Rouen

Next up on our road trip through France is Normandy's capital of Rouen, once one of the largest cities of Medieval Europe. The city has an incredible history. Unknown to the Romans, it was founded by the Gauls and overrun by Vikings in 841. It became capital of the Duchy of Normandy and the residence of the dukes, including William the Conqueror. It is also the city where Joan of Arc was killed and a favorite place of Monet's to paint.

We arrived late in the evening and checked into our tiny budget-friendly hotel. We had two adjoining rooms, which should really be called adjoining closets. There was barely enough room to walk around the beds and the bathroom was no different from a camper's. Although it was uncomfortable, it was in a great area of town. After breakfast at the hotel, we were able to leave our car parked there and spend the morning walking around the old part of the city.

We stopped in first at Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen, which you may recognize from a famous series of paintings by Monet. The cathedral is incredibly old. In fact, a church has been at this location since the 4th century. The cathedral itself was consecrated in 1065. It was listed as the tallest structure in the world from 1876 to 1880. Through the years, it has been damaged by lightening, fire, and bombs that fell on it during WWII. It contains the tombs of Richard the Lionheart and John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford, who had Joan of Arc tried and killed. Other people buried here include William I, Duke of Normandy, Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, and Empress Matilda.

The church is really quite amazing to look over. We all thought it looked as if it were decorated with lace.

We took a stroll through town to check out the Gros Horloge (Great Clock), an astronomical clock, and the town's belfry, both built in the 14th century.

Can't you just imagine Vikings bashing around this town?

From here, we headed up the street to the Place du Vieux Marché, which is the square where Joan of Arc was burned in 1431. Today, a very tall cross marks where her stake was placed and a church named after her is nearby.

We had a good morning in Rouen. Given the historical significance of the city, it was a must see for us. A few hours is really all we needed there to see the sites. We grabbed some fruit and cheese at a grocery store for lunch, got in the car, and headed out of town.

Giverny

Today, we bid adieu to Paris. We had an amazing time and left with a greater love for the city. We also left with a list of places "to-see next time". After much hassle, we were able to rent a car and find/buy/install three carseats in it. I'd ask Monsieur Bacon to share his experience with this, but I'm not sure he's ready. It was...an ordeal.

We headed out to Giverny, also known as the home of Impressionism. It is possibly the cutest town I've ever seen in my life. It's bright, clean, full of flowers, and green fields. Giverny was made world famous by Claude Monet, who settled in the town in 1883 with his wife and 8 children. He built himself an oasis of calm with gardens of flowers, a water lily pond, and a Japanese garden. It was here that he painted many of his best known masterpieces. Our kids have a fondness for Monet, after reading and watching "Linnea's Garden" several times in the past couple of years. In the story, Linnea visits Paris and Giverny to learn about Monet. The movie is available on Netflix if you have any little ones interested in art (or easily entertained).

We were able to tour the Monet home (he had a fondness for Japanese art), the gardens, and see the water lily pond and famous bridge.

Here is a photo by Garçon Livre:

We had a wonderful time wandering around the gardens. Near closing time, we headed in to the museum gift shop, which was formerly Monet's studio. We stayed until closing time and then wandered in to town to find some dinner.

So our travelling style is to research the big things and then sort of explore. By wandering around town, we ended up at the Hotel Baudy, once a hangout of Monet himself (he paid for his meals in paintings). The hotel was formerly a grocery store, but when painters started ascending on the town, the owner decided to convert the upstairs into rooms for travelers. The owner even built studios out back for the painters to work and guess what? Our man, Cézanne, painted here. The meal was pretty good, the service good, and the grounds were beautiful. Out back of the hotel we found a studio and paths for walking.

A studio:

Back of the hotel:

A walking path:

After dinner, we walked to our car. It was a beautiful evening for a walk. Giverny is the perfect place to decompress after Paris and in stark contrast to Versailles. We had the most lovely time.

Paris: Day 7

The Palace of Versailles. The center of the French Court. Home of Marie Antoinette and a few Louis's, or  maybe Louises? Louisi... Ahem, many people named Louis. Monsieur Bacon and I have had it on our "must-see" list for years. Due to the fact that it is located outside of town and takes a full day to see properly, we had to forgo it the last time we were in Paris. The Versailles website and our guidebook both said it was wise to avoid Tuesdays, since it is one of the busiest days, so of course, that ended up being the only day which worked out for us to go. We tried to plan ahead as much as we could and bought our tickets online. We took the metro to the RER station and rode that out to Versailles. The trip isn't long at all, about 30 minutes. Once off the train, we headed over to the palace with the masses. Lines. Lines, everywhere.

This is one line zigzagging around to get into the palace, called "The Chateau". You can forgo this and just see "The Gardens" (free everyday, except Tuesday, of course). The Gardens alone would be an amazing day, and most comfortable for families. We would have considered it, but Monsieur Bacon wanted to see the Hall of Mirrors, which was where the Treaty of Versailles was signed, and really, how can you come all this way and NOT see Marie Antoinette's apartments?!

Once we passed through security, the line continued to get a free audio tour guide device. Um, no thanks. We had enough lines. We headed inside and gawked at everything. The palace is the most amazing display of opulence I've ever seen, it's no wonder the French citizens pushed the royals out during the Revolution. The tour of the palace did continue to be very hot and crowded. We had to hold the kids so we didn't lose them and so that they did not get squished. One of the most notable rooms we were able to see was the Hercules Room, where big suppers and balls were held. On one side of this room is an enormous fire place and on the other side is an enormous painting of Jesus at a Venetian party getting his feet washed. Pretty sure Jesus washed other people's feet? So ridiculous and interesting. The Royal Chapel was impressive. Marie Antoinette's rooms were amazing to see. They are still set up just as she had them. Passing through her bedroom, I read 19 princes were born in the room. Wow. We also saw the much awaited Hall of Mirrors. It is impressive today, but must have been so much more so hundreds of years ago when mirrors were a luxury.

After seeing the Hall of Mirrors, we pretty much booked it to the nearest exit. We headed out into the sunshine and paid to enter The Gardens. As I noted before, they are usually free. On Tuesdays though, there is a fountain water show and there is a charge. There are also charges when there are special events, like concerts. Basically, come hoping The Gardens are free, but expect to pay 8 euros a person to get in.

The Gardens are incredible. It's hard to imagine their size...it's a ridiculously gigantic park is what it is. The best decision we made all day (maybe even the whole trip) was renting a golf cart. For an exorbitant 30 euros an hour, we were able to save our kids' legs and avoid listening to the redundant, "I'm tired and can't walk!" or "Will you carry me?" The golf cart played soothing music and gave lovely commentary on the many groves, fountains, statues, etc. I can't convey enough how ridiculous these gardens are. You could spend days walking around in them and seeing the many sights.

The Grove of Apollo's Baths

The Encelade Grove depicting the titans buried under rocks after trying to climb Mount Olympus. Greek mythology was very chic in the 1600s. Many of the statues in the fountains are cast in lead and gilded.

The Grand Canal

The Grand Canal. View up towards the palace.

Another gorgeous path.

Stretching our legs!

The Water Show. Fountains set to music...six year old mind blown.

The Petit Trianon. Marie Antoinette's getaway house, about a 40 minute walk from the main palace. Thank goodness we had that golf cart! There is a wonderful little cafe here where we had lunch.

The Orangerie. Louis XIV kept a thousand orange trees to astonish visitors. They were mostly kept in greenhouses, but wheeled out on sunny days to impress.  What's that? It's winter? Sha-sha, orange trees!

View from palace down to the canal. It takes an army of gardeners now, can you imagine the human capital required before gasoline mowers?

I suppose I could make this work if I HAD to.

Our princess running around the palace grounds.

All in all, a beautiful place to visit, but the crowds come close to ruining it. Come early, visit the gardens first, and tour the chateau in the afternoon after all the other suckers (that's us) are out.

Paris: Day 6

We woke up to a cool, overcast day. The kids were still exhausted, even after a night of sleep. They pretty much begged to stay home. We had plans, but decided to cancel everything in order to let them rest. They stayed in p.j.'s all morning and played at the apartment.

While Monsieur Bacon watched the kids, Madame Salade decided to take a walk in the rain to The Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. It is a sacred destination to many Catholics, as it is the chapel where Mary appeared to St. Catherine Labouré in 1830 and requested the making of The Medal of the Immaculate Conception, or Miraculous Medal. It is also the resting place of the bodies St. Catherine Labouré, St. Louise de Marillac, and St. Vincent de Paul, all incorruptable.

The area the chapel is located in is very busy, full of traffic, stores, and restaurants. The chapel entrance is unassuming and easy to miss. I spotted a blue plaque and an open door and went in. I walked through a small courtyard to a door with another blue plaque marking the chapel, but I honestly could not tell if I was in the right place. It was so quiet and peaceful, no lines, no tickets to buy-totally unlike every other attraction we've been to this trip. I opened  the door to the chapel and knew I had found it. The chapel was about half full and continued filling up while I was there. It was very quiet. I kept thinking about how much noise my munchkins were probably making at home. I moved around a bit to see the whole chapel and the bodies St. Catherine and St. Louise. I had known about St. Catherine for a long time, but I have to admit, I did not know much about St. Louise. I've been reading about her since my visit today and she is wonderful. Very easy to relate to. Isn't that why we love the saints?

Once back at home Madame Salade surveyed the damage that can only come from leaving a man in charge of 3 small children. Not too bad. Soon the babies went down for a nap and Monsieur Bacon took Garçon Livre to the English bookstore.

We were all going a bit stir crazy in the evening (a one bedroom, 300 sq. foot apartment with no toys or yard for the kids will do that!), so we decided to go out for dinner. We went just downstairs to a small, funky place called, Aux Artistes. AMAZING. Perhaps our best meal in France yet. Dinner plats are 14 euros and include an appetizer, a main course, a dessert or cheese course, and coffee. We were able to pick and choose enough items to share and satisfy everyone. We shared bread, a charcuteries plate, and a tomato and mozzarella salad. Monsieur Bacon had duck confit for the first time and he is a changed man. I mean, what could go wrong with a duck that has been salt cured, poached in duck fat, preserved in duck fat, and then fried in duck fat? Madame Salade had a veggie and herb omelet (a popular dinner item). And it was a really good omelet. For dessert, we all shared a crème brûlée and a pot of fromage blanc with chestnut sauce (think creamy greek yogurt and a sweet fig-tasting sauce). Everything was just superb. And the bar decor was great too:

Paris: Day 5

Today we visited the La Sainte-Chapelle, a medieval Gothic chapel. It was built by King Louis IX (St. Louis) to display his relic of Christ's Crown of Thorns, which he had recently purchased from the last emperor of Constantinople, Baldwin II. The chapel was built astonishingly quickly, from 1239-1248. Although it was damaged during the French Revolution, it was restored and is one of the greatest displays of stained glass in the world.

Before entering, you must go through a metal detector and have your bags searched. Security is tighter at Sainte Chapelle than at other attractions because of it's close proximity to government buildings. After passing through security, we waited in line about 20 minutes to buy our tickets. Once inside, we went directly up the spiral staircase to the chapel.

Pictures do not do the place justice. It is just beautiful. Here is a video to give you more of a feel:

It was noon by the time we left Sainte-Chapelle. We were feeling pretty accomplished for the morning. We stopped at a sandwich shop nearby to grab some lunch to take with us and headed over to park near the Cuny Museum. The kids ate as quickly as they could, in order to get to the playground. They were excited to hear a little girl speaking English. We visited with her parents-both American online teachers. They had been living in France for three months and leaving soon for three months in Scotland. After that, they move to Spain, then to Portugal, and then to Croatia, then back to the States. How's that for a sweet deal? FYI, we are currently looking for online teaching positions.

After the kids ran themselves ragged at the playground, we hauled them to another bus stop. On the way, we saw some remains of an ancient Roman bath. It is so cool to just stumble upon stuff like that! We eventually made it to the Arc de Triomphe. The Arc de Triomphe is an iconic monument, honoring those who fought in the French Revolution, Napoleanic Wars, and World War I.

We strolled down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, a busy, wide street, filled with luxury shops and fine dining restaurants. 

We laughed and took pictures of people waiting in roped lines to get into Abercrombie and Fitch. "Man, it's so hard to find American schmedium t-shirts here!":

And we eventually found ourselves in another lovely park where the kids picked dozens of flowers for their mama. We've taught them well.

We headed home on another beautiful bus ride. Out the window, we saw the Eiffel Tower up close, the gorgeous Pont Alexandre III Bridge, and the Les Invalides, which is home to Napoleon's tomb. We also saw some big protest going on.

For dinner, we picked up Thai take out. The restaurant owner complimented us on our Thai food knowledge and told us, "The French don't know Thai food". Man, these San Diegans miss Oiishi's.