La Rochelle

Love this city!  It has charm, history, grit, culture and great restaurants!  It's also large enough to make it difficult to park downtown, so we parked in one of the suburbs and took the shuttle to the "Centre Ville".  With this "cogs and wheels" art display, it's easy to remember where we have to catch our "navette". 

La Rochelle is a two-hour drive from Voulmentin, so we arrived just in time for "déjeuner".  We've been eating a lot of French food, so we thought we'd shake it up a bit by eating Italian for lunch.  Loved the photo of the owner and his sons...  "L'Italien" is the name of the restaurant.

Delicious veal parmigiana served with spaghetti.  Of course bread, water and wine.

And coffee.

Saw this print and it reminded me of Becky and Florence who both have it in their homes!

La Rochelle is easy to explore on foot, though its cobbled streets and arcades can be congested with tourists.

We walked the city all afternoon and really enjoyed it, despite the sprinkling of rain and the gusty wind coming off the Atlantic.  La Rochelle has been a commercial centre and busy port since the 11th century.

 

I imagined my cousin Richard when we passed this store that was being renovated.  "Un metre trois", the boss called out to his co-worker. 

 

No matter where we go in France, there are "boulangerie, pâtisserie" stores everywhere, even in the smallest towns.  In a place like La Rochelle, there are some on every block it seems!  As prevalent as Starbucks back home.

Porte de La Grosse Horloge. This Big Clock Gate, built in the 14th century, separates the port and the city.

There was a puppet dangling from the gate which attracted much attention.

 

Can you see the puppet dangling from this side of the Gate?

 

 

 "L'Académie de la bière", the Beer Academy.  This is a bar specializing in all kinds of beers from different origins, appealing to all tastes.  They even educate you on the characteristics of each beer while serving you! 

 

 



We came to La Rochelle specifically to do a bit of genealogical research.  I started off by visiting the "Tour de la Chaîne", the round tower on the right.  They have a big exhibit there on the people who left this port for La Nouvelle-France (Canada).  It deals with all emigration and slavery as well.

The glory of La Rochelle is the old harbour surrounded by stately buildings.  The harbour is now the biggest yachting center on France`s Atlantic coast.  On either side of the entrance are "Tour de la Chaîne" and "Tour St-Nicolas".  A huge chain used to be strung between them to ward off attack from the sea.

 

The "Tour de la Lanterne" has inner walls covered in graffiti by prisoners, mostly mariners, from the 17th-19th centuries.  Ships are the most common motif.

 



These are the Tour de la Chaîne and Tour St-Nicolas that guard the harbour entrance, but seen from the Atlantic Ocean side.  We took a little shuttle boat to cross the harbour.

 

 

We made our way to La Médiathèque, a huge building of information.  It is like a Bibliothèque, which holds books, but this holds all sorts of media and very few books.  You do most of your research on computers but can rent videos, CDs, etc.  I spoke with a very helpful woman in the "Patrimoine" section and she gave me a contact in the "Archives départementales".  We're getting closer to the confirmation of some of the ancestral information we have.

In this part of the harbour, there are pleasure craft, fishing boats, huge cruisers.  It's also where the Maritime Museum and the Aquarium are located.

A big Ferris Wheel in "Place du Commandant de la Motte Rouge".  A little too blustery to take a spin.

This is the "Phare", lighthouse.  What is interesting with this one is that it is aligned with the "Tour de la Lanterne" so that ships can navigate safely into port.

This door leads into the Phare.  I have no idea why there is a star on this door, but I choose to think it is the Star of the North, guiding all sailors.

Inside the church there are replicas of boats.  This is a mariner's home and many prayers have been whispered to see the sailors and passengers safely to their destination port.

Our brother-in-law Terry is on a journey of his own.  We pray for him.
 

All that walking gave us an appetite.  I had the Crêpe Grand Marnier. 

Karl had the Crêpe Normande, which was filled with apples and had Calvados flamed on top.

 

 

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"The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating.  The paths are not to be found, but made.  And the activity of making them changes both the maker and their destination."

 

~  John Schaar