Le Havre – Sunday, October 26, 2014

Oui, oui….back in France!  Docked about 7am and had to be in one of the lounges to meet with our tour group for a 4 hour jaunt to Honfleur, just about 20 miles from Le Havre.

Things got off to a bad start because our alarm didn’t sound and when we woke up we were already half hour behind schedule.  Thank goodness we had ordered a room service breakfast…..they got us up!  Rush, rush and we were off on what turned out to be a trip from hell.  Not because of the beauty of the Normandy countryside or the charm of Honfleur but hellish because our tour guide was horrible!!  She was a mess!  Unintelligible, vague and would drift off in the middle of sentences…..!  She needs some hospitalization, I think.  Most everyone left her as soon as they got a chance and we four were the first to bail out as soon as the bus stopped and we had a departure time and location.  We had a do-it-yourself tour that was very nice and made even nicer by not having the guide around.  She was late getting back to the bus and then spent the ride back justifying her tour by making sure we knew she did what she was supposed to do. As soon as the Shore Excursion Desk opened this afternoon I gave them a little piece of my mind and maybe, just maybe, we’ll get some of our fare back.  I found out this evening that my friend, Edna, had the same guide for her tour to Rouen this afternoon and everyone on that bus bailed on the guide as well.  She’s furious and headed for the Shore Excursions desk tomorrow!  Betty and Don also had their say at the desk and I am sure there will be others weighing in.  I told the shore excursions people that I was so disappointed in their tour product that I wanted to cancel my Lisbon tour with them.  Maybe hitting them in their wallet will get their attention.  Anyway, like Don said, she couldn’t ruin Honfleur for us!  It was a beautiful coastal town that we found out later was the birthplace of the Impressionist art movement and everywhere you looked there was charm!  We loved it!  We also had a drive through a couple of neighboring villages with thatched roof houses that were like fairytale villages.  The people grow lilies on the peaks of the thatched roofs to act as lightning rods!  I found this out from someone on a different bus, with a REAL guide!!

We were back on board by about 12:45 and that was fine since we had no plans for the afternoon and just enjoyed being on the ship.  I played trivia with my buddies at 4:00 and we tied for second……again.  Same story this evening when we played 9:15 but this time we tied for second with 2 other teams!!  Lots of bright people on this cruise.  We are going to have to sharpen our brains! 

We met up with Mario Propato, a Maitre’ D we’ve sailed with a few times before. He always pretends to remember us!  Ha!  He found us a nice table that we’ll probably keep for the entire cruise.  Our server and assistant are from Peru and very sweet and attentive.  The table next to us is permanently reserved for a couple who have been on the ship for 3-4 months!!! They showed up halfway through our meal and all the dining room captains came over to pay homage.  Very amusing.  She looks like Morticia and he looks like a little overdressed troll with a pink shirt open down to the third button so everyone can see the many gold chains wrapped around his short little neck!  There was something in a burlap sack on the table when they arrived and he opened it to reveal a bottle of Crown Royal!  A glass and a bowl of ice appeared so that he could pour his own.  Can’t wait to eat there again and watch the show unfold!! 

I’m pooped…..time for beddie-bye.

XOXOXXO

M