Normandie
Claude Monet festival
Claude Monet is remembered for his masterpiece, "Impression soleil levant", a melancholy yet luminous painting. We also remember that he spent the last years of his life in Giverny, cultivating his art and an extraordinary garden now open to the public. It was here that he drew the inspiration for a series of 250 landmark paintings, the "Water Lilies". In 2024, the region is organizing its "Normandie Impressionisme" festival...
The flower pond in Monet's garden, ©iStock
The Dior Museum in Granville
From 1947 onwards, Christian Dior revolutionized fashion, enabling French women to forget the restrictions imposed by the war. From the New Look "8" with its generous shapes, to the "H" line where volumes disappear, the couturier innovates and becomes the country’s ambassador of haute couture. The childhood home of the famous couturier is today a place of memory dedicated to his life and work, from his childhood in Granville to his worldwide success. So chic !
A Dior dress, 1957, public domain
Les parapluies de Cherbourg
Produced by the Guy de Jean company, based in the town since 1800, the "Cherbourg umbrella" is renowned for its durability and elegance. Handcrafted by skilled artisans using top-quality materials, they resist strong winds and protect against the heaviest showers, as Normandy is known for. The factory is open to the public all year round. Why not take the opportunity to see Jacques Demy’s famous film of the same name again ?
The Parapluies de Cherbourg brand, ©DR
The Great Armada in Rouen
Now that’s the icing on the cake! A gigantic maritime gathering of international renown, the Grande Armata attracts over 2 million people every 5 to 6 years. Tall ships from every port on the planet unfurl their most beautiful rigs before sailing majestically up the Seine. From multi-mission frigates to Optimists, everything that sails in the wind is in the spotlight. Sailors’ skills are celebrated, their bravery admired and their sacrifices saluted. It’s a free, popular celebration.
A 3-masted sailing boat, ©iStock
Camembert, of course
Round, soft or firm, and always made from raw milk, this is the most popular of French soft cheeses. A national monument and the pride of local farmers since the 17th century, the product is now known by its own appellation contrôlée, "Camembert de Normandie". It is even said that a refractory priest revealed the secrets of Brie cheese-making to a Camembert resident. He wanted to thank her for helping him escape the Republicans. No hard feelings, Abbé !
Farmhouse Camembert, ©iStock
