Visit to Caen by the Portsmouth/Caen Legacy Group
Only two of us managed to go to Caen from Friday 7th to Monday 10th June when we were warmly welcomed, as always, by our French friends. We were taken to the Cafe Gondrée directly from the ferry where we saw some British veterans and many military personnel from various countries, eg Finland and Hungary. You may know that the Cafe was the first building liberated in France. We then went to Ranville Cemetery, Ranville being the first village to be liberated, and we witnessed a ceremony involving the German twinning group and a group of young German school pupils who played to us.
The following morning we visited the Musée Baron Gerard, with lunch in a local restaurant, and in the afternoon had a guided tour, by the chatelaine no less!, of Chateau Colombières, a beautiful place especially when seen in the sunshine.
Sunday morning was free and in the afternoon we went to Les Jardins de Castillon, owned and run by an elderly couple, the husband speaking very fluent English. The evening was spent at the home of one of the French ladies – with much talking, eating and drinking as you can imagine!
Monday morning was again free and it was soon time to arrive at the ferry for our journey back to Portsmouth.
A most enjoyable weekend.
