Normandy

"It's on the strength of observation and reflection that one finds a way. So we must dig and delve unceasingly." - Claude Monet

This weekend I went to Normandy on my last excursion with my study abroad program. It was just a day trip, so we didn’t get to see the D-Day beaches or Mont St. Michel , which I had been hoping to see before leaving France , but I still had a great time, and now I’ll have another excuse to come back!

The day started off with a trip to Monet’s house and gardens in Giverny. Claude Monet was one of the founders of French impressionist painting. He first lived at this house with his family in 1883, and bought the property in 1890. Monet transformed the house, building a greenhouse and a second studio. From the 1880s until the time of his death, Monet worked on his “series” paintings, including the famous Water Lilies, which he painted at Giverny. Monet was a master at interpreting light in his art. He loved to paint the organized nature of his garden, and he was an avid gardener, who wrote detailed instructions for his gardens with precise descriptions of how he wanted everything. Monet’s Nymphéas (Water Lilies) series consists of about 250 paintings that depict his flower garden. These are showcased in museums all over the world, including the Orangerie Museum here in Paris . My friends and I went to the Orangerie earlier this week, and we were captivated by the beauty of Monet’s work. Viewing some of his actual paintings, and then later seeing the location for their inspiration, was an amazing experience.

 Leaving Giverny, we headed to the idyllic Normandy town of Honfleur . This quaint town, with its charming port and old buildings, attracted artists such as Gustave Courbet, Eugene Boudin, Claude Monet, and Johan Jongkind to paint here. These artists formed the école de Honfleur (Honfleur school) and contributed further to the Impressionist movement of the time. Honfleur is beautiful and it was nice to spend an afternoon in the laid-back atmosphere of this harbor town. We enjoyed a lunch of very fresh, delicious seafood, and after lunch, took a walk to see Sainte-Catherine church, the largest wood church built in France . It was beautiful on the inside and I even spotted a statue of St. Anne, my middle name. France has many distinct regions with unique characteristics. I loved our visit to Normandy ; being close to the ocean and spending the afternoon in a harbor town reminded me of home