Viva La France!

Recently I went on a cruise of the Seine River (pronounced: sin) in France from Paris to Omaha Beach and back again.  I would like to share a few of the things I learned on the cruise with you which you may not know.

n  Drivers on the right hand side of the road always have the right of way.

n  My advice for driving in Paris:  Don’t.

n  The French prefer cheese from unpasteurized milk.

n  The Seine River is completely controlled by a series of locks.

n  Some locks are wide enough to accommodate two ships 80’ wide side by side.

n  Some locks are so narrow so that only millimeters separate the side of the lock from the side on an 80’ ship.

n  You sail slowly on the Seine.  Many bicyclists on the paths parallel to the river passed our ship.

n  When you drive to Caen in Normandy you might be confused and think you’re on I90 in Wisconsin. 

n  The American cemetery at Normandy has 9374 graves; we laid a rose on one of them, in remembrance.

n  Those sacrificing their lives on June 6, 1944 at Omaha Beach and the days following the landing made 2015 possible.

n  Every French person we met was polite and spoke some English.

n  Every cruise has one ugly American.  Ours was a +70 year old woman who was loud, argumentative, and rude.  She was from Milwaukee, Wis.

n  ‘Escape fumeurs’ the designation for smoking areas.

n  Paris has at least 20 tunnels.

n  The Seine River has a large population of swans.

n  The Louvre Museum is the largest in the world.  In a 4 hour tour I saw about 10% of it.

n  I found the crowds at the Louvre Museum rude and obnoxious.

n  The best thing I can say about the Louvre is:  it’s ok.

If you ever have the opportunity, visit France.