October 22
The Grand Hotel put together an impressive breakfast buffet. It was unique in providing an appliance which boiled eggs according to your taste. Jack enjoyed a soft boiled egg with slices of ham and toast. I stuck to the croissants and jam.
After breakfast we toured the tiny museum and the Carmelite Monastery. We saw the wax figure of St. Therese where she is buried in a side chapel. Fr. Frank said Mass in the monastery chapel and gave a sermon using sign language to explain the Our Father. Later we took pictures of the choir area and dropped a few euros at the gift shop.
We boarded the bus for a drive to Les Buissonets (little bushes) where Therese spent most of her childhood. What a treat to see her nursery, bedroom and living room where she had some of her earliest spiritual experiences.
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Later on we visited the Basilica perched on the hill overlooking Lisieux.
Our guide told us how it had survived the Normandy invasion bombing of World War II which destroyed 80 percent of the city. She also explained the meaning of the modern mosaics which decorated the dome and walls.
Lunch was back in downtown Lisieux. Barbara and I wandered away from the group down a side street to try a plat du jour, spaghetti and veal with a small salad and vin rouge. Our waitress couldn’t understand my terrible French. Luckily, a woman at the next table helped with our order. At the end I asked for the bill, addition. After three tries, she understood me. We paid quickly and raced back to the bus.
We enjoyed spectacular, spring-like weather driving northeast to Rouen, the site of the famous cathedral which Monet painted many times to catch the difference in light. First we toured the Church of St. Jeanne d’Arc. Ultra modern outside with medieval stained glass windows inside—it was like mixing chocolate with vinegar.
Our local tour guide, a retired teacher, walked us through the streets of town pointing out architectural styles from different centuries ad nauseam.
We ended at the Cathedral and checked out the vast transept,
massive chandelier and stained glass windows.
Before getting back on the bus we found a chocolate shop and bought a bar of dark chocolate studded with assorted nuts and fruits. Wrapped in gold foil inside an elegant box it cost about 6 euros. Hershey’s dark chocolate is better and costs less. Still, it was energizing. Around 6:00 we crossed the Seine, took a parting picture, then turned southeast towards Paris. The City of Lights awaited us.
Flat fields gave way to rolling hills, suburbs and subdivisions. Descending a final hill we could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance. Several tunnels later we drove along the Seine toward the Eiffel Tower past a shrunken version of the Statue of Liberty. Then the bus stopped in front of the Le Marquis Hotel. A few minutes later we followed Javier to a classy restaurant a few blocks away. For starters we chose fish soup or tiny fried fish. The soup was the better choice, although Barbara and others didn’t care for it either. Some of the pilgrims covered the fish, eyes intact, with a napkin or simply did not eat them.
For our main course we chose between fish and chicken. Barbara and I chose the chicken, a wing and part of a breast, with mashed potatoes, pureed cauliflower, and one petite broccoli flower. Vin rouge (red wine) was included. For dessert we chose between pound cake with whipped cream and golden raisins drenched in rum or lemon meringue pie. We chose the rum thing but couldn’t eat all of it.
Weighed down from dinner, the group decided to walk about 10 blocks to the Eiffel Tower. It was cloudy with a few sprinkles. We hit the ticket booth just before it closed and could only go to the second level. Barbara and I were the only ones to go up. The view was clear and incredible as we walked around the periphery of the platform. It gave us a wonderful, romantic orientation to Paris. Barbara, a little shaky from the wind and the height, took a panoramic picture, and then we wandered a little longer.
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We could see the Louvre all lit up, the Seine, where sightseeing boats glided up and down the river, Notre Dame far off, Sacre Coeur on a distant hill, and the Arc de Triumph. As we exited the elevator, we saw that Javier and the group had patiently waited for us. Maybe they were mesmerized by the Eiffel Tower and the Paris lights. We walked back to the hotel together as the rain began to pour.
