Village Of Beuvronen Auge
On the way to Honfleur we stopped at the little village of Beuvronen Auge to enjoy the nice Normandy views and buy some Norman hard apple cider. This little town was quite scenic and would make a great quiet overnight country stay.
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Village Of Beuvronen Auge |
We arrived in the little port town of Honfleur late in the afternoon, and just had time to settle into the hotel, and wander around town looking at all the art galleries. Honfleur was a favorite haunt for many impressionist artists in the end of the 1800's and it still retains much of this culture, so many of the local maps are labeled "Honfleur The City Of Art".
Today we set out on a couple of journeys that our French friends Cecil and Michelle suggested to us. They both grew up in this area, so we knew these areas would provide a day worth of entertainment.
First we visited the rich little beach towns of Trouville Sur Mer and Deauville. Both of these little towns sported very large houses, lavish hotels, and ritzy casinos. We parked the car and wandered up and down the beach in Deauville where a couple of cokes at a beach bar cost us 55 Franks ($8 U.S.). Although this was a very pretty beach that reminded us of beaches all over the world, putting one foot into the water reminded us very quickly that we were on the northern shore of France, and that we just put our feet into the English Channel. BRRR! No wonder no one was in the water past their knees, and the sailboard rental place had wet suits.
Beach At Deauville |
Next we headed north of Honfleur to the cliffs at Etretat. These picturesque rock cliffs that dive into the ocean have been depicted by several of the famous French artists over the years. We spent a few hours just relaxing on the beach at the bottom of the cliffs, which is a hoteliers dream. It's a nice picturesque beach to bring in the tourists, but it is made of 1 to 2 inch diameter round sea-polished rocks, so there isn't any sand to muck up carpets and plumbing.
Dorothy At Etretat Cliffs |
Spectacular Shape Of Etretat Cliffs |
John At Etretat Cliffs |