Hot Wives!

My friend did such a great job blogging our experience that I just copied and pasted her blog into mine. Enjoy!

Denise and I went to a hamam today.  That was a new experience for both of us.  According to the website, "the hamam is the ideal place to find spiritual peace and physical relaxation." Who are we to argue with that?  




You strip down to your nudie cuties, wrap what amounts to half a tablecloth around you, and sit on hot marble slabs pouring warm water all over your nekkid self with a copper bowl.  



It is actually quite relaxing...if you discount that initial sitting down moment when you realize that the drape your wearing can either cover your bosoms or your, ummm, nethers.  Trust me when I tell you that you would MUCH rather hang your boobies out for the world to see than sit your sensitive little bits on a rock of fire.  The other girls in the room went full European au naturale.  Uhhh, maybe next time. 

We did have a lovely foam massage. It looked similar to this picture but with slightly overweight girls lathering up decadent mountains of foam on us rather than some dude.  That may be the cleanest I have ever been...and that includes the soap massage in Budapest.  But THAT is another story.

Normandy - Juno and Omaha Beach

It was super humbling to visit Juno Beach, Normandy, on Canada Day. All the tour guides are from different areas of Canada and are young and vibrant -- exactly like the brave men who landed on that beach.  The memorial museum was very touching. The art was moving. I can't recommend it enough.

The end of the tour takes you inside a real German bunker. It was fascinating. And scary. I can't imagine how terrifying it would be to have been to live inside this bunker waiting. 

It literally alternated between beautiful sun and torrential rain off and on over and over. I guess that is very normal, but super annoying. 

We also visited Omaha Beach. We didn't see the museum and opted instead to tour the cemetery and walk along the beach. 

It is crazy to think that such a beautiful place has such a horrible and heart wrenching history. 

I couldn't help but think that the crosses are so tiny in comparison to the heartbreak each family suffered at the loss of their child, father, or friend. 

It really is beyond lovely here. 

I wanted to dip my toes in the famous waters and walk in the footsteps of the soldiers. 

We accidently walked into a puddle with a sinkhole and it sucked Abby's shoe right off. I guess Omaha Beach will always have a reminder of us.

Normandy - Life on the Farm

We were lucky enough to stay at the most amazing B&B near Normandy. It was a series of buildings built before the revolution that were turned into a bed and breakfast where the stables once stood. The town was very small and old and so when we pulled into the courtyard it felt like we had stepped back in time.

Abby loved this tree swing and Ollie loved the small playground that was in the back. We all loved feeding and playing with the farm animals.

The bedrooms were super cute.

The poppy fields were breathtaking. We had to pull over and get right in the middle of this one.

We loved the city of Falaise, France. Everywhere you turned there was a perfect picture.

These people made the castle walls into fun patios and decks. So cute.

This area belongs to the Castle of William the Conqueror. The church beside it was pretty awesome as well.