I'm back and I'm smarter.

We got back from our week long vacation yesterday.  It was great because I had fun and I learned a lot- which means I have returned back to Picardie... a smarter person.

Feels good.

The train was actually running on Sunday to Bayeux in Normandy- so we got all set in our nook with some wine, snacks and a deck of cards.  Lauren taught me and Ceci how to play Rummy and we did that for a bit.  We got to Bayeux and met this man from I think New Zealand?, who was staying at the same hotel- so he showed us the way.  Then the next day we got coffee and breakfast and then went to the Tourist Office, where unbeknownst to us at the time- the nicest lady ever was about to misinform us left and right.  Swwweet.
That day we attempted to go the D-day beaches but the nice lady nicely lied to us about the bus times.  Instead, we went to the museum of the Normandy Battles in Bayeux, the cathedral and walked around the town which was very cute.  The museum was fine.  There was this one man in there who did every job, he was literally everywhere and the place wasn't small.
After that, we found a park to eat lunch in- which we quickly deemed our park and got sad when other people were there. haa.   It was sunny and perfect!  I ate pistachios and clementines and a weird, delicious little sandwich.  Then we went to see the tapestry that everyone is obsessed with- which actually was really interesting.  It depicted the Norman Conquest of 1066- so it is almost a thousand years old.  It came with an audio guide, which cleared a lot of things up for me historically.
That night we got dinner out and went to a bar called "Pub Fiction" that had swings for seats at a big table- awesome.  I also drank a desperado- awesome.  Anyone who doesn't know what a desperado is, let me enlighten you- it is a beer brewed in france that is flavored with tequila.  It's quite refreshing and always stylish. ;o)
The next day we went to Omaha beach and the American Cemetery and Museum there- which was terribly shocking but really, really amazing.  The museum was just a good museum all around especially because it focused on personal stories rather than trying to sum up everything... and walking along the beaches was really cool.  That afternoon we bought a feast for ourselves to take back to the hotel including Camembert and cider (both made in Normandy) and baguette.  We had a fun little night in the hotel that night including Dawson's Creek dubbed in French and more Rummy.

The next day Cecilia and I got an EARLY train to St. Malo in Brittany.  On one of the trains we sat across from a young French lady who looked like a little innocent elf until you heard her hard rock metal song through her headphones on repeat the entire way.
We walked to our hostel there, which was this crazy complex of buildings with tennis courts and a cafeteria and everything.  We couldn't get into our room until 4pm and we got there at 10 in the morning, so we put our stuff down and headed into the Old City.  This was the coolest.
First of all, you walk right along the beach to get to the walled in city and when you walk in you don't even think it's real. Everyone is beaming with happiness and there are just a million awesome restaurants and shops and little hole in the wall places to go to.  We were in heaven.  I really recommend this place to anyone who likes nice places in general- (this should be all of you).  It is what vacation towns should be.
We ate galettes for lunch, which are buckwheat pancakes filled with whatever you would like, a Breton specialty.   Actually come to think of it, we had two galette lunches that day,  and my second was one with scallops and mussels.  Happiness.
After that, we just strolled because it was a beautiful day.  Then, I discovered the most dangerously delicious pastry know to man- under the name of "Kouign Amann".

While walking back we decided to find an internet cafe to check the email situation, which is always good.  Then, we got lost.  We found a little supermarket and got cheese (always & forever), bread and apple sauce to eat for dinner.  We went to bed early.

The next day we went to Mont St. Michel, which was very cool.  As you drive up, there are open fields with tons of sheep!  Then, you see the village and abbey built on a mountain encircled by the Atlantic Ocean.
This was the view from the bus.

We spent the day strolling through the place, which is really like a maze.  We went into the church there, which was refreshingly different in style and ventured through a bunch of little nooks on the mount.  Then, the abbey sits atop the mountain, which is neat.  We didn't have time to wait for the English tour at 3 o'clock so we joined the French tour.  The witty little French tour guide asked us our nationality before we started and then of course singled us out during his talk a good solid couple of times.  Then we decided, hell with it- this guy is just cracking jokes and we want to just see the place ourselves.  So, we broke off from the Frenchies and breezed through.  The best part of this place was that it was constructed starting in the 11th century through the 18th century, so there are wild stories about conflicting styles and periods of thought (during the revolution, the abbey was used as a prison).
The last day in St. Malo- we walked all the way around the walled city on the ramparts.  There was a great photo exhibit at one of the points along the way, and we walked all the way out to this island where the French writer, Chateaubriand, is buried.  Cecilia and I went barefoot when the tide was still crashing a little bit over the footpath, which was kind of scary but fun.  We stayed up there for probably an hour, without even talking much, because it was just so crazy to look out.

That night, I will make a long story short.
We ate dinner at the hostel cafeteria and met a French gal, a French guy, and a Costa Rican guy.  They asked us if we wanted to hang out that night and we said sure.  We were in the mood to socialize and have a fun time, so we got a little dressed up and brought over a bottle of sweet white to the hang out.  There, we met an Austrian girl and another French boy named Ludo.  We then walked along the beach all the way to the old city and went to a very fun bar called "La Belle Epoque".  The night continued on and it was a good time.

The next day, Ceci and I had to ask if we could check out just a litttle bit later.

Now, I'm back in my little foyer common room saying "bonjour" to anyone at all who comes in, all the time, no matter what- which is what you do here- otherwise, you're rude.