The seaport town of Honfleur captivated Marla and I on many levels. I’ll take you on a visual tour of the town to see the areas we loved. The aerial view above shows “Vieux Bassin” or “Old Harbour”.

Honfleur’s most famous painter is Eugene Boudin, born in 1824. He was one of the first French landscape painters to paint outdoors.

In 1858, Boudin befriended the young Claude Monet, then only 17, and persuaded him to give up his teenage caricature drawings and become a landscape painter. He helped to instill in him a love of bright hues and the play of light on water later evident in Monet’s Impressionist paintings. Monet painted this Honfleur scene in 1864.

Our guide from Uniworld was great and very informative as we navigated the town.

Honfleur is circled on the map on the far right. We were very close to the “D Day” beaches.

Our tour group walked toward the Old Harbour.

We passed the “Liberation Memorial Monument” commemorating allied soldiers who died on August 25, 1944.

This is a typical street near the port of Honfleur.

The town is famous for half-timbered houses. Many are from the 15th to the 18th centuries.

Marla loved our tour.

The narrow entrance to the Vieux Bassin.

Our Uniworld guide is an historian of the area.

I love all the small outdoor cafes.

We walked up a narrow lane toward the market.

Le Clocher de l’Église Sainte-Catherine bell tower is made entirely of wood. It was built in the 15th and 16th centuries by shipwrights using inverted ship hull techniques. Separated from the church to protect the sanctuary from fires caused by lightning, it captivates with its Norman Gothic architecture and half-timbered facades.

I love outdoor markets and of course had to check it out!

A woman was selling a vast array of jam. I purchased a jar of her blackberry jam. I found it to be the most delishious jam I’ve ever tasted! I told Marla I was thinking of making a special trip back to Honfleur just to buy more but Marla said it was not going to happen. Darn!

The sausages were fabulous!

Market scene near the church.

This is inside Église Sainte Catherine, France’s largest wooden church, built in the 15th century & covered in chestnut shingles.

Outdoor cafes set up in the market next to the church.

A very happy Lady!

An outdoor plaque tells the story of Boudin and Monet painting here.

I came upon a Japanese antique gallery with fabulous treasures. I was surprised at the number of very fabulous art galleries in Honfleur!

We totally loved beautiful and charming Honfleur! Put it on your list if you haven’t visited!

Photos: Dick Gentry. Not to be used without permission.