Rouen Rings The Bell

Rouen is an attractive destination for lovers of history and churches. There are multiple impressive worship buildings, none more so than the Rouen Cathedral. Once the tallest building in the world, it was depicted in a series of famous paintings by Claude Monet. The Fine Arts Museum proudly displays several of these Monet masterpieces. Rouen’s proximity to Paris allowed us to take a day trip to see even more art. Our summer visit also included a World Music Day party, a professional baseball game, a bit of the Tour de France, and even an impromptu swim in the river. 

Rouen is also infamous as the place where Joan of Arc met her demise after what’s widely regarded as a sham trial. The young firebrand has statues and remembrances all around, including shrines in just about every church. Those churches all have bells that reverberate across the city at 8am, 12pm, and 7pm six days a week, and more often on Sundays. It’s quite the cacophony.

Located on the Seine, Rouen is about 93 miles (150 km) downriver from Paris. The capital of Normandy was once one of the wealthiest and most important cities in Medieval Europe. It’s currently the 12 largest urban area in France with a population just under 500,000, although only about 120,000 of that is within the city limits. While it is very walkable, especially in the center, there’s also an extensive bus service that covers the larger metro area. The transit system offers free service on Saturdays, making exploration even easier.

Cathédrale Notre-Dame De Rouen

The Rouen Cathedral is the largest building in town. It has a massive spire that towers over the surrounding area. After a fire in the early 1800s, the spire was converted from wood to metal, a novel idea at the time. Once that metal spire was completed, it became the tallest building in the world from 1876 to 1880. The cathedral was heavily damaged during WWII bombings and restoration from that damage was not completed until 2016. The 495 ft (151 m) spire again caught fire during additional renovations last year, so it was mostly covered in scaffolding during our visit. Nevertheless, the church is quite impressive and as you can tell, has a rich history.

Abbaye Saint-Ouen

Saint-Ouen Abbey (sometimes called Saint Owen’s Abbey) plays second fiddle to the cathedral, but it’s quite a magnificent specimen in its own right. It’s known for its classic French Gothic architecture, similar to the Notre Dame in Paris. Original construction is over 1000 years old, although it’s been continually added to throughout the centuries. Like the cathedral, the abbey was also undergoing construction focused on the main entrance and front of the building. This grand church also has one of the oldest working organs in the world. Although we couldn’t see it because it was covered due to the construction, we did get to listen to it.

The abbey offers Sunday evening concerts throughout the summer. Each one invites a different guest musician to perform for about an hour on their classical organ built in 1890, which is still completely original. The spacious church filled with the sound of the massive organ was an interesting and immersive experience. It’s rare that we get to hear these things in action. We usually just marvel at these old organ pipes silently. The concert was a little under an hour, which was long enough to embrace the feeling but still plenty considering the uncomfortable seating.

L’église Sainte-Jeanne d’Arc

The Church of Saint Joan of Arc is a modern building with a modern design. Built in 1979, it sits in the middle of a square and is a popular stop for the city’s tourists. The unconventional outside is echoed by the interior with its oddly shaped main room and full wall of stained glass. Its uniqueness pays homage to the one of a kind leader that it’s dedicated to.

Basilique Notre-Dame de Bonsecours

We took advantage of the free Saturday bus service to travel to adjacent Bonsecours to see their monument to Joan of Arc and their small but impressive Notre Dame Basilica. Unfortunately, we could only see the statue from the back since the viewing area turned out to be permanently closed. But the basilica was impressive enough that I soon didn’t care. It was quite vibrant with plenty of brilliant stained glass which contrasted with the dark interior. We were also treated to a couple of hymns sung by three nuns as part of a small service they were conducting just for themselves. Their voices were very rich and sounded quite lovely in the small church.

Musée De Beaux Arts

The Fine Arts Museum in Rouen was spectacular. Their collection is large and varied with a strong focus on impressionism, and especially Monet. His paintings of the cathedral and city landscape are very popular. In fact, seeing his Rouen Cathedral Series at the Orsay Museum during our stay in Paris several months earlier helped us decide to pick Rouen as a destination. It seemed to be as good of a reason as any.

Musée Le Secq Des Tournelles

The biggest surprise of our stay in Rouen was the Wrought Iron Museum. This extensive collection of iron works from the past is on display in the unique setting of a converted church. We saw a number of scissors, knives, and weapons. There were also lots of great decorative railings and grates. I really liked the very intricate lock and key combinations they had as well. But the best part was all the tools that are now outdated because of technology. There were so many different practical items for dealing with candles, tobacco, fireplaces, and lots of other things that we take for granted.

I have some awareness of what life was like before electricity, but seeing 63 different tools used just for candles really drives home the importance that they played in everyday life. And there were many different examples like this that emphasized how everyday life has changed. It felt like a true window into history and we both thought it was great.

Day Trip To Paris

We took advantage of our proximity to Paris to visit for a day. We found two temporary art exhibitions which renewed our feelings that Paris is for art lovers. The first one we attended was at the Museum of Modern Art showcasing the work of German expressionist Gabriel Münter. She is best known for being the companion of Kandinsky for a decade in Munich, during which they worked and exhibited together. But she also produced a solid body of work outside of that period. It was well done. She has a great command of color.

Our second stop was the Louis Vuitton Foundation for an exhibit dedicated to contemporary British artist David Hockney. This massive display of works from throughout Hockney’s lifetime filled a dozen rooms over several floors. Hockney himself was involved with the design of the exhibits and choice of artworks displayed. It was extremely comprehensive, and very popular. 

Rouen Huskies Baseball

We attended a baseball game between the Rouen Huskies and the Metz Cometz. After I learned that France has a professional baseball league, we had to check it out. I would say that the experience was similar to attending a US junior college game. There was very limited seating, which turned out to be adequate. When the game started, there were at most two dozen people there. That grew to about twice that size by the end, but obviously it’s not super popular. The game was definitely more subdued than our experience of seeing a pro game in Mexico, but we had a nice afternoon. The home team won.

Tour De France

The iconic Tour de France raced through downtown Rouen during our stay. The bike route passed only a couple of blocks from our apartment, so we ventured down to watch. It was pretty anticlimactic, as it was over just about as soon as it began. And we were also unwilling to fight the crowds for a great vantage point, so we couldn’t see a whole lot in the 3 minutes when the riders passed. I’m not sure there’s that much to see anyway, as once they ride by, that’s it. Nevertheless, we did get to briefly participate in France’s national treasure and yell “Allez! Allez!” at some bike riders.

Fête De La Musique

While many countries that participate in World Music Day, France was the founder of the event and they take it seriously. Taking place each year on the summer solstice, music makers from throughout the country fill the streets of every city. Rouen was packed with all types of musicians and music blasting throughout the downtown. We witnessed everything from small acoustic bands playing classical stringed instruments, brass bands making it funky, DJs spinning techno beats on stages with lights, and large drum circles rhythmically pounding away. If we weren’t feeling the vibe at one stop, moving a half block down brought another option. It was a festive occasion and a very fun celebration. 

River Adventures

On our way to the grocery store one sunny afternoon, we were on a bridge crossing the Seine when a strong gust of wind came out of nowhere and plucked Katie’s hat off of her head. We hurriedly looked all around us but didn’t see anything until we peered into the river 100 feet below. This was not just any hat. It was a really nice felted wool one that she had just purchased in Cusco the year before. And now it was swimming in the river.

We stood there for a bit eulogizing her hat when we realized that it wasn’t really sinking. So instead of just watching, we decided to start chasing it down the river to see if there was a chance we could catch it. Off we went at a brisk pace to find access to the river’s edge below. Once we made it to the edge, we realized that it was hard to track the hat because there were numerous houseboats and other large vessels parked along the shore. But we kept catching periodic glimpses so we kept following along.

Eventually we made it to a point where the houseboats ended, but the river bank was still very steep and didn’t have any great access points. The last time we spotted the hat it was also a decent distance into the wide river, so it’s not like we were going to catch it from shore. But as we continued, we encountered an access dock that was surprisingly unlocked. From there, we went to the end of the pier where I readied myself by taking off my shoes and socks and emptying my pockets.

Then we waited. It didn’t seem like it was coming. Maybe it sunk or maybe it had already passed us and we missed it. After about 10 minutes, I started to put my shoes and socks back on when Katie spotted it. It just emerged from the shadow of the bridge and was HEADING RIGHT FOR US! It was barely floating anymore, mostly submerged in the river, but there it was. I rapidly ripped off my shoes, socks, shirt, and pants and prepared to jump in and grab the thing. By the time I got undressed the water-logged wool hat was pretty much even with us. 

“Wait! Your glasses!”, Katie screamed at me as I ripped them off my face and handed them to her while pushing off the ladder all in one motion. I swam 15 feet out into the Seine to catch the hat as it floated past before swimming back against the current to the pier to hand it to Katie. Success! We both sat there laughing about what had just happened; me in my soaking wet underwear and her astonished that I actually jumped in to get it.

Once we got home the hat got a good washing and is now back in use. I also got a good washing, as the river is not the cleanest place for a swim. I did manage to keep my head above water the whole time, so that surely helped me avoid any unwelcome side effects. It was very surprising that not only did the hat not sink immediately, it continued to float almost a mile down the river. And it was a minor miracle that we were able to access an unlocked pier right next to its path. I guess she was not meant to lose the hat on this day. 

Where We Stayed

We rented a one bedroom apartment on the top floor of a 5 story building with an entire wall of windows directly across from the abbey. Along with our great views, we had a front row seat to a daily church bell cacophony at 8am, 12pm, and 7pm. The apartment had a lot of character and charm, but it was a bit dangerous when walking around due to the massive wooden beams that were always looming at head level. We escaped our 5 weeks with only two head knocks in total, which seemed pretty good. We did love the natural light and openness of the living space, especially when seated. Being high up and having lots of windows also helped for the hottest days. Overall it was a good choice. 

What We Spent

We had a slightly extended stay in Rouen as we stayed for 5 weeks instead of our standard 4 weeks. Our apartment cost us $2157 for that time, which was over the peak summer season. I bought a new pair of shoes and we took a day trip to Paris covering two trains and two museums. We didn’t get out cheaply, but it’s hard to find bargains in the summer in Europe. The total amount we spent in Rouen came to $3867. Adding in our additional monthly expenses like prorated visa fees and insurance, the grand total came to $4171, or a little under $120/day.

I thought Rouen was an interesting stop. It has a lot of cool history and a couple of great museums. The timing of our visit was excellent and we were able to experience unique things like the World Music Day and a leg of the Tour de France. That made it feel like there was a lot to do, even though the city is fairly small. Our apartment was a good choice and we loved the wall of windows. And best of all, we were able to save Katie’s hat from a watery grave. We did miss having a large park during the summer days, but overall we enjoyed our time listening to the church bells clang and walking in Monet’s footsteps.