Rouen is the capital of Normandy and a pretty big city with almost half a million residents. After being severely bombed during World War II, much of the town, including areas along the Seine, has been rebuilt in a very functional, concrete style. Fortunately, much of the Old Town and the main cathedral were spared damage, and we took a walking tour of that area.
The medieval area is filled with half-timbered houses, combining oak and terracotta for a storybook effect. You can see that some of the buildings have shifted as neighboring structures disappeared over the centuries. They are leaning, windows are out of kilter – there must be a fairytale somewhere about quaint houses like this.
A centerpiece of the district is the gorgeous lunar clock. It was made by the same company that created the famous clock in London’s Big Ben.
Joan of Arc was burned at the stake here. I did not find her monument to be particularly photogenic, but her story was engaging.
The cathedral is massive and has foundations from the 4th century. It took hundreds of years to build. For me, it was like seeing visuals ripped from the pages of Ken Follett’s Pillars of the Earth.
We continued walking around and exploring the area on our own. I tried to find some of the local earthenware, and since I was disorganized, I failed! We can’t seem to get enough of baguette sandwiches and French pastry, so we grabbed a quick lunch before heading back to our Uniworld riverboat.
After dinner on board, we walked back to the Cathedral for a special evening performance. We listened to the wonderful St. Evior choir, an international group of 14 women and 10 men accompanied by organ and oboe. It was a very special experience.
BTW – I will never master the guttural French pronunciation of this city.
If you like this post you may enjoy other posts from Normandy: Monet’s Giverny and A Voyage Through Normandy.