A highlight of this Uniworld river cruise is a stop at the Village of Giverny where Monet made his home for many years and painted his famous water lilies. (I could not get the right effect in the pic above with my camera app, but at least it’s a bit artistic!)
His love of color is evident everywhere. The pink and green home he shared with his large family is so inviting, with its vividly painted rooms and large cheerful blue kitchen. Of note, no original paintings are on display here – only reproductions.
His gardens were massive—much larger than I had imagined, with thousands of flowering plants blooming in tiered patches of color and disappearing paths.
A riot of color is displayed within a scene of organized chaos.
The Gardens
A second garden features the famous pond with his iconic water lilies. A few were still blooming, even though the gardens will now close for the season. Monet would spend hours in his small boat painting them in different light and conditions.
Before he had money, Monet did much of the garden work himself. It was one of his passions. Today it takes a staff of five to keep it up. The dozens of dahlia varieties were impressively amazing! Fliting around were birds, butterflies, and dragonflies, even at this late fall date.
Monet led a complicated and interesting life and I enjoyed learning more about him. His world was a palate of color – filled with his love of flowers, art, good food, and his family and friends.
Back on the Uniworld SS Joie de Vivre, I enjoyed a lecture about the Impressionist movement, and the artists who inspired it and, along with Monet, created such beautiful imagery.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like A Voyage Through Normandy.
We have embarked on a river cruise to Normandy, France, sailing round-trip from Paris on the Seine. From the moment we set foot on the Uniworld SS Joie de Vivre, we knew we’d made the right decision. The ship is beautifully appointed with French décor and the food and beverage service embraces the best of locally sourced wines and foods. The staff is wonderful – calm, organized, competent, and thorough.
For the next few posts, I will share a little info about our ports of call and some pictures of this wonderfully picturesque, part of the world.
First Stop: La Roche-Guyon
We woke up to a foggy morning, with a chill in the air, and a swan floating around outside our cabin. A very short walk led us to the Château de La Roche-Guyon and its imposing position over the Seine. Classified as a Historic Monument, the keep and castle were built and added to for ten centuries. From the Middle Ages through the 18th century, various building styles and materials have created the impressive structure seen today. At this point, family has returned and since the pandemic, the current Duke and his young family have inhabited the second floor of the Château.
Rows of pear and apple trees are augmented by flower and vegetable gardens providing a deceptively tranquil setting for what would become a center of the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. This area of France was occupied more than any other, and the castle was taken over as a command center – housing none other than the Desert Fox, General Rommel, for six months.
Built right into the area’s chalk cliffs, the Château’s unique bunkers were expanded and used as a vital Nazi operations center, and housed facilities for radio broadcasts spewing propaganda. We needed to use the flashlights on our cellphones as we entered the dark, cold bunkers. They are always 52 degrees, and if you touched a wall, you would be coated with chalk dust. I found it very claustrophobic. Currently, the castle features an exhibition about the Monument Men (now of movie fame) who rescued stolen artworks the Germans hid in salt caves.
We climbed steep stairs to the largest dovecote I’ve ever seen. Thankfully now empty, with over 1,000 cubbyholes, it could hold more than 2,000 doves (or pigeons). Once a sign of affluence, the birds were used for food, feathers, and even the sale of their droppings (imagine that job).
The day had become sunny and we were back on the river.
The famous Esther tapestries (two of which are shown above) were made for the Château by the same artisans used for Versailles. In private hands for years, the French government bought them from designer Karl Lagerfeld and returned them to their original home. The expansive room they call home was used by Rommel as his imposing office.
The original fortified Castle Keep at the top of the chalk cliff.
Totally by accident, we recently managed to dine in two White Horse Taverns, on opposite sides of the Atlantic.
Newport (Rhode Island, USA) and Chilham (Kent, England) are very different places. Besides their name, they share historic recognition praise, and are both listed as historic sites.
Newport | National Historic Landmark
“America’s Oldest Tavern” in Newport, dates back to days in a busy British Colony, initially built as a home in 1652 and converted to a tavern 21 years later. Early owner William Mayes was a known pirate and not very popular with colony officials. His sister Mary Mayes Nichols and her husband took over as innkeepers and kept the White Horse Tavern in the family for most of the next 200 years.
The very distressed building was saved by the Newport Preservation Society and eventually turned over to private owners. It is well-known as a perfect example of 17th-century Colonial American architecture. Today it’s a more upscale restaurant serving a varied menu.
Chilham | National Heritage Building
This quaint pub, the White Horse Tavern, is right at home on the town square of picturesque Chilham. Located across from Chilham Castle/Manor (now a school), the tavern is surrounded by wood-timbered Tudor and Jacobean architecture. It looks like a movie set. This White Horse is 550 years old! Imagine who you might have seen taking a meal here in the 16th century. Probably built with timbers salvaged from wrecked ships; you can find some significant markings if you look closely (or ask the friendly barkeep). Even better – it’s reported to be haunted. During renovations in 1956, two male skeletons were found in shallow graves just under the kitchen floor. Deemed ‘ancient bones’ they are now buried in the churchyard.
The Chilham site is also dog-friendly, and resident pup Colt joined us for lunch. He is a sweetheart. A 9-year-old Alaskan Malamute, Colt looks like he’s benefited from quite a few handouts.
A few other interesting points of interest include the Norman castle keep built for Henry II in 1174 on the Castle/Manor grounds. St. Marys Church is on the North Downs Way National Trail and is said to be the burial place of St. Augustine.
Meals can be so much more interesting when enjoyed surrounded by history.
The White Cliffs of Dover were a wonderful sight on a beautiful day.
I often plan something to do in that twilight zone between an early morning landing after an overnight flight. Too early to check into the hotel (besides we want to get on a new time schedule asap), no desire to sleep away the day, but maybe not at our sharpest . . . . I have found a great solution is to arrange a private guide. This way we get picked up at the airport, our bags are safely stowed for the day, and after our adventure, we’re delivered to our hotel.
Today we aimed to get up close to the White Cliffs of Dover, something my husband really wanted to do. Most of the time, he goes along with everything I want to do – so I wanted to make this happen.
We had a bit of a drive to get to the coast which was ideal for a snooze or chatting with our entertaining driver (guess who did what).
The Cliffs were gorgeous. We saw them from two perspectives, ground level and on the rim. The ground-level experience was a country park created at the foot of Shakespeare Cliff, with fill from the creation of the Chunnel between England and France. Previously, the base of the cliffs dropped right into the sea, but in this park, now with Samphire Hoe Country Park, there is a gorgeous 74-acre (30-hectare) nature preserve with room to walk.
With the English Channel on one side and the towering cliffs on the other, we shared the breezy middle ground with grazing sheep, cows, and just a few other scattered human visitors. Visitors walk easily through chalk grassland and sea buckthorn scrub. Spoiler alert, this was my favorite perspective.
The park has Shakespeare to thank for its name. In 1606 he wrote about the cliffs and the Rock Samphire wild plant in King Lear. (At one time it was collected from the shear cliffs, pickled, and served as a side dish). A “hoe” is a piece of land that protrudes into the sea.
Passing through the town of Dover, we headed into the British National Trust Park “White Cliffs of Dover”. There is a trail all along the edge of the cliffs. There is no guardrail. It was breezy. The path was uneven. Need I say more? We saw enough to be very satisfied. A bonus was the view of Dover Castle ‘guarding’ the coast.
The local expression says it all – ‘brilliant.’
Of note:
The Port of Dover has been in existence since Roman times, for more than 2,000 years, and is the closest port between England and Europe. It serves as the largest ferry terminal in the country in addition to handling over £100 billion of goods annually, providing 10,000+ regional jobs.
I was really surprised to see all the vineyards in the area. Kent is a center of England’s burgeoning wine industry. Warmer climates in England and wetter conditions in France have resulted in French companies buying land here. A few nights later at dinner with some good friends, we had the opportunity to sample a bottle of English sparkling wine (and a bottle of French champagne). The English was the winner!
