Carol is a huge impressionist aficionado, particularly of Monet. Our original plan had been to go to Giverny (his home, his garden, and the famed water lily pond) on our way to Normandy (Giverny is in Normandy, but on the very outskirts). I had scratched that plan when we were stuck in the tunnel hell of Paris.
Looking at the clock, and sensing a need to make a gesture of apology for my extended fit of anger (see post below), I suggested we should still go to Giverny -- get lunch in Vernon (the nearby town) and then go to Giverny. Frankly, it didn't really matter what time we arrived at our hotel in Normandy, so long as it wasn't dark (which doesn't happen till about 9:45 at night here even now in August!).
We had lunch at a restaurant on the circle in Vernon -- a nice small town. The only drama with the lunch is whether we were parked illegally (well, we were, although we didn't get a ticket -- there was a place further down to buy a parking coupon). The police car cruised past our car twice, but didn't stop to write a ticket, which would have been quite the capper for the car caper.
Then we drove to Giverny. Whoa. Very cool. I honestly like Monet's work (don't tell Carol), particularly the paintings he did at Giverny (and also his amazing paintings of the Rouen Cathedral). I was not sure what it would be like, although Doug McAuliffe said it was definitely worth a visit. He was correct. Monet's backyard was an amazing (and huge) garden with explosions of color and different flowers everywhere. I probably went crazy with the camera.
Then, we crossed under the street (a small country dirt lane in Monet's time) to the enchanting water lily pond (I know, you never expected to see those four words in a row written by me!). It was like being in a Cathedral. People were silent and moved. The place is spectacular. When I get a chance, I will post some photos, although they won't do it justice.
After that, we took the long drive to our Normandy hotel, arriving around 6pm. It was down some country roads that involved major turns. It's a good thing Carol found the directions on the hotel website, because we never would have found it. Frankly, even those directions weren't right! If I hadn't seen a sign for the hotel, we would have followed the directions and made a wrong turn!
We walked around the ample grounds of the country hotel, and had a great dinner in the restaurant. It was definitely the fanciest place we have eaten so far on the trip. I'm pretty sure the sommelier did not like me -- he hovered over me before I cracked the wine list, and I asked him to come back after I perused it. I narrowed the choice down to two Bordeauxs to ask his advice, and ended up going with his recommendation of an entirely different bottle. It was great, but I sensed he wasn't happy with me. The food was great though, and the rest of the service staff was great until we waited 15-20 minutes for the bill! I was on the verge of tackling someone to get it.
Soon we are off for our D-Day tour (which, after the snafu with the Paris tour, I really hope happens!).
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