Travels in France - Normandy and Picardy

I had no idea that Etaps like the one I stayed at near Budapest actually exist in France, but quite accidentally, we stumbled upon this one. This by far was the worst Etap I’ve ever stayed at – a real hell motel. The carpet in the room hasn’t been cleaned since hotel inception (and it must have been years ago), and the walls had stains of such color that I wasn’t going to venture a guess at their origin. In the opposing corners in the back behind the bed (with bunk bed above it), there was a sink with mirror and desk with TV above. The toilet and shower are as you enter the room and are (as I wrote before about Etap Budapest) in one very small, confined space, so if you take shower, the whole area will be wet. It is so narrow that the whole experience makes you envy astronauts and wonder who came up with this design, and has he/she ever stayed in this creation? What a striking contrast with Etap Hotel Rouen Centre Rive Gauche – you won’t even believe that the two hotels belong to the same chain. Stay away from Etap Rouen Sud - Parc Expos.

Slightly out of the way, but not difficult to find, this very affordable hotel is very clean and well-maintained in huge contrast to most other Etaps.

When we arrived around 6pm, there wasn’t anybody at the hotel except a guy at the reception who was very nice and quick to understand what we wanted. At night, a lot of people arrived, and in the morning, there were about 15 cars in the parking lot. The hotel is a yellow, two-story building with green shutters and a window and balcony all in one that you can open and let the air in. At night, you can cover it with a full-length shade. As typical for any Etap, each room has a queen-size bed with a bunk bed above it that you can climb to via an attached ladder. What surprised me was the cleanliness of the shower and toilet in the bathroom. The bathroom was a very decent size with a normal toilet, sink with mirror, and a shower that closes with a plastic door. There was also a corner desk with a chair, TV, and heater near it that actually was adjustable and worked. There was also a rather large area for you to bring your luggage, and you could easily have enough space for three to four large bags. The hotel has a cafeteria area for breakfast in the lobby. Breakfast costs an extra 4€ per person.

From the square in front of the Amiens cathedral, you can barely grasp the whole size of this majestic building. The cathedral’s west façade is very beautiful, with two bell towers with small spires on the corners. The large central gate and two smaller gates on the sides are covered with rows of statues of saints and large angels welcoming you. Above, more rows of saints carry the wonderful rose window. You may want to study the saints at the entrance: a couple carry their heads in their hands, and some have scrolls.

Inside the cathedral is true 13th-century Gothic, with very tall naves and baroque chapels. Not many of original stained-glass windows are left. What is left is beautiful stained glass and architecture of rose windows of south and north transepts. Also, there are examples of flamboyant Gothic lace here, in the transepts and along the choir on the outside. Wooden sculpture scenes of the life of St John the Baptist (16th-century) decorate the altar, with a large baroque scene with clouds and angels. The choir has beautiful Gothic stalls surrounded by metal ironwork fences with lots of gilding.

The most beautiful carvings are behind the altar, with Renaissance paintings of floral motifs in gold/red/green on the walls and some of the original stained glass, especially in the chapel of St Sacrament. In some chapels, modern glass replaced the old. Stalls of the choir tell the story in 4,000 characters of the life of Virgin and Old Testament (1508-1519). On the other side of the altar, polychrome statues tell the story of St Firmin the Martyr (who was the first bishop of Amiens); the column near south entrance has a beautiful statue of a golden Madonna. The altar is baroque and absolutely doesn’t fit with the beauty of the Gothic choir stalls. Underneath the west rose window, you can see a beautiful organ which seems to be a mixture of neo-Gothic and rococo. The best part of the West façade are the gargoyles, full-blown monsters staring at you, and in the middle, an angel blowing the horn.

This cathedral is an example of true Gothic, with its wonderful proportions and organic design – here in the Gothic part, nothing seems to be out of place. There is a reason and place for every detail, and you can see this cathedral’s features repeated in the best Gothic cathedrals of France and Spain.

The road leads to Mont St Michel through small towns, with sheep peacefully eating grass. As you are getting closer, the abbey is at first just a silhouette staring at you through the fog. But as the road makes its turns and brings you closer, the contours take the shape, and from the parking at the bottom of Mont St Michel, you can finally see the whole grandeur of the small island – the houses behind the old fortress walls with towers clinging one to the other, and above them, tall walls of the abbey with the church spire and buttresses aiming for the sky.

Inside, take a walk along the ramparts and look down at the water on one side and shops on the other. Shops seem to be everywhere at every turn and every level. And you can buy anything here, from a key chain with Mont St Michel to a large medieval sword. As you walk farther, you run into a small church of St Pierre with modern stained glass and a chapel of St Michel with Gothic wooden paneling and statue of St Michael killing the dragon.

You exit the church of St Pierre and continue up the stairs, past the walls covered with green moss, until you stumble upon the abbey church with Romanesque heavy arches, a circular ceiling, and early Gothic narrow arches of the altar with leaf ornaments, all touched with green layer of moss as well. Next is the visit to the early Gothic cloisters with thin arches with flowers plaster supporting wooden Gothic roof covered with age-old shingles. You get a great view of the church stipple and spire with a gilded statue of St Michael at the top. The cloisters also lead into the 13th-century refectory with early Gothic/Romanesque columns between narrow windows. Downstairs is Guests’ Hall with a large chimney and tall Gothic ceilings, attached to it is chapel of St Madeleine (13th century). Next is pillared crypt with huge pillars (about the size of a 200-year-old tree in diameter) supporting the 15th-century Gothic ceiling. You also visit chapel of St Martin in the corridor between it and the chapel of St Ethienne, and through the 12th-century covered walk, you get to the Knight’s hall – a very large hall with two chimneys in the corners and vaulted ceilings supported by pillars with different floral motifs on each.

For a long time now I have wanted to see Rouen Cathedral, and finally it happened. What impresses you the most here is how stone, plaster, and glass can be made to look light and lace-like, especially the rose window of the east façade. The chapel of the virgin behind the altar is a weird mixture of Gothic and glorious baroque, and on the right, statues of cardinals are praying to the virgin. In the ambulatory, you can see a lot of statues of various kings buried here. Most of the chapels have original gothic stained glass with blue backgrounds, but some are fitted with modern glass, which fits in well. Of most importance is the glass of St Julien l’Hospitalier that consists of 27 scenes. You don’t feel small in this large cathedral with very tall naives and even taller altar dome, as it makes you feel a presence of real master craftsmen. Also, it would have been great to see a king’s coronation and cathedral filled with people. The west façade is partially under restoration, but the part you can see is breathtaking, with two bell towers each with its own character and gothic lace surrounding the rose window in a variety of shapes and forms, ending with small towers as if you were building them out of wet sand. And, of course, there is the metal spire reminiscent of Eiffel Tower above the gorgeous Gothic lace, but somehow even it is not out of place.

Church of St Maclou

In the foreground of the cathedral, you can see the flamboyant Gothic spire of St Maclou. The church suffered serious damage in 1944, and there is barely anything worth seeing inside. However, outside the church is a marvelous example of French flamboyant Gothic with gargoyles and buttresses and gorgeous carved wooden gates. Surrounding the church on both sides are Tudor houses, one of which is Aitre Maclou.

Abbey of St Ouen

Slightly farther down the street is Abbey of St Ouen, a very large building also with Gothic features. This building, like most other churches, is partially under restoration. The abbey is very imposing, but not really remarkable. Attached to it by a Gothic cloister is a large neoclassical building of Hotel de Ville with accurately trimmed bushes in front and a statue of Napoleon in the middle of the square.