Monday 7 October 2013

Leaving Rouen


We have now just left Rouen, the capital of Normandy, after staying here nearly 24 hours.
 


Even though Rouen is the third largest port in France, it is 120 km from the sea. So now we start on our long way back on the river Seine, towards the sea again.
 

 
Most of our passengers visited the charming old center of the city – some by participating on our excursion Rouen City tour. Both William the Conquer and Joan of Arc died in this town, which Victor Hugo called «the city of a hundred spires». The most impressing of all: The Cathedral of Notre -Dame.
 



The change between low and high tide is dramatic here in Rouen. It forms a tidal bore, which is a large movement of water formed by the funneling of the incoming tide into the river. In due to this, our gangway – which was meant to be open all night for passengers wanting to discover the nigthlife of Rouen or Paris – had to be closed in one hour the time around midnight.
 
Early this morning, there was an excursion to Giverny and the Monet Museum. Who would not have wished to own such a wonderful garden as  the French Impressionist Claude Monet?