A letter from our correspondent
Madame Inaba
Normandy's Mont Saint-Michel and Sites
Connected to Monet
Mont Saint-Michel
Vaux-sur-aure is situated in Normandy in the northwest of France. The most famous location in Normandy is surely Mont Saint-Michel, which is registered as a World Heritage Site. It is in fact registered as "Mont Saint-Michel and its Bay," and as this suggests, Mont Saint-Michel's beauty has an inseparable connection with the sea. The difference between high and low tide in the bay around Mont Saint-Michel is the largest in the world, and in just a few hours the tide rises by 20 km.
At high tide, Mont Saint-Michel used to appear as an isolated island floating in the middle of the sea. However in 1877, a road to the opposite shore was constructed, and now anyone can visit Mont Saint-Michel regardless whether it is high or low tide. But ironically, this road itself dammed the flow of the tide and led to the accumulation of a great amount of sand around the island. For this reason, construction work is currently ongoing to return Mont Saint-Michel to its beautiful former state, surrounded by sea.
Mont Saint-Michel began as a chapel which was built according to a divine message from the archangel Michael ("Michael" is the Hebrew for "Michel"). Therefore, as a sacred place it attracted many Catholic pilgrims. Later, it was used as a fortress during wartime and as a prison during the French Revolution. Climbing Mont Saint-Michel while considering its long history, you may discover a new side to this monument.
There are many sights in Normandy other than Mont Saint-Michel. Notre Dame Cathedral is located in Rouen, the former capital of the principality of Normandy, and is well-known partly for featuring in the work of the painter Claude Monet. Rouen was also the place where Joan of Arc ? who led France to victory in the Hundred Years' War, which decided the present-day border between France and the United Kingdom ? was burnt at the stake. In the plaza where she was burnt there is now a church.
Notre Dame Cathedral in Rouen
Tall Ships Festival
Although Rouen has a sad history, its streets today are very pretty, enthralling visitors with their rows of wooden-framed buildings. A Tall Ships Festival is held every five year, and many tourists visit Rouen to see ships gather from all over the world. In the 2008 festival, a Japanese warship also took part.
As I mentioned above with regards to Notre Dame Cathedral in Rouen, the painter Claude Monet has an enduring connection with Normandy. Monet moved to Giverny at the age of 43 to live out the rest of his years in peace. Here he built a garden according to his personal tastes. Monet bought a plot of land opposite his house, and constructed what seems like a reproduction of a Japanese water garden. Here he painted his famous series of pictures entitled Water Lilies.
Another famous place painted by Monet is Etretat. The weather beaten cliff forms
a beautiful natural arch, which some say looks like an elephant.
Here I have introduced Mont Saint-Michel and other well-known sights in
Normandy, but in addition to the famous spots, I also enjoy the simple rustic
atmosphere of the smaller, lesser-known villages.
I hope you too
will visit Normandy, and enjoy the atmosphere of this region for yourself.
'Monet's Garden' in Giverny
Etretat