Laon to Beaune

We went to see the old part of Laon before heading south.

The present Laon Cathedral dates from the 12th and early 13th centuries, an early example of the Gothic style that originated in Northern France. The former cathedral was burned out and damaged during the communal insurrection in 1112. The present reconstruction began about 1160 and was finished by 1174.

The west front, then with three porches, the centre one surmounted by a fine rose window 1210, ranks next to that of Notre Dame de Paris in the purity of its Gothic style. Because of the use of white stone in the interior, however, the luminosity is remarkably greater than at Notre-Dame. The cathedral has stained glass of the 13th century and a chancel screen of the 18th century. Although the cathedral suffered some damage during the French Revolution and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, it escaped both World Wars unharmed.

We stopped at a random village called Bar Sur Seine for some lunch to have a break from the motorway. It was an old town and full of interesting old houses. It was like a ghost town as it was 1pm and everything had closed down for their 2 hour siesta. Thankfully the bakery was open and we bought some delightful things and took them down to the river to eat.

I thought Mike had been exaggerating when he described what the older toilets were like in France but found out he wasn't!

Fontenay abbey was the next stop. This is a former Cistercian abbey near Montbard and was founded by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in 1118, and built in the Romanesque style. It is one of the oldest and most complete Cistercian abbeys in Europe, and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981. Of the original complex comprising church, dormitory, cloister, chapter house, caldarium, refectory, dovecote and forge, all remain intact except the refectory and are well maintained. The Abbey of Fontenay, along with other Cistercian abbeys, forms a connecting link between Romanesque and Gothic architectures. Mike is teaching us all about the different styles of architecture.

The abbey was the most complete example of a medieval abbey we had seen and it helped to give us a greater understanding of the magnitude of the many other ruined abbeys we had seen in the UK.

But how on earth did they manage to build something of this size in the twelfth century is anyone's guess?

The monks dormitory.

Chapter house.

Cloisters

It had an amazing reconstructed forge. Apparently this was the first example of a metal working factory in Europe.

This water wheel was working, powered by the water from behind and it powered a massive hydraulic hammer.

Back on the road for the final leg of our journey to Beaune. Mike took us on a quick tour of this amazing medieval village called Semur- en - Auxios.

Neuf Castle from the window as we sped past.

We finally arrived at our destination of Beaune camping ground. It is fully booked but the sites are large and each is defined by a highway hedge to give privacy so it doesn't seem crowded. It is full of grey nomads. We put up our new home away from home and it is excellent. Easy to put up and looks almost new. Plenty of room.

For tea we went to the little restaurant and enjoyed a salad. Well we did. Mike enjoyed snails!

 

 

Off to France

The day dawned cold and drizzley. Our hotel in Folkestone is right on the beach and we can see the waves from our room turbulent and confused. Not the ideal day for a channel crossing!

We had breakfast and the set off to take the car back to Europcar at Dover. Both Satnav's were very confused this morning and we ended up having to 'just follow the signs!' It was easy finding the car hire place and the staff were a lot easier to deal with than the Barking branch. We were declared 'no damage and no fines' which was a relief after some of the adventures we had had in England on their super narrow roads.

Dot and Mike came along in perfect timing and picked us up for the short trip to the ferry terminal. Our trip through French customs was quite funny and they didn't even look at us in the back. Not very secure in this day and age I would think.

The bad weather meant big delays and we were four hours late getting off. The ferry crossing was surprisingly smooth considering.

Soon we were on our way and onto a motorway which we virtually stayed on until we reached Laon after about 2 1/2 hours.We were staying in a motel tonight similar to the Formula One chain in Australia.

We had a fun dinner of all you can eat first course and dessert. It was impressive how much can be fitted on a small plate!

We had a bit of a walk after tea and then retired for the night. Tomorrow is a long drive.

 

Hever and Bodiam castles

Last day in UK for a while. We packed up and cleaned up after ourselves in the flat and head off South to visit another couple of castles on our way to Folkestone where we are staying overnight.

Both GPS programs are acting very strangely today and we seem to have travelled many more miles than we needed to.

We finally got to Hever Castle, home of Anne Bolyn.

It was much more a large fortified manor house than a proper castle but bits of it were quite old.

Front of the castle

Courtyard of the castle.

Hever Castle began as a country house, built in the 13th century. From 1462 to 1539 it was the seat of the Boleyn, originally 'Bullen', family.

Anne Boleyn, the second queen consort of King Henry VIII of England, spent her early youth there, after her father, Thomas Boleyn had inherited it in 1505. He had been born there in 1477, and the castle passed to him upon the death of his father, Sir William Boleyn. It later came into the possession of King Henry's fourth wife, Anne of Cleves after Anne was beheaded.

Hever Castle was a bit disppointing as it was expensive to go in but we didn't realise that most of the castle had been totally renovated in1900's by Americal millionaire William Waldorf Astor. There were some original parts however and some interesting exhibits about the history of the different history periods.

We tried out the maze. Or I should say I followed Geoff while he explored the maze. I get lost at the best of times. No way could I find my way out of a maze!

Side of the castle. Below were some amazing branch sculptures.

In the afternoon we visited Bodiam Castle which I think is the most iconic original intact castle with a moat that we have seen.

It was freezing cold and windy as we explored the castle.

It was built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, a former knight of Edward III, with the permission of Richard II, ostensibly to defend the area against French invasion during the Hundred Years' War. Of quadrangular plan, Bodiam Castle has no keep, having its various chambers built around the outer defensive walls and inner courts. Its corners and entrance are marked by towers, and topped by crenellations. Its structure, details and situation in an artificial watery landscape indicate that display was an important aspect of the castle's design as well as defence. It was the home of the Dalyngrigge family and the centre of the manor of Bodiam.

We are staying overnight at Folkstone right on the beach. Hard to remember that it is now summer over here!

Tomorrow France!