Welcome to Honfleur, a port town with old world charm to spare. Monet, Courbet and Boudin all painted the facades of the old port. They are far from the only ones who find this town irresistible. In fact while we were there, a beautiful weekend in mid-October, the crowds reminded me of being in Disneyland on a summer afternoon. What can you expect, however, Honfleur is without a doubt one of the most picturesque towns in France,

A lovely example of the half-timbered buildings of Normandy..

Honfleur figured importantly in French history, especially in the relationship with England, From the twelfth century it was a transit point between Normandy and Britain. As mentioned last week, it was also the launching point of William’s campaign against Harold. Honfleur is located in an estuary of the Seine and has a very protected harbor, yet with ready access to the Channel. It was traded back and forth between the British and the French during the Hundred Year’s War. When the English were ousted once and for all at the end of the fifteenth century, the town became a major trading port of call.

*Cobbled streets at dusk, as we walk towards our seafood restaurant, including, of course, a platter of oysters.*

Cass and Billy chose our hotel, which was located directly on one of the outer ports, an ideal location. There is much to see in Honfleur, including Erik Satie’s childhood home, now an avant garde assemblage of crazy art installations and music, Eugène Boudin’s home is an impressionist art gallery. Also available to visit, though we didn’t, was a reproduction of one of William the Conqueror’s long boats.

There are also lots of opportunities for shopping and eating. The population of the town itself is less than 8000, but on the weekend we were there, I think there must have been an additional 5000 people at least, taking in the sites, having leisurely meals or snacks and participating in what was definitely a party atmosphere. There was music and entertainment on the streets.

*I took this photo one afternoon in our hotel room. It looked like an impressionist painting to me.*

Honfleur has several neighborhoods. We walked around the center near the ports, where people gather in large numbers, and we walked up the hill to visit museums where there are fewer people. Everywhere the city is very beautiful, tidy and well-maintained.

*The Lieutenant’s House, now a museum, with a panoramic view over the old port.*

The old port is certainly the most popular spot in town, but Honfleur also boasts the largest wooden church in France, of which I’m quite sure there are very few. The Church of Saint Catherine is truly marvelous, built by the townspeople, primarily ship builders, in the mid fifteenth century.

Our hotel was located just two blocks from the old port in one direction and two blocks from the church in another. On Sunday morning we strolled up to visit the church which sits at one end of a busy square where there are several cafes and restaurants, shops and beautiful half-timbered buildings.

*One of the chapel extensions made of brick. It looks so elegant with the wood.*

The bell tower of Saint Catherine’s is built as a separate structure as it was too heavy for the the church building itself to support.

There was a service going on inside the church when we entered. We had wanted to see the ceiling of Saint Catherine’s as it is like the inverted hull of a sailing vessel. We have seen similar, although smaller churches in Brittany by the sea which have a similar structure. It is very beautiful.

*The interior of Saint Catherine’s church in Honfleur.*

We arrived in Honfleur late on Saturday afternoon and left on Monday morning to make our final push towards home. As we left town, we visited an overlook where we could look down on the town and its privileged position on the Seine estuary, on its way to the sea.

*The drive up to this charming overlook was lovely on a crisp fall morning.*

Honfleur is just across from Le Havre, which was heavily bombed during WWII. Honfleur escaped that fate, which is lucky for us all.

*Looking down upon historic Honfleur in the foreground and the more modern section of the city in the background, which we did not visit.*

Next to the view point esplanade is the charming Chapelle Notre-Dame de Grâce, built in the seventeenth century. It is extravagantly decorated, apparently, with model ships hanging from the ceiling and paintings of maritime themes. Sailors and their families would make such offerings as prayers for safe passage. Unfortunately the chapel was closed for repairs when we visited, so we were not able to view it.

We had a very pleasant interlude in Honfleur, but it was time to head back to Burgundy. Next time I’ll take you on a tour closer to home, the last adventure we had with our friends from California.

Honfleur

Beaune

Bayeux