11.21.2007 Wednesday

La Rochelle

Man I need to slow down.I just looked back over all my photos and what I have seen and done and it is amazing what you can see in a day.My last real blog was on the 18th and I have seen Omaha Beach, Le Mont St. Michel, St. Malo, Saint Nazaire, Nantes and now just finished a day of seeing La Rochelle.Not only are there amazing sights to recount, but amazing families that I have stayed with and learned from.

So I arrived in Bayeux after a soggy and cold ride from Argentan and my family stay with the Lavando's.Eliane had arranged for me to stay with a friend in Bayeux so I did not have to go on my couchsurfing website.Marianne and her daughter Onedine were so much fun to spend the evening with.I stopped along the way to pick up some baked goods at the bakery before heading over and was immediately welcomed with open arms and a warm cup of tea.Something I really needed after spending most of the day in the rain.Marianne and Onedineare two amazing people with amazing talents.Both are very musically inclined and Onedine is also a ballerina.Being that Marianne was a history teach we were able to chat a bit about that and got in some good practice for her English which thank goodness was actually pretty good.. I was treated to another delicious home cooked meal.Duck, potatoes and vegetables….oh yeah! And of course a French meal would not be complete with out cheese and bread after.I really had a nice stay with Marianne and she even arranged for me to stay with a friend of hers in Nantes on Wednesday night.Phew another night that I don't have to worry about going online to couchsurf.It is truly amazing how the chain of friends just helping out has worked.People really can be amazing when they want to be and I have certainly been looked after.

I left Bayeux which is a great small town that was largely spared during the war and headed to Omaha beach to follow in the footsteps of some really courageous soldiers.I hit the beach and climbed the hills much like the soldiers on June 6th 1944 did.Seeing all the old bunkers and imagining the battle field weighed heavily on my heart; So many lives lost and had they not the free world might not be so free.The American memorial cemetery was something I was not prepared for.Absolutely takes your breath away and makes you realize the sacrifice those men made for us.

After Omaha I set out for Le Mont St. Michel.A couple of people had mentioned to go and see this and it was not on my agenda but I am glad I did.Wow would I have missed out.It rained most of the rest of the way from Omaha Beach, but Le Mont St. Michel was incredible.Only the photos can tell the story.I walked all around the little village at the bottom of the abbey and climbed to the top too.Great thing to see and driving up to it is pretty crazy.

St. Malo was the next stop and I had only planned on stopping through as my final destination was Rennes so I could make good time to Nantes the next day to stay with the arranged family.Well I got to St. Malo and fell in love.I immediately found the hostel, unloaded my gear and headed out to experience the great city.Very much reminds me of Charleston.I found the local Beneteau dealer and ended up speaking to him about Europe and boats.It was pretty great to sit and talk about boats.I wondered around town and promised myself that I would have to come back here with friends to enjoy everything it has to offer.St. Andrews and Oxford were pretty great towns, but St. Malo is on the top of the list of favorite places I have seen so far.The scenery from the walled city was beautiful and the town was just the right size.Not to big and not to small.I stayed in a great hostel although the WIFI was very slow.

So up the next morning to make my way to Nantes!As I geared up I recalled the last day and the great views I had then entire way even though the latter half of the day was raining it was one of my better days on the road.It was a good thing because my drive from St. Malo to Nantes was horrible.Not only did it rain, my boots got completely soaked (Yeah whoever said goretex was waterproof is crazy) and the sights along the way were horrible.I am glad I did not make it to Rennes because it was just a city with lots of people and stores.Nothing worth seeing and definitely would have been a miserable place to spend the night.St. Nazaire along the coast was just a dirty industrial sea port. Driving across the bridge that looks much like the Charleston bridge was the most scared I have been on the bike the entire time.It was raining and the wind was blowing atleast 25knts at the top.Traffic was backed up behind me as I slowly crossed the very narrow bridge swaying back and forth.There were a couple of times I thought I would go over the edge…phew!I am not one to get scared and certainly don't turn down any challenges, but I don't think you could have paid me to go back across that bridge that day.The rest of the way to Nantes the scenery was of factories and powerlines.I guess all the pretty cities in France have to be supplied from somewhere right.

I arrived in Nantes and found the tourist office as I have made a habit of doing as soon as I get to a new town.It really is amazing the wealth of knowledge you can get there as well as a map to find the next house you are staying at.It is funny how I always seem to find my way everywhere.It is like there is a built in GPS or something.Let me tell you riding a motorcycle and looking at a map do not go hand in hand so I really do just kind of feel my way.Just before I leave I get an idea of the general direction and some of the towns along the way and just go.I haven't gotten too off track yet, although it is hard to get lost when everything is new and interesting.

Frederick and Marie Heline my hosts in Nantes were great and their daughters Coline and Nina where too cute.Friends of Marianne, they opened their home to me and refused to let me do any dishes or helping out.Coline even gave up her bed for me and slept in her sisters room.Frederick made sushi for dinner and we all sat chatting about France and history and what to see and where to go.It is great that so many French speak English and want to get better at it.I went to bed a little early to catch up on some much needed rest.Riding around all day is tiring!!This morning Marie Heline helped me with some sewing and off I went to find the mottorad that's the BMW dealership by the way.Wow pretty interesting to try and get some bike work done when no one speaks English.I was hearing a little grinding noise and wanted to get it checked out and the dealership was on the way.After some grease and air in the tires I was on the road again.I am glad I got a BMW even though there was a language barrier the service was amazing and at no charge for the minor adjustments.I did buy some special waterproof boot covers though so I would not get wet feet anymore.

From Nantes I hit the road straight to La Rochelle hoping to get there early to take in some sights and just sit and enjoy the sunset which I did.Found the hostel and headed into town.Wow another great French treasure.Not as impressive as St. Malo, but pretty cool.I have never seen so many sailboats in my life.Be sure to check out the pictures for this stop.Instead of the auto mile you have the boat dealers mile here.I can't imagine being a dealer here with so many options for a customer and the options being right next door.Oh yeah I almost forgot on the way I stopped by the Dufuor sailboat plant.Pretty cool to see sailboats being built!I have seen a lot of boat plants, but not one that makes sailboats.

So here I am in La Rochelle.Wondering where I will find some turkey for tomorrow and thinking I will be spending day or two more here to catch up on some quiet time.I have a lot of things to just get done.Emails, bank statements etc.I finally took the bike to the car wash to wash off the filth of many days of rain and off roading.The final straw was finding a field with the worst clay/mud.I had to give myself a wash before the bike to get the one inch thick slab of mud off my boots.

It was nice to take it easy today and just watch the sunset for a change.I found a hotel with a fireplace and free wifi and just relaxed a little bit.

So tomorrow I am going to enjoy the city some more see if I can find some other Americans wanting some turkey and think about everyone back home enjoying there family.I know at the very least I will remember tomorrow especially everything that I am thankful for.Although, I have found myself at the start of every morning being thankful!

If anyone knows anywhere fun to go and see around Bordeux please let me know. Next stop Bordeux, Bayonne and Barritz then on to Spain and Portugal before heading north to Paris for Christmas and New Years