Day 3, June 22, 2022
Part one: The House and Gardens, including Lily Ponds of Claude Monet
This was a long day, which began with a beautiful sunrise over Lisieux
En route to Giverney, where Monet’s gardens are, a change was made to the itinerary, and we drove through a charming village on the banks of a loop of the Seine called Les Andelys. This is famous because of the castle built high above it by Richard Coeur de Lion The coach took us to a view point just above the castle and we were able to marvel at both the castle and the view.
View of the River Seine
From here we proceeded to Giverny, east of Lisieux, our base. It was very warm when we arrived, the air conditioning on the coach, keeping us agreeably cool, but also giving us a false impression as to how just hot it was. After a short walk, passing through an underpass, and along the road, we arrived at the group entrance. I was impressed by how pretty the verges were, with beautiful flowers lining the entire walkway. After passing through the group entrance I found myself wandering through the beautiful gardens in front of the house, which were mostly at their peak of flowering. Here there were beautiful arches, covered with roses, and flowering shrubs and perennials, creating height and structure..
I particularly wanted to see the lily ponds, which he had painted so often. One of the things I love about light and reflection,, especially sunlight on the water, is the way the light constantly changes There weren’t as many lilies in the ponds as I was expecting, but it was still beautiful.
It was a very hot day, but there was good shade provided by the many trees. The layout of the ponds and bridges gave a number of charming vistas.
After going round the ponds three times, the third because I couldn’t find the exit, I found the little underpass and returned to the gardens, followed by a visit to the house. This was a long, but relatively narrow. construction The walls were adorned with a variety of prints. I was particularly impressed with the number of Japanese prints.
Downstair, there were two large rooms. The dining room had a very big table for a large number of guests and was predominantly primrose yellow.
In the kitchen, which was also large there were the most beautiful blue and white tiles.
We had been given a good length of time to spend in Giverny so I now wandered along the main street looking for somewhere to find something light to eat. Most places I passed looked full and I suspect required a reservation. Eventually I found an unprepossessing little place with a few chairs and tables in a courtyard. By this stage on such a hot day the thought of shade was very appealing.
I had a simple lunch of a freshly filled baguette and a glass of wine and enjoyed simply relaxing on a lovely day.