Motorhoming in France

[Threviel]

Some notes:

French produce is still excellent.

Finding milk products is still difficult.

I'm still baffled by the French behaviour in traffic, they are still nice.

The french eat crisps wit chicken and ham flavour. 

There are lots of dutch around everywhere. My father jokingly calls them locusts, I'm beginning to see why.

I don't understand when to start saying bonsoir.

Brits keep to themselves and barely recognises the existence of anyone else.

Cash registers are retarded. In Sweden the cash register has a large area where two customers at a time can load their wares in bags and thus there is a constant flow. Here there's a tiny area after the cashier that I hurriedly have to empty, otherwise it fills up fast. Very much more stressful. At least French cashiers don't start screaming insults like they do in Germany when we are too slow.

[Threviel]

Thanks for the update, Threviel.

It's a nice an relaxing read; whilst the Brexit stupidity continues here, Europeans just get on with living. 

Nice of you. I just like writing about it, nice way of meditating on the happenings. I'll try to get some bike rides when en we get to the coast, the weather or schedule hasn't allowed any so far.

[The Larch]

I don't get the milk drama, but besides that it seems to be a pretty enjoyable trip.

[Syt]

The french eat crisps wit chicken and ham flavour. 

Austria has Bratlfett flavor (Bratlfett is lard that you create by frying fat meats and is quite flavorfull - popular with some people as bread dpread).

(The Bratlfett crisps taste very similar to grilled chicken crisps I had in Spain.)

[Duque de Bragança]

Finding milk products is still difficult.

This one really surprises me.

I'm still baffled by the French behaviour in traffic, they are still nice.

Try big cities like Paris if you want to see the opposite. 

The french eat crisps wit chicken and ham flavour. 

A recent unwelcome development. Never seen or had those but then I am not a fan of crisps.

There are lots of dutch around everywhere. My father jokingly calls them locusts, I'm beginning to see why.

Pas de commentaire.

I don't understand when to start saying bonsoir.

Late afternoon, when it starts to get dark. In theory, only at night.

Brits keep to themselves and barely recognises the existence of anyone else.

They even manage to do that when living for a long while in a country, not just when they are spending holidays. Colour me unsurprised.

Cash registers are retarded. In Sweden the cash register has a large area where two customers at a time can load their wares in bags and thus there is a constant flow. Here there's a tiny area after the cashier that I hurriedly have to empty, otherwise it fills up fast. Very much more stressful. At least French cashiers don't start screaming insults like they do in Germany when we are too slow.

I guess I was quick enough for Germany. OTOH, automatic pay station have started to appear.

[Oexmelin]

pparently we chose wisely, it lies on a bend of the Seine and over the camping looms Chateau Gaillard, a fortress built bu Richard Lionheart. We will probably remain here for three nights instead of one.

France is ridiculous, almost everywhere we want to remain longer.

You chose wisely. It's a nice area, and the castle is a nice visit.

You are also very close to Lyon-la-Forêt, a really cute village, and the gardens of Giverny who inspired Monet so much (20 km or so). 

[Grey Fox]

Threviel, look for this in store : https://www.candia.fr/produit/grandlait-demi-ecreme/

[Threviel]

Threviel, look for this in store : https://www.candia.fr/produit/grandlait-demi-ecreme/

That's exactly what I bought today. 

In Sweden we have low pasteurised milk and cream. There are perhaps high pasteurised stuff in hypermarkets, but I wouldn't know where to find it. Swedes generally drink lots of milk, the older generation even drinks it to dinner and as refresher. Milk is important.

Cream is important because I do a Pasta Carbonara (yes, I know how to do it properly, but it tastes better with cream) with cream that the kids love, and I don't like the texture of artificial thickener.

The milk and cream issue is really a small unimportant issue, it's just one of the things that seem most foreign to me.

[Duque de Bragança]

I understand now, some people travelling to Scandinavia told me they were surprised about the lack of pasteurised milk.

Lait cru (non pasteurised) is much less sold but can be found sometimes. It's actually an ingredient in several French cheeses.

https://www.monoprix.fr/courses/lait-frais-et-demi-ecreme-microfiltre-monoprix-gourmet-1109016-p

PS: this one is not pasteurised, except for the cream. So what you call low pasteurised, I guess.

Le traitement thermique classique de la pasteurisation a été remplacé (sauf pour la crème)

[Grey Fox]

Around here, there is no such thing has drinkable unpasteurized milk sold in stores.

[Oexmelin]

Around here, there is no such thing has drinkable unpasteurized milk sold in stores.

No, but Threviel is talking about low pasteurized milk, aka, what we have in Quebec. It is, indeed, harder to find in France.

[Threviel]

Unpasteurised is never sold in Sweden, or almost never. That is dangerous unless the farmer does everything perfect. Low pasteurised with a short shelf life and a need for refrigeration is the thing. Again, not very important, just different habits.

Giverny is the reason we ended up here, I navigated badly and looked at the wrong bend of the Seine. Good luck I guess. Giverny is the target for tommorow and then the Cider route, dry cider being a favourite of mine.

And another thing:

Baguette, wine and cheese after dinner is the best thing since sliced bread.

[Grey Fox]

You can have it before dinner too.

[Threviel]

I feel like having it all the time. This trip is not very good for my weight.

[Threviel]

So, we did the cider route yesterday and today. Very nice area, though not that many apple orchards. The roads are lined by dense bocage and I really see why that is a tactical problem on the attack. We visited a few places and bought some calvados, pommeau and cider. Overall a touristy feel to it.

Now we're on the way to a camping on Omaha Beach, at Vierville-sur-mer. War tourism and the Bayeaux tapestry on the agenda.

Some notes:

Normandy seems green, rich and fat.

There are buses of German school kids most everywhere.

My french is improving. I successfully ordered half a loaf of bread sliced in a bakery.

What does artisanal imply when boulangeries call themselves that?

French bread of high quality from a bakery is very cheap.

I wouldn't want to be the first allied soldier going through a bocage.

There are lots and lots of really interesting books in the museums. Just a shame that not one of them is in a language that is not french. There were some English comics for kids in Verdun though.

We passed Caen after 16 days.