R O I S
TRAVEL MAPS
Take a photo, tell about the photo.You who will read what you read, but where is it?
Unpretentious, ready to read
and go, without navigator, just a pinch of adventure,and a splash of probable unexpected.This is traveling. One click, a Moleskine, and a map.
WRITE WHILE TRAVELING
Writing, imprinting on an moleskine an event, a sensation, a place.
I composed a diary for every trip,where I wrote down what I saw through writing.I have told the places with our eyes. I have written about particular places where you should go at least once.Of course they are only fragments of life, crumbs that can enrich a trip even just by reading.
TRAVEL IMAGES
.. that's right, it's a journey
made of images of our do you travel around for the world.The photo, for those who observe it for the first time,can give rise to curiosity, amazement, and much more.
For us who publish them are our memory,that memory that over the yearsit can fade it can blur.
Images are salvation,love of discovery.click on the camera
will take you to the photogallery.
Normandy travel diary-2011
OUR CREATIVE HOBBIES
Below is our showcase on the world. We liked being able to share our creations with the web objects, all completely handmade. For each object you will find a description and its use. It is obvious that being unique pieces, they cannot be identical, because precisely created one at a time, with patience and passion.if you have any ideasacome up when you see them, just contact us and your project will be carried out together.
THROW AN OKKIO
.... if you have come up to here, we thank you with this latest gem.Take a look inside this room and you will find little stories from our life.
Normandy 2011
No two wheels this year. We are three. Then the classic four tires will accompany us to France, precisely the region of colors:blue and gray mix between the sky and the ocean
the white to the limestone coasts and the ocher to the beaches in contact with the sun
the yellow to the fields cultivated with wheat all the shades of green that make up an inimitable mosaic all dressed up by the wind which, like a painter, artfully mixes all these shades.
NORMANDY.
We leave from the province of Milan at 2.30 pm on Saturday 25 June.
Some stops give us a way to catch our breath.
Shana, our little dog, looks disoriented at every stop.
Apré-midi we arrive on the Parisian ring road.
The majestic Defense welcomes us into the infinite tunnel. (Photo)
The first house is a petit maison in the Odissee residence in Asnelles.
After a short wait for the owner to hand over the keys,
we took a seat in the new environment. (photo)
The chalet offers everything except towels and les draps (sheets).
Shana, after a brief patrol, plays in the vast garden.
By unrolling the veranda you can also eat on a large table with benches.
Tranquility is the hallmark of the place.
The sun comes in the early afternoon, the high hedges protect us from the wind
that comes from the ocean, so just stretch out on the deckchair and wait for the tan.
The beach is accessed from inside the residence and is accessed via a gate
to the beach, infinite and white. (photo)
In order not to run into low / high tide just buy the newspaper. Everyday
report the event.It is always exciting to see the majesty of the ocean that recedes hundreds of meters, how to say, look for the land that I left you, you will see that you will find something.In fact, the French go to the beach on Sunday morning to collect shells or seaweed or crabs.We are in the country, I am not talking about big cities, which, when traveling by car, is respected the highway code, where if you see a motorcyclist you move slightly to the right, and him thanks you by lowering the heavy boot down the crank, where when you find a cyclist you are patiently behind it, until the signs give you the opportunity to be able to overcome it, and when you pass it use the direction indicator.
Unbelievable. !!! Where "excuse me" or "I am sorry" is still used.
We have been coming to France for many years, but every time we notice the difference.
In Normandy you can visit castles, gardens, churches, playgrounds, and more.
We took the second house for two weeks and it is 250 km from the first one towards Calais. Arriving in Touquet paris plage. (Photo) With the owner M.me Garndin Veronique we agreed that the keys were found by the gardener -guardiano.
The apartment is on one floor, the exterior is white, the interior is warm and welcoming. A huge panoramic window in the dining room overlooks the super-organized garden with deck chairs and everything you need. The cream-colored sofa and the typically French decor make the family atmosphere even more, the fireplace completes the picture.
The kitchenette is meticulously organized, but if you use something then you have to
replace. The room with the white beaded walls and the bed with a new mattress it makes you feel like you are at home.Every corner is exploited in the best possible way, nothing is left to chance.The ceilings are all coffered brown and on the brown tiled floor
an infinite number of rugs crown the apartment.These cottages are surrounded by greenery among tall pine trees and other maritime plants.Each entrance is individual, each garden, even if next to the other is very private. A little further on, always hidden by vegetation, there is the racecourse of Touquet, famous all over the world for its horse shows. In the immensity of this place, passing on tree-lined avenues, hidden among the branches, there are princely villas. They do not use gates, but borders with hydrangeas of impeccable amaranth, heavenly plumbago like the sky and rainbow star hibiscus.
An electric bus runs to the city where you can find everything.We have to take the car to the beach and then, once we arrive in the extensive parking lots, cross the dunes and choose to infinity of sand.The weather to date 12 July has not been the best especially since we are here in Touquet. In the morning it rains about 15 degrees cold, in the afternoon the sun comes, because in the meantime the fairly violent wind takes away the clouds loads of water to bring the clear from the ocean.The shop windows of the center, despite the sales, have high prices. I look around, cars are of considerable economic importance. We stop for a coffee cost 6 euros. In France, even if I drank a simple coffee, you must always and sit down.We are in the green heart of the opal whetstone.
The market takes place on Thursdays and Saturdays in the central square near the congress palace. In addition to occupying the square all around there are covered porches
with banquets fixed to the ground, they are of sand-colored ceramic. Always under the arcades every day you can buy fresh fish.The lighthouse and the cathedral are the main monuments of the city in addition to the new museum.The casino occupies the best position in the country, overlooking a roundabout with spectacular flower beds on all four sides. During this period the artist Alexandre Godin exhibited.We will leave for home on the 14th morning.For the return we decided to stop and sleep.Chaumont is almost halfway through the Etap Hotel. With 38 euros we have a bed,the services are shared, plus 3 euros for Shana. We also take breakfast 3.9 = 7.8 with less than 50 euros we sleep and eat. The hotel manager it tells us that there is a pizzeria just behind it. In fact we go immediately and with 23 euros two pizzas 1 water 1 quartine of wine and two coffees we eat. The pizza was really good. At Lyone, we want to take a look at the new carrefour Planet.The exterior, like the others, the interior is spectacular, a flood of lights, scents and writings that catch our attention so that we have lost the sense of time. After two last-minute purchases, we promise to stop.Home. On our speedometer we also add the kilometers of this year that are states 4223.
CHATEAU of BALLEROY www.chateau-balleroy.fr
Before the entrance there is a tiny (free) parking, then a short walk on the gravel and you get to the ticket office.The French spoken by the guides is usually very understandable, so a little bit of concentration and the explanation comes clear.
Also in this place we brought our Venetian art with regards the mosaics and our marbles that they used for the various fireplaces.The rooms are all well furnished and preserved, there are still some examples of floors that have never been restored and are free from centuries. All the furniture that can be admired was collected by the new owner, an American owner of a group of newspapers who bought it in 1970. Forbes, this was his name. He was fond of hot air balloons. In fact, we can also visit a small museum with all the evolutions that this unique means of transport has had over the years. At the end of the room there is a small film library, where you can deepen the topic sitting. The heirs of Forbes still come to spend a few weeks during the year.
A walk in the French gardens inspired by those of Versailles will make you relive that era. In the park adjacent to the castle under centuries-old trees we find itineraries to follow, otherwise you can rest on the pique-nique benches and
enjoy the view. ( see photos)
okkio
Where is it. Balleroy 14490
from Caen the D9 then the D13
from Bayeux D672 to Cerisy then the D13
from St-Lò D972 to Cerisy then the D1
Complete package castle + museum Cost 9 euro x adult for about 2 hours of visit.
The garden is not accessible from the parking lot and is included in the ticket.
There is a small and welcoming boutique and a bar-restaurant.
Mixed soil
Chateau opening hours 10-12 14-18
Museum and garden opening hours from 10-18
Closed on Tuesday
Drunk coffee. Mediocre
JARDIN DE CASTILLON-PLANTBESSIN www.jardinscastillonplantbessin.com
You enter the car. Parking is free and not shaded. An unadorned greenhouse and many weeds lead to bare and battered accueil. A nice old woman with an apron and faded rubber boots comes running (sifaperdire) detaches the tickets and gives us the map explaining the meaning of the visit. Don't be fooled by the entrance. The garden is divided into rooms from the Japanese to the water, to the arboretum to the tropical environment from the theater to the maze. In short, it is worth a nice walk. Balconies, fountains, bridges to be passed on semi-rigid platforms, benches adorned with tropical ivy, tutors who support who knows what oriental plants. Between one shrub and the other you can see a bronze duck or a bronze flamingo which, half hidden by the thick vegetation, is a captivating surprise for our eyes.It is a pity that this garden is not mentioned in the guides. We can only find it on the label "Jardin remarquable"The unadorned greenhouse at the entrance is nothing more than the Pepiniere or sale of plants. (See photo)
okkio
Where Clecy.
Searching for signs is not easy to find
from Caen the d562
Given the month of June, there were many blooming flowers.
Cost 7 euro x adult euro for about 1 hour of visit.
Then if you want there is also a diary where you can mark your passage and your observations.
Parking inside the garden (free) not shaded.
Sandy and mixed soil.
Timetable 10-12 14 17,30
Closed on Mondays
CHATEAU DE VENDEUVRE + JARDIN D’EAU SURPRISES ET MUSEE
The parking is just after the majestic gate, in black wrought iron with gold inlays, and shaded by low cherry trees. (Free)
The ticket office is located on the left, then take the tree gallery to the entrance of the manor where a salesman delivers a map with the explanation of the rooms. Here you can find the guide to read in Italian.In each ambiate you notice the richness of the furnishings completed by small functioning automatons dating from the 16th to the 19th century. After you go down to the kitchens and you can see all the crockery, pots and ovens, here too we can admire the art of miniature automation. A peculiarity as soon as you enter the kitchens you are assaulted by the scent of magiare. Brilliant !!!! All these French people think !!!As soon as this tour is over, you can admire the only collection in the world of furniture miniatures, enclosed in illuminated display cases. In the various corridors there are photos of the owners, the Vendeuvre family, who still live in the castle. They come, portrayed in the garden, or in the stables or you can see some great-grandfather sitting on the old armchair seen just before in the room. In front of the kitchens, another collection awaits us in a room, this time of kennels. They are also dating from the 17th and 19th centuries, very extravagant. They are for dogs and cats. The best without any doubt, then you will agree with me, are the gardens.Behind the construction, statues and wisely pruned hedges line up, taking the right, you can begin to savor what nature can create.
We find a fountain hidden under a patio covered with wild fronds conceals a cave studded with shells and the water flows from the only central statue its rustling can be heard right from the castle park.Next to it flows a brook darkened by the thick foliage of secular weeping willows a little further on we enter the gardens with surprise.
Of course I will not reveal anything, otherwise goodbye amazement !!
I can only say ... .. there is so much wonder in being able to admire a garden so well created and cared for in the smallest details to create fun to give the illusion of confusing reality with fantasy. The architecture adopted is truly ingenious. (See photos )
okkio
Where Vendeuvre 14170
From Caen from N13 then to Vimont the D40 to St. Pierre S.-Dives then take the R: te Des Ducs the D511 to Vendeuvre.
Cost. We took the complete castle garden + museum + kitchens 9 euros x adult.
There are various combinations
Time of the visit, without time you can also bring a packed lunch and sit on the velvety lawn, or on the benches.
We spent about 6 hours.
As always there is a small boutique and a bar.
Shaded and free parking
Posted on Label “Jardin remarquable
Timetables from 1 May to 30 September from 11 to 18
Gravel ground, lawn, little asphalt.
CHATEAU D’HARDELOT Center culturel de l'entente cordile.
Under very tall maritime pines that act as a patio there is free parking.
To visit the structure, you have to wait for the events, we are satisfied with the walls. It is now a Franco-British cultural center. This site has always been at the mercy of the two nations. Then finally the municipality of Codette took it over in 1994 and restructured it to make it the majestic complex of today. The visual impact is unique.The maps that are installed both inside and outside the walls mark various itineraries to be done strictly on foot. Just a little further on, the ideal setting of a swamp has been recreated, access is only indicated for accompanied people and children. You can admire some 81 species of animals facing the various bamboo bridges, walking around 350 species of plants that also form part of the Caps and Marais d'Opale Regional Natural Park.
Of course you don't pay anything.
Time of the view with the short itinerary about 30 minutes.
Within the itinerary of the marshes no pets.
Soil initially sandy, then clay. (See photos)
Closed on Mondays
Free
Hours from May to October from 10 to 18
CHATEAU D’EU
Ample free parking, tall pine trees shade the cars.
We only visited the classical French central fountain garden.
A very fine blush-colored gravel covers the entire embankment, lightening
even more the view.The majestic castle is surrounded by a vast seventeenth-century park.
The garden had been installed for the Grande Madeimoiselle who loved French gardens, access is free and free.The garden is accessible to everyone (see photos)
Castle built in 1578 by Duke de Guise. Then in the 19th century it became one of the privileged holiday homes of King Luois Philippe Duke of Orleans
Walking between a hydrangea and a plumbago we hear an organ that sounds wonderfully good, we follow the music and in front of the castle we see the church Notre-Dame-et-st-Laurent entering the colossal organ and placed above the central door, you immediately notice that reigns the Gothic style, one of the first examples in Normandy brought it Viollet-le-Duc towards the nineteenth century at that time in fact the church was restored.
( see photos)
okkio
Where Eu
Gravel ground
From Dieppe take the D925 port directly to EU
CHATEAU GUILLAUME-LE-CONQUERENT
We parked in the city then went up on foot.The castle is at the top of a steep climb.
Once there, the castle is under renovation, not all the rooms are accessible and so we opted for some photos on the walls, just painted, to admire the city panorama.
okkio
Where Falaise
CAP GRIS-NEZ AND BALNC-NEZ CALAIS
They are two lighthouses on the opal whetstone towards Calais.
Panoramic route take the D191 from Ambleteuse and proceed towards Bazinghen
turn right towards Cap Gris always on the D191 Sradamolto panoramic.
When you get to Gris there are some itineraries to reach the various panoramic terraces. We arrived on a wonderfully rough day in the wind.
In panoramic points, it is advisable to cling tightly to the railing due to the sudden gusts of air. To reach the other, the Blanc proceeds on the D 940 where between fields of wheat alternate unique panoramas of the ocean rippled by the air.
The D 940 took us to Calais. We had visited the city many years ago when
we went to belgium. Today we are back to see Hoverkraft once again. They are boats that travel on water on an air cushion.From Calais they bring both cars and people to England.
After much searching and asking, we arrived in the Overdrome.
All abandoned for years. The weed has invaded the entrance which is hermetically sealed
denotes that they no longer use this means of transport. The parking lot where they climbed from the sea and stopped and is now an uncultivated lawn.
What a disappointment ... it was nice to see him fly over the water.After a short research I read that since 2000 after 32 years of honored service the two Princesse Margaret and Princesse Anne boats have been supplanted by catamarans, much faster and more spacious.But the charm of Hoverkraft will always remain unique.
HUNGER
We have eaten in many places, here I list the most interesting ones.
at Etaples Placet Ocean restaurant It is a mustard-colored construction. This restaurant was born from the association of fishermen who became chefs. Here we eat all the fish caught in the day.When they don't have any more, they don't offer you the frozen one.
You go up to the first floor where a welcoming terrace kissed by the 9pm sun awaits us.
We settle in the room because of the wind. Courteous as always we need
what we ordered. Appetizer, mussels with chips of course, but this time the sauce was home made ... .. I recommend it, sweet coffee 61 euros
A Touquet Perard traditions
It is a fishmonger with two exits along the sides of fish of any breed.
Next to it there is the restaurant always run by them, a very elegant place
offers a large terrace outside on the street, but in the evening it is windy and it is better
to come in. They bring three menus, one for drinking one for eating the other for dessert.
We begin to order wine and water (75 ml) 16 euros Then we order the boat
Let me clarify. The shape is precisely that of a boat with under the ice and above a very generous amount of prawns, lobsters, mussels, oysters, crabs and prawns. It's called Assiette 2 cost 59 euros, but it is worth the feast, to end a fantastic creme brulle and a total normand coffee 102 euros.
HOMES
Odissee residence in Asnelles
le Touquet Residence du golf residence 34
OKKIO Almost all the castles and museums are closed on Tuesdays, before leaving for a few visits check carefully.Fuel pumps vary a lot even a few meters away
it is better to fill up at the super Carrefour type pumps.Carrefour ranges from 1,229 to 1,330 (diesel) - total diesel 312 euros.The French respect all road signs, so you have to adapt to the slow pace.If you pay for parking, you can read it on the ground, you have to pay for it, there are always aroundmany policemen, and the machines are always working.
In delicatessens do not order a pound of ham, but say how many slices you want. They cut the salami into slices.In some restaurants if you eat on the terrace and if exposed to the air they usually have blankets available for chilly people.
French motorways and ring roads
Lyone tang. 9.8Lyone Paris 30 euros ring road Paris 8 euros Caen 8.30 Rouen 5.20
they are 62 euros only of the French ones then the telepass will come for ours.
Houses
the first 1 week 47 the second 2 weeks 1300
- Odissee residence in Asnelles
- le Touquet Residence du golf residence 34
Shopping + balances here costs as much as we do. Spent about 1000 euros
Restaurants I mentioned a few, the others are the usual ones on the seashore, the same as the other, even here we put around 500 euros
Castles and gardens. Not all castles were the ones visited otherwise it would be
cost a fortune of 100 euros between castle gardens and walls.
SARTISA
R O I S