Hôtel de Ville, Normandie

Since we departed on a Wednesday, I’ve tried to think in terms of posting on Wednesday and on the weekend. As you saw from Wednesday’s post, I didn’t have much time. So this post will be a huge wrap up of what happened since last weekend.

The discours at the City Hall is always a big deal. The mayor isn’t ever there. But his deputy mayor, Monsieur Pellican, usually steps in. But this year, he had a prior engagement, so the deputy mayor for education was going to speak with us. But she ended up having a conflict. So the mayor’s special assistant was to speak with us.

But his secretary failed to update his online

calendar. He was at home when he got the call he was 15 minutes late. He jumped on his bike as the quickest way back to City Hall. (This only makes sense in France.) But he got caught up in a traffic jam – on his bike. (This REALLY only happens in France.) But some 45 minutes late, we began.

The girls did an incredible job, enchanting the French crowd. Please watch the video. Discours à l'Hôtel de Ville

Tuesday was our first real sports afternoon. We went to the Salle 

I'm not sure this qualifies as a sport,
but they sure seemed to enjoy it.

Maybe it's a girl thing.

Cerdan, a city-owned facility hosts the city’s semi-professional basketball team. Currently, it is set up for handball, which we would call dodgeball. That means no baskets for basketball, no nets for volleyball, really just a big open gym. So the kids have to be really creative in their sports. There was one small soccer goal, so a group started a half-court soccer game. Another group started what would be considered volleyball warm-ups. Another tried badminton without a net. Still others played Frisbee.

By the end, there was a group of girls playing some kind of hand slapping game, the goal of which was entirely unclear to me.

With our French friends

Wednesday, we went to the American Memorial in Brest, where we will be singing the Star Spangled Banner and the Marseillaise on July 4. We decided it was an appropriate place to practice. After several repetitions, a group of nearby French teens applauded us. Then three asked to join us. Our kids were so proud!

Early Thursday morning we headed for Normandy. First stop: Saint Malo. It is a city that, like many in the region, was nearly completely destroyed during the allied invasion in 1944. Saint Malo was rebuilt in an historical style. So its building today appear as if they date from the 18^th century but were built in the 1940s and 1950s. Even construction today must adhere to those same building codes.

This is one of those very safe places, so we let the students wander the walled city (in groups of at least three, of course). Many stopped for crêpes, a favorite. Others did some shopping, while others climbed up to the ramparts for the incredible views of the English Channel. (That is what we teachers did.) And it was in Saint Malo where the students had their picnic lunches.

View from the walls of Saint Malo

I make this picture every year, but it never becomes less
impressive.

Next was Mont Saint Michel, the granite island topped with a 12^th century abbey that is the second most visited site in France after the sites of Paris. The walk up the main street is almost a climb, followed by several hundred steps to reach the chapel at the top. From there, one can literally see for miles on a good day. And the weather for us was incredible.

From the top, we descended through the various parts of the abbey seeing the dining hall, various chapels, the wheel that moved materials up the steep side of the island and finally to the gift shop.

From the abbey, our students meandered through the narrow ancient streets or around the upper walls of the village. Charlotte even exited the walls and walked completely around the island – a feat that would have been impossible at high tide.

From there it was to the youth hostel that would be our home for the night. It was situated in an idyllic woods, complete with a stream running through and its very own chickens.

After dinner, there was a hall for games and activities as well as a field for outdoor activities.

Mistress of mini-foot
(pas vraiment)

It must be an exciting game!

Last time I checked, rock beat scissors.

We were off the next morning after breakfast headed toward the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach. Here are the graves of more than 9,000 American soldiers and sailors who died on D-Day and in the days both before and after. It is a solemn place of reverence. Here the students begin to understand what sacrifices had been made in the name of their freedom.

The walkway down to the beach was closed, so our driver Pascal, drove us there. We didn’t have much time. But the students got to see how vast the beaches of Normandy really are. We Americans think of the beaches at Daytona and Panama Beach as being wide. Omaha Beach on Friday was nearly half a kilometer (500 yards) wide, and it was not even low tide.

From there it was on to the Memorial at Caen. Caen was also largely destroyed in the invasion. In the memorial, you walk through the years of the war with exhibits and films about daily life, the Shoah (Holocaust), the violence against gypsies, the Milice (those who helped the Nazis) and the Maquis (part of the Resistance). The exhibits feature authentic articles from the time period including uniforms, equipment, armaments, weapons, clothing, cutlery, dishes, radios and thousands of things that evoke life at that time.

Our visit ended with a film describing the D-Day invasion and the pursuit of the war in Normandy in the months that followed. Our students left with a vastly greater understanding of the events of the war and just how greatly it impacted the lives of the French, the other allies and the Germans.

In front of the Mémorial at Caen

Saturday, I offered an optional excursion – a bike ride through Brest and along the coast just outside the city. Only four took me up on my offer. But Jocelyn, Emily, Lily, and Michael got to experience some fantastic scenery and some beautiful sites.

At the Jardin des Explorateurs.

With the Phare (lighthouse) in the background

Thanks Hobby Cycles!

We came across the most beautiful garden overlooking the bay and the Naval base. It is a really beautiful, relaxing place. I created a short video of it: Jardin Kerbonne

Congratulations to those kids for the courage to come out on a Saturday morning, after two days of travel to take what became a 2 ½ hour bike ride. It was well worth it for all five of us. Although I am still sitting somewhat gingerly.