Rouen

#rouen #rouencathedral #monet 

We arrived at Rouen, our next port of call in the late afternoon. Having time before the evening meal, we decided to go for a short walk, arriving at the Cathedral just as the sun was setting. We were captivated by the golden glow from the setting sun. It was easy to see how Monet was inspired by the changing colours on the building. Beautiful!

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Two of Monet's painting of the cathedral

 Just before sitting down to our evening meal, the cruise director told us about the evening light show that would be taking place, on the front of the Cathedral building later that night. He told us that he wasn't as impressed with this year's show, having seen others in past years. He explained that he found the story hard to follow. Nevertheless, it was an opportunity not to be missed, so we joined the crowds to see it for ourselves.

Star and Stone : a kind of love ... some say. Was the title
A dreamlike, abstract work, it puts texts by African-American poet Maya Angelou into perspective, accompanied by the sublime piano studies of Philipp Glass. With his Rouen creation, he confronts his abstract universe with a solid edifice, seizing on the history of a city that has suffered, creating powerful images from which emerge the vulnerability and beauty of human existence . This unique show is a declaration of love to human history, in its most moving and complex sense.

An interesting show which, we must admit, was hard to follow at times, as most of the dialogue which accompanied the light images was obviously in French! However, the images although often puzzling captured our imagination. It was well worth seeing.

Exploring Rouen

The following morning, we decided to explore ourselves rather than going on an organised tour. We wandered the streets viewing the traditional houses before arriving at the superb modern church dedicated to Joan of Arc.
​Along the way, there was a range of street art to enjoy in this fascinating city.