Rouen, France Vacation Article

Rouen, France Vacation

The capital of upper Normandy is Rouen and the town is very well known for its museums, Gothic cathedrals and also church spires and most of all for Joan of Arc. This is a medieval town that dates back to the year 911 when it was designed by a person named Viking Rollo, the then Duke of Normandy. After the ravages of the Second World War, Rouen has now been rebuilt once more while keeping its medieval style in tact.

Rouen ranks fourth in terms of France’s leading ports and it is here that the bigger container ships dock to send their cargo onward to Paris. If you want to reach here by air, the nearest airport is at Boos, about nine kilometers south of the town with regular bus services connecting the town and airport. For accommodation, Rouen boasts of no less than three thousand hotel rooms with the very swank Du Vieux Marche hotel one of the better hotels of the town. And, if you are the adventurous type and wish to go camping there is two main campsites to choose from that are Camping de l’Aubette in St-Leger du Bourg Denis and the Camping Municipal.

As anyone that comes to France knows, the cuisine is excellent no matter where in France you happen to be and the restaurants in Rouen are no exception though they may charge a bit more over the weekends because of family dining events. You will find the better restaurants in place du Vieux Marche and there is also the excellent Le Maupassant where you will enjoy delightful culinary fare. Also popular are the Tunisian takeaways, creperies as well as the many bars that include the glamorous La Luna that has salsa and a South American flavor.

Among the very attractive places to see in Rouen is the Notre Dame Cathedral that has a Tour de Beurre or the butter tower. This cathedral has been painted quite a bit by Claude Monet and one can see these paintings in the Musee d’Orsay that is situated in Paris. There is also the astronomical clock from the sixteenth century called the Gros Hologe and it is aptly situated in the street named Gros Horloge. You would also find the Gothic Church of Saint Maclou from the fifteenth century worth visiting as also the Tour Jeanne d’Arc which is the place where Joan of Arc was brought to in the year 1431 and threatened with torture.

Other interesting places in Rouen are the Church of Saint Quen from around the twelfth to fifteenth century and the Palais de Justice that was once the place where the French court of law or seat of Parliament was situated. For those who wish to see something more modern there is always the Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics that has excellent faience as well as porcelain collections and this is something that Rouen was famous for during the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries.

And, finally you would not want to miss out viewing the modern church of Saint Joan of Arc that is situated in the middle of Place du Vieux Marche and this is dominant structure of the square and the form of the building is representative of the pyre on which Joan of Arc met her end when she was burnt to death.