Sunday 8th June 2014- What a nice weather day

Well the sun shone and we went for a swim in the lovely warm pool which as said many times before is in a great setting. The salmon and prawns were really excellent and then we watched the Formula One from Canada which was a good race and so disappointed for Williams and Massa who pranged it on the very last lap.

We had another caravan arrive to us today and it was by chance the same couple from Yorkshire that parked next to us last year when we were on a different site, however he was obviously rather tired as he rushed on to the site and nearly ripped the roof of the caravan on a tree which came of second best, brilliant and must remember not to do that. After the F1 we watched the ongoing saga of the long series called Fargo which seems to through wide balls just as you think you know what is to happen.

Well after all the excitement of the last few days we can settle in to our normal routine when being here of swimming, sunbathing, sheltering from the rain, go shopping and eating and the occasional glass of wine. So there will not be any further blogs until we do something which merits reporting.

Am typing this Blog on Monday night after cooking two pork chops on our gas burner we purchased in New Zealand and together with some veggies we had a nice dinner whilst the thunder rolled around and with the occasional heavy downpour of rain. Damn has just reported that the loo needs emptying so must now go out in the rain and empty it and top up the tanks, however that is better than needing the loo in the night and having to make a walk in the dark and rain. Thank heavens for a caravan against camping….

Saturday 7th June 2014- A day of rest

Well we were pretty tired on Saturday after an early morning and long day standing in the sun for some hours but as mentioned yesterday well worth the effort and its always good to remember the past.

We did a little shopping downtown in the wonderful fresh fish shop and also some food for Monday when the shops close. We chose some fresh salmon and some large prawns for Sunday night and set aside a nice bottle of white wine to have a nice night. However on Saturday we were a little tired but cooked up a sausage casserole which went down so well and was a very nice choice for the evening.

We watched a little TV before an early night but we did spend some time watching the F1 Grand prix qualifying from Montreal thanks to our new satellite equipment and now looking forward to the race tomorrow afternoon as Canada usually produces a good race.

And so to bed.

6th June- D-Day visit to Normandy American Cemetary for the memorial service

04.30!!! Bloody hell what again. Anyway we rushed around for showers and a light breakfast before meeting the others in the car park for a drive in Gilles car to Caen. The party consisted of Jen and me, Gilles and Marie who work on the site and Gerhard a nice german chap who lives near Cologne.
We arrived at the centralised parking at around 06.30 where you go to pick up the coach to be taken to Colleville sur mer together with a police escort as many of the roads were closed for the day. We then had to go through a small security check by showing the letters of invitation and also passports before joining a queue for the coach. We left Caen around 07.45 and with blue flashing lights from the police outriders we eventually joined the traffic jam near the Cemetery. Finally we got to the car park and the place was really humming with so many people waiting holding their invitations etc. Here we lost Gerhard after he went to the Loo and we gave up looking but then he turned up the other side of the body and electronic search before entering the cemetery. If you have never been here its really worth a visit being placed next to one of the landing beaches and with about 10000 graves.
We were able to find seats in the shade of a tree, as against sitting in the direct hot son for an hour and a half however this means we could not see the stage directly but on a large screen with a loudspeaker nearby and so the photos of the stage were taken using their large screen, not the best reproduction but the best we could do under the circamstances

This photo says it all

The service started a little later than planned, but hey this is France, and it was most moving with both Francois Hollande and Barack Obama both making excellent speeches except the English translation used on the big screens got screwed up ans stopped whilst Hollande continued only then for it to wizz through and missing a considerable chunk, but hey as mentioned this is France.
Following the service we had to wait for the coaches to take us back to Caen when we informed that would not start until at least 14.00, what!!! and why?? as it now 12.45, did they not expect that people would want to go back to Caen immediately or shortly after. So along with many others we waited in the Car park and at 13.30 one coach turned up with the driver on the phone having an argument with somebody it looked like, and several policeman asking him to move or stop, depending which policeman you looked at so Gilles wandered over and started chatting to the driver only to find the driver had just been told he was going to Caen and not where he was planned to go and so Gilles waived us over and we were on the first coach back to Caen, brilliant.
Arriving back in Caen we collected the car only to find with so many roads closed that we could not find a way out of town and all the policement we stopped and asked did not know either as they been brought in from all over the country and so we spoke to police from Clermont Ferrand, Bordeaux and other places but finally we found one who came from Honfleur and he thought he knew how we could leave for Liseaux without going on the motorway and he was right. We dropped off Marie at her home which is a large farm on the outskirts of Moyaux and had tea with her mum before heading back to site.
We were both dead tired and went to the creperie on site and Gilles and Ingrid and Gerhard and finally William who also works on the site joined us for a drink. .
And so we had a really memorable
day.
 

Thursday 5th June- Weather improved and so awning up

The weather was much better this morning and so we put up the awning and really got organised during the morning following by a late lunch and then some shopping in the afternoon.
We learnt that the arrangements had been made for us to attend the memorial ceremony at the Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville sur mer tomorrow and something about a very early morning?.
We met up with some of the campers whilst our neighbours with three not so noisy kids broke all the rules by putting up a washing line with loads of washing, not nice.
BBQ tonight with cumberland sausage and some really excellent rib eye steaks from Costco and washed down with a very nice bottle of Medoc of which we only planned to have two small glasses each but it was so good we broke the rules. Oh well if you cant break the rules at our age then when can you do it.
We watched a couple programmes on TV and were able to to watch the end of a drama series we had been watching for the past couple of weeks and we wanted to see the ending and as I have not come to grips with the recording by our new free to air piece of equipment. So we had a later night than we had planned but most enjoyable.
Oh boy a  really early morning again coming up.

Wednesday 4th June- Rain and sun

The overnight rain was severe and much stronger than expected and lasted until late morning and so putting up the awning was not an option.
So we went shoping to the fish shop in Courmeilles and something for lunch and came back and enjoyed not having to do anything and then for lunch followed by a couple of hours of zizzing, very necessary after a number of hectic days. Suddenly the sun came out and the sky cleared but the wind came up and so to strong to put up and awning. So to fill in the time Noel tried to come to grips with the caravan electronic control panel which handles heating of all types, the straight on/off to the advanced planning for the next ten years to come on and off at a set time then change at nights to a different temperature. Only time will tell if its right as last night we both felt a little to warm.
Prior to coming away, in a mad splash Noel purchased a satellite system to take with us on the caravan, not to watch the F1 motor racing or even the world cup but just to watch the weather forecast!!I doubt it.
We have watched people for years setting up systems for hours on end and even the german nuclear security guy who is here again this year said yesterday when he chatted it took him four days to get a signal. So Noel had purchased a system for Sat twits and lo and behold after a certain amount of trepidation we started to set it up, Jennifer set an alarm for after one hour not to do it anymore but b.... hell in ten minutes we had a signal and watching antique show, or whatever its called. amazing.
Dinner tonight was fast fried white fish who name escapes us with rice and petis pois and a glass or two of Chardonnay, most enjoyable particularly as all the clouds have gone and the wind disappeared which augers well for the rest of the week. Looking forward to the 6th D-Day celebrations, details to follow.
And so to bed... 

Tuesday 3rd June- Oh how we both hate early morning.

O4.15, Buzz, Buzz, Buzz, Buzz –oh shut up…it’s time to get up love. You make the tea whilst I shave and then go and start getting the caravan ready for departure. Take off locks, engage rollers and connect up to car and at 05.05 we are ready to leave for Portsmouth, perhaps a little earlier than we thought we would make it.
We arrived at Portsmouth Car Ferry terminal just about 0615 and already there was a queue for the  check in desks and including a large amount of second world military vehicles and people, mostly men, dressed in second world war uniforms, it felt quite strange really. It was pouring with rain as we inched towards the check in desk and the American vehicle in front of us packed up and we really could not go forward or back. Just what you need when you’re half a sleep. So Jennifer walked to the check in desk and did her bit and I thought that perhaps we might get by if we are really careful which we did with about an inch to spare each side of the van. So we made it to the next queue. It turned out why there was a large line of vehicles not moving as there was a big booking discrepancy for about 50 ex WW2 vehicles.
We got on board about 0800 for a 0815 departure and of course we left about 30 minutes late so not to bad really. Even though perhaps we boarded after the cars I had forgotten that this ferry puts all the cars in an upper area and that caravans and trucks etc are on the lowest deck which means we are one of the first to get off when we arrive.
We had tried to book reserved seating but it was a full ferry with the many army uniforms laying around and sleeping all over the place. We had therefore booked a cabin and hit the sack for about 3.5 hour’s before surfacing in time for a light sandwich lunch before arrival.
We departed Caen ferry terminal around 15.30 and took the quiet roads to the caravan site in Courmeilles and upon arrival we met a group of caravanners that we have met last year and so it was like being at a second home. We had a reserved site and it looked fine but we did not want to move around too much and so got set up and so by 18.00 the first cup of tea sitting outside in the warm sunny weather.
We had arranged dinner in the Chateau and there were about ten dinners only which is about as much you can seat there and also for Ingrid (the site owner) to cook for. A nice starter of avocado and prawns with salad, followed by Lamb with garlic and fresh veggies, cheese and then desert which Jen could manage partly, take those strawberries back for tomorrow’s breakfast. A very nice dinner and now back the van around 10.30 pm with a slight mist or rain in the air but we were both dead tired.

Off to France tomorrow

Well after almost five weeks at home sorting out any number of problems from leaking chimney and glass roof and the fish feeder had packed up and the roof of the BBQ near to collapse so its time to get away for a well earned Holiday.
We shall be in Normandy for a while and have been lucky to have been invited by the local Mayor via our friendly camps site owner to attend one the formal events of the 70th year anniversary of D-Day. We are not sure what this will entail but we look forward.
So watch this space for regular updates.