Le Mont-Saint-Michel
Posted by ScarlettApr 26th, 2009 | No Comments
After touring the D-Day beaches yesterday, we spent the night in Mont-Saint-Michel, a rocky tidal island just south of the beaches. We had timed out our driving schedule to overnight in Mont-Saint-Michel because I had read that it’s really pretty at night (and I must say, it did not disappoint!), but we had to stay at a rather crummy hotel about 2km off the island, on the mainland, because it’s a very touristy destination and rates on the island are through the roof. (more…)
Rouen France
Posted by ScarlettApr 24th, 2009 | No Comments
Paul flew back from Edmonton yesterday and met up with me in Strasbourg, where we caught a train to Rouen, a small city in the Normandy region of France. Because of the change in travel plans, we had to take a late afternoon train and didn’t arrive till close to 9 pm. By the time we found our hotel (the Ibis Rouen City Center, which isn’t really in city center, more like 1 km out!), most places were closed so we ate at the hotel and spent the rest of the evening getting settled and mapping out our sightseeing for today, which was now the only day here before heading to the D-Day beaches tomorrow. (more…)
Hotel Le Grillon – Ugh!
Posted by ScarlettApr 19th, 2009 | 1 Comment
Strasbourg is the capital of the European Union and home to several important institutions, such as the European Parliament. When we made our schedule, I had no idea there would be a big parliament session here this week, which made finding accommodations kind of difficult. After lots of searching (and we did this back in January!) we booked at Hotel Le Grillon, which looked decent and had ok rates. Now that I’ve arrived, I see why they were one of the few places with vacancy – this is almost as bad as Barbieri Hostel in Madrid! (more…)
First Night In Lyon
Posted by ScarlettApr 7th, 2009 | No CommentsLike most of our “travel” days so far, today was pretty much a write off once we trained from Nice to Lyon. The train ride wasn’t too long (about 3½ hours) but we both couldn’t really sleep last night (which seems to be becoming a trend the night before we move to a different city). When we added in the fact that it’s a weekday so Paul had to work in the late afternoon, we decided to just hang out at the hotel and nap. (more…)
First Day In Avignon
Posted by ScarlettMar 30th, 2009 | No Comments
When we arrived in Avignon this morning, we were happy to see that it is much more scenic and lively than Nimes, but, unfortunately for us, most places are closed because Monday is sort of the same as Sunday (as it is in a lot of Europe) and most shops and many restaurants don’t open (more…)
Nimes France- It Should’ve Just Been a Daytrip!
Posted by ScarlettMar 29th, 2009 | No Comments
We arrived in Nîmes yesterday, but, after getting lost and walking an extra kilometer in the rain to find the hotel (which turned out to be pretty out of the way and far from city center), neither of us felt like going back out to explore; so we ate lunch at the hotel, hand-washed some laundry in the tub since we couldn’t find a laundromat, and watched some French TV – including what we think is their version of Deal or no Deal, but uses boxes instead of suitcases so we’re calling it Box or no Box (more…)
Finally Made It To France!
Posted by ScarlettMar 25th, 2009 | 1 CommentAfter what seems like the longest two and a half weeks ever, we’ve made it to France – the focal point of this trip for me. Although I was sad to leave Barcelona – it really has been the most enjoyable place we’ve visited thus far – I am excited and happy to finally be here! (more…)
Barbieri Hostel in Madrid – Who The Hell Gave This Place Good Reviews?!?!
Posted by ScarlettMar 16th, 2009 | No Comments
At the beginning of our planning, we used hostels.com to book four hostels – one in Lisbon, one in Porto, one in Madrid, and one in Barcelona – we based our decisions on which hostel had the best reviews on this website. While looking into Montpellier France, we realized that two people who can share one bed can book a budget hotel room for basically the same price as a hostel since hostels always charge per person/per bed! Up until now, the hostels have been pretty awesome and we haven’t regretted our oversight on this, but Barbieri Hostel is likely going to change this and make us avoid hostels in the future! (more…)
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