WHY GUIDED HOLIDAYS ?
The Avalon diary
By HOT blogger , Anna Sarjeant .
“ Last August I embarked on a luxurious French Avalon Waterways river cruise . One week of glorious waterways , fine wine and French dining .”
Saturday 30 July : Paris embarkation Avalon ' s ‘ Paris to Normandy ’ s Landing Beaches ’ is a deluxe seven night cruise which weaves along the Seine , past pretty French villages characterised by famous painters and pockmarked with WWII scars . Today we depart Paris on-board The Tapestry II . A ship that gleams with glass , brass and golden service .
For now , I am content to do nothing more than wrap myself up in Egyptian cotton sheets , kill the lights and watch Paris dissolve into the distance from my bed . It ’ s 10pm and with dinner done , dusk is only just upon us . With floor-toceiling patio doors in every Stateroom , my curtains are ajar and the laps of water serenade me to sleep .
Sunday 31 July : Giverny & Monet ’ s Garden Monet ’ s Garden . You can imagine how busy this oasis gets in the height of a European summer . So it is with relief that utters of ‘ skip the queue ’ privileges float down the coach aisle , as we travel from the town of Les Andeleys ( where the ship ’ s now docked ) to Giverny . We arrive early , another tactic deployed by Avalon to avoid the hordes , and one that also benefits the eldest lady in our group ; a woman enjoying her 88th birthday in the presence of Monet ' s garden . So inspiring is this botanical enclave , it would influence even the most lack-lustre artists to fold out an easel and paint . As for Avalon guests , we have members as young as 10 and as well-versed as 88 , and we are all perfectly catered for .
Monday 1st August : Caudebec & The Abbey Road Tour We ’ ve embraced the ‘ Avalonian ’ culture to treat all staff like friends and found ourselves Sailor Man Ben . Having absconded to the upper deck the night prior , we came across the bridge , the Captain and his dashing right-hand man . Cordially invited inside we marvel at the ship ’ s state-of-theart equipment . And let ’ s be honest , at Benjamin too . Sailors aside , we spend Monday morning soaking up the rich tapestry of Jumieges Abbey , a former Benedictine church . Founded in 654 , its ruins provide a fascinating insight into France ’ s past . Tales are brought gloriously to life by our French guide , who regales us with history through our headsets , and we conclude the excursion with a visit to a fully-operational Benedictine monastery .
Tuesday 2nd August : Normandy D Day Landing Beaches On a cruise titled ‘ Paris to Normandy ’ s Landing Beaches ’, we all know at least one sobering excursion is in the midst .
Today we visit the Normandy D-Day Beaches and the weather is appropriately drizzly ; not dissimilar to the conditions 72 years earlier . It presents a harrowing vision into one of WWII ’ s bloodiest assaults : the storming of Normandy ’ s beaches . An experience that resonates with all those whose relatives fought for the Western Allies . A day earlier Avalon invited guest speaker , Nigel Stewart , to deliver an on-board WWII lecture and now we are all moved by the plight of our soldiers - ancestral or otherwise . Later , the American War Cemetery of Colleville-sur-Mer leaves me with a particularly large lump in my throat . Avalon provide a fresh rose to lay at the foot of a gravestone , but when faced with almost ten thousand of them - poignantly adjacent to Omaha Beach – choosing one proves difficult .
Wednesday 3rd August : Rouen lit up Last night , on the recommendation of our Cruise Director , Tony , we jumped ship and walked into the centre of Rouen to watch the ‘ Cathedrale de Lumiere ’. I ’ m still revelling in its magic today . Free throughout summer , Rouen ’ s already formidable cathedral is illuminated every night at 11pm by an incredible display of animation . Knights scale the towering
22 INSPIRE ISSUE 01 . 2017 | HOUSE OF TRAVEL