Of Cathedrals and Saints

Today, we took the train down to Rouen. We went down to Gare St-Lazare and found out that the train we were planning to take, was only scheduled for one day a year ! and as such had to take a later train, due to leave one hour later. That's what comes of not reading footnotes. Might be slightly difficult if they are in French, but at least there would have been some sort of warning. Anyway, we walked out for a short stroll about the place and did some window shopping before returning to catch our train.


We eventually arrived in Rouen just before 12 noon and found our way into the old city. Apparently Rouen suffered considerable damage during World War II but even so, there were many old, half-timbered houses which survived from the time. And certainly, the narrow, cobblestonee streets appear to be in good order. We walked down to Hotel de Ville and the neighbouring Eglise St-Ouen. Unfortunately the church was closed and we could not get in. But behind the church, we found a quiet park. It was lunch hour (maybe the reason why the church was closed) and many people were lying on the grass, enjoying the sun. This gentleman was definitely having a nap.


Rouen, we found, was a more leisurely place than Paris. People greeted each other with the traditional pecks on the cheeks, which we did not see in Paris. Drivers stop for people at the zebra crossings on the road. And lunch hour was definitely sacred. The church, various shops, and the tourist office were all closed. So we did as the people of Rouen did and lunched on baguettes in a square beside the cathedral.


Rouen is also full of Japanese tourists. The only spot open in the tourist office was the service point for Japanese tour groups. We also saw them in the streets, taking photos of the cathedral, and even at the next table to ours, sipping a cup of coffee. They were in the cathedral, too. I suppose it is because Rouen is such a convenient day out from Paris, and makes a nice accompaniment to a visit to Giverny. A "Monet day"!



Of course, the cathedral is the main attraction of any trip to Rouen. Its tall towers, intricate facade and delicate stonework are indeed very beautiful. But its main attraction had to be that it was painted so many times by Monet. Going inside, what I found interesting was the many little placards in the side chapels which described the chapel's contents and showed pictures of how the cathedral had been damaged in WWII. One placard in one particular chapel noted that this was the only chapel which had survived the bombs on that side of the cathedral and if it had been destroyed, likely the whole nave would have fallen in, and the whole cathedral destroyed. Here it is, with its wood-panelled walls and paintings still intact...


We were also lucky that the cathedral had been recently restored. In places like France and Italy, restoration is indeed a never-ending task, because of the number of such beautiful old buildings. No sooner is restoration completed on all the buildings, that it is time to start again. But it is well worth the effort as beautiful stone emerges from beneath centuries of grime.


We walked from the cathedral to this little street of shops, Rue de Gros Horloge to the Gros Horloge, or this big clock and the tall tower beside it. This was the shopping street in Rouen and as lunch time was past, it had come back to life. We made a little detour to the Palais du Justice, the old Normam Parliament Building and then found our way to the little church of St Joan of Arc, or Eglise Ste-Jeanne d'Arc.


St Joan of Arc is a French national heroine. Her feast day is celebrated throughout France, and the church is just part of a larger national monument to her. It is a small modern church, built besides the ruins of an older building (destroyed during WWII?). The church is roughly fan-shaped in area and has a whole wall of large, stained glass panels across the diameter of the hall. A flower bed outside marks the spot where Joan was burnt at the stake. On the other side of the church, is the marketplace. It seems a little incongruous but on the other hand, who knows? It could have stood there for many years before being rebuilt in a more modern manner...


We got back from Rouen that evening, in time for dinner at the restaurant in Nicholas Flamel's old house. It was a pretty restaurant, a charming place to have a meal. And service was pretty good. The food however, missed that special something. The appetisers were fine. I really enjoyed my foie gras with the baked gala apples on it. But my 7-hour lamb was a teensy bit dry. I also swapped dessert with my friend and her ginger creme brulee was not really very exciting.

After dinner, we went back to the apartment - to finish washing our clothes. Because we had no drier, the apartment was covered with clothes after that.

Photos here!