Ferry: Portsmouth to Caen Commodore Class #D-Day 75th Anniversary

in #travel5 years ago (edited)

When we think of ferry crossings from 🇬🇧 to 🇫🇷, (aside from the obvious school trips and cheap wine day trips), the image that commonly springs to mind is the tacky bar area with swaying consumers of Carlsberg complaining about the dreary weather as the Stenaline or Brittany ferry lurches to and fro with the perfect cadence to incite gradual sea sickness - add to this the outrageously priced cold sandwiches 🥪, awful shops and scurrying feet of children 👶 and the picture is complete...

I remember my father once having a t-shirt made that proudly read: “Foot Passenger” because he found the distinction between coach, self-drive and ‘foot passengers’ somewhat amusing in it’s involuntary nod to the class of those travelling aboard. I still grin at this silliness today.

On a whim I decided to take the ferry instead of simply flying or using the exorbitantly costly Eurostar. I deliberated over the crossings and timings for some time to try and identify options which wouldn’t leave me stranded at some ungodly hour at either end.

This time it happily coincided with the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy which is an event close to my heart anyway as I have marched through the streets of Caen previously with the rest of the staff from the 3rd UK Division. Great memories of touching ceremonies in small cemeteries with children singing 🎶 the national anthems and warm-hearted receptions with wine and cheese 🧀 🍷

To alleviate my fear of ending up drinking something awful in the bar and struggling to find decent conversation, I elected instead to pay around £100 for something called: “Commodore Class” and this is what I found:

![6517CB7B-8E79-44BC-95A4-13659C5D548D.jpeg
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As you can observe, the cabin itself is actually quite smart and spacious - crucially it provides you with privacy and some chill out opportunity to relax and read the papers, watch BREXIT news on 📺 and freshen up before you arrive. It occurred to me that “slipping away” across the waves 🌊 might also be quite romantic for a couple who can appreciate silly humour on a ship

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Hope this helps offer an alternative to my fellow Steemians who fancy a bit of Normandy and/or (southern England) adventure this summertime. 😆

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