Smiling Sam
4:45 AM
. . . Alan - I assume your audio configuration would work with Bluetooth enabled ear buds (like Apple ear buds) just as it does with your hearing aids?
I did that during J&E . . . until I lost my ($ 20, el-cheapo) earbuds. 🥺. One advantage of the previous rig is that the Bluetooth xmtr I used on J&E had its own internal battery. It would be nice not to need a separate battery. Today I also used my rig with the audio guide provided at the Angers Chateau fortress and the Apocalypse Tapestry gallery.
Day 4. Another beautiful, sunny, warm (almost hot) day is in the books!
Today we spent the longest amount of time on the bus- tong enough to require a stop at a highway rest area. We left Château de Rochecotte at the gentleman hour of 9:00 am 😃 and headed west to Angers to visit the medieval Château d’Angers and the famous Apocalypse Tapestry. Considerable restoration work somewhat marred the appearance of the fortress which had been built by Plantagenet rulers as a residence and fortress to protect against the Normans. The castle, with its thick, high walls and 15+ massive round towers was impressive, despite extensive scaffolding. Inside was a special L-shaped gallery built specifically to house and display the vast Tapestry which was commissioned in 1375 and is the oldest surviving set of tapestries of its size and is an illustration of the Apocalypse according to St John or the Book of Revelations.
Morning views of Château de Rochecotte just before departure:
Château d’Angers:
After a surprise lunch on Tauck (one of their famous lagniappes) we headed to Port du Crouesty and the modern Miramar La Cigale, which was built to mimic a cruise ship and will be our hotel for the next two nights,
Day 5. We’ll, double dang!!! Another fabulous day in France, specifically Brittany- Port du Crouesty, Morbihan Bay (Gulfe du Morbihan) and Rochefort-en-Terre.
The day started with a hike/walk with a locale guide around the nearby point of land which is the site of a 7000 year old tumulus/cairn (Neolithic burial mound) named Petit Mont. Seaward from this point was the Atlantic Ocean. During WW II the Germans built a bunker in the mound.
After returning from our walk we boarded the coach for a short ride to a nearby marina where we boarded an excursion boat for a cruise through the island-filled Morbihan Bay which contains numerous boat anchorage’s, marinas, mussel farms, and was lined with large summer homes (unfortunately summer is short here.). We also passed the site of another mound and small monolithic henge.
We were served a wonderful lunch during the cruise. I want you to note the flags from the boat masthead- yup, a Tauck flag, and at the bow of the boat was a flag/pennant of Brittany that some of you saw flying on Ponant ships during your voyage to Antarctica. Here is a link to the thread about it. https://forums.tauck.com/discussion/comment/69258#Comment_69258
Our driver and coach travelled the long route around the bay and picked us up near the Vannes Aquarium, so we could continue our day’s activities with a guided visit to the wonderful little medieval town of Rochecotte-en-Terre.
Wow! I loved this little town when I was there mid-late April. But, to see it now with all flowers in bloom makes it look amazing! You guys are there at a perfect time.☺️
Quick note. It was getting late so I batch loaded the last bunch of photos so they are not in order. I’ll fix later. Having lunch in Vanes then off to Josselin, then on to St. Malo. Sad to report a change in the weather . . . NOT !!! 😀- another fantastic, sunny day 😄
Day 6. Another great day! We started with a walking tour of nearby Vannes. Today is a market day, so the center of the medieval town was crowded. TD treated us to a decadent pastry, Kouign-amann. It was truly fantastic!!! TD also gave us money for lunch. We couldn’t find what we were looking for, something light like soup and salad, so stopped for some pizza in a little place. It was the worst pizza we have had in our entire lives! 😫. We made a quick stop at a small village church to see one of the Calvaries that dot Brittany, before heading to see our last Château- Château de-Josslin ancestral and current home to the 14th Duke of Rohan and former president of Brittany. We arrived in St Malo in late afternoon. The hotel is literally on the beach and our room faces the English Channel. We sat and watched sailboarders and kite surfers before dinner. Tomorrow we visit Mont Saint Michel. Too tired to add photos. 😴
Here are some photos:
Josselin- check out who sculpted the bust of a prior Duke!!
Years ago I tried sailboarding in Abu Dhabi- I could eventually get up and get it to go straight, but had a hard time getting it to turn. I never tried kite surfing- my body probably couldn’t handle it and it’s too cold. Everyone on the water was wearing a wetsuit!🥶
Day 7. Today’s big event was a visit to the iconic and photogenic Mont St Michel. It was all it was cracked up to be. We arrived a few minutes later than planned (TD misplaced her backpack). After a drive slightly less than an hour we arrived at the bus park. Shuttle buses are free and there was already a long line waiting. Instead of making the long hike across the causeway or getting in line for the shuttle buses, we Taucktourians had own own special bus which took us across and dropped us off closer than the other shuttle buses. Onlookers were jealous (the jealousy was even worse on the trip back. One couple even tried to board our bus but was finally waved away by the driver.) As others have discovered and mentioned there are a number of steep inclines and stairs, but everyone from our tour who went made it to the top. We had a superb local guide, best on tour so far. She led us up a less traveled route to avoid the big crowds. Weather-wise it was another beautiful day. It would have been a tad too warm if it had not been for the breeze. By the time we left, the Monastery was packed with tourists!!!
Upon return to St Malo, we had the choice of getting of the bus or continuing to downtown with our TD. We got off at the hotel so we could try to Parcours Aquatonic in the spa facility. You walk a winding path from station to station in a shallow heated pool. At each station you are “massaged” (bombarded by) a variety of different jets of water. This experience was included with our Tauck rooms.
I'm glad you enjoyed your visit to Mont St. Michel. I was turned off by the commercialism at the foot of the Mont. (That said, I did enjoy a galette at one of the tourist traps!)
Day 8, is in the books. Believe it or not, the day started with a little rain, but it stopped quickly, by the time we crossed from Brittany to Normandy, and the clouds had mostly burned off by the time we reached Bayeux. Of course, the object of interest here was the Bayeux Tapestry which recounts William the Conqueror’s path to victory at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Surprise, surprise, no photos- too hard and too many restrictions. The audio-guide- directed viewing of the tapestry takes about 20 min. but, unlike the similar device at the Apocalypse Tapestry, automatically stayed in synch with your position and progress- it was great. After viewing the tapestry we had just enough time to grab a quick bite to eat. Some were able to briefly enter the nearby church. There really wasn’t enough time to tour the town.
The next stop was the Caen Peace Memorial museum devoted to WW II. This was not a photogenic stop either. We arrived at the Hotel Barriere Le Normandy a short while later with enough time to relax before dinner. I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet so no photos (yet). From what little I saw, it is a very nice hotel and apparently “the destination” for Parisians.
Two details to report- only two hotels so far have had face cloths. Most hotels had plenty of outlets, all of them Euro 220 volt, two pin design. Only one hotel had a 110/220 volt outlet with US receptacle in the bathroom. None of the hotels had USB charging ports. Our motorcoach had them at each seat, as well as WiFi, however. 😁
Alan, was there no time to visit the museum upstairs where the Tapestry is? How was lunch handled? For us, this was the day Tauck gave us each 20€ for lunch which created time to spend as we wished before heading to the Caen Peace Memorial.
Alan, we have been almost everywhere on your tour in years past, but never to see the Bayeux tapestry, so I’m disappointed to hear oyu don’t get much time there, I think I would find the museum fascinated and want more time. In re-reading your above posts about looking for soup and sandwich, did you see anywhere that had savory crepes or one of my French favorites, croque monsieur?
British, the museum was amazing. I was able to spend almost an hour upstairs and could have stayed longer had time allowed. I did stop for savory crepes in town and they were delicious. Here’s the pictures although sideways. Put this on your bucket list, we’ll worth the time spent there.
Comments
I did that during J&E . . . until I lost my ($ 20, el-cheapo) earbuds. 🥺. One advantage of the previous rig is that the Bluetooth xmtr I used on J&E had its own internal battery. It would be nice not to need a separate battery. Today I also used my rig with the audio guide provided at the Angers Chateau fortress and the Apocalypse Tapestry gallery.
Day 4. Another beautiful, sunny, warm (almost hot) day is in the books!
Today we spent the longest amount of time on the bus- tong enough to require a stop at a highway rest area. We left Château de Rochecotte at the gentleman hour of 9:00 am 😃 and headed west to Angers to visit the medieval Château d’Angers and the famous Apocalypse Tapestry. Considerable restoration work somewhat marred the appearance of the fortress which had been built by Plantagenet rulers as a residence and fortress to protect against the Normans. The castle, with its thick, high walls and 15+ massive round towers was impressive, despite extensive scaffolding. Inside was a special L-shaped gallery built specifically to house and display the vast Tapestry which was commissioned in 1375 and is the oldest surviving set of tapestries of its size and is an illustration of the Apocalypse according to St John or the Book of Revelations.
Morning views of Château de Rochecotte just before departure:
Château d’Angers:
After a surprise lunch on Tauck (one of their famous lagniappes) we headed to Port du Crouesty and the modern Miramar La Cigale, which was built to mimic a cruise ship and will be our hotel for the next two nights,
Great pictures, Alan. What a beautiful day, too.
Keep enjoying the trip.
An yes, The Love Boat. An interesting hotel experience. We loved the private balconies.
Day 5. We’ll, double dang!!! Another fabulous day in France, specifically Brittany- Port du Crouesty, Morbihan Bay (Gulfe du Morbihan) and Rochefort-en-Terre.
The day started with a hike/walk with a locale guide around the nearby point of land which is the site of a 7000 year old tumulus/cairn (Neolithic burial mound) named Petit Mont. Seaward from this point was the Atlantic Ocean. During WW II the Germans built a bunker in the mound.
After returning from our walk we boarded the coach for a short ride to a nearby marina where we boarded an excursion boat for a cruise through the island-filled Morbihan Bay which contains numerous boat anchorage’s, marinas, mussel farms, and was lined with large summer homes (unfortunately summer is short here.). We also passed the site of another mound and small monolithic henge.
We were served a wonderful lunch during the cruise. I want you to note the flags from the boat masthead- yup, a Tauck flag, and at the bow of the boat was a flag/pennant of Brittany that some of you saw flying on Ponant ships during your voyage to Antarctica. Here is a link to the thread about it. https://forums.tauck.com/discussion/comment/69258#Comment_69258
Our driver and coach travelled the long route around the bay and picked us up near the Vannes Aquarium, so we could continue our day’s activities with a guided visit to the wonderful little medieval town of Rochecotte-en-Terre.
Beautiful place and the weather it's fantastic.
You guys are lucky, keep enjoying this fantastic tour.
Wow! I loved this little town when I was there mid-late April. But, to see it now with all flowers in bloom makes it look amazing! You guys are there at a perfect time.☺️
I just love the pictures and what gorgeously stainless glass!
Quick note. It was getting late so I batch loaded the last bunch of photos so they are not in order. I’ll fix later. Having lunch in Vanes then off to Josselin, then on to St. Malo. Sad to report a change in the weather . . . NOT !!! 😀- another fantastic, sunny day 😄
Alan - you were supposed to schedule this trip so that you would be in Normandy on June 6th!
Alan great pictures and weather, enjoy this wonderful trip
Allan, We leave for the June 23 tour. Thanks for the informative preview. We can't wait.
Day 6. Another great day! We started with a walking tour of nearby Vannes. Today is a market day, so the center of the medieval town was crowded. TD treated us to a decadent pastry, Kouign-amann. It was truly fantastic!!! TD also gave us money for lunch. We couldn’t find what we were looking for, something light like soup and salad, so stopped for some pizza in a little place. It was the worst pizza we have had in our entire lives! 😫. We made a quick stop at a small village church to see one of the Calvaries that dot Brittany, before heading to see our last Château- Château de-Josslin ancestral and current home to the 14th Duke of Rohan and former president of Brittany. We arrived in St Malo in late afternoon. The hotel is literally on the beach and our room faces the English Channel. We sat and watched sailboarders and kite surfers before dinner. Tomorrow we visit Mont Saint Michel. Too tired to add photos. 😴
Here are some photos:
Josselin- check out who sculpted the bust of a prior Duke!!
Too tired to add photos, then have some more of that good pizza you had earlier! 😂
OK, I have a little time before dinner.
So here are a few photos from yesterday, Day 6.
Yum ! Kouign Amann. I love them.
Alan - when is your match in the senior division of the French Open?
Alan - You always do the super adventurous stuff (like ultralight flights). Did you try the para-surfing?
Years ago I tried sailboarding in Abu Dhabi- I could eventually get up and get it to go straight, but had a hard time getting it to turn. I never tried kite surfing- my body probably couldn’t handle it and it’s too cold. Everyone on the water was wearing a wetsuit!🥶
Great pictures Alan. I guess there was no skinny dipping.
Day 7. Today’s big event was a visit to the iconic and photogenic Mont St Michel. It was all it was cracked up to be. We arrived a few minutes later than planned (TD misplaced her backpack). After a drive slightly less than an hour we arrived at the bus park. Shuttle buses are free and there was already a long line waiting. Instead of making the long hike across the causeway or getting in line for the shuttle buses, we Taucktourians had own own special bus which took us across and dropped us off closer than the other shuttle buses. Onlookers were jealous (the jealousy was even worse on the trip back. One couple even tried to board our bus but was finally waved away by the driver.) As others have discovered and mentioned there are a number of steep inclines and stairs, but everyone from our tour who went made it to the top. We had a superb local guide, best on tour so far. She led us up a less traveled route to avoid the big crowds. Weather-wise it was another beautiful day. It would have been a tad too warm if it had not been for the breeze. By the time we left, the Monastery was packed with tourists!!!
Upon return to St Malo, we had the choice of getting of the bus or continuing to downtown with our TD. We got off at the hotel so we could try to Parcours Aquatonic in the spa facility. You walk a winding path from station to station in a shallow heated pool. At each station you are “massaged” (bombarded by) a variety of different jets of water. This experience was included with our Tauck rooms.
Eve, our TD, and Kevin (Tauck):
Alan - Did you see and get any pictures of Mt. St. Michel when the tide was in? The place looks amazing.
ALAN, pictures are nice, weather it's incredible and you look great!
Keep having fun!
Love the sunset picture.
I'm glad you enjoyed your visit to Mont St. Michel. I was turned off by the commercialism at the foot of the Mont. (That said, I did enjoy a galette at one of the tourist traps!)
Day 8, is in the books. Believe it or not, the day started with a little rain, but it stopped quickly, by the time we crossed from Brittany to Normandy, and the clouds had mostly burned off by the time we reached Bayeux. Of course, the object of interest here was the Bayeux Tapestry which recounts William the Conqueror’s path to victory at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Surprise, surprise, no photos- too hard and too many restrictions. The audio-guide- directed viewing of the tapestry takes about 20 min. but, unlike the similar device at the Apocalypse Tapestry, automatically stayed in synch with your position and progress- it was great. After viewing the tapestry we had just enough time to grab a quick bite to eat. Some were able to briefly enter the nearby church. There really wasn’t enough time to tour the town.
The next stop was the Caen Peace Memorial museum devoted to WW II. This was not a photogenic stop either. We arrived at the Hotel Barriere Le Normandy a short while later with enough time to relax before dinner. I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet so no photos (yet). From what little I saw, it is a very nice hotel and apparently “the destination” for Parisians.
Two details to report- only two hotels so far have had face cloths. Most hotels had plenty of outlets, all of them Euro 220 volt, two pin design. Only one hotel had a 110/220 volt outlet with US receptacle in the bathroom. None of the hotels had USB charging ports. Our motorcoach had them at each seat, as well as WiFi, however. 😁
Alan, was there no time to visit the museum upstairs where the Tapestry is? How was lunch handled? For us, this was the day Tauck gave us each 20€ for lunch which created time to spend as we wished before heading to the Caen Peace Memorial.
Really, not much time, except to find something to eat. Our gift of money lunch was a few days ago.
Alan, we have been almost everywhere on your tour in years past, but never to see the Bayeux tapestry, so I’m disappointed to hear oyu don’t get much time there, I think I would find the museum fascinated and want more time. In re-reading your above posts about looking for soup and sandwich, did you see anywhere that had savory crepes or one of my French favorites, croque monsieur?
British, the museum was amazing. I was able to spend almost an hour upstairs and could have stayed longer had time allowed. I did stop for savory crepes in town and they were delicious. Here’s the pictures although sideways. Put this on your bucket list, we’ll worth the time spent there.
