Saturday, August 8, 2009

Chambres D'hotes


There must be thousands, if not tens of thousands, of 'chambres d'hotes' dotted throughout the countryside. Chambres d'hotes are the French version of a B&B. Joe and I were a getting a little worried when we first drove into the many seaside villages that line the coast of Normandy because all of the hotels and motels were completely booked. This is where many Parisians flock for their summer holidays.

We decided to try our luck with a chambre d'hote. THAT was even looking grim for a while. Every place we stopped at was already full! We were thinking that our little Fiat 500 just may be our abode for the night.

After being turned down several times, we finally hit pay dirt in Sommervieu. Monsieur et Madame Remarquier welcomed us into their home (photo) and showed us up to our room beneath the roof. It was as cute as it was quaint. Madame and Monsieur did not speak a word of English, but with our mangled French we managed to make a little small talk and confirm a time for breakfast the next morning.

The Remarquiers were more than helpful in giving us a few restaurant recommendations for dinner. After eating an incredible meal in the shadow of the Bayeux Cathedral, we headed back to their place only to get lost due to a GPS malfunction. IT WAS PITCH BLACK AND WE COULD SEE NOTHING! We drove around and around for over an hour looking for their house. When we finally pulled into their driveway at 1:00am, we felt like school kids out past curfew. We discovered the next morning that Madame couldn't sleep until she heard our key in the latch.

Such a good maman!


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