Our journey takes us to France in August 2001. This time we choose the route via Belgium and drive along the coast via Dunkirk, Calais, Abbeville and Dieppe. Following the coastline, we pass Le Havre, Honfleur and Deauville. The rest of the way leads us via Caen, Rennes, Nantes to La Rochelle. We spend two days in Bordeaux. Afterwards we pay a short visit to Bilbao and then drive north back to Germany via Tours and Orleans.
Honfleur is a small port city, which we reach from Le Havre over the bridge that stretches far over the mouth of the Seine. The town has a lot of flair and is correspondingly busy, at least in the summer months.
Tourists and artists cavort here, uniting to form a colourful mixture of peoples. The small sports and fishing port is one of the main attractions of the city. A large number of restaurants have established themselves, which mainly offer fish dishes. A visit is extremely worthwhile, especially since all fish dishes are freshly prepared and very tasty. Honfleur has a small shopping mile where not only the French shop and stroll.
In the shops, which are mainly furnished in the typical style of the country, everything is available, from daily necessities to luxury items ala Cartier, etc. We spend the night away from Honfleuer, as all hotels in the city are fully booked in August. The next day we travel further south and book a stay in La Rochelle for two days.
The city has a historical medieval history. This can be felt up close in almost all places in the village. We can only recommend visiting the place outside of peak travel times. In the months of July and August, half of France seems to storm the city.
The port of La Rochelle is extremely charming and is visited by many yachts and sailing ships. It borders directly on the old town and can be reached in a few minutes on foot. Directly at the harbour there is a lighthouse that shows ships the right way into the harbour basin. In earlier times, the port was the meeting point for all trade activities. This has changed somewhat today. But you can still guess the breath of history at this place.
The narrow entrance to the harbour is flanked by a medieval fortress with two watchtowers facing each other. In earlier times, strong iron chains were stretched between the two towers to control the incoming ships. The reinforced towers are part of a comprehensive city wall that is still very well preserved today. The old town is widely ramified and is broken up by small shops and many restaurants.
In the evening, smaller events with jugglers and artists take place on the streets. If it weren’t for the many visitors dressed in touristy clothes, you could feel transported back to the Middle Ages with the necessary imagination. Well, if we just close our eyes, maybe the feeling sets in.
We have another extensive dinner in a fish restaurant in the old town near the harbor entrance. In wonderfully warm summer weather, we enjoy the starry night with several courses of various fish specialties and French red wine. During the subsequent walk to the hotel, we decide to continue our journey the next day. Despite everything, saying goodbye is a little difficult for us. We have decided to come back again outside of the high season.
