Last time I visited this area of France was in celebration of my daughter's 16th birthday.  Where else do you take a child who's last name is Champagne but to France!  

I am sure that she would have much rather spent the entire week shopping in Paris, her last name reflects her taste.. but it should be Miller because of her budget... you can't work part-time at a pizza place and shop the streets of Paris, or can you?  The answer is only yes if you have perfected the face of "please Mom".

So what does one see on a river cruise in that region of France? A wonderful collection of cities both large and small mixed with equal parts Art & History, so really something for everyone.

Giverny:  Visit Monet's former home and famous gardens out the village of Giverny, the inspriation for many of his most beloved works.



Les Andelys:  Hike up to Chateau Gaillard to see the ruins of Richard the Lionheart's 12th-century stronghold and take in the remarkable views of the surrounding countryside.  Which by the way is where I took this photo.  It was here that our guide informed us that Richard's remains are not buried in just one place but actually three!  This would have been a good quiz question. His heart is buried in Rouen, his entrails (yuck) in Chalus where he died and the rest was buried at the feet of his father at Fontevraud Abbey in Anjou.

Normandy Beaches:  A full day's trip from Rouen where most ships dock.  Visits to Omaha and Juno Beaches (where the Canadians landed).  The WWII Museum and then later a stop at the American Cemetary.

Rouen:  The largest of the cities (besides Paris) on this itinerary, docking right in the city gave us access to walking around at our leisure if we wanted.  the Gros Horloge (a large Renaissance clock tower) the bronze cross marking the site where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431 and their Gothic Notre-Dame Cathedral which was a favorite subject of impressionist master Claude Monet.  It was here that Ilyse found many things to buy, less expensive than Paris.

Caudebec-en-Caux:  It is town names such as this that I am glad I live in the US... so many vowels, so little ability to pronounce them all.   It is in this little town that we docked and then traveled for a bit via motorcoach to spend the day in the beautiful town of Honfluer.  One of my very favorite days of the cruise and where I ate the largest snails I have ever seen in my life. Delicious!  Along with some awesome mussels as well. A great day of sightseeing, shopping and eating! On the way to Honfluer we took the "Thatched Cottages Route" famous for yes, their thatched cottages, it made you feel like you were back in a fairytale.

Conflans:  Last time we did not visit Conflans so this will be new for me. I will see Auvers-sur-Oise where Vincent van Gogh spent the last two months of his life and created a number of notable works.  It is here that he is buried alongside his brother Theo.  Another option would be to visit Napoleon and Josephine's Chateaux de Malmaison the large country estate that Josephine bought while Napoleon was off fighting in Egypt.  Most assuredly she must have heard about his "romantic escapades" and thought "if you think you can get away with running around on me I will show you and buy this huge estate"...  of course this is just conjecture on my part but that is what I would have done.

And then of course we have Paris, the first time I was in Paris was 1982. I saw the Mona Lisa (this was pre-pyramid Lourve.. my was I surprised when I went there 30+ years later) and also visited the Moulin Rouge (growing up in Michigan we didn't really have shows like that... or at least I didn't think we did).  Traveling around the city in the 80's the French were not very friendly so when I took Ilyse there that was my memory, thankfully not just the landscape of the city had changed but also the attitude of its inhabitants.  I found Parisians to be much more friendly. This time around I think I will take a city tour and reacquaint myself with Notre Dame, the Latin Quarter and perhaps buy a loaf of bread, a bottle of wine and sit beneath the Eiffel Tower and "do as the locals do" which I believe to be sit, eat, drink and look at what some people chose to leave the house wearing....

Regardless, I am looking forward to my unexpected trip next month.  Of course I will be "reporting" to you all about it.