That morning, we checked at the tourist office about getting to Caen. They said that there was only one train from Bayeux to Caen at 4.30 pm. The bus left Caen around two hours later, so we had a solution! The train cost us 8€ each. By that time it was 10.30 am, so we made it to the Cathedral for the Mass. This was a nice experience. I had longed to attend a Mass at a big Cathedral in France so I could hear the church organ. Unexpectedly, that morning there was a special Mass dedicated to those who have died, particularly those in tragic circumstances (Messe en souvenir des Déportés). There was a procession of veterans from different French communities, such as the firemen. One man even wore his fire helmet the whole time during the Mass. It was impressive. There was a lady there, who I was guessing affected by an unfortunate death in the family. The priest made an offering at a side chapel in someone's honour. We saw again some of the Americans who were with us on the tour, Jay and his wife and another couple. You tend to run in the same people quite often it seems.

Then we visited the Bayeux Tapistry. It is very long. They give you the audio guide, then you just walk along to listen to each stage of the story. You had to keep moving, as people constantly came in. It gave barely any time to look at each section in any great detail. At first I followed through it at that speed, then I went back to have a closer look at the more interesting details. Luckily it isn't going to England until later in the year, so I got my chance to see it finally. It really doesn't disappoint.

In the afternoon, Françoise was very kind and helpful because she allowed us to wait at her house and her husband took us to the station when it was time. We had a really great experience with her despite causing a little bit of trouble for her when we arrived.

So we got to Caen by train, then took the bus. The bus passed through and stopped at Rennes. I've been considering walking to Camino de Santiago from Mont-Saint-Michel through Rennes and Nantes. Now that I passed through Rennes, it didn't seem very nice to me. I expected more. Maybe I might reconsider going through Rennes? What I did like about the town was the elevated tram. It made the place a little nicer. It seems it is a centre for information technology. The only redeeming feature of this town that I could see was the tram.

The bus dropped us off at Haluchère-Batignolles. Dad was not happy that we were dropped so far away from the centre of the city. He wanted to take a taxi, but it was not obvious where to find them. We asked a lady who said we should try at the tram station. He was searching for them, but none could be found. The only one we saw was way too far away to catch. I told him the best option would be to take the tram into the centre of town. He still wanted to go by taxi. I didn't because that would waste time and be very expensive. We were already at the stop, so it was convenient as well as cheaper.

I asked someone which was the correct way to get to Nantes. He told me to take the line towards F. Mitterand station. Actually he wasn't completely helpful, as there was a tram that also would have taken us to the centre, but he didn't mention that. We would have saved 15 minutes. Also, I could have ignored it, since all the other people took the earlier tram. Next time I ask someone who looks more reliable. So after all that, some more waiting, we finally got to the centre tram station Commerce. Luckily our hotel was only two minutes walk. So in the end, my solution saved us money and more hassle. We arrived by 11.30 pm, which was fine considering we had to find a solution due to the strikes, and succeeded.