NORMANDY - France 2014 - page 384

Nearby: FartherdownRueMartainville,atPlaceSt.Marc,acolorfulmarketblooms
Sunday until about 12:30 and all day Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday. If it's not market day,
you can double back to the cathedral and Rue du Gros Horloge, or continue with me to
explore more of Rouen and find the Museum of Fine Arts (back toward the train station).
• To reach the museum, turn right upon leaving the boneyard, then right again at the little
boys (onto Rue Damiette), and hike up antique row to the vertical St. Ouen Church (a
seventh-centuryabbeyturnedchurchinthe15thcentury,fineparkbehind).Turnleftatthe
church on Rue des Faulx (an English-language bookstore, ABC Books, is a block to the
right—see “Helpful Hints,” page 285 ), and cross the busy street. (The horseman you see
to the right is a short yet majestic Napoleon Bonaparte, who welcomes visitors to Rouen's
City Hall.)
Continue down Rue de l'Hôpital's traffic-free lane, which becomes Rue Ganterie
(admire the Gothic fountain at Rue Beauvoisine). A right at the modern square on Rue de
l'Ecureuilleadsyoutothe Museum of Fine Arts andthe Museum of Ironworks (bothde-
scribed next, under “Sights in Rouen”). This is the end of our tour. The tower where Joan
of Arc was imprisoned (also explained later) is a few blocks uphill, on the way back to the
train station.
Sights in Rouen
The first three museums are within a block of one another, closed on Tuesdays, never
crowded, and can all be visited with the same €8 combo-ticket ( www.rouen-musees.com ) .
▲ Museum of Fine Arts (Musée des Beaux-Arts)
Paintings from many periods are beautifully displayed in this overlooked two-floor mu-
seum, including works by Caravaggio, Peter Paul Rubens, Paolo Veronese, Jan Steen,
Théodore Géricault, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Eugène Delacroix, and several Im-
pressionists. With its reasonable entry fee and calm interior, this museum is worth a short
visit for the Impressionists and a surgical hit of a few other key artists. The museum café
is good for a peaceful break from the action outside.
Cost and Hours: €5, occasional temporary exhibitions cost extra, €8 combo-ticket
includes ironworks and ceramics museums; open Wed-Mon 10:00-18:00, 15th-17th-cen-
tury rooms closed 13:00-14:00, closed Tue; a few blocks below train station at 26 bis Rue
Jean Lecanuet, tel. [phone].
Visiting the Museum: Pick up the essential museum map at the ticket desk. Climb
the stairs to the upper floor, where you'll focus your time and savor the complete lack of
crowds. Find the excellent handheld English descriptions in key rooms. There's a gallery
dedicated to Géricault and a good collection of Ingres' work (smaller paintings than at the