T Minus 4 Days...

In just over four days we will be off on another great adventure with our amazing friends Gerry and Audrey. How did this trip come to be? After going to Nashville together last October (2023), and spending the week together at Gerry and Audrey's cabin at Loon Lake in Saskatchewan this past summer, and not to mention countless hikes, visits, campfires, and game nights, we have realized that we are all compatible travel companions. We decided instead of waiting for a trip to happen, we should make it happen. Step 1 was for each of us to present a potential travel destination to the others, and then we would vote. The candidate destinations ended up being Portugal, Vietnam, Salt Lake City, and Atlanta. We didn't end up voting on these because it was looking like the work schedules and available time were not going to line up. 😟 With Amanda having pretty limited time off, we decided that we still wanted to do something during her two-week November break. While we were researching Vietnam, some flights to France came up that caught our eyes - direct flight from YYC, $550 return/person!!!! After some brief discussion we pivoted, bought the tickets and started planning our trip. A few weeks later, Audrey and Gerry came over for a visit and we told them about the great deal we got. Ten minutes later they were booking their own tickets and we were on our way. Vive la France!!!

What do we have planned?  With some significant family history in France we wanted to take advantage to trace some steps while we were there.  First off we will be headed to the Normandy area.  My grandfather on my mom's side, James Lester, and his brother Ken, were both part of the XII Manitoba Dragoons, an armored car regiment responsible for front line reconnaissance during the Second World War.  Most of their time oversees was spent in Belgium and Holland, but the regiment landed in Normandy and saw action immediately.  Other stops while we are in the area will include Juno Beach, the Canadian War Cemetery at Bény-sur-mer, and Mont Saint-Michel.  Next we are headed south to Carcassonne for a couple of days.  Carcassonne is a hilltop town in southern France’s Languedoc area, and is famous for its medieval citadel, La Cité, with numerous watchtowers and double-walled fortifications.  It is also the inspiration for one of our favourite board games, Carcassonne.

Next, we are headed to the Provence region to stay in a chalet nestled in the French Alps.  On the way we hope to drive over some of the famous mountain passes we have grown to love through watching the Tour de France.  We will be here for four evenings and hope to squeeze in a couple of hikes.  Our next objective is two little towns in the Burgundy/Franche Comté region - Clairgoutte and Valentigney. These towns are where my dad's family lived before coming to Canada.  They lived in Clairgoutte in the Presbytery before moving to Valentigney where my dad was born.  Our final objective will be back to Paris where we will spend a few days touring and sight-seeing - Musée d'Orsay and an afternoon segway tour are already booked.

Monet's Coquelicots at Le Musée d'Orsay

We are all very excited for whatever the trip brings, and hope that anybody who reads our blog has fun following along.  We will try to provide daily updates, and include some of the history we learn about on the way.  Thanks everybody!!

NOTE: I apologize if anybody is offended by the title of the blog.  The four of us have been using the term putain as a term of endearment for each other rather than its true vulgar meaning... 😅