Hotels Bayeux France
An adventure of a lifetime
I never took the time to write this story down, so now I'm getting an itchy adventure again I realized my last adventure I have big motor. They were from various countries, my cousin, and a Peugeot.
The route:
A few years ago I got tired of the rat race, the everyday of being a drone in an office and while I loved the work and the industry needed a break. I was making good money working as Special Projects Director of restoration works of great companies here in Southern California. However, after four years it was time for a holiday monumental. So I quit my job, kissed my girlfriend (now wife) goodbye and left for Europe. With just over a rough plan, a roadmap, and quickly arranged short-term lease Peugeot Open Europe ", which landed in London meet my younger cousin Nathan who had recently completed a student exchange program in the United Kingdom and is not excited to go home immediately.
I spent a few days in London while we have made arrangements to get to South France, where the new Peugeot was betrayed. London is the story of an amazing city therefore the Romans, World War II all over London, offering a vision of times past, while ultra-modern buildings like the Gherkin give an advance of things to come. Coming from the Los Angeles area, where everything is rebuilt every 20 years was interesting to see the old buildings still dotted London German bombs. I could go on and on about the British Library, the Tower of London, etc … but this is a story about back to that engine. We decided to collect our brand new Peugeot 206sw in Montpellier in southern France and after a short flight from Ryan Air for about $ 50 we were in sunny Southern France.
This was a very good idea as there is no place on earth I could imagine being more beautiful than the French Riviera … Italy will prove me wrong. Landing in France assaults have the typical customs, and make a phone call to contact us Peugeot Open Europe was meeting with the car. A very nice young man we approached the car, Nathan gives me a very sinister aspect confirmed by the representative of Peugeot that the contract included "unlimited mileage", he nodded his head, I think he knew that the resale in this car would be somewhat reduced by the amount of miles to be put in the car. In Europe, had found that the average car travels less than 8,000 miles a year which is less than 5,000 miles a year. In my home state of California is driven by means of 15.000 miles per year, plus of 24,000 kilometers. Nathan and I had drawn an ambitious route, we would cover nearly 18,000 miles in just 21 days, and all that Europe had to offer before running out of money and retire back to London.
We left, and Nathan had been living in London and had done some to travel to Europe now, so I had to make our arrangements for the first night. We decided to head straight to Barcelona (Spain), and when we get cases a show that was going on, traffic signals were mounted on the sides of buildings as far out of sight, the Peugeot is not able to move between all the revelers overcrowding in the streets. The Hotel has selected Nathan has a strange resonance Arabic name to be in Spain, but now, I wonder why the car feels ostentatious. I can say … we have a floor, there is no place to park, do not speak Spanish, and we can not even find this hotel. I see a parking garage and pull A parking attendant in very good points us to a place where we can park for 12 euros for 24 hours, which even draws a floor jack out and help us change a tire perhaps Spain is a civilized country, after all.
Nathan is trying to figure out where the hotel (a shelter), and by the grace of God it was only a few blocks away, we left our car in the garage and walked a few blocks after a map prepared by the parking attendant. As we made our way to the hostel, I noticed that many of the signs were in Arabic, and that men with traditional Arab clothes were in the door looking at us cross. The streets began to look worse and worse, and the hotel did not look much better. Been verified and shows us what the man at the reception call rooms. "Nathan, where hell have you found this place, "I said," Book Online ", he replied," it seemed nice. " Our "rooms" were crates metal arranged on three levels with a staircase, a curtain, mattress (using this term lightly) and a small lock box. "We are paying for go to jail, "he said to Nathan laughed. I was convinced he would be killed, robbed or at least. Later that night Nathan see a man looking in my box, and tells him to take a hike. The next morning we discovered that Nathan alarm clock had been stolen … pack, back in the car and fell off our bags, and wondered Barcelona. It is a painfully beautiful city and I could not help but snap away at this point in my life that still was an aspiring photographer. You could say that the photos that Nathan was with me in them because they are not in focus, or is misconfigured apature. We went for a coffee Internet, and a lively café of some e-mail and breakfast, which was really amazing is the amount of cut porn sold outside of the special booths porn. The market the city is made up of small posts, and each other is selling porn. It was made with Spain, while I'm sure there is plenty to see and do, what good could be from a country that builds the SEAT Alhambra.
Back on the road and in my adopted country of France home I feel much better, understand more of the language, and the food is amazing and cheap. From the U.S. I was sincerely hoping the French people to try to kill me at every opportunity that has since only hear the stories of French rudeness. But I realized that some people are themost attractive, friendly, patient and land. The secret is at least attempt to communicate as best you can in French and be respectful language, it is a source of pride for them, demanding to speak English is rude and saw a lot of American (mostly with bum) altered people in restaurants, hotels and bars, and who do not speak English. Newsflash time that we are not English speaking country. In passing through France en route to Italy, I found my place. It is the place that gathered and transferred to whether given the opportunity to hear in a rhythm, taking his wife and dogs with me. This place is Cassis in southern France, Cassis would move to right now, if I could find a way.
Monaco was in the car lover's heaven, pulling up with a light on the car in front of me is a Zonda, a time with me Ferrari, and behind me a Bentley Continental. However, I was driving a Peugeot powerful. Now I had a Peugeot 405 here in the U.S. and loved the car, is fast, clean, reliable, and one of the best handling car I've had front-wheel drive. I had dreamed of having a 206 for a daily driver for years, and even seemed to buy one in Mexico and bring it to the U.S., however, smog and safety nazis will not allow a French car U.S. … however, we buy a Daewoo?? The car I chose was a manual, gasoline-powered car, we realized we may not always be able to get a hotel for at least the van that allow us to sleep in the car on our sleeping bags, they did a few nights, but we did at the end of the trip in the snow, not a good idea …. Nathan spent in Italy and was excited and had a long list of things I wanted to see from Pisa to Pompeii, so we had a long journey ahead of us. We had an agreement that we would stay off main roads, the car being a manual I had to drive all the way, I did not care much. I tried while in Italy to teach Nathan driving stick shift, but it was not, and could not afford to replace the clutch, so contunied driving.
We drove through Rome and have learned the lesson that Barcelona are in a pretty village with quite a train station outside City parking is free and it only costs 2 euros to ride the train back and forth on the city. The advantage of having a car is that it has to lead his team with you. Just take what you need to stop the others in the trunk. Words can not describe the city of Rome, unless you've seen, I can not even understand the scale of everything. Spending the whole day in Rome was incredible, but there was not much to do, he jumped from a train and returned to the car, where we set off south to Pisa to see the tower lean there Pompeii. Italy is much like Southern California, many times while driving along the coast could not believe he was driving by the Pacific Coast Highway, many similar plants, the major difference is the buildings are a little older, and the food is a little better.
The food is the best part of Europe have a small cafe or food on the way to an art, New York has hot dogs, Los Angeles and tacos, but you can find This incredible home any small town in Europe. Having driven down the coast of southern Italy to Pompeii, we decided to take a road less traveled to center of the country and return to France. Central Italy is very similar to the center of America, farmland, ranches, open spaces, but unlike the region Central America, within Italy is dramatic. Cities such as Orvieto, Siena, Florence and Turin are here, and each has an amazing history and unique architecture and culture.
Gas stations in each country are different from having no attendants at all and have a strange door system must use to enter, others are only closed on Sundays and good luck to find gas anywhere else, it is also very expensive, so if you are planning a trip to European auto racing, bring lots and lots of extra money. As we powered north to Modena, Ferrari I could feel the flame, and upon arrival was not disappointed, they were everywhere, it was like being at the old Crystal Cove in Malibu case, but every day … there are a lot of foreign cars wandering on the road, cars that make my MINI as a classic appearance of large-scale SUV. (See photo)
Now there is a massive tunnel connecting Italy and France through of the Alps, however, costs a lot of money to spend, so we decided we were going to attack the head in the Alps in winter, in a Peugeot. The Italian team was acquitted, but after turning a corner that led us to the French side of the mountain, we discovered that the French road workers did not want to clear the way of what you might say, ever. We were stuck firmly, no chains, no cell phone, no nearby village …. However, the Eagle Scout gave me a kick and I had a small knife and was able to cut some branches from a tree which is found under the front wheels to get some traction. With Nathan push, I was shot, only to come out and hit the ice, the car did some interesting maneuvers and landed about 20 feet down the road. So after nearly dying in the snow at the top of the Alps, we decided to take the tunnel.
Back on our soil approved, headed north towards Paris, Le Mans, and the invasion beaches. First, he went west to Le Mans, then to Bayeux, where we went to see the Bayeux Tapestry. From there we went to the beach invasion and took time to reflect on the magnitude of them, how much was going to get any coverage, our great-grandfather fought in the Pacific and Nathan, and both reflected on the courage that the men had to lower the boats. After visiting the American cemetery to pay our respects and left charge for Paris. Having forgotten the lesson of Barcelona, we went to Paris. Paris is all they say it is and more, is one of the worst cities in the land to drive. I've driven in some parts of Jakarta Managua strange world and come to mind, and cakewalks compared with Paris. Trust me, disco in Paris GPS only if you have a good, good knowledge of written French reflexes, and very good.
We are running out of time, we had to have the car in Belgium a week so we went and Germany, the only country with speed limits for army tanks. Passing through the wine region of Germany, never I have seen grapes grown in the hills like this before, was a magnificent sight to see the vineyards that winds its way into the hillside, with small farmers monorails walk to collect their harvest. Clicking the Germany, discovered that I really like David Hasselhoff, and were greeted by a huge poster promoting a drink of some sort. Soon found a gun / liquor / fireworks store in a small town and has to be the best store ever, and the fact that beer is sold in machines soft drink, made Germany one of our favorite countries.
Our little Peugeot was doing and that cracked the mark of 15,000 kilometers. Wanted see the bridges of Operation Market Garden, so he went to the Netherlands, and then drove to Belgium where we had to visit "Auto World" museum mass that has almost every type of car you can imagine, and the war museum has items from Roman times to the present. We found a small, friendly hotel, and spent the night, I was just driven exhaust just over 17,800 km, which had, came to see it all in a whirlwind and we averaged over 800 kilometers per day (526 miles), some day we drive into the night and sleep in the car to make sure we could get to the next stop on our map. If I had to return it otherwise would spend more time relaxing and less time driving to every place of historical importance in the map, but I would not change One thing about this trip, because we found very funny.
About the Author
Michael grew up in the car rich culture of Southern California, and purchased his first car at the age of just 14. He has owned more then 60 cars, motorcycles, and scooters. Michael’s other passions include photography, and travel, having been to over 20 countries and almost every state in the union. Having driven in over 14 countries Mike has great stories, insights, and photos of the world seen from behind the wheel of a car.
