paree

On our Trip to Paris next week we are thinking of taking a day trip to Rouen. we were wondering about the best way of getting there. And getting around after arriving. I would like to experience this town, it's where my Great Great grandfather was born. Anyone been there? Is it worth one day of a seven day trip?

Christina

I don't know if it will be worth it to you, but since you have a special reason to go there, sounds like it might. It's a nice town for a day trip.

Just take the train, that's real easy and it's a short trip (maybe about an hour, I forget exactly). When I was there, I just walked everywhere from the train station. I did have a map and plans, though, from Earl Steinbicker's Day Trips in France book. If walking isn't feasible for you for any distance (it isn't too far, but probably at least a mile from the station? it's been a while, but I think so), I imagine you can get a cab from the station to take you to the main center and you can walk and see everything around there easily enough.

Travelnut

A 'walking tour':
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...176/ai_4151612

Rouen official tourism website:
http://www.rouentourisme.com/default.asp?file=pg0-0_en

Printable brochure - Rouen:
http://www.rouentourisme.com/item_im...CAPPEL-GB1.pdf

Printable brochure - Rouen and Normandie
http://www.rouentourisme.com/item_im...upe_2004-1.pdf

Printable brochure - Rouen museums, tours, etc
http://www.rouentourisme.com/item_im..._couv-2005.pdf

Civil Monuments:
http://www.rouentourisme.com/default...ile=pg64-11_en

Religious Monuments:
http://www.rouentourisme.com/default...ile=pg64-12_en

Museums:
http://www.rouentourisme.com/default...ile=pg64-13_en

PDF file - map - you'll want to enlarge and use "print screen" or you'll never be able to read tiny print.
http://www.stm.unipi.it/programmasoc...news2/plan.pdf

Underhill

FYI: we learned on our visit to Rouen last September that the city's name is pronounced Rwan, as much one syllable as you can make it.

Marie007

To Christina :

Bonsoir,

<<It's a nice town for a day trip>>

Hum, I live close to Rouen and wonder how you could visit my town in one day only... You must have missed lots of interesting places...

To Paree :

Here are some of the pages belonging to the web site of the tourist information office :

http://www.rouentourisme.com/default.asp?file=pg0-0_en

http://www.rouentourisme.com/default.asp?file=pg20-1_en

http://www.rouentourisme.com/default.asp?file=pg23-1_en

Now, here are some virtual tours of the town, the first one being related to the panorama of the town when being "sur la côte Sainte-Catherine" :

http://www.rouen.fr/decouvrir/visite.php#top

The following page provides you with the history of Rouen (in French) and links to other web sites dedicated to Rouen :

http://www.rouen.fr/decouvrir/histoire.php

The following personal web site lists Rouen churches which Victor Hugo nicknamed "la ville aux cent clochers"/the town with a hundred spires...

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/eglisesrouen/

Here are info and lots of photos of Rouen monuments and museums, etc.

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/ludovic.lefort/

http://www.jack-travel.com/Normandy/Rouen_Contents.htm (in English)

For people feeling like or having the time to visit Normandy (in English) :

http://www.westernfrancetouristboard.com/normandy.html

http://www.france.diplomatie.fr/labe...ND/norma2.html

http://www.france.diplomatie.fr/labe...ND/norman.html

To Underhill :

Yes, you're right ! The name of our town is quite difficult to pronounce for foreigners... Désolée !/Sorry ;-) !

Christina

Perhaps there were some other things to see there, Marie, but I was not interested with my schedule and budget to move hotels and stay in Rouen longer. I have my own ideas of what I want to do with my time and money. I certainly believe I saw the main points of interest and I did see everything that was important to me. It was my vacation.

USNR

A bit more civility, Christina, please. Marie007, IMHO, is merely trying to be helpful...as shoud we all.

paree

Thank you for your help. I don't suppose any of you would know my great great grandpa? Frederic Lemonnier.

KathrynT

I think you'll find Rouen charming and definitely worth a visit.

LarryJ

I am in Paris every few months and always spend a day each trip in Rouen. I love the town. You get there via express train from Paris Gare St.Lazare in 1 hour 6 minutes. Great old town area, site of St.Joan d'Arc execution, lots of authentic half-timbered buildings, nice park along the Seine and quite possibly the most beautiful Gothic cathedral in Europe; so much so that Monet painted it about 20 times taking up residence in the hotel opposite the main entrance.

While there from the front of cathedral walk towards the river for 1 block, turn left, walk 2 blocks and you will find an internet cafe owned by Steve, a former Air Canada pilot. Great guy, always happy to see Americans and Canadians. Tell him Larry from Ohio sent you and you will get a free coffee or hot chocolate. That alone is worth the trip from Paris.

Enjoy Rouen as I have.

Larry J

cigalechanta

Definately worth it!

Marie007

To USNR :

Merci beaucoup ! I simply didn't want other people to think one could discover all the beauties of Rouen in one day... Of course, when can't spend more than one day in a place, I can understand one will try to do "le maximum" within the given time ;-)

To Paree :

So your "arrière-arrière-grand-père" was born in Rouen, how moving !(comme c'est émouvant !) Unfortunately, the family name "Lemonnier" is quite common over here... It seems as if it is a "Huguenot" family name

http://huguenots.free.fr/france/norm...bec/ix4cn6.htm

Here is an extract from the 19th century "registres"/registers coming from the Protestant Temple located in Bolbec, close to Rouen :

LEMONNIER, Emile Edouard( °25 juillet 1846 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME - †après 15 juillet 1857 )
LEMONNIER, Emilie Désirée( °07 mars 1840 27, Les Andelys, , EURE - †après 14 juin 1857 )
LEMONNIER, Enfant( °08 février 1882 76, Yvetot, , SEINE MARITIME - †08 février 1882 76, Yvetot, , SEINE MARITIME )
LEMONNIER, Ernest Alexandre( °avant 1859 - )
× 1875 LANNAY, Augustine Onésyme
LEMONNIER, Eugène( °01 août 1837 76, Bolbec ER, , SEINE MARITIME - )
× 1864 MESNIER, "Emélina" Estelle
LEMONNIER, "Eugène" Alexandre( °1817 76, Lanquetot, , SEINE MARITIME - )
× 1850 COURCHEY, Judith "Olympe"
LEMONNIER, Eugénie Florifie( °22 septembre 1847 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, Eugénie Olympe( °11 octobre 1855 76, Lanquetot, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, Garçon( °20 septembre 1854 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME - †20 septembre 1854 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME )
LEMONNIER, Georges Edmond( °08 février 1854 76, Bolbec ER, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, Georges Frédéric Albert( °22 novembre 1857 76, Bolbec ER, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, Gustave "Emile"( °06 août 1812 76, St Aubin de Crétot, , SEINE MARITIME - )
× 1840 LEMONNIER, Marthe Aimée
LEMONNIER, Gustave Emile Eugène( °06 septembre 1845 76, Lanquetot, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, Henry Edmond( °18 juin 1848 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME - †28 février 1871 76, Bolbec, , SEINE MARITIME )
LEMONNIER, Irma Léontine( °20 août 1851 76, Bolbec ER, , SEINE MARITIME - )
LEMONNIER, "Isaac" Abraham( °avant 1797 - †après 1849 )
× 1813 LAUNAY, Aimée Elisabeth
LEMONNIER, Isaac Alexandre Henri( °27 avril 1849 76, Yvetot, , SEINE MARITIME - )
× 1880 POULLARD, Jeanne
LEMONNIER, Jaco °avant 1810 - †après 13 août 1820 )
LEMONNIER, Jacques( °avant 1794 - †avant 02 novembre 1840 )
× 1810 LEGOUIS, Marie "Judith"...

Voilà ! Bonne journée ! Marie

Marie007

To LarryJ :

Bonjour,

I think I'm lucky to live close to such a beautiful town, full of 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th century half-timbered houses, Flamboyant Gothic churches such as "Saint-Maclou" (same saint as Saint-Malo in Brittany), wonderful 16th century Law Courts, etc.

You mean your friend runs an Internet café in the rue du Général Leclerc... I'll try to go and say hello to that person when I can one day. Being an English teacher, I love meeting your "compatriotes" and learn things and new vocabulary, etc. thanks to them One of my good French friends was a "pilot instructor" (correct ?) in the States when he was 22 and has spent his entire life in the States, he is the same age as my father-in-law (83) who was a member of the 2ème DB during WWII (the one led by Maréchal Leclerc). Now, both of them correspond with each other through the Internet... Cordialement. Marie

cigalechanta

Marie, that sounds like a witty on line friend that I have. He pointed out to me that the "Gros Horloge," has one hand and if you look at the angels below it, you'll notice one is upside down. The sculptor did that as an act of revenge, not getting paid the sum promised. On one of the endless what to wear threads, someone advised Americans not to wear polar fleece. In Rouen, there were alot of clothes made from that fabric. It was cold one day there and my J. bought a jacket made of PF near the Horloge.

jsmith

Christina, I thought your answer was fine and I find no fault with your reply to Marie007 whom I felt was unnecessarily critical. I, too, spent only a day in Rouen. I know I didn't see everything but it was a great day and I saw those things I most wanted to see. BTW, I use the Steinbicker books also.

LarryJ

To Marie007

Marie, I met Steve there at Rouen a few years ago while looking for an internet cafe. He serves light American/Canadian type meals there also. You should try his Chile. He gets a lot of the American/Canadian students there who attend your university.

I will next visit Rouen in July. I was last there this past December on the day that you had the very bad wind storm. A large piece of steel chimney blew off a building near the McDonald's restaurant in the old town area and landed about 10 meters from me. I also saw the Christmas market get badly damaged and worst of all a piece of the facade of the great Notre Dame cathedral blew off and landed on the street on the river side of the cathederal. I think it was a gargoyle. It was smashed to pieces. I felt badly about that.

Best to you.
Larry J

Marie007

To LarryJ :

Thanks for the info, my husband and I will have a good chile thanks to you !

<<large piece of steel chimney blew off a building near the McDonald's restaurant in the old town area and landed about 10 meters from me>>

Oh, vous l'avez échappé belle !/You've had a narrow escape !

Over here, the weather has been marvellous since yesterday... It's really "le printemps"/spring, at last ;-) ! Hope it lasts... Cordialement. Marie

Marie007

To Mimi :

Ouah, Mimi, you know things I didn't know,that's not fair, my Friend ;-) ! Next time, I walk under our Gros Horloge, I'll think of you and will try to look at it more carefully ;-) ! Amicalement. Marie who didn't need to wear any polar fleece jacket today, the weather being superb !!!