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 Mont saint Michel stands in the middle of a vast bay opening out onto the
English Channel. The shifting outlines of this vast bay are swept by Europe’s
highest tides. The most outstanding approach to Mont Saint Michel is to cross
the bay as the pilgrims used to do it before the road was built…(I can organize
it for you). The abbey of Mont Saint Michel is the highpoint of medieval
architecture from the Middle Ages, constructed on a rock pinnacle, where, at the
top is the most commanding viewpoint from which to discover the bay. The visit
of the abbey’s audacious and innovative rooms is evocative of one of
Christianity’s most important pilgrimage monument. This is the first French site
to be listed on the UNESCO world heritage.
Capital city of southern Normandy, Caen owes this honorific title to William
“the bastard” (before he became “the conqueror”) and his wife Mathilda. The town
developed around three major poles: the fortress and the two main Benedictine
abbeys founded by the couple and still standing nowadays despite all the
destructions of the Battle of Normandy… A rich heritage to discover.
Liberated on June 7th by the Allies and mostly spared from the
bombings, Bayeux has kept all the treasures of its rich heritage : the beautiful
cathedral and the famous “Bayeux Tapestry”, that depicts in 58 scenes the
preparation and the conquest of England by William “the Bastard”, Duke of
Normandy, who, after the battle of Hastings in 1066, became king of England.
 A major defensive harbor at the time of the Hundred Years’ war, Honfleur, on the
left bank of the Seine river, controlled the mouth of this royal river. From the
16th century, with the great discoveries, Honfleur was the birthplace
of numerous navigators.
Samuel de
Champlain organized several departures from Honfleur to Canada and particularly
in 1608 with the founding of Quebec.
Since the 19th
century, Honfleur has been the meeting place of the artists; Eugene Boudin
gathered around him many fellow artists such as Monet, Jongkind, Dubourg… as
well as poets like Charles Baudelaire. Impressionism was born there…
Just like the
town of Bayeux, Honfleur was totally spared from the bombings of WWII and has
therefore kept all its picturesque attractiveness.
 Here… man hears the grass growing… The Pays d’Auge is the postcard image of
Normandy that everyone dreams about : a half timbered cottage with its thatched
roof in the middle of a field planted with apple trees, and under the apple
trees… the beautiful brown and white Normandy cows !
A rich, green, fertile
farming region and horse breeding region, that provides the farmers with
everything they need to produce all the local specialties: Cheeses, cider,
calvados (apple brandy), all of these that have made the reputation of Norman
gastronomy.
 
Discover Rouen, the historical capital town of Normandy ; its historical centre
with half timbered houses, its architectural treasures such as Notre Dame
cathedral, whose façade was immortalized on Monet’s paintings, the magnificent
Saint Ouen abbey church, the flamboyant Saint Maclou church.. Follow in the
steps of historical personages such as Joan of Arc, Pierre Corneille, Gustave
Flaubert and many others who have contributed to Rouen’s prestigious history.
 A visit to Claude Monet’s house and gardens is an enchanting experience as the
gardens and water lilies blossom again as in the days of the impressionist
master! The gardens have been replanted in 1980 as they once were, the
collection of Japanese prints restored and left in the house to be admired.
Monet arrived here in 1883 and lived here until his death in 1926, he was 86
years old.
A visit of the
village allows discovery of more of the environment of the impressionist painter
and the village life at his time.
Just a short walking distance from Monet’s house, opened in 1992, the museum of
American art founded by the American businessman Daniel Terra and his wife
Judith. Daniel Terra had begun collecting American art in the 1970’s and had
quickly assembled an important collection, including numerous pictures painted
by American artists who were part of the colony of American artists of Giverny,
from 1887 until the first world war. The museum has evolved over the years and
now features temporary exhibitions devoted to all periods of American art.
Supported by the Terra Foundation for American Art in Chicago, the museum
fulfills the Foundation’s overarching mission: to promote American Art
throughout the world!
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