I never thought using a meditation tool for mental health would inspire travel, but then again, a lot of ideas inspire travel for us! I have been using Calm for several years, and more recently, I've been using Sleep Stories to help me fall back asleep. More recently, stories like A Rainy Day in Paris, Monet's Garden, and The Cliffs of Etretat made me curious about these locations; Are they real? Where are they? Indeed, they are real, about three hours west of Paris, and the inspiration for this trip.
Lastly, our home base for two nights, Étretat, the place that started this trip in the first place. After checking into our hotel, we were graced with a beautiful sunset, overlooking the cliffs.
Our second day in the region began with an energizing trek following the sites mentioned in The Cliffs of Etretat sleep story, in reverse order as the story starts from the south and goes north. Seeing all of the major features just as described in the story was so fulfilling, to see these places mentioned in such detail in the story. The last two images are Monet's depiction of these same cliffs.
After a short drive we walked around the port town of La Harvre - The Haven in English; Claude Monet’s hometown. His series of works depicting the port "during dawn, day, dusk, and dark and from varying viewpoints, some from the water itself and others from a hotel room looking down over the port" is credited with inspiring the name of the Impressionist movement. The sculpture is titled Catène de Container, and was created in 2017 by Vincent Ganivet to commemorate the port's 500th anniversary. The name Catène de Container derives from the Latin word catēna, meaning "chain," and translates roughly to "container chain." It is a double reference, alluding both to the chain's construction principle and to the supply chain, which includes the containers and ultimately the port. The last photos are of the Cathedral is the Cathédrale Notre-Dame du Havre, one of the few older structures remaining in the town, as many structures were destroyed in this port town during WWII. The last image in the slide show is one of Monet's paintings in a series of works depicting the port "during dawn, day, dusk, and dark and from varying viewpoints, some from the water itself and others from a hotel room looking down over the port" is credited with inspiring the name of the Impressionist movement.
After crossing over the Normandy Bridge, we ventured through Honfleur, known for inspiring artists like Monet and Boudin. This quaint Norman town offers more than just picturesque views — it reveals a rich tapestry of history and tradition (yes, I copied that). The wooden church is Église Sainte Catherine, one of the oldest and largest wooden churches in France, and very evidently constructed by shipbuilders. The small church overlooking the water near the end of the slides is Chapelle Notre-Dame de Grâce, so tiny that the bells are housed outside the chapel. We visit a lot of Notre Dames (Our Lady in English), which are not only spiritually inspiring, these buildings offer some of the most spectacular examples of architecture for a reason.
Awe-inspiring beauty at every turn. Tomorrow, we drive to Mont Saint Michele!
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