It is time to go into the vast unsorted travel photo library and do some random travel, and this is where I landed. I remember the random drive and unexpected stop. To be honest, I was kind of lost, following the little voices to find my way back to the hotel.*
The second time I went to England with J for the Oxford Patristics Conference, I sent him off to Oxford, and I hopped on the Eurostar to Brussels. From there I revisited Amsterdam. Then my flight from Amsterdam to Normandy went haywire and I ended up on the TGV. I was destined for a few days in a rental car exploring Normandy. I was driving back from touring the D-day beaches late one afternoon and came across a local village festival, the kind you read about in books by expats living in rural France. Parking was in a mowed field, I stopped and wandered around for a while. Very much a random and unexpected stop. I remember buying a small bottle of calvados from this vendor. I could have spent hours, but I had dinner reservations, and my encounter with Norman-Cider, that led to tromp in a freshly cut field of wheat.** Very random, and very fond memories.
* The voice from the Garmin GPS unit
** Very powerful stuff, and very good.
I adore Amsterdam myself. What a city.
ReplyDeleteI have been to Amsterdam twice, I guess I need to go back and give it one more try.
DeleteUnplanned, random little stops like that can turn out to be the highlights of a vacation!
ReplyDeleteMy plans are often unstructured, I just need to remember to slow down and put on the turn signal
DeleteCalvados is a favorite of mine. Mmmm, apple brandy. I have a bottle now some of which will go into a special sauce for a meal closer to Xmas. And some of which will be sipped after said meal.
ReplyDeleteOnce, while in Normandy, we had a similar experience to yours where we sought out a Calva producer we had read about. We ended up at his home, next to where he made the stuff. He invited us into his dining room where we sampled very generous examples of his work. On empty stomachs before lunch! He regaled us with tales of the war when he was a kid on the very same property. We bought a bunch of bottles. Great memories!
Here's a link to my blog post about that visit, along with photos: https://wcs4.blogspot.com/2009/01/calvados.html
DeleteSounds like an amazing experience.
DeleteTravel often gives you the most enjoyable unexpected moments. Who would have thought being dinked back to our hotel on a bike by a tranny from under a bridge in Hoi An would be on our itinerary.
ReplyDeleteI won't ask what you were doing under a bridge,
DeleteThis is why I prefer driving, because you can stumble upon some really wonderful things.
ReplyDeleteDriving allows access to places you would never see on a tour, bus, or train. Driving in France and Germany was a pleasure.
DeleteHow fun! Those are such great memories. I did the same once in Italy when I came across a small festival. My find was strawberries. The most beautiful strawberries I'd ever seen.
ReplyDeleteWe need more time in Italy, I am thinking a month after I retire.
DeleteI love Amsterdam AND Brussels. And that unexpected village festival is the kind of thing the best trips are made of.
ReplyDeleteBrussels I liked, it is wound a little tightly. Amsterdam, I have been to twice and it left me flat.
DeleteSo sorry about your experience of Amsterdam. We love it so much, we even debated moving there years ago and opening a business. The weather was a bit too often dreary for us given our Southern California experience.
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