Bayeux, France
Normandy Region
“The French air cleans up the brain and does good - a world of good.”
Ellie presenting our Airbnb country home just outside Bayeux, France in the commune of Crouay.
We stayed in a lot of different Airbnb locations during our three months in France. This location in Crouay, a little town just outside of Bayeux, was home for us during all of our adventures in the area. We affectionately refer to this Airbnb as “The Country Home.” From here, we had access to local shopping and dining, an adventure park, the historic beaches and museums of Normandy, and the wonderful nearby town of Caen.
Our Accommodations
It may look small from the picture, but this home featured a clean and functional kitchen, two gathering spaces where we could watch TV or just relax together, a dining area, and a full bathroom (which came with a bonus snail friend). It also featured a primary bedroom and a third floor loft with plenty of room for all three girls to settle in, study, and rest comfortably. Our host provided a bottle of local wine as a welcome gift for us to enjoy, and he even stopped by, in person, to say hello and make sure everything was satisfactory. Unfortunately, he didn’t speak any English and Ellie wasn’t available to help us translate so our conversation was limited.
Chores
Slow traveling is different from going on vacation. Vacations are typically short, involve no school or work commitments, and may include splurging on hotels and daily excitement and excursions. Slow traveling is a way of life that allows for new adventures and locations but requires that work, school, and chores of life are included along the way.
While staying in “The Country Home,” we settled into this reality for the first time during our travels in France. Our chores took a lot of planning and teamwork. Often, Ellie was left in charge while Kevin and I drove to the grocery and figured out our meals for the next few days. In the meantime, the girls were responsible for getting their school work completed each day so that they had time to explore during non-school days. I was tasked with the laundry and most of the meal preparation and Kevin did ALL of the driving, route planning, and reservations. We all lent a hand to each other when and where we could.
During this stay, we really started meal planning and grocery shopping, beyond just microwave meals and oven-ready pizzas. Our meal plans had to be flexible because the options varied in each local grocery along the way and we had to consider the cooking tools available to us at our current Airbnb (something that wasn’t known for sure until our arrival). We also tried to use up all of the fresh ingredients we bought during each stay and minimize the shelf-stable items that we were packing to take to the next location since trunk space was very limited. Overall, it was a bit of a challenge trying to cook healthy meals with these constraints, but we did it and we discovered some new favorite recipes that have remained in our rotation.
This stay was the first time that we stepped up to the challenge of conquering the quirky French washing machine to do a few much needed loads of laundry. We learned during our travels that washing machines are fairly easy to find when reserving an Airbnb in France, but dryers are definitely more of a luxury. This location had a very small washing machine located in the only bathroom and it had an enclosed drum that had to be opened separately from the lid to the machine.
Only a small amount of laundry could be done at a time. Our 2-3 loads of laundry had to be washed and hung outside on the line to dry. It took us into the following afternoon to complete enough laundry to keep us in clean underwear, socks, and shirts for the next week. Larger items would have to wait. We recruited the Littles to help hang the laundry out to dry so they could see some of the effort that went into this chore.
On the morning of our checkout, we were required to strip the beds and clean the entire home. We all pitched in washing dishes, cleaning out the fridge, cleaning the bathroom, vacuuming, and tidying up before check out. Kevin and I are very proud of how our family came together as a team.
Getting Acquainted with Local Foods
As I mentioned above, this was our first Airbnb stay that lasted longer than a day or two so we settled into a more normal routine of school work, route planning, and cooking our meals from scratch. We found groceries a short drive away at the local Aldi in Bayeux and it was here that we started to notice some subtle differences in both the selection of food and the packaging. Fresh meats like chicken were more expensive and also significantly smaller than what we’re used to finding in the US, largely due to the lack of growth hormones and the fact that food in France is locally sourced and organically grown. Milk and eggs were found in cartons on the shelf rather than in the refrigerator. We also found that the flavor of the food was more intense. The fruit was sweeter, the vegetables and potatoes were more robust, and the milk and butter were more rich and savory.
Ellie, Kevin, and I enjoy starting our day with a cup of coffee. Kevin takes his with a bit of half and half and Ellie and I usually enjoy a bit of French Vanilla creamer. Funny, coffee creamer was something we couldn’t really find in France (even the “French Vanilla” flavor, go figure 😂). During this stay, we all started having our morning cup with a bit of plain milk and a couple of shortbread cookies. It became part of our routine throughout our travels in France. Even back in the US we still enjoy our weekend cups with a nice European style cookie as a treat.
Dining Out
Our first sit-down meal at an authentic French restaurant also occurred while in Bayeux. Reservations were required which presented a bit of a challenge. Neither Kevin nor I felt confident enough in our limited French to make a reservation over the phone. Ellie stepped up to make the call for us which gave her a bit of anxiety. To help ease her nerves, she kicked all of us, except for Kevin, out of the room to call the restaurant. Once she got them on the phone, she kindly asked, in French, if they spoke any English and was informed that they didn’t. However, she handled it like a pro, and was able to successfully reserve a table for 5 in their outdoor dining area.
While at Le Moulin de la Galette, we made a point to order some local Normandy foods. For an appetizer, we sampled a trio of cheeses from the region. Buckwheat crêpes, or Galettes Normandes, are a traditional main dish in both the Normandy and Brittany regions of France. These crêpes are savory, generally made from buckwheat flour, and traditionally filled with locally sourced meats and cheeses. The three adults opted to order different variations of the regional favorite. Kevin had one with chicken gizzards and cheese. Ellie opted for one with mushrooms, cheese, and bacon. Mine featured gorgonzola cheese, duck breast, walnuts, and sweet apple slices.
The younger girls were a little less adventurous. Rachel had an English hamburger and Sophie chose a kid’s meal called the Cheeseburger Moulin. Each of their “buns,'' however, were made with the same ingredients as our galettes, so they were able to get a little of the local flavor while still staying within the comfortable bounds of their younger palettes. As we mentioned in an earlier post, the French eat their hamburgers with a knife and fork. Since we were in a very French restaurant, the girls decided to do as the French do and tried eating their burgers with a knife and fork for the first time. Sophie’s kid’s meal also came with a dessert crepe which she absolutely loved and refused to share.
We were able to speak both English and French to our servers, who were very patient as we tried to make our decisions. We even had an English speaking American man stop by our table on his way out and compliment our girls on how beautiful and well-behaved they were. He patted Sophie’s shoulder and said “especially this one” with a smile. She was so happy to receive the compliment and grinned from ear to ear. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the dining experience and we found the food to be delicious and the portions much larger than we anticipated. In fact, Ellie had to ask for a to-go box and was extremely upset when we got half way back to our Airbnb and she realized that she had left her remaining food at the table.
Activities
On our first full day during our stay at “The Country Home,” we split up for the first time. Ellie stayed behind to take a Calculus test while Kevin and I took the girls to a local adventure park for a day of tree top fun and exercise. We will share this wonderful experience in our post about the Bayeux Adventure Park, but it was something that the Littles won’t soon forget.
The following day was a school day. Rachel and Sophie focused on a writing assignment about Claude Monet, inspired by our visit to his home and gardens a few days prior. We love that homeschooling gives us an opportunity to reinforce learning with real world experiences that help them retain and personalize the information.
Our Airbnb location also gave us easy access to the historic beaches of Normandy that played a significant role in changing the trajectory of WWII. We spent an entire day visiting beaches, a museum, and the Normandy American Cemetery at Omaha Beach. We will provide a complete overview of those locations in our post about Our D-Day Experience. “The Country Home” was also within an easy drive to our next iconic overnight stay which gave us time to spend several hours touring the historic city of Caen along the way.
Managing Stress
On our third day at this location, it became apparent that Ellie’s stress level was rising and needed to be addressed. At the core, she is a perfectionist. Managing her second-to-last semester of college courses, featuring group projects and a 6 hour time difference was beginning to take a toll. Her overwhelming sense of responsibility and desire to do her fair share (and more) had her on the verge of tears. Kevin spent some time helping her do some time management and develop a plan to get her work done. It turned out that what was needed was an extra day at this location to allow her to feel more productive before moving to our next stop.
We decided to stay in and let everyone get extra work completed. Ellie met extensively with her group that evening and felt so much better and more organized. We finished our last night in “The Country Home” watching our beloved Cowboys pull out a win. Through the magic of our Roku, which always travels with us, and our SurfShark VPN subscription, we were able to record and watch, at our leisure throughout France, all of the games for the Dallas Cowboys and the Penn State Nittany Lions. The three adults enjoyed a delicious bottle of wine as we watched and as the girls slept upstairs. It was a wonderful and relaxing last night in “The Country Home” before checking out in the morning and heading to our next destination.
Overall, our time in “The Country Home” gave us a wonderful mix of adventures. We settled into a normal rhythm of life that made us feel “at home” while giving us access to new experiences. It also gave us an opportunity to problem solve together when the realities of time zones, our travel itinerary, and school responsibilities collided, causing stress. We were able to overcome this challenge by taking the time needed to communicate and address Ellie’s concerns effectively and by making some adjustments to our schedule.
Sunset view from “The Country Home.”
Family travel is challenging in ways that traveling without children is not. Have you ever been faced with an obstacle that threatened to derail your plans? How were you able to overcome that difficulty? We hope we’re inspiring you as we share our successes and our challenges on our Uncommon Family Adventures.