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Mont-St-Michel – The setting for Mont-St-Michel
couldn't be more spectacular - a medieval abbey rooted in a pile of rock,
soaring above the tides of the Bay of Mont-St.-Michel. In the 8th century,
the Archangel Michael appeared before the Bishop of Avranches, who founded
a monastery on the spot. The monastery became an abbey, and people were
so inspired, they just kept adding to it for eight hundred years. Mont-St-Michel
is magical. |
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Tip: In high season, go early in the morning, or late in the
afternoon, to avoid the crowds. |
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D-Day Beaches – You too can storm the beaches
where the Allies landed on June 6, 1944 with a staggering amount of men
and equipment. Today, these beaches are a quiet testament to the losses
of war, despite victory. |
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On the bluffs, you can see German gun emplacements, still
aimed across the Channel. There are a number of war museums in the area,
including the Musee du Debarquement in Arromanches and the Caen
Memorial, a museum for peace (Un Musee pour la Paix). Buy a self-guided
map to follow the sites and Battle of Normandy in detail. |
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Musee Memorial De La Bataille de Normandie, Bayeux – Commemorating another battle, in 1944, is the Battle of Normandy
Memorial Museum. Tanks out front and plenty of WWII weaponry inside. Across
the road from the museum is the British War Cemetery. |
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Rouen –
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 Rouen Cathedral (Cathedrale Notre Dame) – It's well worth a stop in Rouen to see the cathedral. This gorgeous Gothic cathedral might look familiar, Claude Monet painted bunches of paintings of the west facade at different times of day. (Don't miss the light show at night, images from Monet's paintings are projected onto the cathedral).
Inside the cathedral, look for the tomb of Richard the Lionheart (actually, it's just his heart that's buried here, Richard the Lionheart's body is buried at Fontevraud Abbey in the Loire). |
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Walk through the medieval town – Walk through pedestrian streets in Old Rouen (the half timbered houses have been beautifully restored), down rue du Gros Horloge. Check out the gilded Gros-Horloge clock, go behind the scenes to see the clock mechanism, and climb up the belfry tower for panoramic views. |
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Le Petit Train – If you have little kids, ride the "little train" through the old streets. Pick up the tram at the square in front of the Cathedral, the train makes a 45 minute loop, April to October. |
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Place du Vieux Marche – In the Place du Vieux Marche, a cross marks the spot where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. For scenes of the life of Joan of Arc, visit the waxwork museum, Musee Jeanne d'Arc. |
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Before you visit
the D-day beaches, kids can read for themselves about the Allied
invasion – secret preparations and designing special landing
craft, first wave of paratroopers, bombers and battleships, landing
troops and tanks on the beaches, attacking the German defenses,
victory for the Allies and liberation of Normandy. (Easy reader)
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Illustrated history of D-Day, the turning point in World War II, when Allied soldiers landed by air and sea in stormy weather at five different Normandy beaches. Plus fascinating facts, such as a list of paratrooper gear, "swimming tanks" that sank, 13,000 bombs that all missed the target, scaling cliffs with bayonets. (Chapter book)
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(More children's
books on other France pages) |
