Sailing into the Seine to Honfleur
We entered the mouth of one of France’s most historic rivers, the Seine this morning and sailed past the great port of Le Havre on our port side. The Captain furled sails at 8:30AM. Even with a slight breeze we made 5 knots. Le Havre is France’s second most important port and Europe’s third busiest harbor. From Le Havre one can take ferries to a number of cities in England and Ireland. The picturesque town of Honfleur, population about 8 thousand, sits at the base of the hill of Côte de Grace which rises behind the town. Honfleur is justifiable famous for its beauty. Its colorful old center is nestled around the old harbor (Veux basin) and is a cornucopia of cafes, antique stores, bookshops and art galleries. The beauty of the city has long held an attraction for painters: the English watercolorist Bonington painted here, as did the French impressionist Eugène Boudin. One of the most interesting buildings is the mid-15th century Church of Saint Catherine and its entirely wooden bell tower both built by ship wrights and because built by peasants spared any damage in the French Revolution. We visited the Boudin Museum and saw a number of wonderful paintings completed in Honfleur, including some by Monet and Dufy. Honfleur’s fame is not limited to artists, however. Indeed its strategic location has made it a famous point of departure for some of the world’s great voyages of exploration. For example, Samuel de Champlain sailed from Honfleur on a number of occasions beginning in 1603 and on his 1608 voyage he founded the city of Quebec; LaSalle sailed from Honfleur in 1681 and was the first European to descend the length of the Mississippi River and he named the territory Louisiana after the great King Louis XIV. We toured the town and stopped in the wonderful old church of Saint Catherine, which was rebuilt in the 15th century after the end of the devastating Hundred Years War with England, which left both nations spent. The church has a fine wood interior and was largely built by the local shipwrights. A number of the old homes which survive feature this architectural style and make up a rather unique collection of old wooden homes. One of the curious features of the Church of Saint Catherine is its detached bell tower. Most French churches incorporate the bell tower into the continuous architectural fabric of the church making this feature at Honfleur a genuine architectural curiosity.
We entered the mouth of one of France’s most historic rivers, the Seine this morning and sailed past the great port of Le Havre on our port side. The Captain furled sails at 8:30AM. Even with a slight breeze we made 5 knots. Le Havre is France’s second most important port and Europe’s third busiest harbor. From Le Havre one can take ferries to a number of cities in England and Ireland. The picturesque town of Honfleur, population about 8 thousand, sits at the base of the hill of Côte de Grace which rises behind the town. Honfleur is justifiable famous for its beauty. Its colorful old center is nestled around the old harbor (Veux basin) and is a cornucopia of cafes, antique stores, bookshops and art galleries. The beauty of the city has long held an attraction for painters: the English watercolorist Bonington painted here, as did the French impressionist Eugène Boudin. One of the most interesting buildings is the mid-15th century Church of Saint Catherine and its entirely wooden bell tower both built by ship wrights and because built by peasants spared any damage in the French Revolution. We visited the Boudin Museum and saw a number of wonderful paintings completed in Honfleur, including some by Monet and Dufy. Honfleur’s fame is not limited to artists, however. Indeed its strategic location has made it a famous point of departure for some of the world’s great voyages of exploration. For example, Samuel de Champlain sailed from Honfleur on a number of occasions beginning in 1603 and on his 1608 voyage he founded the city of Quebec; LaSalle sailed from Honfleur in 1681 and was the first European to descend the length of the Mississippi River and he named the territory Louisiana after the great King Louis XIV. We toured the town and stopped in the wonderful old church of Saint Catherine, which was rebuilt in the 15th century after the end of the devastating Hundred Years War with England, which left both nations spent. The church has a fine wood interior and was largely built by the local shipwrights. A number of the old homes which survive feature this architectural style and make up a rather unique collection of old wooden homes. One of the curious features of the Church of Saint Catherine is its detached bell tower. Most French churches incorporate the bell tower into the continuous architectural fabric of the church making this feature at Honfleur a genuine architectural curiosity.
