please forgive the poor blogging the past 10 days...i did not have access to a computer for a while there, and of course there is the busy schedule.

since my last blog we have done many things. on our way from avranches to rouen we stopped at all the d-day beaches and the american cemetary and we were quite taken by the stories of the war, and the history that is still evident along the coast. it was a foggy day, so we didn't have the greatest views of the ocean, but there was still plenty to see. the memorial museum in caen was also very impressive, as there is a good program that connects the first and the second world war in a historical timeline. all over normandy there is evidence of the war. at the cathedral in liseux today, there were paintings with bullet holes. the cathedral was the only structure in liseux that was not destroyed.

we also went to our first fromagerie yesterday and got a lesson in norman cheese making, and tomorrow we go to taste the calvados, the local specialty that is like a whisky but made with apples.

rouen is a very impressive city with 100 churches, and the most famous cathedral of which the tribune towers in chicago is modeled after--the cathedral of rouen and the 'butter tower'. we went for a drive after a rotary meeting to a point up on the hill and could see the whole city light up at night, with the seine glowing; it was beautiful. monet has painted the scene, though we haven't seen monet's house and garden yet.

today is the second and final day of the french elections for national assembly and our host families were glued to the television watching the results. quite an interesting time to be here, during the elections!

in avranche we were all very impressed with the mont st. michel and the scriptorium museum. the amount of work that went into translating, writing and binding all the books, and the amount of history that was maintained because of it was almost overwhelming. and of course it is amazing to think that there are times, with the tide, when mont. st. michel is surrounded by the ocean. we were there during low tide and could see a group of people that were walking from avranche to the mt. saint michel, something that can only be done in a specific time period with a low tide!

we've been enjoying ourselves quite a bit, laughing every day, and enjoying the great lengths the french rotarians are going to extend us warm welcomes and good times. the president of the liseux rotary club even transformed his garage into an outdoor 'tent' so that our bbq could continue despite the rain! we've been eating wonderful meals, drinking great wine and poire (a local specialty), and having good conversations (yes, in french!) with everyone we've met. we have one week left, and i will do my best to add pictures and to update on the final leg of our tour! bon nuit! monica

Jane isn't in a lot of the pictures, because all of the pictures are taken by her! Here are a few, one of the city, and one of a container ship.

Here is the scene of the BBQ in the country. Margot and Nick are pictured here with Bernard, the judge who hosted their vocational day in Le Havre. Behind them are the French and American flags.

Ah, the view at Etratat. Nick, Jane and I went on a drive here, with Dominique and Carolee Ferme, after a wonderful barbeque in the country.

Here we are doing a service project with the Le Havre clubs, selling vests for vehicle emergencies, where the money raised will go to polio plus.

Here is the view of the newly constructed Bridge of Normandy from the boat.

Today was our first day with our 2nd host families. Everyone has been so welcoming it has been wonderful. We got a tour of the port, and went up into the cranes where the move the containers, and once the pictures are on the computer I will upload because it was incredible. Yesterday we had an architectural tour of the city of Le Havre, where we learned about the reconstruction of the city after the bombing, during WWII.

And here we are on the boat, while we were waiting in the locke to pass into the River Seine.