Does it ever stop raining?! No, I think not.

 Today we packed up and headed west, towards Omaha Beach. Our stop for lunch was a super picturesque town, Honfluer. Sadly, it was rainy and cloudy when we went so we didn't get awesome shots of the seaside town. Also, Trixie had to sit on wet pavement and therefore, her pretty little white butt was brown. I was so tired of wet shoes (once again, I only brought toms) so I caved and bought €69 waterproof shoes. Aaron said they were ugly, but at this point, I don't care because I absolutely hate wet socks.

 We made sure to stop by a candy store and pick up some OMG DELICIOUS nougat! If I ever find more nougat, I'm buying it! ALL OF IT!

 Our next stop was Omaha Beach and the cemetery. It was very sad and moving but again, it was rainy. We made an attempt to see the very corner of the cemetery since it felt like most people only visited the first rows. We even found a grave with a soldier that earned a badge of honor.

 We were able to look up his history online and it sounded like he was a crazy man, running back and forth through enemy fire and took over positions from the Germans. Poor guy still died on D Day.

 We then went to see some bunkers with the guns still intact.

The construction of said bunkers was a little shocking. They must've been constructed very fast and without care. That night, we drove to Mont St. Michel and prepped for the next day.

Old people suck, so does rain.

 Today we packed up and rented a car to go on a trip. I kept singing "A Weekend in the Country" in my head. Driving through Paris is very stressful because it's a new city and also because the French are not good drivers. Just awful. Once we were out of Paris, it was easier. First stop, Giverny. The reason why you stop in Giverny is to see Claude Monet's house and water lily garden. Amazing. Breathtaking in fact.

 Every flower was in bloom. Every color was represented in the flora. These purple flowers were awesome. I'd never seen anything like it. Since we had Trixie with us, we couldn't both go in at the same time. So, while one of us saw the gardens, the other perused the town.

 Gorgeous! The only problem  I really felt with the property was how many people were there. It's a very close trip to Paris so assloads of old people buses stop here. There were tons of people with cameras taking photos that they deemed to be the most "artistic" thing they'd ever shot.

 Water lily pond. It smelled so good in the gardens and the frogs were all croaking. Very peaceful.

 Selfie from the bridge covered in wisteria.

 After the gardens and lunch, we headed off to the church and saw Monet's grave. The graveyard itself was very small and quaint. Aaron's favorite part was an airplane propeller from WWI that symbolized the men that were buried there from the war.

 I drove the whole way today. We came across some crazy yellow flowers. As far as the eye could see, it was yellow. Had to stop the car and get out.

 We are definitely in the country now.

 We next went to Rouen, the city most known for as the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. It was such a cute town. We found a place to camp for the night that allows dogs (and has better water pressure than our place in Paris). We were supposed to go to Disney this weekend but Soren caught the chickenpox. The buildings here look like "fantasyland" so Aaron said that he really DID end up taking me to Disneyland, singing Pinnochio songs.

 What a beautiful cute city. We'll have to return.

For dinner we went to Le Petit Bec, or the little beak! Normandy is known for dairy and cider, so Aaron tried some cider which he said tasted like mushrooms and I had a gratin dish which was AMAZING!

 Look at the "O's" on this bottle. Cute little apples!

Today's Sugar

Today I ordered a Charlot Framboise. It was sort of like angel food cake but it was filled with cream. I think it was a perfect dessert for Aaron. I enjoyed it but it's not the right dessert for me.

A Dinner with Guy

 Tonight we met with Guy, my dad's old business friend. We saw him 5 years ago when we stayed in Paris and we called him up for a rendez vous. We returned to the same restaurant, "Le Quincy" because the atmosphere and food were divine last time. Aaron and Guy shared some pate and foie gras (yuck) while I really enjoyed the cuisses des grenoilles....frog legs! Yep, I did it. And they were so tasty.

 Here was dessert. Guy taught me that the iphone has panoramic ability! Learn something new everyday. The garçon saw that the chocolate mousse was near the end and pretty much said "finish it because we're throwing it out" so I obeyed.

 Takes a real champion to finish a whole mousse.

Today's Sugar

 Merengues! They are everywhere here. Covered in chocolate, with nuts, every flavor. Today was the day. Meringues I find, are not that common in NYC because it's so humid. After it rains, meringues won't harden. (I've tried to make them) I love how large they make them here.

The milk chocolate meringue was delicious but the natural one was the one I preferred. I'll have to try a flavored one next time.

Rue Rembuteau

 Near our school is an alley way filled with restaurants, shops, and boutiques. Aaron found a pistacherie, a shop filled only with nuts. I'd never tried a pistachio before....so I did. Mmm, delicious. Aaron bought many different types of nuts.

 I also went to my first workshop class, which was all about pronunciation. I was actually pretty good at it. Yeah for me. I went to ballet class afterwards and it was easily one of my hardest classes ever. I felt like I looked like a fool. M. Lazzarelli must've thought I couldn't dance at all, until we did piques. For dinner, we went across the street to "Le Petite Commines" a delicious and fancy restaurant. We loved the food and experience. 

Aaron loved his steak tartare. My duck was so delicious!

Today's Sugar

 We can cross another patisserie off the list, Hugo and Victor. It's one of the well known names thrown around when you mention macaroons. Aaron is getting burned out on macaroons so we also bought a caramel mille feuille. We bought  key lime, chocolate and earl grey, orange and ginger, and vanilla macaroons.

 The mille feuille was tasty but average in my opinion. Creamy and crispy at the same time. You won't be sorry if you get it, but I think there are better ones out there.

As for the macaroons, the best one was vanilla. So good in fact that now I am wondering if I didn't make a huge mistake by not ordering them everywhere else. I was really turned off by this place however, because I was forbidden to take pictures inside the store. Sheesh.