Normandy: Time to Invade by Daphne Beames
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The name Normandy comes from the Norsemen who first invaded the Côte de Nacre in the 9th-century. Today it evokes wind-swept beaches and D-Day landings - but it is also the land of Monet’s garden; Mont-St-Michel; William the Conqueror and Richard the Lionheart. Throw in some delectable cuisine; Deauville; and half-timbered houses in quaintly named villages - and the mix becomes irresistible.
The delights of rural Normandy are only an hour’s drive from Paris. Follow the River Seine towards the ancient Norman capital of Rouen - past old water mills, lush green fields and picturesque, stone farmhouses. This is the home of the patch-eyed cow, the wild blackberry and the apple orchard. A profusion of signs in the hedgerows promotes local industry by announcing ici vente cidre.
Our hotel on the banks of the Seine, near Louviers, was the old Moulin de Connelles. This charming setting, where white swans float on tranquil waters, framed by overhanging trees, proved an ideal base for exploratory forays.
The first of these was an afternoon at Giverny. Even the approach is idyllic! Claude Monet’s first glimpse of this countryside was through the window of a speeding train. He returned - and was to live and work in this simple village for the rest of his life.
The house and gardens - newly restored - opened to the public in 1980. Giverny is about a special kind of light; it is a wild, palette of colour and a fragrant profusion of blooms. This ‘garden for all seasons’ is one giant, magnificent, artist’s canvas. Although it will always attract crowds of sightseers, it somehow retains the calm restfulness of a sylvan retreat.
Wander through the terraces below the house, between the rows of well-tended shrubs and annuals in the Clos Normand. Pinks and yellows come cascading down, in a floral tapestry designed to appear as a naturally flowering wilderness. A flourish of unusual touches includes long, swaying stems; hidden corners and borders of brilliant blue, rock plants. Even the common ‘morning glory’ – ipomoea - reaches new heights as it twines aesthetically around pyramids of trellis.
A walkway under the road connects the main gardens with the unbelievably beautiful water garden. Subtle and breathtaking - it is as though one has stepped into an impressionist painting. The tranquil, green waters are awash with a myriad of pastel-coloured, floating waterlilies – every type in the world. The bright, green Japanese Bridge and the overhanging willows create the perfect backdrop - it cannot fail to enchant. Here, Monet lives on, in a creation that it is worthy of a world-renowned artist!
The double storeyed maison is painted in ‘crushed-brick’ pink with shutters and woodwork in deep green – it has superb proportions and is evocative of the lifestyle of the 1890’s. Inside, the walls are covered with the artist’s collection of Japanese prints. The lounge on the ground floor features a large, sepia photograph of Claude Monet standing amidst furnishings that remain almost completely unchanged. There is the authentic ‘blue’ kitchen, adorned with original brassware, and the famous ‘yellow’ dining-room - its walls painted a distinctive and inspirational shade. This is still a family home!
As an octogenarian Monet needed more light for his work and a new bright, airy gallery was custom built for this purpose. Today this huge ‘Waterlily Studio’ serves as the souvenir shop. There are prints on sale but no originals on show - some of these are housed in the American museum close by. Giverny is not to be missed. (It is open to the public every day, except Mondays.)
Follow the river towards Rouen. At Les Andelys it makes a tight bend and here, quite suddenly, one is greeted by the most dramatic sight to be seen anywhere along the Seine. This is Château-Gaillard – the ruined castle of Richard the Lionheart. It stands on a high promontory and a steep climb up the white cliffs will bring you to its ghostly walls. (The castle is open to the public from mid-March to mid-November and is accessible by car.)
The whole of this area is steeped in history and a short drive though the ancient oak and beech forests, past the Abbe de Mortemer, will bring you to a favourite haunt of Henry I of England. This is the beautiful village of Lyons-la-Forêt. The half-timbered houses lining the cobbled streets; the hanging baskets over-flowing with bright blooms; the wooden, open-air market place and the charming home of Maurice Ravel, the composer - make it pure joy to behold. Not for nothing is it listed as one of the prettiest villages in France.
We headed for Caen on our journey to the beaches of Arromanches-les-Bains. Caen is famous as the seat of William the Conqueror and his wife, Matilda. The two, impressive, 11th-century abbey churches built by them – the Abbaye aux Hommes and the equally famous Abbaye aux Dames are open to visitors daily. Near-by is the town of Bayeux - which plays host to the famous Bayeux Tapestry – a clever comic strip depicting 1066 and the Battle of Hastings.
And, speaking of invasions, stretched out along the north coast lie the wind-swept beaches of Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword. The site of the beginning of Operation Overlord and the D-Day Landings of 1944 - they provide a focus for any visit. A remnant of the artificial, ‘Mulberry’ harbour, towed across from England still lies on the sand at Arromanches.
A short walk down the cliff, past the memorial cross in honour of the fallen, will bring you to the 360º Cinéma Circulaire where, twice every hour throughout the day, the landings are dramatically re-enacted. One is totally surrounded by the horror and noise of battle; it is as though the past has come startlingly to life and it serves as a stark reminder! In fact, so realistic is the experience that, as we watched, a fellow viewer fainted and fell.
All around are poignant monuments: cemeteries, memorials and museums - and then, in the brassy town on the water’s edge, there is the usual cluster of mood destroying souvenir stalls - all determined to get in on the act.
A short drive will bring you to Deauville on the Côte Fleurie. This up-market resort sports expensive yachts, striped umbrellas, the catwalk – Les Planches - and chic, beach-front hotels. Made famous in the 19th-century by the Duc de Morny, it still seems to belong to the days of ‘Gigi’ but is the ideal venue for lunch. Try the one-star Michelin fish restaurant - Le Spinnaker – this is one of Normandy’s finest.
We saved the finest till the last. Second only to Versailles, on the list of top-rated sights in the whole of France, is the evocative and awe-inspiring Mont-St-Michel. Sandwiched between Brittany and Normandy – on a featureless, flat and grey coastline is an unusual outcrop of rock. Watch the horizon carefully. The first glimpse of a distant spire, soaring upward, veiled and shrouded in mist to its summit, will become a haunting and indelible memory.
Standing securely beyond the old causeway, this impregnable fortress has been a Benedictine Abbey since the 8th-century. Excitement mounts as one approaches. Crowds fill the carpark and an endless stream of miquelots (pilgrims to St Michael’s Mount) moves single-mindedly towards the austere ramparts. Once through the entrance, another world awaits. Who could guess that a medieval village lies within these walls?
There is frenetic movement, colour and pageantry. There are boutiques, souvenir shops and restaurants. But most of all there is expectation - written on the faces of those making the steep climb to the monastery gates. The architects who fashioned this Romanesque retreat wrapped it round the rock and thrust it skywards - thus creating a unique floorplan.
A splendid abbey church, eighty metres long and eighty metres above the sea, crowns the edifice. Buttresses support the structure. Crypts, refectories, cloisters and halls, cluster together in their confined space - an enormous wheel, installed to hoist provisions, takes pride of place in the old Monk’s Ossuary.
As a last port of call, stop in the lovely, first millennium town of Avranches. Here, legend has it, the Archangel Michael appeared, to order the construction of the church on the mount, and from here there is an outstanding view of Mont-St-Michel, seen in silhouette across the bay. This so inspired Victor Hugo that he wrote: ‘Saint-Michel surgissait, seul, sur les flots amers’. (St. Michael looms alone above the bitter waves.)
Lift the lid on a treasure trove of cultural wealth and innate charm: discover Normandy.