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Oh my god. Those are the words I can use to describe having to bring my suitcase, carry on duffel, and purse onto the metro (two different lines) and the train today, not to mention there were 7 of us together and it was very crowded because it was morning. I'm glad it's over by now, but it was so difficult lugging it up and down stairs while people rushed by. I probably looked ridiculous but oh well, right? Well after arriving in Versailles from the train, we grabbed a bit to eat and the adults went to get the rental cars to pick us up so we just sat outside and waited. Besides once again being pretty chilly and windy here, it was a beautiful morning. And don't even get me started on the drive to Normandy. It was about 3 hours but the French countryside was so captivating to look at. In some ways I guess it's like back home in America, and maybe it's just because it's new and different and in Europe, but I really couldn't peel my eyes away from the window. The farmland fields are this beautiful golden color and it stretches for so long. Then most the houses would be built into the side of a mountain or just very clustered together in parts. There were stand alone cottages too, of course, but even these were so great because they were very old looking and mostly made out of stone. I did end up falling asleep for around and hour, then went straight back to taking it all in. Once we pulled off the highway and onto the country roads it only got better. Then we got to Normandy. After parking, we walked into the small museum which was very somber and made me tear up reading some of the stories of the brave soldiers and what they did. From there you can exit and take a short-ish walk to the American Cemetery and beach. The graves were very beautiful the way they were all (mostly) the same and lined up symmetrically. There overlook to Omaha beach was also gorgeous, you could even go down if you pleased, however we wanted to grab some lunch and stop a couple other places. Before getting to the next stop, we ate at a small cafe [Le Tivoli] off the road in one of the towns and it was really cute (like they all are), you could just get baguette sandwiches but for pretty cheap, like $4! Then we were off to Point du Hoc where many craters formed from bombings and you could also walk down into the bunkers. It was eery to see and think about being in that situation and how scary it must've been, but also a really neat site to see. Once again there were gorgeous views of the beach down below, although this one wasn't one you would go walk on really because it was very rocky. We didn't spend much time there before heading to our last sight-seeing stop; Utah Beach. This one was very vast and we actually walked out onto it all the way to the water. There were a lot of small crabs on the sand and water and the sun was out; it was just a fun little stop that I recommend everyone take if you're in the area, even if you don't plan on swimming. For us this week, it has been very cold and windy even though last week it was in the 90s and next week will be scorching too, but how can you really be mad at the weather when you're in paradise? We're staying at a Best Western (it's actually nice, I promise) in Ducey in which our hotel room has a gorgeous view and there's even a mill on the back of the place. Right when we arrived we met up with another old au pair and had dinner with her down the street at a Pizzeria. It was fun exchanging old memories and talking about their travels (I'm seriously lacking in this department!!) So, tomorrow we go to... well I don't remember maybe like Saint Michele? It's hard to keep up! I'll update you once again after the days end though, so have no fear, I will be here. Don't forget to get emails sent to update you every time I post (on the bar on the righthand side). Talk to you all soon :)