Any information on Rouen?

[2ashevillesailors]

Lonely Planet has a good description and ideas about what to do and see.

 

Thank you for you great information.

[2ashevillesailors]

The current train fare is EUR 32 per person. There is a train out at 10:00 and a return at 16:00. The journey takes about an hour. A taxi from the port to the station would be around EUR 12.

 

It is around 90k by road and I suspect that a taxi would easily be 4 times more expensive and no faster.

 

Does the cruise line not offer an shuttle?

I have searched for trains and did not see what you printed. Could you tellme which train company you saw this information on? Thank you so much! The one I saw said we have to switch trains, so I am definitely not at the proper train company.

[2ashevillesailors]

I don't know why you think it is acceptable to you to toss around hostile comments like [Parisians are] "not friendly to the US" but you get bent out of shape when someone -- admittedly snarkily -- reacts to your asking a question about a French city on the British Isles Board.

 

Please reconsider how your own hostility comes across to the many posters who love Paris and have been treated with nothing but kindness by the French people we've encountered.

 

I am sorry to have upset you with my comment. I have not been to Paris. We lived for over two years in Germany many years ago and lived maybe 10 K from the French border. and the people there were very nice. But we had many friends who went to Paris and they were treated badly because they were Americans. I should not judge a city that I have not been to. But that is why I said what I did.

[Pet Nit Noy]

I am sorry to have upset you with my comment. I have not been to Paris. We lived for over two years in Germany many years ago and lived maybe 10 K from the French border. and the people there were very nice. But we had many friends who went to Paris and they were treated badly because they were Americans. I should not judge a city that I have not been to. But that is why I said what I did.

 

The only thing I can be certain of is that your friends were not mistreated because they were Americans. I don't doubt that's what your friends believe and that's what they reported to anyone who listened. However, the French tend to be somewhat intolerant of anyone who does not make the effort to learn four magic words, "Hello," Please," "Thank you," and "Good-bye." Use those words, smile, and ask permission -- in English -- to switch to English. You'll be amazed at the kindness of Parisians you'll encounter in restaurants and stores. As for the general Parisian resident, he/she isn't rude because you're an American, he/she is simply living his/her life at a pace that's essentially incompatible with thousands of tourists.

 

I speak barely-adequate French so I feel comfortable with the social niceties. (My fluency is definitely a thing of a long-ago past.) But when I talk to my husband as we're walking on the streets of Paris, I guarantee that I speak English. At least once each trip, Parisians have heard us speaking English as we figure out where to go and have come over to us to volunteer directions. Once, most memorably, two elegantly dressed Parisians -- the kind whose sense of style is enough to inspire feelings of inadequacy in most typically dressed tourist -- overheard us and started to give us directions in English. They realized the directions were quite complicated so they reversed their own walk to escort us to a point in the route where we could take over.

 

I can't emphasize too strongly that visitors should ignore anything negative they've heard about a city and its inhabitants. Go with positive expectations and those expectations become reality.

 

Rouen is a great destination. You'll have a wonderful time there, and, in your place, I wouldn't spend a day frantically rushing around Paris either. But hopefully, there will come a day when you want to go to Paris. I hope you remember my advice.

[shorefolks]

One of my favorite memories of a trip to France is of a beautiful lunch in an open-air cafe next to the Rouen cathedral. They served a Salad Perigord of mixed greens with exquisite, sliced duck breast and two barely-runny poached eggs, all topped with a lovely vinaigrette. A bottle of crisp, chilled sancerre was the perfect accompaniment.

[Bob++]

I have searched for trains and did not see what you printed. Could you tellme which train company you saw this information on? Thank you so much! The one I saw said we have to switch trains, so I am definitely not at the proper train company.

 

Here's the link: http://www.voyages-sncf.com/train/gare/rouen/gare-rouen

 

It's in French but it isn't hard to work out how to make an enquiry. There is no point in reserving tickets - buy them at the station on the day. And remember that you start by saying Bonjour M'mselle/Madame/M'sieur as appropriate.

 

You should buy return tickets (billets de retour) from Gare du Havre to Gare de Rouen Rive Droite

Edited March 21, 2015 by Bob++

[Pet Nit Noy]

Here's the link: http://www.voyages-sncf.com/train/gare/rouen/gare-rouen

 

It's in French

 

Converting the web site to the English language version is counter-intuitive, but there is a way to do so. Click on the word "French" on the right on the top line of the web site. This will bring up a list of about 10 countries. Click on "United Kingdom" and the web site will convert to English language.

 

Here's the URL that may even save you the need to do this conversion:

 

http://uk.voyages-sncf.com/en/

 

buy them at the station on the day. And remember that you start by saying Bonjour M'mselle/Madame/M'sieur as appropriate.

 

You should buy return tickets (billets de retour) from Gare du Havre to Gare de Rouen Rive Droite

 

If you'll be asked to fill in some boxes for the date of the journey, remember to use the European sequence: Day -- Month -- Year

 

For today, that means the familiar sequence March 22, 2015 becomes either 22 March 2015 or 22/3/15.

 

This can get really confusing when both the numbers are under 12. When I'm contacting a hotel to make reservations, for example, I like to write out the month rather than use only numbers so there's no mistaking my intentions.

 

If it will be reassuring, consider writing out the train number and train time -- outbound and return -- after studying the web site so you can just slide a piece of paper across to the ticket agent. Add "Je regrette, de ne parle pas Francais" on the paper and say the same thing in English as you do so (I'm sorry, but I don't speak French.) These are the little social pleasantries so valued by Europeans. Use them and you'll find people really go out of their way to be helpful.

 

Disclaimer: Remember, I said that my French is now barely adequate, so my sentence may not be 100% grammatically correct. But here's the beauty part; people are so thrilled when visitors make an effort to speak their language they're wonderfully forgiving. "Regrette" and "ne parle pas Francais" are correct so the meaning will come across regardless of any grammatical issues.

Edited March 22, 2015 by Pet Nit Noy

[2ashevillesailors]

Since you have posted this in the Britain forum, the best information I can tell you about Rouen is that it's in France, and to suggest that you do a search for Rouen in the France forum, where you will find information; you can also post your inquiry there.

 

(More seriously, and not your fault, the way these Ports of Call fora are divided up geographically can be quite confusing to users.)

 

We are docking in LeHavre, France.

[2ashevillesailors]

I'm sure you've heard of that 😙new invention GOOGLE!

 

Of course,

[Cybercsp]

We returned from a river cruise that overnighted in Rouen. It was a lovely town, with plenty to see (I concur with the list offered previously). In addition, there was a light/sound show in the evening that was projected on the front of the Cathedral that was absolutely wonderful. The first one had a Viking theme, followed by Joan of Arc (about 15 mins per show) I think the show was at 10 PM, and possibly repeated later (11?) It was excellent!

 

We also spent three days in Paris on our own. We had great experiences with the hotel personnel and restaurant staff. Do your homework and check sites like TripAdvisor to read about bistros/restaurants where staff members speak English and will be helpful. I believe that, with few exceptions, a friendly, positive manner will be met in kind. I would go to Paris again in a minute.