OT: My summer vacation

[HuskyNan]

Some of you guys might remember my asking about visiting Normandy. I just got back from my London-Normandy-Paris trip and thought I'd share a couple thoughts.

1. Americans are NOT the most obnoxious tourists abroad and it's not even close. Yes, we may be a little louder than the Parisians like but we are, by and large, pretty respectful of others. I heard a lot of Americans attempting to speak French and the French were most kind about it, in my experience. The folks in Normandy still love and appreciate Americans, British, and Canadians even after 80 years.
2. We thought it might be a quiet period abroad after the Olympics and high tourist season but, boy, were we wrong. It was packed everywhere.
3. As much as Americans love European clothes and culture, the Europeans love American clothes and culture. I got a chuckle out of the wild popularity of The Golden Bachelorette in England.
4. The bread in France is awesome. No sticky, gummy stuff Wonder Bread for the French and the bakeries are fabulous.

So, a couple pictures.

Parliament and Big Ben from the London Eye (the Ferris wheel on the Thames)

 

[HuskyNan]

The Tower of London, which is not a tower as we might think of one today, but a prison only a few stories high.

The Tower Bridge, which is next to the Tower of London.

 

[HuskyNan]

Normandy. I was horrified to see souvenir stores selling "D-Day" t-shirts like it was some kind of rock concert. Fortunately, they were the exception and not the rule as most of the area near the beaches is somber and respectful. For the first picture of Omaha Beach, I stood near the water and took the picture toward the hills our troops needed to scale. Note how broad the beach is and how difficult it must have been to storm across such an open area.

 

[HuskyNan]

A tiny area of the American Cemetery. So many American tourists were teary-eyed - it was difficult to watch.

One of four German batteries at Longues-sur-Mer

 

[HuskyNan]

A delightful cafe in Normandy. People don't sit scrolling on their phones, they have a glass of wine or other beverage and converse with their companion and the other people around them. A warm and welcoming environment and oh so relaxing.

Paris - the Mona Lisa at the Louvre.

 

[HuskyNan]

More Louvre which is, in my humble opinion, a work of art all by itself. The building takes up and entire city block and is three stories high. Every time you turn around there's a famous painting or piece of sculpture. It's hard not to be awed by the magnificence of the Louvre.

 

[HuskyNan]

The Palace of Versailles. It's undoubtably beautiful but they let waaaay too many people in at the same time. The palace is a series of small rooms and you end up shuffling along like a chain gang through hot, stuffy rooms. We couldn't wait to get out of the palace, to be honest. The grounds around the palace are exquisite. People that have difficulty walking would not find a visit to Versailles enjoyable, though.

One of many small rooms with paintings. A lot, if not most, of the smaller rooms are just like this but in varying colors.

The Hall of Mirrors, which is quite beautiful, but way too crowded to enjoy.

 

[HuskyNan]

Anywho, I got home just in time for Hurricane Helene. The west coast and so called Big Bend area of Florida were hit hard but Orlando got next to nothing with just some stiff breezes and off and on rain. A typical Florida tropical downpour, quite common here, has more rain than Helene gave central Florida.

Only a month and a bit until basketball season. I can't wait.

Where did you guys go this summer?

 

[CTtoSanDiego]

I also just got back from London and Paris. Did Normandy a few years ago. Added Provence on this trip. Your observations are spot on -- especially about the bread! Simple bread and butter in France is delish!

 

[Conndog]

Hope to go to Scotland next year, probably won’t include England but nothing is decided yet. Route so far is to arrive in Glasgow and go clockwise with last stop & departure from Edinburgh. Have about 3 weeks and current plan is for 7 stops of 3 nights each (Glasgow, Tobermory, Callander, Ballater, St. Andrews, Melrose, and Edinburgh). Can always take a day from one stop and add it elsewhere for longer stay there. Also need to decide between spring or fall- the days are longer in spring, but the weather may be better in the fall. Not going to Skye, already this is a good sampling of Scotland, and Mull is supposed to be delightful. History, castles and gardens, coastal villages, nice walks, whisky, golf- can’t wait!

 

[The deacon]

Some of you guys might remember my asking about visiting Normandy. I just got back from my London-Normandy-Paris trip and thought I'd share a couple thoughts.

1. Americans are NOT the most obnoxious tourists abroad and it's not even close. Yes, we may be a little louder than the Parisians like but we are, by and large, pretty respectful of others. I heard a lot of Americans attempting to speak French and the French were most kind about it, in my experience. The folks in Normandy still love and appreciate Americans, British, and Canadians even after 80 years.
2. We thought it might be a quiet period abroad after the Olympics and high tourist season but, boy, were we wrong. It was packed everywhere.
3. As much as Americans love European clothes and culture, the Europeans love American clothes and culture. I got a chuckle out of the wild popularity of The Golden Bachelorette in England.
4. The bread in France is awesome. No sticky, gummy stuff Wonder Bread for the French and the bakeries are fabulous.

So, a couple pictures.

Parliament and Big Ben from the London Eye (the Ferris wheel on the Thames)

View attachment 103795

View attachment 103797

Some of you guys might remember my asking about visiting Normandy. I just got back from my London-Normandy-Paris trip and thought I'd share a couple thoughts.

1. Americans are NOT the most obnoxious tourists abroad and it's not even close. Yes, we may be a little louder than the Parisians like but we are, by and large, pretty respectful of others. I heard a lot of Americans attempting to speak French and the French were most kind about it, in my experience. The folks in Normandy still love and appreciate Americans, British, and Canadians even after 80 years.
2. We thought it might be a quiet period abroad after the Olympics and high tourist season but, boy, were we wrong. It was packed everywhere.
3. As much as Americans love European clothes and culture, the Europeans love American clothes and culture. I got a chuckle out of the wild popularity of The Golden Bachelorette in England.
4. The bread in France is awesome. No sticky, gummy stuff Wonder Bread for the French and the bakeries are fabulous.

So, a couple pictures.

Parliament and Big Ben from the London Eye (the Ferris wheel on the Thames)

View attachment 103814
View attachment 103815

Good for you, Nan, and welcome home. I hope you got to watch the Olympics to prep you for your trip.

It's refreshing to read your take on the French, one I've held since my first trip there in 1985, right up through a 2016 visit. It also served as a reminder for me of how much I love traveling there, especially Paris. I'm so glad you had a wonderful experience.

Thanks for the photos, too. I get a kick out of the reality that those old phone booths are such tourist amusements. There used to be so many...

 

[The deacon]

I also just got back from London and Paris. Did Normandy a few years ago. Added Provence on this trip. Your observations are spot on -- especially about the bread! Simple bread and butter in France is delish! View attachment 103812 View attachment 103813

And that wondrous bread doesn't even need butter... during my backpacking days, I made a habit of having a baguette a day, accompanied a variety of cheeses, to get my day started.

Compliments to your photographer, packaging you with one of the iconic photo booths and the backdrop of the parliament building.

Welcome home, CTtoSanDiego!

 

[The deacon]

Hope to go to Scotland next year, probably won’t include England but nothing is decided yet. Route so far is to arrive in Glasgow and go clockwise with last stop & departure from Edinburgh. Have about 3 weeks and current plan is for 7 stops of 3 nights each (Glasgow, Tobermory, Callander, Ballater, St. Andrews, Melrose, and Edinburgh). Can always take a day from one stop and add it elsewhere for longer stay there. Also need to decide between spring or fall- the days are longer in spring, but the weather may be better in the fall. Not going to Skye, already this is a good sampling of Scotland, and Mull is supposed to be delightful. History, castles and gardens, coastal villages, nice walks, whisky, golf- can’t wait!

Looks like a great plan, Conndog, and I'd recommend mid-September to early October for optimum weather.

My only suggestions would be to allow a few days for a drive north. So far, it seems you're not going to sample the Highlands in all their glory. See if you can work that out. It'd be worth your effort; also, give yourself extra time in Edinburgh. It's one of my favorite European cities.

Good luck!

 

[Zarathustra]

You take GREAT PHOTOS!! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Bigboote]

Wonderful pics, Nan (and CTto).

We camped for a week in Acadia National Park, one of our two favorite places in the world, in July. It alternated between blazing hot (not expected on Mt Desert) and spitting/raining (expected). First vacation since retirement, and absolutely wonderful. Spent a week in the Adirondacks and northern Vermont a couple weeks ago.

Geez, we have a beautiful country (and world).

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

We focused on Frank Lloyd Wright houses across 3 vacation trips, visited sites in Buffalo, PA, Chicagoland, Springfield IL, Kansas City, Florence Alabama, etc. Also did 5 baseball games at 5 stadiums, 4 of which we also toured. Attended the season opener for the NFL in Kansas City. And much more, of course.

Great pictures from Nan, I was a couple weeks in Great Britain as a 12 year old, part of my father's WWII Bomb Group reunion. My wife and I have focused on the USA, there is so much to see, and - no matter how appealing other world sites are - it just seems like we can always find somewhere we want to go. Next up, ND, SD, Montana and Wyoming - 4 of the 5 states we have never seen.

 

[MSGRET]

A tiny area of the American Cemetery. So many American tourists were teary-eyed - it was difficult to watch.

View attachment 103821
One of four German batteries at Longues-sur-Mer

View attachment 103820

Thanks for the pictures Nan, the wife (who is German) and I went in 78. She was very emotional when we went to the American cemetery. Unfortunately all of the photos that we took were lost in one of our moves back to the states along with some Hummel's and my silver pocket watch.

 

[OldSchooler]

We just returned from 2 weeks in Israel, my 19th trip there since 1965. Inspiring country and amazingly resilient people. Highlight this time -- the National Library in Jerusalem.

 

[bantamlaker]

Hope to go to Scotland next year, probably won’t include England but nothing is decided yet. Route so far is to arrive in Glasgow and go clockwise with last stop & departure from Edinburgh. Have about 3 weeks and current plan is for 7 stops of 3 nights each (Glasgow, Tobermory, Callander, Ballater, St. Andrews, Melrose, and Edinburgh). Can always take a day from one stop and add it elsewhere for longer stay there. Also need to decide between spring or fall- the days are longer in spring, but the weather may be better in the fall. Not going to Skye, already this is a good sampling of Scotland, and Mull is supposed to be delightful. History, castles and gardens, coastal villages, nice walks, whisky, golf- can’t wait!

Looks like a great plan, Conndog, and I'd recommend mid-September to early October for optimum weather.

My only suggestions would be to allow a few days for a drive north. So far, it seems you're not going to sample the Highlands in all their glory. See if you can work that out. It'd be worth your effort; also, give yourself extra time in Edinburgh. It's one of my favorite European cities.

Good luck!

Totally agree with The deacon. You must allow time to go further north into the Highlands. We’ve taken several Scotland trips and the Highlands are our favorite part. With 3 weeks and some revision in your itinerary you’ll definitely have time. I think you have time for Mull/Iona and Skye and both are well worth visiting. Skye has the more dramatic scenery. It’s definitely worth spending time in Edinburgh but unless you are a real city person I wouldn’t spend 3 days in Glasgow. We usually go mid- late May because my wife is a garden person and that’s when things are blooming (but too early for the heather). You might get some rain but we’ve never had really bad weather. By the end of May you’ll have daylight until at least 9:30.
Wherever you decide to go you‘ll have a good time.

 

[uconnfan68]

Thanks for the pictures Nan, the wife (who is German) and I went in 78. She was very emotional when we went to the American cemetery. Unfortunately all of the photos that we took were lost in one of our moves back to the states along with some Hummel's and my silver pocket watch.

Military movers. Lost all my personal stuff, but left my stereo. Took 90 albums, gave me nothing.

 

[YoDore]

Some of you guys might remember my asking about visiting Normandy. I just got back from my London-Normandy-Paris trip and thought I'd share a couple thoughts.

1. Americans are NOT the most obnoxious tourists abroad and it's not even close. Yes, we may be a little louder than the Parisians like but we are, by and large, pretty respectful of others. I heard a lot of Americans attempting to speak French and the French were most kind about it, in my experience. The folks in Normandy still love and appreciate Americans, British, and Canadians even after 80 years.
2. We thought it might be a quiet period abroad after the Olympics and high tourist season but, boy, were we wrong. It was packed everywhere.
3. As much as Americans love European clothes and culture, the Europeans love American clothes and culture. I got a chuckle out of the wild popularity of The Golden Bachelorette in England.
4. The bread in France is awesome. No sticky, gummy stuff Wonder Bread for the French and the bakeries are fabulous.

So, a couple pictures.

Parliament and Big Ben from the London Eye (the Ferris wheel on the Thames)

View attachment 103814
View attachment 103815

You're my favorite tourist, Nan. Thanks for the comments and all the wonderful photos.

 

[MSGRET]

Military movers. Lost all my personal stuff, but left my stereo. Took 90 albums, gave me nothing.

Almost every move we lost something, we always made sure that everything was noted on the inventory sheet, but they still five fingered some stuff. Was told by one of the customs supervisors that many times it wasn't the movers but the customs inspectors.

 

[uconnfan68]

Almost every move we lost something, we always made sure that everything was noted on the inventory sheet, but they still five fingered some stuff. Was told by one of the customs supervisors that many times it wasn't the movers but the customs inspectors.

My move was just coast to coast. No customs.

 

[Boreifs]

 

[Boreifs]

View attachment 103834

Musikverein yesterday in Vienna