Our first stop was Honfleur. We arrived on the best day possible – on Fête de la Musique. It’s a French holiday, when everybody, regardless of their skills, can get into the center and perform some music in any way possible. Twice in my life I witnessed this event and I’m still not sure what attitude to adopt. One thing is certain: the ambiance is great fun. Considering that Xavier’s birthday is the next day after the Fête de la musique, it always serves as a perfect “Birthday Eve”.

After Honfleur we made a short stop in a lovely village Villerville. You see yourself what it is like – another fairytale dream. I do wonder why it didn’t make it to the most beautiful villages of France list, but at least it got its own award – Village de Caractère du Calvados. Yes, in France we love ranking and awarding towns and villages, who then display them on the entrance signs like a scout’s belt with badges.

Out of all towns we visited on the coast, it’s Trouville I personally loved the most. It has this particular atmosphere of the old France – you can easily picture here artists and writers, noble ladies in beautiful but horridly impractical dresses accompanied by gentlemen with a compulsory mustache. Trouville breathes with “old money” and history in its all aesthetic glory, which perspires even through the attributes of the 21st century.

As I’m writing this article four years after the actual trip, I can’t help dreaming of going back with all my sketching equipment. Back in those days I couldn’t even imagine that I would paint myself someday, nevertheless I already felt frustrated by the inability to spend more time with each of the manors of the town. Taking pictures was simply not enough.

I understand why artists were so much attracted by the local towns (although I said exactly the same thing about Etretat cliffs). Though yet again, I believe that every inch of Normandy is an artist’s dream, be it for its nature or its architecture. Especially considering that all these places provide the closest seaside to all Parisian bourgeoisie, who over the centuries shaped these towns to match with their vision of beauty.

In Villers we also indulged in one of our most favorite french activities – food shopping at the local market! I can safely say that over the course of our Normandy life we consumed hundreds liters of cider and hundreds kilos of cheese. It took me some real effort to get rid of the consequences in my body…

In Houlgate we started feeling seriously tired, and even though the town is no less beautiful than everything we had seen before, it was a perfect moment for some beach chill. We have long mastered the skill of swimming in the waters that people consider “cold” – England trained us even for colder temperatures, so for us this beach pause was perfect.

Our next stop somewhat differed from all the other towns. Even if technically it’s still situated on the Côte Fleurie, it’s not its glamorous villas that attract tourists. Dives-sur-Mer boasts a rich historical heritage as it was from here that William the Conqueror set sail for England in 1066, leading to the Norman Conquest. The town’s history is palpable in its quaint streets, medieval architecture, and the 11th-century Church of Sainte-Marie. The old town is a real pearl too with its narrow cobblestone streets, half-timbered houses, and charming squares. You know our fascination with William the Conqueror history (check the article about Hastings!), so together with Falaise and Bayeux (coming soon), we collected almost all significant places connected to the person, who largely contributed to make England what it is today.