Sunday, September 18, 2016

Fun France, Fun Friends


After feasting on French cuisine, we have had a super dose of “friendship food”.  First with Sissel and Einar: these are fun cool Norwegians whom we met on the island of Laesso, Denmark in August last year. Some years back they sailed their boat transatlantic, going clockwise around the North Atlantic, with two children ages 16 and 11.  They have a second home in Normandy, and now we were lucky enough to meet up with them in Dives-Guillaume, even though we had a shortened sailing trip this year. 

They treated us to tours of Normandy, taking us to the charming Honfleur, to the Normandy Beaches, and even a “pilgrimage” to the Chateau du Breuil – a maker of superb Calvados.
So we feasted on fun and friendship…..and of course continued to refuel daily with Haute Cuisine!

After bidding adieu to Sissel and Einar, we sailed to Fecamp. And here we had one of those rare lovely things, a huge happy coincidence. Our friend Sue McMillan from San Diego, whom we first met in St Thomas Virgin Islands, had seen our blog and now sent us an email: she was working in France, and would be starting a week’s assignment in Boulogne: were we going to be anywhere near?  Yes we certainly were! 

So we made rendezvous with Sue in Dieppe, and had a fun time with her in this lovely old port town. We toasted her absent husband, Dewey, whom we Skyped in St Thomas, and congratulated him on their marriage just ten days ago! 

Even though it rained a lot, this did not stop Sue and us from following local gleaned intelligence about……what else? ...enjoying the best local restaurants!


Berthed In St Vaast - and what a charming old Normandy harbour town it is! Here we enjoyed a fine new marina in the heart of town, surrounded outside the harbour with ancients oyster beds!




Sissel and Einar in love at Honfleur!




Surely riding his bike down this classic tree-lined lane is an old Frenchman, with bunches of onions hanging from his handlebars, and with a black beret atop his head?




The beauty of the Normandy coastline stands in harsh contrast.....




....to the monuments above the beaches to so many brave Americans...




...and British and Allied soldiers.




From the cemetery, the provocative and somber view looking East from Omaha Beach.




Sissel and Einar's second home is centre, behind the tree, and just two minutes from.....



....the impressive promenade at Cabourg.




Arriving at Dieppe, when about three miles off, we saw a few strange things in the sky over the waterfront....and then within a minute there were fifty, then a hundred! What the devil.....? Then as we got close we could see that they were kites: and soon we discovered that at Dieppe was a huge International Kite Festival, with 37 countries attending!




Sue photographed us on the waterfront at Dieppe, in between rain showers.





Sue snaps a selfie, dining at the Restaurant du Port, Dieppe.



So we now are full of French food and wine, and have new fond memories of friends already made but now encountered in new places.  This fun and friendship fits our need perfectly, to live by our motto “Spread Joy”.

Best, Nancy and John