I’m not sure why – maybe it’s because of the smashing success of my first trip there with Alice Wang two years ago – but I’m totally in love with Normandy. Granted, the weather is absolutely abysmal – even in May, it was overcast and foggy every single moment of every single day, and I had to wear both of my (admittedly light, Caribbean-wardrobe) jackets over another shirt just to be moderately okay. But to me, Normandy is incredibly, incredibly beautiful. Places like the French Riviera and Martinique are gorgeous, of course, but in a stunning, in-your-face kind of way. Normandy’s beauty is more subtle, understated, rough around the edges. And though I was internally complaining about the wind and cold the whole time, there is something poetic about the perpetually grayish glow everything’s bathed in, especially contrasted with the brilliant green of the rain-soaked pastures you see when you pass through.
My trip to Normandy this time wasn’t as cool as my trip with Alice Wang, but I saw some new and different things nonetheless.
The beach at Trouville. It’s right next to the town of Deauville, which was completely shut down and barricaded by police officers that day due to the G8 conference.
Honfleur. I only got to spend about an hour there, which was a shame because it was ridiculously charming, in a very elegant, Normandy sort of way.
Le Havre. A shout-out to anyone who ever had to read Maupassant’s Pierre et Jean in AP French. The town’s in the midst of building a tramway, so everything was under construction and quite frankly, rather ugly. I walked all the way to the waterfront, where the wind was so strong I thought I’d literally be swept off my feet. The beach was covered with giant pebbles.
And finally, Rouen, the capital of Normandy. The cathedral Monet painted so prolifically is here (below), as well as several of his tableaux in the Musée de Beaux-Arts.
Other Rouen highlights:
The exact spot where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake.
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