France – Day 12 – 4/9/2018

As expected, I slept little during the night. I hoped a hot shower would ease the pain, but just getting out of bed had me in tears.

Larry had to help me in and out of the shower. (Another deep tub created a challenge.) I needed help pulling on my pants and socks. Every time I tried to lift or pull with my right arm, I was left breathless or in tears.

We ate breakfast in the hotel. This one was similar to those we had enjoyed previously. I must admit, by this time, I was crazy about the coffee machines. We saw these for the first time in Australia years ago. They allowed the choice of various kinds (latte, mocha, espresso, etc.) plus the addition of cream and/or sugar. The coffee itself was rich and strong without being bitter.

Probably not practical for home use, these machines made the best coffee ever.

Of course, we had come to expect wonderful fresh bread. In addition to the obligatory baguettes, most continental breakfast selections included croissants and various other delicious pastries. It was a good thing we were walking between three and ten+ miles every day to counter the effects.

My routine breakfast became fruit and yogurt along with the great bread—my particular weakness. Bob varied his choices but usually selected the luncheon meats along with other items. Bernie and Larry chose whatever appealed to them at the time. Larry and Bob often had eggs in addition to whatever else was available.

After breakfast, we finished packing our bags. I was pretty useless when it came to helping with the suitcases. I could pull mine with my left hand because it was on wheels. In addition to his own bag and backpack, Larry also took my carryon. Since it held my computer and Kindle Fire, it tended to be quite heavy.

We checked out and paid for parking, and then we took out bags to the van.

Our hotel, Ibis Champ de Mars, shared a lobby with another hotel, Mercure Champ de Mars Hotel. They also shared the underground parking, accessible from an elevator in the lobby of the Mercure. Larry discovered this the day before when he parked the car.

We managed to get the bags to the car and load them. Larry’d had a bit of a challenge to get the car into the parking spot, but taking it out proved to be easier.

We headed for Bayeux with a brief stop in Caen.

The GPS found the Grand Hotel du Luxembourg without problems. We found a spot to park on the street while we checked in.

When we handed our voucher to the desk clerk, she seemed confused. We had prepaid for two rooms, one of the Schwencks and one for us. She indicated she only had a reservation for the Schwencks—one room. She spoke very little English, and our lack of fluency in French proved problematic. She finally assured us she had two rooms available and she would honor the voucher.

We later learned that the hotel had recently changed hands. It might have explained the confusion. We asked about parking. The clerk gave Larry a card good for three hours of street parking and told him to leave the car on the street for the time being.

We had decided to try to see the cathedral and the Bayeux Tapestry, since this was our only free day.

When we visited the tapestry in 2014, we were unaware that Larry was descended from both William the Conqueror and King Harold. Both are depicted in the tapestry. Harold died in the battle (the Battle of Hastings), and William won the crown of England. This time, we paid closer attention to the images.

The panel above depicts the death of Harold.

We took the time to explore the museum while Larry decided to go back to the hotel and park the van in their lot since his three hours were nearly up. We said we’d meet him at the cathedral.

As we left the museum, Bernie spotted a little shop across the street, The Poppies Shop. What a find. The owner, Sandrine Queudeville, is an artist. She designed the items, and most feature poppies. We each bought some gifts, and we each got a t-shirt.

We then walked down the street to the cathedral. We entered by a side door. I expected to find Larry inside, but he wasn’t there. I tried to call him, but he didn’t answer. Bob took pictures and explored the cathedral. Finally, I got a text from Larry. He had been waiting outside on the side opposite where we had entered.

We located him and went back to the hotel to drop off our purchases.

He told me about getting into the parking area at the hotel. The entrance was narrow, and someone pulled up close behind him. Just as he made the turn, he heard what he thought was a crunch, but he didn’t feel anything. After he parked the car, he walked around to the back and saw a huge dent. Fortunately, we had paid for insurance, but he was devastated.

We asked where the nearest ATM was. The clerk seemed to understand and pointed down the street then indicated we should turn left.

As we neared the corner, we discovered a laundromat. We were running out of underwear and figured if we washed once more, we’d be able to get through the rest of the trip.

We continued around the corner and located the large square. Across the street, we spotted an ATM. Thank goodness. We had to get cash to pay the balance of our Normandy tour the following day.

We checked several restaurants in the area and decided to eat at Resto du Marche, a pizza place. The food was good, and the interior was warm. For the previous couple of days, the weather had been chilly with occasional drizzles.

When we returned to the hotel, Bernie and I rested while Bob and Larry did the laundry.

Once more, we decided not to go out again. I was still in quite a bit of pain and anticipated another sleepless night.

Next: Normandy