The Dog Days of August in Normandie, France

As the clock in Waterloo Train Station ticked on, the time of my train to Portsmouth Harbour to meet the ferry that would take me to Normandie grew near. I knew I was close to the platform and gate, my electronic ticket was in my email on my phone and….my phone, for reasons best known to it, had locked me out of all password-protected apps and, thus would not let me access my email or my e-ticket. The available WIFI was not passing on the instant message to my phone with the code to reset my password, and there went my train. A kind Southwest Train employee pointed me to the humans at the ticket office after the machine insisted that there were no further trains to my destination that day. Another kind staff member got me on the next train out and I was in time to meet my Normandie hosts Lesley and Olivier at Gunwharf Mall in Portsmouth and board the ferry to Ouistreham with them.

Leaving Portsmouth on the Ferry “Mont St. Michel.”

Why Normandie?

I was, for many years, a member, and later chair, of the Alexandria, Virginia-Caen, France Sister City Committee, part of Sister Cities International (https://sistercities.org/). Through this great organization, I had the opportunity to visit the city of Caen and the region of Normandie, France many times. I have made friendships there that I will have for the rest of my life. And, I have come to love that part of France. There is, of course, the history, not only the World War II history, made popular by movies like “The Longest Day,” and “Saving Private Ryan,” but history going back to the time of William the Conqueror, who crossed “la Manche,” (the Channel) to England from Normandy and was crowned the first Norman King of England in 1066. The people of Normandy are warm, kind, and friendly. The cuisine is incredible. So, when I had this chance to return and stay with my dear friend Lesley and her partner Olivier, I was thrilled to return.

Olivier and Lesley relaxing on the Ferry.

Back Home in Hérouvillette

Herouvillette is a small community where Lesley raised her daughters in an old farmhouse that she renovated herself! I have been a guest there several times over the years. Now that her daughters are off living interesting lives elsewhere, Lesley and Olivier share the home with an ancient brindle cat and two dogs that literally changed my life, Golfie, a beagle, and Skye, a highland terrier. Until a visit with Lesley several years ago, I had a lifelong fear of dogs-big dogs, small dogs, basically all dogs. Skye and Golfie miraculously cured me of this fear and have become beloved companions whenever I visit Lesley’s home.

Lunch in Merville-Franceville and a Visit to “la plage” with the dogs

It seems that you cannot have a bad meal in Normandy, at least I never have. Our first meal out was in a lovely little place that served wonderful “moules frites ala mode de caen.” I don’t think I had ever eaten mussels before coming to Caen, but now, I never miss the chance to have them.

We had lunch outside under the canopy to the right in the photo.

After lunch we made a quick trip to pick up the dogs and then returned to Merville-Franceville to the “Gros Banc Ornithological Reserve,” a large area along the beach and dunes where local flora and fauna grow wild and birds nest. Families visit and picnic and enjoy the beach area. Golfy, in particular, loves the water. Both he and Skye enjoyed the many scents they encountered along the paths and trails.

Golfie by La Manche
A well used trail
Shells galore.
A WWII German Defense Bunker. Can you see Golfie?

The Port of Ouistreham

Ferries from Portsmouth dock in Ouistreham but I have never really spent much time there, other than in the ferry terminal. Ouistreham is the site of Sword Beach, one of the D-Day Landing sites. This one is where the British landed. Lesley and Olivier had appointments in the town, one morning, so I had time to explore the pedestrianized main street and the main beach/amusements area before meeting them for a demi-tasse. As this was still the summer tourist season, the banners honoring the D-Day heroes still hung from lampposts and this first, rather striking picture that I have shared on my Facebook account was posted on a building at the entrance to the business district.

On D-Day, the member of the French Resistance was taken from his prison cell by the Nazis and shot. The picture is a reminder of the cruelty of authoritarian governments and to danger of extremism. I think it also reminds us that, even under the oppressive occupation that they lived with, many brave French citizens did their part too as they waited for D-Day and the eventual liberation of their country.
Honoring and never forgetting
Women and men, French, English, Canadian, Norwegian.

The buildings that survived the war and those that were built since all reflect the Norman style, making this part of the city a pleasant place to visit. The many small shops, offering locally made products remind one of a time when all towns had unique stores to shop in.

The pedestrianized shopping area ends at the beach. A charming entryway is created there, and a large Ferris wheel sits close to the sea. I am told that this is a favorite destination for folk from the larger cities like Caen and Rennes to visit on a weekend to get away from the urban lifestyle for a few hours.

A Return to Caen for the Sunday Market

No visit to Normandie would be complete if Lesley and I did not visit Caen together. After all, it was in Caen where she was Director of International Relations for the City, that she and I first met as colleagues and quickly became friends. During my years representing Alexandria at events in Caen, particularly, the annual foire de Caen, (Caen’s International Fair) that was held in September, I was often the City of Alexandria’s official representative and Lesley would provide translation services for me when I spoke officially at the fair to Caen’s mayor and official delegation.

Each Sunday, morning, Caen’s Inner Harbor area is filled with stalls and booths of merchants selling an array of foods and goods. We had a wonderful time seeing all that was on offer. Below are just three examples of the kinds of delights that were on display at the market.

After we finished our shopping, we stopped, as you do, for a coffee and a tart. While we were sitting outside at the cafe, just a stone’s throw from St. Etienne Cathedral, the cathedral bells began a full peel!

As I looked at the church, (above, you can only see the steeple) I notice how incredible the cleaning of the stone, the famed “pierre de Caen” (Caen stone) that was used to build the Cathedral (and most of the ancient historic buildings in Caen) had gone. When I first visited the city over 20 years ago, the Cathedral had a dirty dark brown color, like many old European buildings. But, painfully slowly, as funds allowed, this lovely old building is being restored to its original color. If you ever go to York Minster, you will notice that it is the same color and, indeed, the stone is the geologically the same. When they need to make repairs to the Minster, they sought “pierre de Caen.” I don’t know which of us was more surprised when I mentioned to a docent at York Minster that its stone looked remarkably like “pierre de Caen” and he replied that that was the stone they sought for repairs. We had a good laugh when I explained my connection to Caen.

The evening after our visit to the market, Lesley and Olivier had several friends over to enjoy the bounty of our shopping. It was a jovial night, though we spent much of it keeping the ever-voracious Golfie and Lesley’s cat and a visiting feline away from the food. Still, with good wine, good whisky, good food, and good conversation, some of which I could even understand, it was a great time. And in the end, when the guests had gone, Golfie and Skye did receive some treats. The cat had taken himself off in a snit.

Let’s Go to Cabourg

It was my last day in Normandie and Lesley wanted to take me somewhere fun, so we headed to Cabourg. We were having dinner with another Sister Cities friend that evening, my counterpart the former head of the Caen-Alexandria Sister City Committee, Marie Coquelin, an outstanding tour guide, should anyone be visiting Normandie. So, a brief local trip was perfect. Cabourg is another lovely little city right on the water. It has a beautiful and historic casino that really was the reason the city came to life. Now, the city is forcing the casino to move from its stunning waterfront location. Go figure! Below, three images of the lovely flowers in the town center and then the larger photo of the Grand Hotel.

The Grand Hotel

And then, of course, there is Proust. Marcel Proust is inextricably intertwined with Cabourg. One of its main streets is named for him. He fictionalizes it into a town he calls Balbec. So, of course, he is memorialized with a statue.

Proust, with lovely flowers around him.

Before we left, Lesley and I took a bracing walk along the beach promenade in what was nearly a gale force wind (I’m exaggerating). But it was bracing.

The wind was so strong it knocked that fence over.

That summarizes my trip to Normandie. We did have a lovely dinner with Marie on my last night. She caught me up on all her family news which was great to hear as I have known her children since they were kids and now they have given her and Christophe 6 grandkids! I regret not seeing Christophe as we have had a great bilingual relationship. I speak English to him, that he understands, and he speaks French to me that I understand. I think that it’s some kind of “Vulcan mind meld” that Marie has made happen.

Anyway, Lesley and Olivier took me out for a nice farewell lunch the next day on the way to the Ferry terminal. The only real glitch in the whole trip, since the train screw up at the beginning was a three-hour delay in the ferry sailing to Portsmouth! But we did eventually leave Ouistreham and arrived in Portsmouth around Midnight. The folks at the Holiday Inn Express Guwharf in Portsmouth were great and had a room waiting for me.

The next morning, it was just a five-minute walk across the road to the Portsmouth Harbor train station and my train back to London. This beauty was in the harbor as I prepared to enter the station.

I would have had this up sooner, but it was eaten up by the ether twice. Here’s hoping you all get to see this version.

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