Away in April 2011

Day 26 – Rouen and Montmatre

Rouen

Tuesday, 26 April 2011

Early start for Gare St Lazares and train to Rouen which is about 110 kilometers away from Paris.

The plan today is to see Notre Dame Cathedral at Rouen and the Museum of Joan of Arc.

It was a day of only three disappointments – the train to Rouen was delayed by 90 minutes, Anthony forgot his hat and reading glasses, and we arrived only to find that the Joan of Arc Museum is not opened on Tuesdays!

Other than this, we found Rouen charming with its Mediaeval streets and lack of tourists. The Cathedral was spectacular and we didn’t have to queue. In building the Cathedral many different kinds of stone were used qnd it is an amalgam of many ages. It now contains altars dedicated to a host of saints, most of which have personalised candles that can be lit for special intentions.

We had lunch at a little cafe Le Bristrot des Carmes – toasted open sandwiches on a bed of greens, mine with chicken with camembert, and Anthony’s with goat’s cheese, pear and walnuts. Delicious! Accompanied by tap water and local cider and an expresso to finish.

We certainly had a glimpse of another part of France today – lovely rural landscapes on the journey, little towns and a beautiful Mediaeval city. We will have to come back and see more.

So little time left that we decided to get the metro from St Lazare to Montmartre to visit Sacre Coeur and wander through the 18th arrondissement.

There was a slight hiccup on the train outside of Anvers but problem resolved in a matter of minutes. A funicular is now available from Anvers but we decided to walk. WHAT A VIEW! By chance, 6.00pm mass had just started as we entered Sacre Coeur, so of course we stayed. It was all in French but the singing by 12 Benedictine nuns was amazing and the priest had a lovely accent!

Then wandering narrow streets with more souvenir shops and cafes, we came across a quaint little restaurant, Le Poulbot, with internal seating only, and decided to go in. Very tiny restaurant so we had a good view of what others were eating and their conversations! Next to us were 3 teachers from Perth, supervising a group of students on a literature excursion. A good gig if you can get it!

Lovely meal from a very tiny kitchen – for me seafood salad plate with lots of smoked salmon and delicious seafood terrine, whilst Anthony had a similar salad but with fois gras instead. Delicious!

Then a gentle evening stroll to Pigalle for the metro home.

	Gare St Lazare [Map]		Our train to Rouen [Map]
	Gare de Rouen [Map]		Old city gate at Rouen [Map]
	Notre Dame Cathedral Rouen [Map]		One of many stained glass windows at Notre Dame Ca [Map]
	Altar to St Joan of Arc [Map]		vaulted ceilings at Notre Dame Cathedral at Rouen [Map]
	Mediaeval streets of Rouen [Map]		Entrance to Notre Dame Cathedral Rouen [Map]
	Altar to St Anthony at Notre Dame Cathedral Rouen [Map]		Mediaeval tower where Joan of Arc was imprisoned [Map]
	View from Sacre Coeur Montmartre [Map]		Anthony &Teresa with Sacre Couer in the background [Map]
	winding streets of Montmartre [Map]		seafood buffet plate at Le Poulbot [Map]
	Le Poulbot restaurant Montmatre [Map]		strolling through Montmatre [Map]