Monet's Garden

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We got an early start for Monet’s Garden today as we heard it can get busy. It was a beautiful day so after a breakfast chat with the other guests, two ladies from Scotland, we headed off. Arriving just after the opening, the line was quite moderate and we entered the amazing flower gardens. No wonder Monet was inspired to paint this over and over for many years. The first part of the garden is the flower beds with exotic species from all over the world which Monet would collect on his travels. The amazing flowers even kept Em entertained for about 1 ½ hours! Next you cross the road through an underpass into the water garden where you find the famous wisteria bridge. We spent another hour there wandering the gardens, watching the creek and getting photos on the bridge. Even with the crowds it was really a very relaxing place to spend the morning.

Several hundred photos later (J) we had crepes for lunch then went for a walk through the village of Giverny which surrounds the gardens. We found the Natural Mechanical Museum up the road which is a private museum housing a collection of old engines. The amazing collection is maintained in a workshop where there is always ongoing work and more old engines to be restored. Walking in, Mel took a big sniff and said “I just love that smell” with the mix of diesel and engine oil hanging in the air. It was a great day with both flowers and old engines – best day out of the holiday!

We picked up some supplies and headed back to the house where we had a nice picnic in the gardens for dinner.

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