Le Havre - the suprise packet

Le Harvre is the port city for Paris (2 hours away) and many of our fellow travellers are headed that way, some to the D Day Beaches, some to Monet's Garden - and some even further to Mont St Michel, 3 hours away.  We are not interested in tackling the longer journeys in the time available (and have been to all but Mont St Michel.

We settled on staying in Le Havre although I had no great expectations. It was another perfect day in the high 20'sC. Le Havre is France's second biggest port (second to Marseilles) and its biggest container port - and it is a huge, primarily industrial port. We took the shuttle to the town centre for coffee and a 1 hour pre-arranged open top mini bus tour. This proved that my early thoughts were misplaced when we drove through very nice suburbs on the hills, through pleasant shopping strips, past beautitul parks, some historic buildings and a beach on the edge of town.

Le Havre was heavily bombed during WWII and, as a result, much of the city was rebuilt post war - and the inner city contains a lot of apartment blocks (but 4 & 5 storey only). Cathedrale Notre Dame was one building in the city centre that was largely untouched. The Germans also occupied t0Le Havre for a period.

The city has a "re-born" tram route running through the city centre (along wide lawned areas on its principal boulevard). Very modern trams,  running every 7 minutes to the beach.  We caught one and wandered along the beachfront - full of small beach boxes, playgrounds, "fun of the fair" attractions and some 500M of beachfront cafes & restaurants. Typical french beach with stones to the water edge (tide out), but good numbers of people. Tram back to City Hall and a wander through some pedestrianised areas to the Market.

Shared a jambon & cheese baguette and a choclate eclair, then cleared out the € coinage with a pint of Carlsberg (7€) at a Bar, before heading back on the shuttle.  Le Havre had proved a very pleasant surprise.

Bags out tonight for our early morning arrival into Southampton.

Heading to dinner we were wondering how our Canadian dinner colleagues, Heinz and Ohla, had got on as they had hired a car to drive to the D Day Beaches. Two days earlier Heinz had a fall on the cobblestones in Edinburgh (running from a scotsman in a kilt???) and had badly injured his left elbow and arm. As it transpired, they had picked up the car and driven just a few KM before deciding it was impossible.

All course menu of seafood tonight for me + creme brulee. Tonight we were not the last to leave our Dining Room as many travellers got back extremely late from their long journeys.

Show time tonight was a full "The Voice" production show with passengers as contestants and crew as judges. Quite talented,  but give me the traditional last night Crew Show anytime. Wonderful female soprano in the Vista Lounge finished the night.