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| Bronze of William the Conqueror across from The Trinity Church |
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| Bust found at entrance of William the Conqueror Castle |
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| One of the towers |
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| Lots of stairs to visit this place |
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| Karl enjoyed all the details of this tour |
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| View of Falaise from the Castle grounds. Incredible panoramic view. |
The tour of the castle was very different. There were no furnishings, just a few museum displays. However, we were each given a digital tablet when we arrived, and in each room there was a charger with information about that particular room. Using the most recent discoveries and up-to-date archaeological information about the castle, the tour offered the most faithful of recreations showing the evolution of the fortifications, the housing inside the courtyards and the designs of the rooms inside the keeps. You could see what the room would have been like at the time that William lived there, in a 3-D effect, full colour, top to bottom, side to side. It was fascinating!
Arlette, William's mother, had a dream: "As I lay sleeping it seemed that a tree grew out of my body. It was so great, so high, so straight and so marvellous that it reached the sky; there, above us, its shadow reached all over Normandy and the sea and the great land of England..."
A horse statue within the castle made of various pieces held together with special brads. It was marvellous!
The door leading from the camera to the capella (kitchen to chapel).
Models of many weapons used at that time.
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| The mangonel |
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| The side basket trebuchet |
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| The trebuchet |
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| The gantry |
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| The catapult |
The story of William the Conqueror has been told and retold. The Tapestry at Bayeux outlines the Battle of Hastings. This Castle showed a couple of movies that covered various times of William's life, from childhood to his death. A very thorough exploration of the man, his family, his political life, and his legacy.
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Today was cold and windy, so after this extensive visit, we needed to warm up. I indulged in a hot dark chocolate with chili pepper. It came from Italy. Delicious!
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Next stop was the André Lemaitre Museum, a Museum of window-actors. Think Christmas and all the automated dolls and animals that move and dance in display windows. Paris between 1920 and 1950 displayed these elaborate scenes from Lemaitre in the windows of its big Department Stores. In subsequent years, there were different designers.
A white bear promoting a throat lozenge was the first automaton, in 1920.
Buy these toys for your little girl!
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| These tiny replicas looked so real! |
There are so many steps to making an automaton: design, sculpture, moulding and filling, adding the mechanics, decorating and make-up, and finally the dressing.
Santa is cutting fabric to make clothes for dolls, with the help of angels. There were no elves back then...
The wedding of the doll, and my favourite. The carriage wheels were turning, prince charming was kissing the doll's hand, and there was a real sense of movement.
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| A country scene. |
This one was hilarious. It was a dance competition with a jury. All the musicians were playing their instruments with gusto and the couples on the dance floor were performing some pretty awesome moves. I loved the big lady in the green dress who was twirling quickly and swinging her small partner, wide-eyed and clinging for dear life!
André Lemaitre painted some 4,000 paintings. The city of Falaise pays tribute to this man, born in 1909, who died aged 86. The museum, endowed with 90 of his works, reflects his life and the variety of his work. A worthwhile stop!
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We experienced fine dining at "La Fine Fourchette". This old and beautifully maintained car was stationed at the door. (I believe I mentioned that it was a windy day, hence why Karl is leaning... lol!)
The amuse-bouche were two types of cheese cookies: one crisp and flat with lots of herbs, the other more of a pâte-à-choux (cream-puff) with melted cheese on top.
Karl had the special house apéritif which was a mixture of Calvados and wine with floating apple slices, the rim lined with sugar.
A few spoonfuls of gazpacho in mini bowls. Very aromatic and delicious!
I had the rabbit terrine as an entrée, accompanied with peach chutney and a nutty bread. A few raisins and quartered cherry tomatoes and apple sticks trimmed the plate... so beautifully presented.
Karl had the lox with a cream cheese mixture and some wasabi condiments.
A small dish of sorbet soaked in Calvados to cleanse the palate. Delightful painted plate!
This photo is specifically for my cousin Rose-Marie who is the best crochet artist I know! She would be able to whip one of these little bread baskets in no time, then starch it so it stays firm.
Each table boasted its own floral arrangement. The décor was simple, elegant, comfortable.
Oops! Missed taking photos of our duck dinner. It looked so good, we just gobbled it all up without hesitation...
Karl had a Neufchatel millefeuille for his cheese plate. I nibbled some and it was divine!
A pre-dessert with chocolate nutty brownie, chocolate nougat, and a meringue topped with chocolate and coconut.
For the official dessert, Karl had the Rum Baba with a custard cream inside and some fruit finely chopped on the side. There was also some creamy ice-cream in a mound of cookie crumbs that added some real texture.
At the end of this delicious feast, the owner showed up with her "digestif maison", which was a mixture of Calvados and many small red berries. (Very much reminded me of Rumtopf in Germany which is rum covering all sorts of fruit.) This house nectar was incredible!
We finished off with coffee and satisfied smiles. This meal was probably one of the best ones we've ever had in France, on par with our favourite in Niort. Simply amazing!
Your descriptions make it easy to imagine being there. This meal did look particularly fabulous. And what a marvelous museum!
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