A Traveling Fool

August 14, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Josephine’s Malmaison

Our morning excursion choices were to visit either Auvers-sur-Oise or Malmaison. I had been to Auvers-sur-Oise on an earlier trip to France. This was where Vincent van Gogh had lived out the last couple of months of his life. He painted several paintings while there. Placards showing the paintings stand near the locations where van Gogh painted them.

It is believed that van Gogh died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest nearly 30 hours after the shot was fired. He walked back to his room at the Auberge Ravoux where he died. When we were there, Mom and I walked from the field where he had supposedly shot himself to the Auberge Ravoux and climbed the stairs to his room. It seemed a long walk to us, especially for someone who was dying.

The Auberge Ravoux is now a restaurant. Although no furniture remains in van Gogh’s room, it has been preserved as it was when he died and is worth a visit. The church that Vincent painted is also where he and his brother Theo are buried. Theo died only six months after his brother. Vincent was only 37 when he died.

Malmaison was purchased by Napoleon Bonaparte’s wife, Josephine, in 1799. At the time, it was rather run down, needing extensive renovations. It is said that Napoleon was not happy at the large amount of money spent on buying and fixing up the place. But they lived there together until their separation in 1803 and Josephine remained for the rest of her life.

The chateau was famed for its gardens. Josephine’s real name was Rose. So she had numerous types of roses – roughly 250 varieties. The Dahlia flower was actually developed there.

Josephine also had kangaroos, emus, black swans, zebras, sheep, gazelles, ostriches, antelopes, lllamas, and a seal roaming the grounds. Josephine loved her home. I felt that it was fairly cozy and could see why she felt the way she did about it.

After Josephine’s death in 1814, Napoleon did return in 1815 after his defeat at Waterloo and stayed until his exile to Saint Helena.

At the end of a long, garden-lined drive we entered the home and began to explore. The entrance had a exhibition in it, which made it difficult to see the room. But it was easy to tell right away that this was a smaller, more intimate chateau than most I had already seen.

Off to the right was the billiard room, followed by a little antechamber and then the Salon Dore, which was a small state room. The music room, with midnight blue walls and red furniture was next.

To reach the rest of the rooms on this floor, it was necessary to retrace our steps back through the rooms and the entrance hall. The first room we came to on the other side of the entrance hall was the dining room. I loved the salmon-colored walls.

My only photo of the Council Chamber is a bit fuzzy so I didn’t include it here. The room was made to look like a tent. Beyond this room is the library. It is the room that needed the least amount of restoration and is closest to what it originally looked like when Napoleon and Josephine lived there. One of Napoleon’s hats could even be seen in a glass case.

We viewed a bust of Napoleon inside of a side entrance, which was for family and friends. Then we saw Napoleon’s formal bedroom and salon plus a room with the famous “Napoleon Crossing the Alps” painting. Although he really used a donkey, the painting depicted a beautiful horse. Image was all. His formal bedroom also resembled a tent. I managed a good photo of that room.

Josephine’s formal bedroom also looked like a tent and was very grand. We also saw her informal bedroom, her dressing room, and her salon. After this, we went outside to view the beautiful gardens with their Dahlias, roses and other flowers.

There were not a lot of other people at Malmaison with us. That was nice. We were able to have an intimate visit in what had been an intimate home.

Our afternoon visit was where we found the huge crowds, even during the pandemic – Versailles.

August 1, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Joan of Arc & Rouen

The symbolic figure of Rouen, Joan of Arc, is present everywhere in the streets, squares and monuments in the former capital of Normandy. I have always been fascinated by Joan – her visions, her courage, her faith. Other locations associated with Joan – Paris, Orleans, and Reims – had drawn my interest in past trips.

Jeanne d’Arc (“The Maid of Orleans”) was born roughly 1412 in Domremy. She came from a peasant family. She began to have visions of the archangel Michael, Saint Margaret of Antioch, and Saint Catherine of Alexandria telling her to help Charles VII to recover the throne of France from English domination. She gained prominence after her quick victory at Orleans. Several more swift victories later led to Charles’ consecration as King of France at Reims.

She was captured in May of 1430 at Compiegne by some French nobles who were allied with the English. She was handed over to the English and put on trial for heresy. She was convicted and burned at the stake in May of 1431. Her imprisonment, trial and execution all took place in Rouen. She was only nineteen when she died.

The main charge in her conviction seemed to be her dressing as a man. Women’s clothing would have been terribly impractical for leading an army. She also found that it was much more difficult for men to try to sexually assault her when she was dressed as a man. Women’s clothing offered no such protection. While imprisoned, it is said that she was repeatedly raped by her captures until she put men’s clothing back on. That was the final evidence (the donning of men’s clothing while imprisoned) that was used to convict her.

The only remaining part of Rouen Castle is the keep or donjon, which is now known as the Tour Jeanne d’Arc. This was where a portion of her trial took place and where she was threatened with torture. Some people believe this was where she was imprisoned, but she was actually held in the Tour de la Pucelle, which no longer exists. There is a building at 102 Rue Jeanne d’Arc where the foundations of that tower may be seen.

It was the Archbishop’s Palace, just behind the Cathedral, where Joan was condemned. A retrial also took place there in 1456, which nullified the first trial. A little too late for Joan. The Historical Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc Museum) is now housed in the Archbishop’s palace. They use multimedia to present the story. I really like it when the actual locations of history are used to tell history.

The cathedral has a small chapel dedicated to Joan near the choir and a more modern statue in the choir area. When I was sitting and listening to the local guide tell us about the cathedral, I could see the modern statue and was wondering if it was Joan. When we had our own time, I walked straight to it.

At the main market square (the Place du Vieux Marche), I was feeling a little impatient while we were led through the market itself and told about its history. I wanted to get over to the garden area by the modern church of Joan of Arc (L’eglise Sainte-Jeanne-d’Arc). This time, fruits, vegetables, pastries, and other edibles weren’t interesting to me.

When we got to the garden, I was looking for the little sign that used to be there, but couldn’t find it. Then the local guide (Evangeline) said that the tall, modern cross now marked the spot where Joan had been burned at the stake. A statue of Joan being executed stands near the entrance to the church, facing the cross.

We finished our tour inside of the church dedicated to Joan. It was built in 1979 with sweeping curves to represent the flames as well as an overturned longship. Many early churches, especially those of wood, were designed to represent an overturned boat.

The stained glass windows came from a 16^th century church whose ruins are a short distance away. The windows had been removed from the church during World War II. When the church was destroyed by bombs, the decision was made to incorporate them into the new church to Saint Joan.

Also inside the church is a bust that may or may not accurately portray Joan. I don’t think she was ever drawn, painted or sculpted in her lifetime. The signature etched beneath the bust is believed to have been her actual signature.

When the fire was still smoldering, Joan’s ashes were collected. Her enemies didn’t want anyone collecting any potential relics.

It is said that her heart did not burn. Her heart and the collected ashes were thrown into the Seine near the cathedral. This would have been roughly where our ship was docked. When the ship pulled out from this location, I took the included photo of that area of the Seine.

Next time –Josephine’s Malmaison

July 3, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Rouen

Rouen has so much that I have separated it into two posts. The first is on Rouen itself and the second has to do with Rouen’s connections with Joan of Arc.

Founded by the Gaulish tribe of the Veliocasses (also known as the Vexin), Rouen was second only to Lyon. Under the Roman Emperor Diocletian, the city prospered and built both an amphitheater and baths. The foundations of both remain.

By the time of the Viking raids, beginning in 841, the Normans took over Rouen and made it their capital until William the Conqueror moved the capital to Caen. During the Hundred Years’ War Rouen kept changing hands between England and France and ended up being the site of the imprisonment, trial and execution of Joan of Arc.

Rouen was heavily damaged by bombs during World War II with the cathedral being heavily hit.

For our excursion into Rouen, we were docked between the Pont Boieldieu and the Pont Comeille on the same side of the Seine as the cathedral. It was easy to see the spire directly in line with our ship.

We came up to the city at the Pont Comeille. This was an area that had been quite heavily bombed and was mostly modern. As we headed north and a little bit east, the buildings became older until we were immersed in an original, medieval section of the city.

We briefly visited the Church of Saint-Maclou. It was a 15^th century church that incorporated a previous, neglected 14^th century church. The interior decorations were rather macabre as the previous church had been consecrated during the time of the Black Death. At that time, the Black Death was the deadliest plague in history with an estimated 75 – 200 million deaths over a five year span.

From there we headed over towards the Rouen Cathedral, visiting a couple very narrow, pedestrian-only, intact medieval streets along the way. We also stopped at the Historical Jeanne d’Arc, which was in the Archbishop’s Palace next to the cathedral and had been the site of Joan of Arc’s trial. More about that in the next post.

After entering through a very, very old door that we entered through a courtyard, we spent quite a bit of time in the cathedral.

Christianity first came to Rouen in about 260. The first church was believed to have been close to or under the present cathedral. In 395, a large basilica was built on the same site.

The cathedral was enlarged in 650 and visited by Charlemagne in 769. However, the Viking raids caused a great deal of damage.

The first Duke of Normandy was the Viking leader, Rollo. He was baptized in the cathedral in 915 and buried there in 932. His grandson enlarged it again in 950.

In the 1020s, parts of the cathedral were rebuilt in the Romanesque style. William the Conqueror was present at the consecration shortly before his conquest of England.

In the 12^th century, a complete reconstruction of the cathedral was undertaken in the new Gothic style. This style tended to fill the space with light.

During the 16^th century some Renaissance features were added and some repairs made. The Western façade (later painted by Monet) was tilting, so it was completely reconstructed in an extremely ornate Flamboyant style with lots of lacelike stone tracery and hundreds of sculpted figures. Buttresses were also added.

During repairs made after World War II, excavations were also done under and around the cathedral. Vestiges of the previous versions of the building were found.

We had some free time in the cathedral. So I wandered around looking at some of the old tombs, including Rollo. I also checked out some of the chapels, including Joan of Arc.

When we left the cathedral, we were shown the building where Monet stayed while painting his series of the Western façade. It is now the Office de Tourisme.

We then had the 14^th century astronomical clock (Gros Horloge) pointed out from a distance before taking a detour to see the Palais de Justice. When we walked back down to the Rue du Gros Horloge, we could see the clock close up from a different angle.

There were loads of museums in Rouen which we didn’t have time to visit. We were heading for the Market Square, also known as the Place du Vieux Marche. There was a very large market where all kinds of items could be purchased. Several shops and cafes were located in the buildings that lined the square as well. This was the location of the execution of Joan of Arc.

Next time – the Rouen of Joan of Arc

June 12, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Bayeux, Beuvron-en-Auge, and Calvados

First, let me say that, in case you haven’t already figured it out, I truly do love French food. On this trip, all of our meals were on our ship except for the one day that we spent the entire day off the ship on an adventure in Normandy. The meals on the ship were wonderful, but I was looking forward to our lunch.

There were three choices of excursion that day: 1) Normandy World War II United States D Day Landing Beaches, 2) Normandy World War II Great Britain & Canada D Day Landing Beaches, 3) “A Taste of Normandy”, which included Bayeux, Beuvron-en-Auge, and trip to a Calvados distillery. Since I had already toured all of the landing beaches (US, UK & Canada) on a prior trip, I chose the third excursion.

I was really excited about seeing the Bayeux Tapestry and the town of Bayeux. This was another place where some ancestors had been born. Just three this time, but still.

Apparently Bayeux had originally been founded as a Gallo-Roman settlement in the first century BC. It became famous as the location of the Bayeux Tapestry.

The tapestry (which is really an embroidery) was created in England, although from the Norman point of view, shortly after the Normans conquered England in 1066. It depicts the events leading up to William the Conqueror’s conquest of England. The main characters are William (who was Duke of Normandy at the time) and Harold (Earl of Wessex and King of England). The action shown culminates with the Battle of Hastings.

No photos were allowed. However, they said I could use video. Fortunately, I had my camera that records video directly onto miniature DVDs. So I filmed nearly the entire length of the 230 foot (70 metres) cloth. It is roughly 956 years old!

In addition to the tapestry itself, the building contained an exhibit presenting the secrets of the creation of the tapestry, an overview of the historical context and the Anglo-Norman kingdom in the 11^th century. There was also a film that interwove the scenes from the tapestry with reconstructed scenes from the Battle of Hastings.

I was looking forward to having a special three-course French lunch at one of the restaurants in town. The vast majority of our fellow passengers went on one or the other of the D-Day tours, so there were only four of us on this excursion. We had a choice of three options for where we could eat. We all chose the same option and so had a nice leisurely lunch together at a lovely restaurant specializing in local food.

My appetizer was a puff pastry filled with seafood. It was very light and delicious. The main course I ordered was filet mignon with a Camembert sauce. It too was absolutely delicious. The dessert was a chocolate mousse. I have made chocolate mousse several times. However, this one far exceeded what I have ever created. It was much more delicate in flavor – whispering chocolate instead of shouting it.

After lunch, we visited the cathedral. It is thought that it was in the cathedral where the Bayeux Tapestry was originally displayed. It is also thought that the cathedral may have been the location of where William the Conqueror forced Harold Godwinson to take an oath of fealty to him.

We rejoined our coach and driver and set off for Beuvron-en-Auge. The tiny village has the official designation of being one of the most beautiful villages of France. I certainly couldn’t argue with that. It had been raining just before we got there and everything was wet. The village center had a manor house and several smaller buildings that mainly had shops or restaurants on the ground floor and homes above. The main purpose of the village was definitely tourism. I explored a few of the antique shops during the time we had there.

The region we were in was called Calvados and was part of the province of Normandy. Apple orchards and breweries in the area were mentioned as far back as the 8^th century by Charlemagne. In the early 16^th century, apple brandy (called Calvados) was mentioned and a cider distillation guild established about 50 years later.

All of the apples used for Calvados must come from Normandy, where there are roughly 200 different varieties. First the apples are fermented into a juice, which then becomes cider as it ages. The cider can just stay cider and be sold as such, or it can be distilled and aged in oak casks for a minimum of two years to be become Calvados. The longer the aging, the smoother the taste.

Our final stop of the day was at the Le Breuil-en-Auge Calvados Distillery. We learned all about the creation of Calvados and sampled some of the finished product. I felt that the amount in the glass was a tad stingy until I actually tried it. It is about 82 proof so, it has been known to take off the back of a person’s head when drunk too fast. It made my eyes water and my voice go raspy.

We were told that the first glass of Calvados was simply called “a glass”. I don’t remember what the second and third glasses were called, but the fourth glass was called “the Gloria” because the drinker would start to sing. The fifth glass was called “kicked by a mule”. There didn’t seem to be anything else after that. I personally felt a little bit like I had been kicked by a mule after the second glass. When we returned to the ship, everyone was given a glass of Calvados to sample. That was glass number three for me. I started thinking of potential songs to sing just in case a fourth glass came my way.

Next time — Rouen

May 22, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Honfleur

The beautiful town of Honfleur is located at the mouth of the Seine, across from Le Havre and was a favorite of artists during the Impressionist movement in France. The first known reference to Honfleur was in 1027 by Richard III, Duke of Normandy.

Though fortified during the Hundred Years War, it was still captured by the English. After the war, it became a great trade center, including as a slave trade port. The French Revolution and the First Empire Napoleonic wars, plus the development of the modern port at Le Havre, ended Honfleur’s time as a major trade port.

Upon entering the main tourist part of Honfleur, we immediately encountered L’Absinthe Hotel. It is in a 16^th century building with a Caen stone ground floor and the upper stories in grey slate tiles. I found the name of the hotel intriguing. But absinthe was quite a common and popular drink in France back a few centuries ago.

We headed down a narrow street and soon came upon an old prison and some 16^th century houses. Then we stopped at the entrance to another street and took a look at its sign. Our guide asked if we knew what the street was. The sign said “Rue des Petites Boucheries”. Thinking of my high school and college freshman French, I said, “street of the small butchers.” They were the shops that regular people would visit for their meat.

After a couple more narrow streets, we arrived at the harbor. Most of the houses surrounding the harbor were tall, narrow and mostly covered in slate tiles. The harbor had been created in the 17^th century and most of these houses were as well. The harbor had been a very popular place for Impressionist artists.

On the other side of the harbor was a memorial to Samuel de Champlain. He had departed from Honfleur for many of his adventures, including the founding of Quebec.

Up a hill and a winding road, were the bell tower and church of Saint Catherine. This church is the largest wooden church in France. It was built in the second half of the 15^th century immediately after the Hundred Years War ended. The bell tower was built across the road to protect parishioners from lightning strikes and subsequent possible fires. No saws were used in construction, just axes.

We were given quite a bit of free time at this point, so I chose to do one of my favorite things when traveling – sit down and take it all in. There was an outdoor café on a traffic island in the middle of what was still a narrow street. So I sat down there, bought a pastry and some lemon squash and enjoyed soaking in the atmosphere while watching the people who were milling around or shopping.

When I was done, I headed off back down the hill and across the harbor to another church. This one was Saint Stephen’s. It was an old parish church in the Gothic style with the oldest part dating to the 14^th century. The church was built with a combination of chalk, flint, and Caen stone. Its bell tower had a façade of chestnut. It was now a Naval Museum. It was also an excellent landmark to know where to turn to be able to wander back down the maze of narrow, medieval streets.

I sat down once again near an interestingly named restaurant – le chat qui pêche –the fishing cat. The couple in the photo seemed to think I was taking a picture of them and didn’t appear to be too happy about it. C’est la vie.

Nearby were the remaining two 17^th century salt barns (the third had been destroyed by fire). The large quantity of salt stored in these buildings was used to preserve the cod caught by Honfleur’s fleet of fishing boats. Nowadays, the buildings are used for exhibitions and concerts. Their wonderful ceilings looked like the insides of an upside down hull of a ship.

Next time – Bayeux, Beuvron-en-Auge & Calvados

May 2, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Jumieges Abbey

Another Benedictine Abbey, Jumieges was destroyed during the French Revolution. At the time of its destruction in the late 18^th/early 19^th century, Jumieges was referred to as “the most beautiful ruin in France”.

Like St Wandrelle de Fontenelle, Jumieges also originated in the 7^th century. St Philibert was the founder, using land that had been granted to him for the purpose by King Clovis II. The abbey thrived until it too was pillaged during Viking raids. The monks abandoned the abbey for about ten years until the Duchy of Normandy was created and the second Duke, William Longsword, decided to restore it.

The Notre-Dame Abbey Church was rebuilt and inaugurated by William the Conqueror in 1067. Starting with the French Revolution, the property was mainly used as a stone quarry until the ruins were purchased by a private citizen in the 19^th century, who preserved what was left. The State took it over in 1946. The contents of the library had been moved to Rouen when the abbey was dissolved in 1790.

We began our tour just outside the entrance of the 11^th century Romanesque nave of the abbey church that had been inaugurated by William the Conqueror. Although roofless, the walls still soared on their rounded arches and were very impressive and beautiful.

When we reached the transept, we found that a great deal of the transept, plus the gothic quire and the surrounding chapels were missing. From there we could see the Abbot’s residence, dating from 1666. It had been sold prior to the Revolution, so it survived as an independent building from the abbey.

I did duck into the remains of a small gothic chapel that still had a portion of its ceiling. This would have been from roughly the 13^th century.

Wandering over to the much smaller St Peter Church, we entered into the Gothic Nave. Here, as with the little chapel, there were pointed arches.

As we moved towards what would have been the front entrance of the smaller church, the arches rounded out again. This part was older.

It turned out that this part was much older. Recent archaeological excavations revealed that this section actually dated from the late 8^th century. This put St Peter’s Church into the category of a Carolingian Christian church and made it quite unique.

In that older, front part of the church, several circles could be seen in the walls. We were told that the circles once contained colorful, round medallions. We could also see a portion of a very old wall painting in a corner of the wall next to an arch.

Stepping out of the church into the area that had been the cloister, we could there see a gigantic, 500-year-old yew tree. That tree would have witnessed a lot of history.

We exited the complex through what had once been the cellars. This would have been where the wine and grain and other provisions would have been stored. My last photo of the abbey was of a very interesting arch with a construction that resembled modern Legos.

Next time – the sea port of Honfleur.

April 11, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – St Wandrille de Fontenelle Abbey

Our first morning docked at Caudebec-en-Caux was spent along the “Abbey Road” visiting two medieval abbeys. The first one, St Wandrille de Fontenelle, was still housing Benedictine monks.

Founded in the 7^th century, it was one of the first Benedictine abbeys in Normandy. It was very successful at first, but began to decline around in the 8^th and early 9^th centuries until the monastery was burnt down by the Vikings in 852. The monks fled with the relics of Saint Wandrille.

After about a century in “temporary” accommodation, the monks returned in 966 and began to rebuild. Decline came again in the 16^th century and the monastery was closed and sold during the French Revolution.

The monastic community had, over the centuries, attained a reputation for the learning of the monks. The library collection was celebrated and the school was renowned for the teaching of letters, fine arts, the sciences and calligraphy. The current monastic community has been, since 1894, carrying on this reputation through publishing, microfilming, and painting restoration.

In addition to the arts, Saint Wandrille has been famous for brewing beer. In the 8^th century, it was one of the first ever to use hops in the brewing of beer. The monastery still brews beer and has it for sale in its shop.

Brother Lucien met us in the village square and escorted us into the abbey through its main gate, also known as the Pelican Gate. This area mostly dated to the 18^th century and formed the space set aside for the monks. Brother Lucien did not speak English, so our local guide translated. After a basic history of the abbey, we were taken into the cloisters where we were shown the reconstruction projects that were being worked on.

The remains of the 14^th century abbey church were right next to the cloisters. Back in 1969, a 13^th century barn was moved onto the abbey property and converted into the current abbey church. Inside of the church is a reliquary containing the skull of Saint Wandrille.

A short distance from the abbey church was a cemetery, including many of the brotherhood who had died throughout the centuries. Recent to our visit in September 2021, were the graves of three victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When St Wandrille was constructing the abbey back in the 7^th century, he built seven other churches both inside and outside of the monastery enclosure. Most of these were either destroyed, replaced by newer versions or simply fell into ruin over time. The exception was the chapel of St Saturnin. Although occasionally restored over the centuries, it has remained largely as it was originally built. It stands on a hillside overlooking the abbey and is considered to be a unique example of a 7^th century chapel.

I found Brother Lucien to be absolutely fascinating. His love for the abbey was evident. He had taken note of my cane (he used one too) and often gave me his hand to help me up or down a steep grouping of steps. He just exuded kindness.

Next time – we continue along the “Abbey Road” to Jumieges Abbey.

March 27, 2022

Grand France River Cruise: Crepes, Pastries & Les Andelys

At lunch, we could have our choice of some savory crepes or a regular lunch buffet. I went with a buckwheat crepe filled with ham, cheese, mushrooms, and onions. There was some crème fraiche on top. Another new experience for me as I had only had dessert crepes before.

As we were having lunch, the ship set sail for Les Andelys, our next port of call. In the meantime, we had some time to lounge around or, in my case, to get caught up going through my photos and writing in my trip journal as well as lounging around. We also had a cruise briefing at 2pm to learn about what was coming up over the rest of the trip on the Seine.

Then there was a pastry demonstration at 3pm. They had an award winning French pastry chef named Julien Viniel on board to demonstrate making and filling some little round puff pastries with some delicious filling. I was recruited to act as his assistant. My job was to slice open several of the little round puff pastries and then pipe some of the delicious filling into them.

The Chef handed me a pastry bag, showed me how to fill it and then how to squeeze the filling out of it with the proper control. This involved winding the top part of the bag around the thumb of the hand it was in, while using the other hand to squeeze. As the bag became less full, it was necessary to push down further with the hand with which I was holding it and to rewrap the top part of the bag around my thumb. Worked just great. My little pastries were served along with some macrons.

Once the ship arrived at Les Andelys, there was a choice between a walking tour of the town or a hike up to the ruins of Chateau Gaillard. The chateau had once been the home of King Richard the Lionheart of England. He was also the Duke of Normandy and so had the castle constructed in 1196. The part of the village directly below the castle and next to the river was built at the same time and named Petit Andely.

The older part of town (Grand Andely) dates from the 6^th century. No buildings from that time still exist.

Since I could see the town pretty well from the ship, I decided to take a third option which was to explore on my own. First, I took a few photos from where the ship was docked.

In the village, St Sauveur’s Church was begun in 1220 because the people in Petit Andely had grown tired of having to walk all the way to Grand Andely to attend church. The 17^th century pipe organ was the oldest in France that was still in working order.

It was a very pretty little village that seemed like it could be a pleasant place to live.

Next time—St Wandrille de Fontenelle Abbey (the first of two we visited along the Abbey Road)

March 13, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Vernon & Bizy Castle

The morning excursion choices from Vernon were either to Claude Monet’s home, studio and gardens in Giverny or to the town of Vernon and Bizy Castle. Since I had previously visited Giverny, I chose Vernon and the castle.

We were now in Normandy. While there were various ancestors in other parts of France, the largest number of all were from Normandy – 173. These were from all over Normandy, including such places as Bayeux (3), Caen (3), Falaise (6), Longueville (5), Montfort Sur Risle (10), and Rouen (8). They were all born roughly between the 8^th and 12^th centuries. Many of them would end up relocating to England, Scotland and Wales after 1066.

All total, with 14 born in Paris and several for whom the only info I have is that they were born in France, I end up with roughly 459 French ancestors. That is more than anyplace else other than the UK. They are all on my paternal grandmother’s side of the family.

Many civilizations had existed in what is now Normandy prior to the Viking invasions of the mid-9^th century. But those invasions and the subsequent treaty between Viking leader, Hrólfr Ragnvaldsson, or Rollo (also known as Robert of Normandy) with King Charles the Simple of the West Franks in 911 forever changed that portion of France. The name “Normandy” reflects the Normans (or Norsemen) who conquered the area.

The Normans adopted the French language and Christianity. They also intermarried with the Franks, Celts and Romans who were already there.

William the Conqueror was a descendant of Rollo. He became King of England after defeating the Anglo Saxon King Harold Godwinson in battle in 1066. William’s invasion and conquering of England was the subject of the Bayeux Tapestry (which I will talk about more in the post on my visit to Bayeux during this river cruise).

Vernon was a tiny village that was founded by Rollo in the 10^th century. Once we left the ship, we immediately encountered the site of a Gallo-Roman coffin, which had contained a wealthy woman, dating from the 2^nd century. The sarcophagus was discovered in 1964.

It was a short walk to the Notre Dame Collegiate Church. Built between the 11^th and 16^th centuries, the altar and transept were Romanesque while the rest of the building included three different Gothic styles. I especially liked a very old statue of Mary & the Baby Jesus.

The oldest surviving houses in the village were in the streets surrounding the church and the village square. These half-timbered houses dated mainly from the 15^th and 16^th centuries.

The Archive Tower, which was the keep of Philip Augustus’ former castle, was built in 1123 by Henry Beauclerc (King Henry I of England), the youngest son of William the Conqueror. It was in 1196 when King Philip II (Philip Augustus) of France took over the castle at Vernon and rebuilt most of it. The tower was the only part that remains of either version of the castle. It has been used to house the municipal archives since the 18^th century.

The current owner of Bizy Castle was descended from a brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, therefore the chateau has letters, paintings and sculptures related to the Bonaparte family on exhibit. The building was originally built in 1675 and then reconstructed in 1740. It fell on some hard times and ended up being entirely rebuilt in the mid-19^th century. But the Versailles-inspired stables remained. I was able to have a really good look at the stables as the restrooms were located in a portion of them.

We entered from the orangery which is usually used as a greenhouse or conservatory for plants that needed protection from the winter weather. The one at Bizy was a very large room decorated with the heads of boar and various other wildlife killed on the castle grounds when it was being used as a hunting lodge.

In the courtyard was a lovely pool. Turned out that it was created for the use of the horses to cool themselves off. Of all of the castles around Europe and the UK that I have visited, I have never seen one before that actually had a swimming pool for horses.

The Grand Salon was a very elegant room with an exquisitely painted and lacquered piano. Only a few rooms were open to the public with a guided tour as the current owner still lived in the chateau. The rooms that were open were quite beautiful.

On the opposite side of the Seine was an old, half-timbered mill, straddling two of the remaining piers of an ancient bridge. The original bridge was built in the 12^th century. By 1947, the mill was crumbling when the village of Vernon took on its restoration. It was considered to be a symbol of Vernon.

Next time – Crepes, Pastries & Les Andelys

February 27, 2022

Grand France River Cruise – Traveling from Dijon to Paris

In Dijon, we were taken straight to the train station. That was a shame. Dijon had been the main home of the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11^th to the late 15^th centuries although not much from the earlier dukes remained. The oldest parts of the ducal palace were from the 14^th & 15^th centuries and the main portions from the 17^th& 18^th centuries, but it still would have been nice to have had some of that pointed out as we zipped on by.

A lot of the non-ducal architecture in the town, from the 12^th to 15^th centuries, remained and was undamaged by wars. The crypt of Dijon Cathedral was over 1,000 years old. Its roof was decorated much as the hospital in Beaune with tiles glazed in terracotta, green, yellow and black and arranged in geometric patterns.

The original home of Dijon mustard, Dijon has several sister cities in other countries. I was especially intrigued by Dallas, Texas as that was the city in which I grew up. Prague in the Czech Republic and York in England were two others that caught my attention as they are a couple of my favorite cities.

Dijon is an important railway junction for many cities and towns in France, Switzerland, and Italy, with its high speed TGV train. From Dijon to Paris-Gare de Lyon, the journey takes just one hour and 40 minutes to cover 190 miles (300 km).

When we arrived at the train station, we needed to wait a bit for the gate to be announced for our departing train and for our intrepid cruise director, Jean Loup, to get our tickets. We all met downstairs near the gate. We weren’t allowed onto the platform without our tickets, so we just hung out leaning against the walls and waving others, who thought we were in line, past us.

Once on the platform, it wasn’t long before the train arrived. Our seats were upstairs. So we climbed up the steps, found our seats and settled in for the ride. Nobody was in the seat next to me so I was able to pop my camera bag in the window seat and get comfortable.

Everybody pulled out the food they had purchased in Beaune and had lunch about a half hour into the ride. I had a filled pastry and a small orange. Knowing that we would be having a large dinner that evening, I had gone for a light lunch.

The journey through the French country-side was a pleasant one and we soon entered the Paris city limits, heading for the Gare de Lyon. Upon arrival, the five of us going to the Tapestry II were loaded onto one coach and the other six, plus Jean Loup, onto another coach. Then our journey through central Paris began.

The amount of lanes for motorized vehicles had been reduced by the current mayor, so moving through Paris took much longer than usual. The mayor felt that it would be better to have parts of every street made into lanes for bicycling and walking. She also wanted more people to use public transportation. So motorized vehicles had half as many lanes for their use as before.

To get from the Gare de Lyon to where our ship was docked near the Eiffel Tower took over an hour. Along the way, we passed by Notre Dame. It was the first time I had seen it in person since the fire (I had seen it on previous trips and had always visited). I took some photos as we drove past the cathedral. I also managed to take some of the Louvre, the Place de la Concorde, and the Grand Palais.

When we arrived at the ship, we were met by our new cruise director, Gayle. I had something for her from Jean Loup that I passed on before heading to my cabin. Our cabin numbers were the same on the new ship as they had been on the Poetry II. That helped. The colors on the ship were different, although the layout was exactly the same.

My cases were waiting for me in my cabin. I just needed to unpack enough to dress up a little for dinner.

This time we had 37 people on the trip. Two were Canadian and the rest Americans. There were several more women traveling on their own. I spent some time with a few of them while on excursions or having lunch or breakfast.

We had escargot again at dinner. This time I managed to free all of mine from their shells (although it did mean that I had to totally crush one of the shells).

Dinner was served a little earlier than usual, so there was plenty of time for me to fully unpack and settle in after dinner.

We discovered that trials were beginning the following day in Paris at the Palais de Justice on the Ile de Cite for some of the men who were accused of involvement in the terrorist attacks all over Paris on the 13^th of November in 2015. Most of the men directly involved had been killed as they were mainly suicide bombers. The attacks took place at such venues as a concert hall and a soccer stadium, as well as at several cafes, leaving 130 people dead and 460 injured.

Once everyone was on the ship, we had turned around and headed down the Seine in the direction of the Normandy coast shortly after everyone was on board. We would spend several days in Normandy before returning to Paris at the end of the cruise.

Next time – Vernon & Bizy Castle