Sailing the Channel

Portsmouth England

Today we said "Cheerio" to England and "Bonjour" to France! We left our London hotel at 8:30 this morning and made the three hour journey to Portsmouth, England where we boarded the ferry, Mont Saint-Michel. And when I say we boarded the ferry, Mont Saint-Michel, I mean bus and all! We literally drove (okay, the bus driver drove) the bus right on board the "ferry."

Welcome Aboard the Mont Saint-Michel!

They call it a ferry, I call it a mini-cruise ship. It has ten decks, cafés and restaurants, an entire floor of video games, shops, and such.

The bus garages of our enormous ferry - the Mont Saint-Michel

As we left Portsmouth, I was shocked at how blue the water was - it was lovely. There were many battleships docked here as Portsmouth is an active naval shipyard. Those large ships were interspersed with several sailboats and smaller fishing vessels.

Leaving Portsmouth

I even saw a tugboat, well, tugging a boat!

Tugboat doing its thing in Portsmouth Harbor

It was a five hour cruise across the Channel, and I believe the kids were happy as there was free WiFi and they could place their thumbs in their natural positions atop their mobile devices (I think many were going through techno-withdrawal!) Even so, they took time to appreciate the gorgeous scenery and enjoy each other's company.

Almost everyone 

Lewisburg Class of 2013!

Enjoying the view

And speaking of the students...Bill, Larry and I have been thoroughly enjoying them! They are just fantastic people - so fun and easy going, but respectful and kind. Larry has mentioned twice now how wonderful they are (and he sees a lot of students throughout the year!) So, parents - thank you for sharing your wonderful children with us!
We ate like kings and queens...we were afforded an appetizer, bread, main course, dessert, and drink. The appetizers alone would have been a meal for me, and the desserts were heaven on a plate!

Bill's meal: anti-pasta, ham, "chips,"  & a chocolate fruit cake

My meal: prawns, steak, chips, and a slice of chocolate yumminess

The French typically enjoy cheese after their meal, so our courier Larry had a choice for the kids. When he announced that they had the option of dessert or cheese, the entire group erupted into laughter...I think they thought he was joking, not realizing that is a French "thing."
We made it safely to Caen, Normandy (Caen is the town, Normandy the province) around 9:30 this evening. We docked near Gold Beach (one of the British landings) and were met with a beautiful sunset.

Sunset in Caen, Normandy France

We bid a fond "Au Revoir" to the Mont Saint-Michel and made our way to our hotel in Bayeux.

The front half of our "ferry"

We will be up bright and early to see the American Cemetery, Omaha Beach, and the D-Day Museum among other sites...then it is off to Paris! We will be in the city of light by dinner time tomorrow and will enjoy a cruise along the Seine. Until next time...au revoir!

This was just too cute not to post...Jesse & Bryan resting on each other. Aw.