get through to the troops fighting in the Battle of Normandy.
Saint Malo 3 January 2009
Ice on the car
The kids couldn't resist these photos.
Andrew had to lift Ella up for this one, her head couldn't quite fit through.We’re off to a late start again. It doesn’t get light until about 8.30-8.45 am in the morning so it’s really hard to get going while it still feels like the middle of the night.
We had frozen ice on the windscreen this morning. It was -1°C again. We had to scrape the ice off the windows before we could leave. We had a walk around the old city of St Malo. We had a lovely morning tea/early lunch at a gorgeous little warm creperie called Le Biniou (meaning bagpipes. There was meant to be bagpipe pictures somewhere in the cafe but I couldn't see any.) I had the most scrumptious apple and chantilly crepe and hot chocolate – yummo!
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