Cruise up the Seine River

Summer river cruises are very popular in Europe. Still: Not bad, lying on the deck "Mobile hotel-luxury", To wave a hand passing by ships and consider the towns and vintage castles. What confirmed our correspondent, passing up the Seine River from La Mans to Paris.

The Volga flows into the Caspian Sea, and the Song River flows into La Mans, the strait between France and the United Kingdom. There, on the shore of a small bay, there are two cities of Normandy: a large industrial Havre and a small resort onfler. For several years, the Strasbourg tourist company Cruisi Europe begins to travel from Ontfler on Seine to Paris and from Paris to Ontfler. In France, as in other European countries, they tried to build the most beautiful buildings on the shores.

You are just lying in a lounger on the top deck and sunbathe, sometimes going down in the bar for "Martini" with ice.

Onfler

When my companions, mostly the French and Canadians, saw our ship douce france from the boss window, then as the team was tightened, like a song like a song "Marcelase". The boat is really pleased with the eye, on all the wigs they came to see the curious.

Initially, tourists spread around the cabins, get acquainted with captain, team and chefs, dine and peacefully go to the city. The center of the onfler is located around a small bay filled with yachts and expensive engine boats. In the evening, sitting in a restaurant and drinking oysters or snails with white French wine, you can watch how on board the English yacht Spycatcher ("Spy Catcher") with flag "Merry Roger" In Rhe, the owner of the vessel dins with his wife. For the strait, where our ship is worth it, the lights of a two-kilometer bridge are clearly blinking, similar to two giant harp, which connects onfler and Gavr. At the time when a family of Monet with the five-year-old Son by Claude moved to Havre, the bridge was not yet. It was not him and when a twenty-sest, part of the artist Claude Moneta settled in the onfler. But there were the same medieval houses, the narrow curves of the street and the unique wooden church of the Holy Catharina, built at the end of the VI century. Around the small church area, the rounds of dozens of art galleries are brightly burning, selling small paintings and huge canvas, sculptures and sculptures from bronze and stone, author’s jewelry of beginner and famous French artists price from two hundred to half a million francs. Galleries and antique shops "Spray" By town. Of such a number of works of art on "Soul of the population" No, perhaps, in no other city of Europe. All artists of the world seek at least once in Ontfler. Something to sell here or buy something. It is honorable and prestigious. In the evening in a small downtown of the city park, I discovered a small sculpture of a dog with a rushed tail and loop on the neck. The plate contained:

"Mu Mu. Monument to all victims of love. Yuri Grymov, Moscow, 1997". This, by the way, is the only sad note onfler. All others assembled in the town of art’s works are chanting the joy of love.

Trowel, Deauville and Calvados

The next day, watches seven to the waste of the ship, we were taken to the nearby towns of Trouville and Deauville, the famous sea resorts of Normandy. Trouville called North Riviera. Almost all French celebrities rest and rest here. From Gustava Flaubert and Alfred Mussy to Jean Gaben and Belmondo. Not far from merging together towns – Villa Francoise Sagan. And the weather in the summer is so fragile that the name of her famous novel comes to memory "A little sun in cold water". In Trower, on the shore of a small bay, – casino, architecture of his resembling Kazan station in Moscow, only a little less. Huge, modern casino architecture and in the neighboring. But the town is not famous for them, but with their festivals of American films, for which every September of Hollywood goes.

From Deeville Total Kilometers Ten to the Vintage Castle Chateau de Breuil, where the famous Calvados is now produced. Everything is very simple. Apple wine is still distilled by the Dedovo way. From a large shiny copper boiler over a gas burner, sparkling coils stretch. From rather strong smell of apple "Motherogonki" A little mutitis. The minister spends you on the shady alleys of the park to the old building, filled with huge oak barrels and small barrels. Some visible bichroma web, some varieties "Apple Brandy" insist here dozens of years. The next alley leads to the tasting hall. In the old floor, there is a shop. You are savoring fifteen grams of Calvados from a large Fozera and consider the still life of red, green, gold apples of different varieties, but excellent ripeness on the walls. Pictures can be bought at a price of 600 francs and above. On window sills and tables are clay and ceramic apples. On the site of Yavlinsky, I would include this place in the mandatory party route.

Direction – Rouen

In the evening, after dinner, people in vintage costumes came to our campaign and immediately went into the dance under the harmonic. When he was dark, I went down to my cabin. The tide was expected at two in the morning. I put alarm clock to go to the deck and watch how small onfler gateways passes and goes into the water of La Mansha. But I woke up myself, from easy swaying. On the upper deck, the wind sprayed the scraps of French phrases from the radio station of the captain, a huge Gavron shattered in the night lights, a giant self-propelled barge was held in front of us and slowly disappeared into the dark strait.

In the morning the ship moored in the small town of Codeburg-An-Co. Sailors leisurely attached and raised flagpole flags France, Germany, England, European Union and Red flag with lions – Normandy flag. On the streets of Codeburg-An-ko no one. Only on the central square in the shop with me a seller greeted and smiled for a long time from her office aquarium, a continuous girl, washing under the shower of a white poodle. The second poodle, more, already with a laid hairdryer, finely trembled with her feet and sadly looked at his fellow in the bathroom.

The ship climbs up the ship several hours. Immediately after lunch, the suburbs of Rouen, the capital of Normandy, the fourth largest port of France begin. Kilometers tenpyteen on the right side of the hay stretch plants, cement storage and elevators, multicolored port cranes of all sorts of configurations. Tens of thousands of folded stacks logs are watered dozens of rotating fountains. All this industrial landscape is not annoying for a minute, but somehow even captures with its cold aesthetics and almost sterile purity. At some point, a huge cathedral with a black spire appears due to port cranes – Cathedral of Rouen Notre Dame. This city is sadly famous for the fact that May 30, 1431, Zhanna d’Ark burned on his square. Born here for several centuries later Gustave Flauber "poisoned" Mrs. Bovarie and, adding this scene, felt strong nausea and signs of poisoning. At the site of the execution of Joan D’Ark, on the square of the old market, it is now a completely unusual church. It was built at the end of the seventies and appearance resembles a strange spacecraft. In the book of feedback, I found an indicative record made by the American Student: "Outside very modern, but inside too church". On a medieval street with chic modern shops on the first floors, under the arch with a big clock you can go to the Ruan Cathedral of Notre Dame, the construction of which began in XII, and ended in the XVI century. I repent, but I liked it more than the famous Cathedral of the Paris Mother.

Returning to the ship, I noticed that it was put on the top deck. There was no such earlier. After dinner, I went down to the marina, and a dried and burned motorcyclist of forty-five years old and asked something in French. I replied that I speak a little English. "Well, cool there?" – pointed him nod to our head "Four-star" ship. "Not bad", – I replied. "I am French, – Rose Motorcyclist’s voice, – I am a fucking!" I did not find what to answer, and instinctively spread my hands. "Shschit", – The character was stuck, put on a helmet sharply and gazed on the pier between teenagers rollerblaishes. The evening ended in the same vein. Cape Photographer walked along the streets of Rouen, and at some point from the balcony of one of the modern houses, a bucket of water poured. "The proletarian city – a police officer from the patrol car stopped with a smile. -What can we do". Proletaria of all countries, forgive me! As I realized why they were put on our ship.

Gardens Monet

In the morning of the next day we moored in the small town of faithful. It also has the Cathedral of Our Lady, but true – it is only "pier" For thousands of pilgrims, heading for Village Jerevni, about ten kilometers from the city. From 1883 to the end of his life in 1926 in Jerevni, the Great Claude Monet lived. Pond, which he perpetuated in his famous picture "Pond water lilies", The French will shift as a national heritage, and when they slowly pass along the path around him, it seems that nothing has changed. The artist’s workshop works the store that I would call "Buy a little monet". Large and small reproductions, calendars and calendars, T-shirts and notebooks with reproductions of paintings on covers, reproductions on glasses, cups, bracelets, perrsts and clockbags. And I went to the street and walked towards a small old hotel. Next to him saw an art salon. Among other things, it sold several works in Pastel and an artist’s oil Eloiz Ponti, the saleswoman told me that Eliz is only 22 years old, she is not only an artist, but also a fashion model. I bought for 695 francs a small pastel "Nude", and the saleswoman wrote me a certificate of authenticity signed by the girl Ponti.

On the last day before Paris on the ship arranged "Captainsky dinner". It would seem to surprise us more than nothing, all the dishes during the cruise were hit by freshness and abundance: a lamb baked in a puff pastry, gave the taste of a tart of wine, a pink salmon in a mushroom sauce smelled of red caviar, Brussels capposteo like grape juice. But all this was on ordinary days. At the festive dinner, quailing was served in a milk sauce, cooked for a couple of trout with lingonberries and cedar nuts and something combined from ice cream, biscuits and meringues with pineapple syrup. The captain solemnly announced that the team of cooks worked on this from the morning. And it believed.

Some Paris

The Paris part of the hay met a funny spectacle: many and many kilometers to her embankments on a permanent parking lot, barges are converted into apartments. The portholes were visible neat bedrooms, living rooms, and even libraries. It is fashionable.

And night Paris with the hay poured us with lights and smells of good food with sailing past ships-restaurants. Almost all the most important attractions – from the Cathedral of the Parisian Our Lady to the Eiffel Tower – they appear from the river a little in another case, at some distance and as if a little bit above you. Only bridges scare a little: when you spend at speed under them, it seems that "Do not demolish the head". The three oldest and low bridges captain asked everyone to sit on the chairs. But especially nervous Germans just fell on the deck.

Late in the evening the ship moored on the embankment of Bercy, and we went for a walk in Paris. But that is another story.