Rouen

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We’re now in the Somme but let me recap the past two days... We did go to Bayeux and saw the Tapestry - it was magnificent! (... and as we were walking in the street we were passed by the Google Maps vehicle so we look forward to seeing ourselves on a Bayeux street in a future edition of the Google Street View of Bayeux.) We drove on to Rouen, the city most commonly known as the site where Joan of Arc was executed. When we arrived we discovered the Muse Beaux Arts had an exhibition of Impressionist paintings inspired by the city so we saw a large range of works by Pissaro, Gaugin, Turner and other lesser known artists of the time and works by Monet. Particularly impressive were the grouping of five of his paintings of the Rouen Cathedral. We were also thrilled to discover a Caravaggio in the permanent collection. We had a lovely (and huge) meal- foie gras, red mullet, lamb, duck, meringue, cheese... Rouen was an unexpectedly wonderful place to visit (see pic 1, taken on phone!).
Now we’re in Albert, just east of Amiens, which was famous in WWI for the ‘leaning virgin’ - the statue of Mary atop the Basilica was shot off but stayed attached for some time and was the subject of much conjecture from the troops (see pic 2 - note leaning virgin in mural and replacement statue which tops replacement basilica in background). We begin our battlefield fest tomorrow.

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