Category France

A train to Bayonne and a FLIX bus took us into Bilbao Spain. Last time I was here I flew in from Madrid and the turbulence was one of my worst flights EVER. Even the lil lady next to me…

Laundry, breakfast, and a short walk around the neighborhood. After over 2 months going non-stop, we decided we could use a bit of a down day. There are some Japanese gardens in a quaint section of a park around the…

We’re making our way to a very happy place, Portugal. We’ve discovered so many amazing places on JEllens Adventures. We’re on day 67 and just WOW!! Our plan is to be in Lagos at the end of July. So there…

Lyon has an architectural feature unique to this city: Traboules. Traboules, which means ‘to walk through’, are narrow passageways usually linked to the courtyard of a residential building, a world apart from the hustle and bustle of the city. The…

What a surprisingly cool city. You just never know until you start the adventure. Sticking with Jeff’s theme of ‘just winging it’, we hadn’t done any research into the history of the city because we didn’t have a route picked…

Our wonderful (not!) Google Maps was telling us the train station was only about 6 miles away, but that it would take about 40min! ??? So, for our 11:24 departure, we had an Uber pick us up at 9:00. Well,…

We left our lovely cottage early this morning. If you ever go to the Loire Valley you must stay in Amboise. Bruno and Gislle were the perfect hosts. The manor has a bunch of rooms and there are 4 cottages.…

Chambord castle is one of the Renaissance’s most amazing constructions. Built to glorify Francis I in 1519. Chambord is an architectural utopia; a harmonious whole of residence, castle and hunting lodge. Its history is unique. In the 16th & 17th…

Yes that’s right, we toured Tours this morning. And no, it’s not a mall full of kiosks selling package tours to seniors and hapless travelers :). Our first stop was the cathedral (I hope that by now you’ve figured out…

With its grand château and medieval old town peppered with half-timbered buildings and ancient wine cellars, Amboise is the quintessential Loire Valley town. This is where Leonardo da Vinci chose to spend his final years. It’s a French Holiday (Bastile…

From the dream of St Aubert in which St Michael appeared 3 times in the year 708, and instructed him to build a church on the rocky islet, it has been known as the “Bastille of the Sea.” If you…

Our stay in Normandy came to an end today. We did a (self guided) walking tour of the major sights throughout the city center. But first, breakfast! Ellen found us a wonderful cafe with outside seating serving eggs Benedict that…

Before we started we had to have breakfast and catch up on laundry before the rest of the hotel woke up A little history first, to help put all this into perspective. The invasion began shortly after midnight on the…

The massive Allied assault on the Normandy coastline on June 6, 1944 aimed to liberate France and drive into Nazi Germany. Beginning at 0630 hours, US, British and Canadian divisions landed on Omaha, Utah, Gold, Juno and Sword beaches in…

Where do we begin. We knew it was going to be a serious day. We were headed to Normandy to explore the WWII memorials and museums in remembrance of D-Day, 6th of June 1944. First, a fun drive (we have…

I can’t help myself I have to write about my BRILLIANT idea!!! We’ve mastered train passes and tram passes and bus passes. Every time you have to use the WC aka Toilet you have to pay with a card or…

Took the train to Brussels airport to pick up a car. No issues in the parking lot 💥. We’re off to Caen France today. Once out of the city we were surrounded by beautiful rolling hills, farms and trees galore.…