Most of our voyage has concentrated on Normandy but today we ventured out to the department ( or arrondissement, can be compared to our counties) of Calvados . Oh my, what a lovely village. So French. This is the first place I really, really felt like I was in France (except maybe for the Eiffel Tower). Our guides have been absolutely amazing and have given us such an education. Unfortunately, much of it is rattling around in my brain and refuses to come out!

Honfleur is a port city on the estuary of the Seine. Claude Monet and many other Impressionists painted here. And it is evident why. So very picturesque!

15th century Church of St Catherine is the oldest surviving wooden church in France

The bell Tower for St Catherine’s is across the street from the church. The reasoning is that since it is so high, if it gets struck by lightning and burns, it would not also burn the church

Supposedly these ceramic cats were first used to secure the wooden framework to the roof but quickly became decorative. Apparently they appear all over France but this is my first time seeing them.

Taxes were levied on the amount of house you had touching the ground. So they started to build up and out a little. This is an example of a second floor jutting out. This practice was outlawed in 1520 so this home is OLDER than 1520!!!!

The former prison

After our walking tour, Robin and I did some shopping!! She bought Calvados (apple brandy) and I bought caramels.

Buzz and Neil skipped Honfleur and toured Conflans and the River Museum there:

While the ladies were out carousing, Neil and I explored a bit of Caudebec-en-Caux where we were docked. We went in an old church (an old church, what a surprise!) in the center of town before wandering around town. We then went in a small but very nice museum ( MuseoSeine) that talks about the history of the Seine river.
The whole museum is in both French and English, including interactive video screens. There is a wealth of fascinating information and exhibits relating to the history of the Seine ports and life on and around the river, with several short film exhibits. We went onto a restored, local flat-topped cargo-carrying boat, right next to the river itself.