The Château de Fontaine-Henry

Dear families,

For those who weren’t in language classes this morning, there were two optional excursions on offer. The first was a second trip to the resort town of Deauville that we went to last week, the other to the city of Lisieux, home to the magnificent Basilica of Saint Thérèse. Completed in the middle of the 20th century, the magnificent structure boasts a traditional approach to liturgical art with a distinctly modern flair. It may have been the most extraordinary church of the trip.

After lunch, we gathered to travel a far shorter distance to the nearby Château de Fontaine-Henry. Construction of the castle begin in the 13th century, and major additions would be made over the subsequent centuries through the Renaissance. While the castle has been home to several different noble families, it was passed from family to family matrilineally. Accordingly, the castle has never been sold. The current owner is the Marquis of Oilliamson, the castle’s current only full-time resident.

While the castle is also magnificent on the inside, photographs are only allowed in the vestibule. The rooms we visited included two formal living rooms, the dining room, the library, and a bedroom.

The on-site chapel.

A guillotine was found in the gothic cellars.

Those Norman country roads are full of surprises.

The grounds also housed a labyrinth, three peacocks, tree stump sculptures, and old fashioned games made out of wood.

Time for a period appropriate group photo! Lily and Hannah’s host sister Edeïs joined us today; our wonderful guide Christine made it into the group picture!

Rising fourth former Beckett Holmes from Cincinnati, Ohio has been all in since we landed. Here’s what he’s got to say about his host family here in Caen:

“Over the past few weeks, I’ve gotten to know the Perrier family quite well. Here are some fun facts about each one of them! Both of my host parents are very active. The day they picked me up, they casually exclaimed, “We ran a marathon today, it was really fun”. This had me bamboozled as to how casually they talked about competing in a marathon they completed 5 hours before picking me up. Their eldest son, named Alex, is seventeen and already in college. He is one of the best 18 and under cross-country horse riders in France and is nearly always at the stable. Gaspar is the middle child and a basketball prodigy. Playing for one of the best teams in Caen, his team won fifteen games and only lost two this whole year. Gaspar also enjoys playing video games such as FIFA, NBA 2k, and many others. Louise is the youngest child and the only girl. She loves playing the violin, playing against me in chess, drawing, and beating me in the French version of the game Guess Who. Throughout this trip, my host family has taken me on countless adventures. My favorites have been go-cart racing, a fourteen-hour-long wedding, and playing soccer on the beach at 11 pm with family and friends.”

After several weeks of unreasonably beautifully weather, some rain may be on the way…

Bonne soirée!

KJH, AB & JMH