A brief introduction to Paris and learning about the past

Clock art at Gare St. Lazare

The day after the Kangaroo joined us we flew to Paris. Or, rather, we flew near Paris and took a bus the rest of the way (after a rather shady looking Frenchman tried to offer us a lift). From the moment we arrived it felt as though we were lost - it was also a far cry from the Paris I remember from 7 years ago.

Together we negotiated the metro system to get to Paris Gare St. Lazare where we intended to catch our first InterRail/EURail train to Caen. We didn't know about the "social action" (aka: a strike) which had started a couple of days earlier. After queuing for ages to get their passes validated, the Bear and Kangaroo were ready to go. Unfortunately, we had missed our train so we decided to have a late lunch nearby instead.

After filling up on burgers, fois gras, and French desserts we were on the next train to Caen - which just so happened to be packed so full we spent the 2 hour journey sitting on the floor.

D-Day posters at the train station

It was a relatively uneventful evening after that, which I believe C & J spent the majority of asleep. The next morning we caught a bus to Courseulles-sur-Mar, a little over an hour away. We were lucky enough to catch the bus with a lovely French woman who gave us advice and helped us find our train back to Paris, as well as making sure we knew when to leave in order to catch said train. This did, unfortunately, leave us with less than two hours to spend in Courseulles, but at least we had the opportunity to visit the Juno Beach Centre.

Map of the planned invasion

The centre was inspiring. It was built around the information and history of the Canadian forces who took part in the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944. We didn't make it for the anniversary itself, but we did our best to be there as close to the time as possible. There were still many commemorative decorations around - it was so strange to see so many Canadian flags in France!

Outside the centre there is a memorial garden with plaques and names for all those who gave their lives during the operation; inside they have a wonderfully informative and interactive exhibit about the history leading up to the landings and Canada's role in the war.

The entire experience was moving. I come from a military family, although (to the best of my knowledge) none of my family participated in either war. Despite this, the knowledge gleaned from our visit and the life, experiences and repercussions laid out before us was extremely emotional and informative.

Field of poppies nearby

I would definitely recommend a visit to the Centre for anyone who is interested in Canadian war history. There were other museums nearby as well - it was a rather long stretch of beach - but we didn't have time to visit them; however, I am sure there is much available for the inquisitive mind.

After our visit we hopped on another bus and made our slow way back to Paris.

'Til next time

~Crown

Travelling Day 1: London Town

The Bear and I have decided that we would start off with a few day trips around the "local" area.  Today we took the train into London to meet up with some of my friends for lunch, followed by some touristy wandering.

We took an express train into London Waterloo where we started our epic walking journey; when we got home we calculated the walking added up to at least 14km!  From Waterloo we went to a fantastic pub near to my old office and met up with a few friends (whom I used to work with), enjoyed a delicious meal where I was presented with a belated leaving gift – a lovely travelling journal and walker's guide (how appropriate!) and a bakers decorating masterclass – and some wonderful conversation.  After, we had a (not-so) quick visit to the office and then commenced with our sightseeing.

Imperial War Museum

The Imperial War Museum of London was our starting point, only to discover upon arrival that it will not be reopening until July as it is currently undergoing renovations.  We decided – or, rather, I decided, as I took the role of tour guide and Charissa simply allowed me! – to follow the typical tourist track from there and went straight to the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament.

Elizabeth Tower

"Big Ben", which is the clock tower at the Palace of Westminster, recently renamed to Elizabeth Tower in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee, is an iconic symbol of London known the world over.  I thought it was a perfect first stop for Charissa's first visit to London.

This visit – and typical tourist photo op – was followed by a walk to Westminster Abbey, the location where Prince William (heir to the throne) married Catherine Middleton (the Duchess of Cambridge).  We didn't visit the Abbey proper, but have both decided that we would love to go back at some later date and view it in all it's glory.

Westminster Abbey

View of Buckingham Palace across St. James's Park

Following the Abbey we walked through St. James's Park to visit Buckingham Palace where we discovered the Queen is in residence and (I'm assuming, I do not know what was actually going on!!) was hosting her annual Garden Party.  Or something.  There were lots of ladies in frocks and hats.

At the Palace we took the time to check out the different gates, though namely the Canadian Gate as well as the Canadian Memorial, succeeding in getting odd looks for attempting to get a picture with our flag (courtesy of Charissa's bag).

Panoramic shot of Buckingham Palace and Canada Gate

Canadian Memorial in Green Park

From the Palace we walked back to Westminster, collected dinner – a Tesco meal deal for £3, brilliant – and carried on back to Waterloo Station where we caught a train to the beautiful Surrey countryside.  From there I promptly got us misplaced (not lost!) by taking a wrong turn on our walk back to the house.  45 minutes later and we were safely in the kitchen clutching mugs of tea and nomming down some home-made chocolate cake which I had made at the weekend.

Now Charissa is warmly ensconced in her bed while I type this up, fighting back yawns and about ready to go to sleep myself.

Therefore, I'm signing off.
Cheerio!
~Crown

"the Crown"