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Giverny :
The museums are also worth to visit
Giverny is the village where Claude Monet spent half his life and
where he created his most fabulous canvas : his water garden.
Etretat
: Etretat was a fashionable holiday resort at the end of the
19th century. Famous writers as Maupassant and Maurice Leblanc (Arsène
Lupin's father) met famous painters as Courbet and Monet. The white
coastal cliff, with the two gates and the needle, is famous world-wide.
Fécamp
: Fécamp, once upon a time a port for Newfoundland cod
fishers, is now well known for the "Palais Benedictine" where the
famous liquors are made From 1810.
Dieppe
: Dieppe has been the first holiday resort in France. Before this,
the sailors where bringing back ivory from Africa, and many craftsmen
were carving. In 1942, the dramatic Canadian landing was the first
attempt to reconquest Europe.
The
"Val de Seine" abbeys
: The "Val de Seine" abbeys are marvels of architecture. Founded
either during the 7th century or the 11th, they allowed the development
of the agrarian prosperity of the country.
3 bridges
Between Rouen and
the sea, 3 bridges span the Seine. They are all different, but their
technology and their lightness are fine examples of what the 20th
century builders are able to accomplish. "Le Pont de Normandie",
between Le Havre and Honfleur, is the longest cable-stayed bridge
in the world.
Le Havre
: Le Havre is one of the most important French ports, and the first
European port to be reached from the ocean. The town was rebuilt
after WW2 and everywhere, you can feel the see air and the quality
of light.
Honfleur
: Honfleur is a tiny picturesque port known all around the world.
The beauty of this site has been captured by the numerous painters
who painted here from 150 years. The timber church, the salt granaries
and the old cobbled streets lead us to a museum, founded by Eugene
Boudin's legacy. Many emigrants, between them Samuel Champlain,
sailed from Honfleur.
Lisieux
: Despite the 1944 destruction, Lisieux still has a gothic cathedral
and some timber houses. It's the town where St Theresa spent her
life.
Deauville and Trouville
: Deauville and Trouville
are holiday resorts, made famous by the grand boardwalks along the
beach. It's the place of yearling sales and horse races. It's also
the gateway to the beautiful countryside that we call the "pays
d'Auge", where good Norman cheeses are made.
Caen
: In Caen, rebuilt
after the battle of Normandy, you must visit museums (among them,
the Peace Memorial), abbey churches, and its castle.
Bayeux
:
World famous for its seventy meters length Tapestry of woven linen
and dyed wool, which tells the story of the "Norman Conquest" (1066),
Bayeux has also a fine cathedral and a museum where lace collections
are well-known.
And
more …
The D-Day landing beaches and the Battle
of Normandy
: Some suggestions for a day out : The D-Day landing beaches and
the Battle of Normandy: you would need a complete fortnight to visit
all the important places for these events; battle raged for 75 days
in the bocage until the final assault on Paris. You can visit the
beaches where our Allies landed and the beautifully kept cemeteries
where so many are buried.
Le tour du Cotentin
: Cotentin : at the very north of a this great peninsula reaching
into the Atlantic. Around Cherbourg, on the seaside, thanks to small
roads, it's possible to discover charming landscapes, tiny gardens
and valleys opening to the sea.
Ivory and Spice Road
: Ivory and Spice Road: It's the one along the so-called "Alabaster
Coast" because of the brilliant coastal cliff colour. Picturesque
views and dramatic sceneries are visible all along this coastline
, between Dieppe and Etretat.
Le pays d'Auge
: Le pays d'Auge: Enjoy the welcome and grand hospitality in this
region where fine ciders and cheeses are made in Norman tradition.
An "apple brandy" is distilled here under the name of "Calvados"
, and horses are bred here to race in Deauville. Many charming half-timbered
manor houses, most of them from the 17th century are still easily
visible from the road amongst the orchards.
Seine and Andelle counrty tour
: Le
Pays d'Andelle (Seine and Andelle country tour): This is a small
area in the middle of the Lyons forest, where we can find villages
from another time, abbeys, quiet streams and castles.
an impressioniste day :
"An Impressionist Day": Sites are numerous to create this day (
Giverny, Honfleur, Vétheuil, Auvers sur Oise, etc.) , around the
painters of this time : Courbet, Boudin, Monet, Sisley, Jongkind,
Lebourg, Renoir, Pissaro or van Gogh were painting in Normandy.
This tour can be created upon request to feature any particular
number of painters. Copies of their canvases are here to show us
where they were painted.
Châteauxin Normandy
: Château-Gaillard, Arques, Harcourt, la Roche-Guyon… These castles
tell wonderful stories of battles between landlords and kings.
Gardens in Normandy
: Once again, local authorities are encouraged in the creation or
the restoration of dozens of gardens in Normandy: artists', historical,
botanical, modern gardens, they wait for your visit. This tour can
be created with your particular interest in mind
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Normandy
first - Of course you know of Mont Saint Michel, the D-Day landing
beaches, Bayeux and its legendary Tapestry, Rouen with its charming
medieval quarter, Dieppe, Honfleur,…. But come in the nest of the
small valleys, drive the forest roads, see the tiny villages or
the country museums. Discover cheeses, cream, cider and calvados.
Stroll on the country markets, look at poultry and cheeses, and
experience the quality of Norman welcome. And, if by chance, you
feel some drops of rain, it will just be for the green of the fields.
