Wendy's Platter…travels

October 1, 2025

I blew it! But let me back up (which is what I had to do)…

So, in anticipation of our Euro trip, I started working out and walking. I also started on a weight loss regimen that has been working for me over the past nine months. There is no doubt that I am able to keep up with the walking. But I realized although I have now lost 40 pounds, I am probably carrying a little more than 40 pounds in luggage. Hmmm…

Burdened with too much luggage, we made our way to the metro and got off at the Gare du Nord to catch the train to Charles de Gaulle Airport where we would pick up our leased car and then my nephew Tom and lastly my cousin Tim. Aside from a few minor items like getting on the wrong train, we arrived at the designated place, called the car lease company and were soon driving our brand new Renault Clio hybrid.

Driving in France was like riding a bike for me…the transition so much easier than the one I faced in New Zealand a few years ago, with everything on the wrong side! Through many texts, we were able to hook up with both Tom and Tim, then a lunch stop as we headed towards Bayeux in Normandy where we would spend our first few days.

We chose a restaurant in the small town of Beauvais but were surprised to find no parking on the street, so we decided to use the parking lot under the city hall. Going down the narrow driveway I saw the ticket dispenser and knew that I needed to be close enough to grab the ticket. Unbeknownst to me, the curb jutted in just a foot before the dispenser and, well, I blew it! A loud pop and I knew I had blown the tire.

Tim and Tom squeeze into the tiny space to change the tire. Nick guards the suitcases and supervises. Lunch soothes a little of my embarrasment from having created another “adventure” on our trip.

In our first hour with the car, we were in trouble. Fortunately for me, I was with three men who jumped into gear and had the tiny spare replacement on the car within minutes. We continued to our restaurant and I called our car lease company, Auto TT. They were very helpful, told us to get the tire fixed, keep the receipt, and I should get reimbursed. Unfortunately, it was Saturday and the tire shops were closed until Monday and we needed to drive for 2.5 more hours to get to our accommodations in Bayeux. Yes, you should only drive a minimal amount on one of those tiny donut spare tires, but, in the end, we put on many kilometers before the tire was fixed three days later.

On the left the cafe where we enjoyed some local cider and beer. On the right, the view from the cafe.

Our Airbnb was a lovely stone house with three bedrooms, quite comfortable for the four of us. At the suggestion of our friends Steve and Nancy McLaughlin, we decided to see what was promised to be a gem of a town, Honfleur, situated at the mouth of the Seine River, across from the port of Le Havre.

Nick is pointing the the Lieutenancy which had as colorful a history as the rest of Normandy. The French and the British fought over this area many times over the centuries. The Lieutenancy and the rest of Honfleur mananged to survive.

Honfleur was even more enchanting than could have been imagined. Every building along the waterway was unique, slightly askew, and created its own ambience. We could have gotten lost in its streets for days. Steve and Nancy had warned us, and they were right. Erik Satie called Honfleur home and there was a museum just about as crazy as he was, presenting Satie’s unique look at life and music.

For dinner, seafood was the only sensible choice with the Atlantic Ocean lapping close by. Tom suggested Le Havre. A festival in town that Sunday meant there was street music, parades, and high spirits. We ducked into La Taverne Paillette that claims to date back to 1596! To dive deep into the Normandy seafood, Tom ordered the Plateau Royal Taverne, a 24” diameter platter filled with oysters, lobster, bulots (tiny sea snails), vignots (small whelks), shrimp, crab, langoustines, and clams. And on top of that, were our dinners. All delicious, but it is hard to beat Dungeness crab.

But then, there was dessert: crème brûlée, flamingly delicious. Just about as creamy as you could imagine.

When I got on the shuttle I was a little bummed that I was facing the wrong way. Then, of course, this was the perfect time to take a selfie with Mont Saint-Michel behind me as we approached. On the right, you see the sea wall and ramparts, then up a level is the town tucked between the abbey which dominates the top.

The next day was Mont Saint-Michel. I had heard about this abbey on a tidal island on the Normandy coast, but when I saw it, it took my breath away. The rock now filled with the Mont Saint Michel abbey and its tiny town is surrounded by the ocean, except at low tide. The tidal surge can be 15 meters (almost 50 feet!) which as you search the totally flat surroundings, you realize why it has not been conquered over the centuries.

All four of us fell under Mont Saint-Michel’s spell. At times you feel like you have been dropped into Fantasyland at some theme park, but it is real. Of course, there are plenty of knick knacks and souvenirs that point to the theme park idea, but behind commercial curtains are very real stone walls dripping with history.

On the left, the street leading up to the abbey…only 200 steps with only a few stairs. The abbey achieved with another 350 steps. The view from the ramparts around the abbey.

We were lucky to get one of the good weather days for late September. The sun was shining but it wasn’t too hot. We had been warned about the number of steps, but until you are climbing the endless (not endless, just around 350) steps to get to the level of the abbey that crowns the rock, you don’t understand.

My previous walking and hot tub training before we left, which included steps and thigh work really paid off. I was able to walk up to the abbey with little stopping, but being very careful on the uneven 800-year-old steps. It wasn’t until I was a few steps from the top that dehydration and the sun made me feel like I was going to faint. Nick was at my side and I made it to the ramparts and laid my head on the rock trying to stay conscious. In the background, I could hear Nick’s voice saying something, but I knew he was just assessing me. Ever the paramedic.

Finally, my head started to clear and Tom found a water fountain just steps aways. Water in the body, water on my face, and voilà, I came back to earth. As a non-spiritual person, it was difficult not to feel the presence of the many religious folks who had climbed the stairs in pursuit of their beliefs and vocation encouraging me on. Maybe I was still a little light-headed, but it was a good feeling.

More views of the incredible Mont Saint-Michel.

The builders of Mont Saint-Michel took full advantage of the ethereal views from every side. Unlike castles and chateaux, the builders wanted to bring heaven a little closer to the inhabitants. The abbey had so many rooms used for different purposes. In one room, there was a giant wooden wheel, something akin to a wheel in a mouse cage. When supplies arrived at the bottom of the rock, the monks would get into the wheel and walk, which would allow the supplies to be lifted through a pulley system up the track that had been built for that purpose.

Before we headed onto the shuttle to get us back to our car, Tom took a moment to practice a karate routine on the beach in front of Mont Saint Michel. It was Tom’s form of honoring the incredible site.

My three guys for the next 10 days: Tim, Tom, and Nick. I will keep Nick.

The next day was our tour of D-Day. Nick dropped Tom, Tim, and me off in town where we had the perfect French breakfast of coffee and a croissant. Nick continued on to drop the car off to get the two new tires which would be done by the end of our tour that day.

Where the Mont Saint Michel day left us in a mystical, celestial mood, D-Day brought us back to earth with war. It was a full day tour and, frankly, I had not done my homework. Nick, on the other hand, had been a student of WWII and D-Day, so he did not register the surprise or awe that I did as I began to understand the logistics and impact of the “longest day.”

Roma is starting the explanation of the D-Day logistics at Omaha Beach. Enjoying the now peaceful beach, horseback riders passed as we listened to the horror of war.

Again, Steve and Nancy had turned us on the Bayeux Shuttles that have several tours available. Although I am certain all tours are professional and informative, our guide, Roma, was particularly entertaining and presented D-Day in all its glory, warts and all.

On the left a bunker that held the Germans guarding the Normandy coast. A few from inside the bunker which allowed for massive guns to shoot at soldiers miles away.

Along with Roma’s continual explanations of what happened where, why, and when, we stopped at several museums that have been built to honor the soldiers of the Army, Navy, and other branches. The museums filled in many gaps by presenting the daily lives of these soldiers far from home, often very young, and scared of what they faced.

The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial has 172 acres of crosses honoring more that 9,300 soldiers who died on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The unknown soldier crosses held me.

The most somber stop was at the American Cemetery where more than 9,300 American dead are buried. The hardest for me to face were the crosses for the more than 300 unknown soldiers buried with their comrades. As a mother, a sister, a grandmother, it would be devastating to face not knowing the outcome of my loved one. With genetic testing, the number of unknown soldiers decreases every year. According to Roma, more than 15 were identified last year.

The Le Mans racetrack where the 24 hour race is held.Nick and Tom couldn’t get enough. Tim was interested but not fanatical.

Our next day was a “passage day” where we drove most of the day to our new accommodations in the Loire Valley where we will be for a week. I did the driving and let the “boys” choose the route. Lo and behold, we ended up at the Musée des 24 Heures du Mans, otherwise known as the Le Mans racetrack and its museum. Nick, as usual fell into his teaching mode, trying to get me up to speed with the differences between the race cars through the years and why it was “amazing.” Truthfully, I have been pulled into enough vehicle museums to actually understand about 1/100^th of what he is telling me. I’m getting there.

We arrived in Beaugency to find stunning house. I will write about it in the next post. I chose this house as it had a view of the Loire River and a 14^th century Gothic and Roman-style bridge from our living room. After unpacking we took a 2 ½ mile walk along the footpath in front of our house that follows the Loire upstream. There will be more walks to come. Beaugency is yet another gemstone in our Euro trip.

©2025 Wendy Platt Hill

If you are enjoying my posts, feel free to leave a tip!