Off to France!!

bicycle in front of le meurice, paris

took this in 2009, and I hope it's still here!

WE leave tomorrow!!!!

My darling husband, his brother Bob, and I are off to drive through Normandy, Brittany and a dip into the Loire Valley, ending up in Paris for a couple of days before we come home. I've been to the Apple genius to learn some more about my iPhone [ and I DO have Verizon, which does not work in Europe! But I can connect if I find WiFi], have a new gmail email addy, have downloaded my Facebook app, as well as downloaded my French TripLingo with 100 phrases!

Our first stop will be SENLIS, where scores of movies have been filmed [ just saw 

Séraphine  

SEE RANK

again last night. 

Then on to the precious village of Gerberoy,

 the former home of one of my favorite French painters, Henri le Sidaner .

We'll do Honfleur, Trouville, and Deauville, as well as the D-Day beaches, but not spending as much time as we'd like anywhere.  Then to Saint Malo...  

I took this also on our trip in 2009

And then to Mont-Saint-Michel, where we'll sleep on the rock! Can't wait to wake up in the morning and watch the sunrise from the ramparts!

In addition to all this beauty, I'll be meeting up with two of my beautiful artist friends that I met online!

I won't share our whole itinerary here, but I just have to leave you with one picture of the 

Chateau that has been in my head since last winter...

Chateau de la Verrerie

I started my obsession with French chateaux about two years ago, and have been on an internet hunt for one that just felt like "home".  This is it.

le Château de la Verrerie is the prettiest chateau I could find in the Loire valley, and our night there is our Anniversary present to each other.

There's a cool gallery of pix, and I hope you'll picture us walking in the garden at dusk.  We're in the Parma room, and Bob is in the Blue room.

I hope to come back with lots of scrumptious pictures, and will share them with you all.  But mainly, I just pray for a safe and joyful  trip. As one of my dear friends says " I pray the Lord will bubble-wrap you, there and back again!"  [ He always has :)]

Vive La France!!

Bisous, mes amies,

dawne