It has been so fun recapping Europe in these posts, but holy hell, it really does take a lot of time and a lot of remembering! I wish I would have taken more notes, journaled more, etc. because it's amazing how fast all of the little details escape you. Looking at the photos certainly helps a ton, but I know there are so many things I'm forgetting. I didn't even bring a laptop with me on the trip, but even if I had, I had exactly zero time to actually blog. It is what it is!! I'm breaking day 3 up into 3 posts due to SOMUCHCONTENT, and this is part 2 of day 3! The last post was all about our D-Day tour in Normandy.
We spent the morning touring the battlefields at Normandy, so it was a good shift at lunchtime to lighten the mood. Our friend, Courtney, planned the entire trip for the 8 of us. We gave her our passport info and our credit cards and she booked it all - no joke. She booked us this private tour to Normandy and requested that we also go to a small French town during our tour. She sent them a few cities in which she was interested, and they replied back with the place they thought would work best, which was Bayeux.
Port en Bessie Huppain
But first, lunch. We went to this cute little town called Port en Bessie Huppain to eat. It certainly wasn't a common tourist spot - you can always tell when they're not expecting tourists because they get nervous when their English isn't the best! But, luckily, our tour guide ate with us so they were able to talk freely. We popped into Cafe du Port for a quick bite.
Sandwiches at Cafe du Port
We all had sandwiches, and admittedly, having a sandwich on a baguette can be very tricky because sometimes you end up cutting the roof of your mouth as a result! But their bread - YUM. It didn't even need any ingredients. I ended up trying a Rillettes de Jambon sandwich, which is basically potted meat and pickles. I realize that doesn't sound appetizing, but it was really good. And super cheap. The sandwich itself was only about $3, so everyone was thinking we were going to leave hungry. Nope. Huge sandwiches.
Our group after lunch at Cafe du Port
Another good thing about a private tour guide is that you have your own photographer to take group photos whenever you need him to! We all left the cafe happy and satisfied. Our next stop was the cutest little city called Bayeux. It is everything you would expect a French city to be - quiet, quaint, narrow streets, bakeries everywhere, adorable storefronts.
Bayeux Cathedral
It's too bad I dressed for function and not fashion. Well, to be honest, 90% of the stuff I packed for this trip was for function and not fashion. This city would have been the perfect backdrop for outfit photos for the blog. I mean, don't get me wrong, I still made the husband take photos of me in this outfit anyway because when will I be here again? And it really is the cutest city! Our driver dropped us off to explore on foot for about an hour. Our first stop was their Cathedral.
In front of the Bayeux Cathedral
This Cathedral is about a thousand years old, no big deal. It's hard to keep track of all of the old churches and cathedrals you end up seeing when you are in Europe, but they really never disappoint.
A couple of guys in our group ended up doing a deeper exploration on their own inside the cathedral and their photos were gorgeous. The rest of us didn't realize we could poke around and I ended up just walking into the main sanctuary and walking out.
Exploring Bayeux
So many cute storefronts and buildings with character. The possibilities for photo ops were endless. I loved that we were able to see a place like this in contrast with the hustle and bustle of Paris.
Exploring Bayeux
Exploring Bayeux
I mentioned the narrow streets. Pedestrians and cars often co-exist on the same narrow streets, which blows my mind. Granted, we didn't see many cars in these parts, and when we did, they were always teeny tiny.
Exploring Bayeux
I'm sure I could create a photo album of only doorways in this little city. I couldn't get enough of them! And this photo just *looks* French to me.
Exploring Bayeux
Exploring Bayeux
It was extremely quiet in Bayeux. We simply walked around, visited a few shops, and popped into a bakery or two. Everyone was very nice and we still managed to communicate alright, as the majority seemed to know enough English for us to get by.
Outside the Museum of Tapestry in Bayeux
I would guess it was around 3pm or so when we finished up at Bayeux. The only other stop we made was to the artificial harbor of Arromanches. It was a quick hop out of the van to take photos, and admittedly, two other peeps and I were a bit beat, so we stayed in the van and observed through the windows. It was another 3 hours to drive home and everyone ended up napping while I edited photos on my phone! He stopped halfway home at the same stop as before for snacks and a bathroom break.
All in all, it was a very worthwhile trip and super economical, especially if you have a group of 8 like us. I think it ended up coming out to be about $150 per person, and yes, we did end up tipping him as well because he was an amazingly informative guide. Would highly recommend this tour, and ask for Fredrick!
Great pictures! 25 days till our trip but my family has the advantage of me speaking French. The smaller towns are always nice and I have only been once to Normandy but I was very young so I do not remember it.
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