Kyriad Rouen

... kitty sniffing around and Chris gave it a little bowl of milk. I guess it liked the milk since the next day there were paw prints going up our windshield and then a butt print of it sliding down again. I guess it was looking for a way in. We haven't found a cat in the van yet so I guess there was none!

Well it was back to Paris the next day with one last stop off in Versailles. There is always something else to see!

... south west to Paris. The plan is to visit the villages on the river on the way to Rouen, and are rewarded with their beauty.

We arrive to Rouen late in the afternoon. We eventually and somewhat tentatively settle on a park on the riverside by some docked barges being used as houses.

Kim cooked up gourmet hamburgers which was washed down ...

... was the largest and most beautiful I have seen and I was lucky enough to listen to the end of a song. It was also the best sounding, it was deeper and resonated more than the others, it sounds like something that the phantom would play.
I also checked out the other main square where Jean 'D Arc was executed. There is a giant cross speared into the ground where I supposed she was burnt at the stake. There is also a memorial church built in her honour ...

... to look for somewhere to get the laundry done. We searched online and found a place that was about a 15 minute bus ride away. Off we went to finally get this out of the way, got off the bus, walked a few blocks here and there zig zagging through the centre of town until we found the place. Now doing laundry is easy right? Well we must have looked a little clueless looking at the directions so a nice guy helped us with translating. So the laundry is finally ...

... where the infamous lily pond is. They weren't in bloom unfortunately but the many other plants kept me satisfied. The water was incredible too with the way the texture and colors of the foliage reflected off of it as if it was a mirror. It was a very nice garden but maybe its something about being from Florida that I just really enjoyed the sun garden!

Monet's house was a pink and green creation that fit perfectly in the middle of the garden. Pink and green would normally not ...

... we drive down to Giverny in Normandy! It was about an hours drive through the countryside! I do love seeing cows! We decided to visit Claude Monets famous gardens! If you dont know him, he is a pretty well known artist who painted beautiful landscapes of his huge gardens and the countryside! The first nice thing of the day was that parking was free!! The gardens were beyond amazing. So many types of flowers and plants. It was another sunny day so ...

The last day of our Travel/Study Program took place in Rouen/Honfleur. Rouen is the city where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. This is a gorgeous church now standing near the place she died. The stained glass within rivals that of Paris's Saint Chappelle. In Rouen, we visited the local museum to see Monet's painting of the Cathedral before setting off to see the real thing. Along the way, we passed by ...

... here, marching bands have trumpeted down our street, for no apparent reason at all. We lean out the windows and can't help but smile. It's random, it's kind of funny...and it's France. Today we hiked up the hillside to a popular look out point. We saw church steeples, curving rows of tile roofs, sailboats along the Seine, and busy streets down below. And now, it's 8:00 PM on Sunday. The sky is blue, and everything seems just right. Bonsoir, Leeza and Kyla

so we came to this little french town called rouen because it sounded good in the book...and we're very glad we did! everythings really....french! all the houses are very old and slanted and there are old churches everywhere. its where joan of arc was burnt at the stake and theres a church built right on that spot. there is a big cathedral that Monet did a series of paintings of so every night they are putting projections of his ...

Visited Ali D with Laura and Moir when she was studying in Rouen. Saw the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake, a beautiful cathedral and what seemed to be a really nice centre. However, most of the visit was spent in a drunken haze - I do have vague memories of despatching a group of Canadians in a drinking contest, karaoke in French and stumbling home to sleep on Ali's floor. Great trip but will have to go back and see the place sober some day.....