Canterbury

Today the pilgrims are off to our destination and the centre of England's spirituality- Canterbury. Unlike our hero Anselm we are making the journey from the Continent via Eurostar at around 250 kph!

We have a quick bus trip to Gare du Nord (Paris), leaving Judy and Peter at the hotel, they will be continuing their holiday in Holland and Germany in coming days. Marcus has also left the group and returned to Switzerland for work. 

So the remaining 20 in the group say farewell to Pernille our wonderful French Guide and check in and do the immigration, border control. Soon we are smoothly rolling and several pilgrims are able take a nap, others read or play cards. The journey to Ashford International takes just two hours, but with the time zone adjustment it's 11am as we make our way out of the station.

We meet our coach and enjoy a 30 minute drive to our hotel in misty rain, hopefully the weather will clear and as we enter the outskirts of the city the sun breaks through and the driver turns off the windscreen wipers. We are too early to check in to our rooms but a complimentary drink resolves any of our concerns. We head for the town centre and a bite to eat.

Evensong is at 3.15pm so there is a bit of time to explore the Cathedral grounds before the Service. There are about 300 people at the Service and our group receives a special welcome from the Dean at the beginning. To quote Hume "the music is simply stunning" the organ and choir lead us in a most memorable way. The misty rain is returning so we agree that this is a good time to visit the Canterbury Tales attraction, a simple but graphic depiction of Chaucer's stories about pilgrims making their way to Canterbury in the early 1300s. It's a bit of fun and by the time we are finished the rain has gone. It's now time to return to our hotel Abbot's Barton about a 10 minute walk away to settle into our rooms before dinner.

Dinner is at Parrot Pub, the oldest pub in the town dating back to the Chaucer era. We have a large table and the whole upper floor in this incredible medieval building, even the food on the table slides a bit, such is the slope on the floor. Most of us enjoy a two or three course meal and sample the local refreshments. It's been sixteen days of solid travel, lots of tales to tell on our pilgrimage, and tomorrow we will focus on being in Canterbury.

Two busy days in Paris - Day 1

Today begins with a lesson from Tour Guide, Pernille, on using the Metro and a bus trip whisking us through Friday morning traffic to the Musee d'Orsay. As predicted there is already a queue to get in but it is not too long before we are inside enjoying this wonderful building - a recycled train station containing some of the world's greatest pieces of art. The  group soon divides into several parties and some realise that they are not going to see much in the time available so they opt to stay on for the day. Most head straight for the Impressionist galleries and are thankful for what we have learned from Ian Gutheridge's DVD on the coach and our visit to Giverny.

The rest of the group are soon wandering through the Tuilleries Gardens and decide to stop and enjoy a leisurely coffee. Steve and Pernille head for the Apple Store to attempt to resolve his mobile phone problems. The  Champs Elysee is our next experience and we walk to the Arc de Triomphe noting where the Lido nightclub is for our visit tonight. We return to the Metro exploring our way to Montmartre to visit the working artists, enjoy French Onion soup for lunch and to spend some tiime around Sacre Coeur. 

Most of the group take up the option for soup and bread for lunch and to stroll among the vibrant community of artists in the village. It is very busy with tourists and the lunchtime throng. Our  visit to the wonderful Basilica of Sacre Coeur was a great experience made even better as we are able to listen to the fine organ and a mass in progress with the strong clear voice of a nun.

Two busy days in Paris - Day 2

Pernille greets us bright and early in the hotel lobby keen to get us early in the queue for our visit to Sainte Chappelle, as it turns out the bus has no traffic problems we arrive to be first in the queue and time to take a coffee at the corner cafe. The chapel is one of the highlights of our trip, it has been recently restored and we are lucky once again that there is no scaffolding and we benefit from the whole structure having been freshly cleaned. The stained glass windows are, to use our guide's words, "a pure marvel". 

On our way to Notre Dame Cathedral we are given 10 minutes to have a wander in the flower market such an amazing array of plants, building on the Giverny experience, we have even grander ideas for Jim, Jenny and the St Silas Garden Group.

The queue to enter the Cathedral quickly disappears and we are inside this great medieval church, that was started in the 13th Century.  We have plenty of time to explore the multitude of chapels to wonder at the construction, the windows, the decor all amongst hundreds of tourists.

Boarding the metro we make our way to the station of St Paul where we have time for lunch and then a walking tour of an area known at La Mahais. It was delightful with its shopping precinct and stately homes gathered around a beautiful grassy square. The home of Victor Hugo was here. Once the homes of the aristocracy returning to Paris  after the days of the monarchy in Versailles.

Back on the subway again we make our way to Trocadero and the Eiffel Tower and the obligatory photo opportunities before making a quick dash to board the boat for our river cruise on the Seine. It is a glorious Saturday afternoon and we all enjoy relaxing on the top deck watching Paris go by and resting our weary feet.

We disembark and stroll towards the bus stop passing large crowds of people sitting on grassed area all watching on a large outdoor screen Raffael Nadal playing at Roland Garros nearly in the French Tennis Open which is on at present.

As we conclude our River Cruise, and this is the last time the majority of the group will be together we thank Pernille for a week of fantastic tour guiding and we present her with a beautiful pure cashmere scarf and an envelope of tips. She has been superb.

Tonight is free time and the group disperses into small groups to find an evening meal and prepare for our next day travelling from Paris to Canterbury via Eurostar.

Giverny, Versailles & Paris

We depart Rouen bright and early for a day of art and culture at Monet's garden in Giverny and later in the day to the Palace of Versailles where for a century the French monarchy called this place home.  It was a delight to be driven along small country roads in the early morning and we watch a DVD by Ian Gutheridge on Impressionist painting. 

We arrive at Giverny mid morning and have nearly three hours to explore the house, the garden, the water lillies in the Japanese Garden and of course the gift shop. Stepping into this garden is like stepping into a Monet painting and the experience was enjoyed by everyone. There is much talk to revitalise and revamp the church garden after this, Jim just smiles. We take a quick snack in Giverny and are on our way to Versailles, which is not far from Paris. 

Thirteen members of our group desire to visit the main Palace with our guide, Pernille and the other 10, including Ray, visit the small palace called 'Petit Trianon' given to Marie Antoinette to be used as her own palace. She loved this place and became almost a recluse living in this house and away from the main Palace. She also built a hamlet for her farm animals, not far away and this is gradually being restored. This was a delight to visit with its quaint farm buildings of wattle and daub, small lake and fish and a variety of animals.

So both groups were very busy with their time and back on the bus there was much swapping of stories about all our experiences.

Reaching our Hotel next to Gare de Lyon through the crazy Parisienne traffic we thank our driver, Isam, appreciating his skill and care for us over the past 6 days, since leaving Italy.

After prayers we take a short walk to the Cafe Barjot for a 3 course meal. We all have enjoyed an outstanding day and are pleased that we can return to our hotel and put our feet up in preparation for the first of two full days in Paris.

Bec Abbey and Rouen

What a beautiful day to be driving along a narrow country road in our comfortable coach. Often we have to make room on the road for large farm vehicles. Well done Isam (our driver) who seems to cope with such things like a breeze.There is a lot of gasping and ooing and aahing about the local landscape - farmhouses and villages and rural scenery. Many of the buildings have been constructed in wood and daub with thatched roof - this is particular to Normandy.  Often a row of irises can be seen growing along the top ridge of the house (could be the next garden group project at St Silas!).

We arrive just in time for our organised tour with Fr Mark who is one of the Benedictine community at the Monastery in Bec. He is proud to tell us something of its history and renowned occupants including our hero, St Anselm. Fr Mark has a delightful sense of humour and we enjoy his commentary translated beautifully by our guide Pernille.

After the tour we gather in the garden and offer our prayers and the Canticle of St Anselm together in the brilliant sunshine.

We are off to Rouen, not too far away for lunch in the Cathedral square, prior to our guided tour of the Cathedral inside and out. This is the place where Claude Monet sat for months on end to paint the light as it fell on the intricate and fantastic facade of this great Cathedral. The  actual building where he set up his easel at the time (then a lingerie shop) still stands. 

Inside among the many interesting features is the monument to Richard the Lionheart which apparently actually houses the late King's heart! We are fortunate that a massive scaffold has just been removed from the facade of the Cathedral. At the side of the Cathedral Helen and others are particularly intrigued to see the peal of bells in the process of being removed from the Bell Tower - we presume for renovation.

We take a short walk through the fabulous old city centre with its cobblestone road, numerous buskers and wonderful mediaeval buildings, including an ancient clock - the first in the city.  We arrive at the place Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, where now a Church and memorial commemorates her life.  This modern church is quite spectacular and proves that good design can be both modern and beautiful.

We check in at our Rouen hotel and prepare for dinner.

Mont Saint Michel

The team gathers as usual on time and heads on the journey. Today's destination is a small island off the Normandy coast called Mont Saint Michel. About 1400 years ago a Benedictine monastery was established on this rocky outcrop, the story goes that the local Bishop had a vision of St Michael telling him he must build a church there. Eventually he built a small chapel and the monastic community grew and grew. 

The Benedictines have had a topsy turvy existence on this site but despite this it is amazing what they have built. Words can hardly do justice to describe this amazing place so let's use some extra pics to tell the story.

On our return journey we say prayers on the coach and many are inspired to go in search of galettes and crepes for our dinner back in Caen.

Bayeux and the Normandy beaches

Today has a more relaxing start with the coach rolling off at 10 am to Bayeux. Several of us take advantage of the pleasant morning to make a quick visit to the local Castle, once the home in Caen of William the Conqueror. We also visit the adjacent church of St Peter which was heavily bombed during WW2. 

Bayeux is only about half an hour's drive, or as Pernille calls it "a short hour" away. Our first stop is the famous Bayeux Tapestry, after queuing for our tickets and headsets we are able to enjoy the commentary and this remarkable piece of mediaeval art. This was apparently commissioned by the Normans to explain William's victory at the Battle of Hastings. We learn that this embroidery/tapestry is really a political comic strip of its time. After our tour we enjoy the film that further explains many of the scenes of the tapestry. The group are of one accord that we love this experience and show our appreciation appropriately in the gift shop.

After lunch and exploring the beautiful village of Bayeux and its wonderful Cathedral we board the coach and head for the Normandy beaches, and in particular the US Cemetary at Omaha beach. There is  a lot to see and do here exploring various sites, the memorial, the Visitors' Centre and the thousands of graves, the chapel and the magnificent gardens. 

Now we move further along the beach to Pointe du Hoc which was the vital place held by the Germans but strategically the turning point of the Second World War with the invasion of Europe after the Americans managed to capture this stronghold. There is no doubt that the Germans stationed here had nowhere to hide. The landscape still bears the scars of a massive bombardment.

So today has been about battles, Hastings and the Second World War. We reflect on these things as together we offer our prayers back at the Hotel in Caen.