More Riffs

I'm blogging in the early morning, cool weather and listening to the birds chirping and morning doves cooing in the grounds around our Normandy hotel. . .not sure where the French reputation for arrogance comes from. . .neither in 1984 nor in 2013 have I seen much arrogance. . .the sommelier at the hotel restaurant rubs me the wrong way. . .but one out of a whole bunch doesn't count.

Our tour guide for D-Day said that France's national symbol because, like the French, the rooster is "loud, proud, and annoying."  Pretty funny, and he also attributed the Americans landing in the wrong spot on Utah Beach not to the wind and drift, but to the English landing craft pilots.

What is it about pickpockets in Paris?  There are signs everywhere to beware of pickpockets (Barcelona had the same reputation). . .pickpocketing appears to be a Paris occupation. . .Carol is extra careful because in 1983 she got robbed on the Paris Metro by gypsy kids. . .even though, as a veteran of NY City in the 1970s she knew what was coming. . .but there are signs at all the major places, such as the Louvre and Versailles. .  .pickpocketing is something I've never been worried about in the U.S. 

Normandy is famous for its bad weather. . .we had heavy rain in Paris the driving day. . .and yesterday going down to Mont St. Michel. . .but the rain passed quickly and both days turned beautiful. . .we had amazing weather for the D-Day tour, and great weather yesterday from around 11am on.

Our car is great. . .although we are picking Julia up at the Caen train station later now that she has finished her six weeks at Oxford. . .it will be a little tighter. . .it's a Kia seven seater that you can't get in the States. . .great gas mileage. . .although I refuse to figure out the cost of gas. . .because it's so high I don't want to know. . .The country roads are dangerous!  Twice I basically pulled off the roads to not crash sideview mirrors with an oncoming car. . .those cars didn't slow, Mon Dieu!  The highways are fun to drive, especially at 130 kph. (80 miles per hour) for the speed limit.

We've actually had some modest issues in the smaller towns with our inability to speak French. . .buying foie gras yesterday. . .we couldn't really communicate at the Charcuterie.  And, a few of our waitresses in some restaurants don't speak any English. . .although we are pretty good at reading the few menus that don't offer English translation (in Normandy, most do).