December 27th 2022

We visited the town of Rouen, and were fortunate enough for it to be a mild and sunny day! For some reason, the light felt like golden hour for most of the day which was truly special.

We visited Notre Dame de Rouen which was jaw-dropping. The details of the statues on the outside of the cathedral were intimidating. Visitation was surprisingly free. The cathedral was cold, you could see your breath in streams of light. It was under construction but still a magical beast. I found the statues of Joan of Arc and Saint Joseph, then lit a candle for my family.

I had my first french kebab sandwich, which was amazing! I’ve never eaten a sandwich so slowly and with such savoring bites in my life.

We passed ‘Le Gros Horloge’ which was beautiful, finding a stone carving underneath it. We made our way to The Joan of Arc Church where I believe stands where she was burned at the stake. Fun fact: Joan of Arc was later made a saint…which feels oddly strange since she is very celebrated in the town where she was murdered.

The day finished with hot chocolate, shopping, and seeing friends.

It was a good start to getting to my journey in France.