Rouen

It was a long day yesterday so it was agreed that today would be a rest day. However, we needed to shop for food and also buy the VNF licence to enable us to use our boat on the non-tidal waterways of France. The cost for Jomima, which they measured in square metres, was 377.20 Euros (cash only) for the year.

After completing these vital tasks, the next thing that Ann wanted to do was, of course, to explore Rouen. We viewed the cathedral and then visited the tourist information. We rapidly discovered that a large part of the history of Rouen is associated with Sainte Jeanne D’Arc (Joan of Arc) – who the ‘English’ burnt alive at the stake on 30th May 1431 when she was only 19 years old. It would appear that she was leading a small army, by the age of 17, and she went to the rescue of Orleans which was being besieged by the English. There was no way we were going to let her get away with that!

The beautiful modern church of Eglise Sainte Jeanne D’Arc (see photo) was erected, in the Old Market Square, near the spot where she was supposed to have been burnt. Some of the windows were rescued from a nearby church that was bombed during the war.