When you've lived in France for 13 years, folks kind of expect that you've been around to all the major towns in France. But there is so much to see! All of France, not to mention all of Europe, to cover. And we tend to revisit places we love, all of which means my knowledge of a lot of French cities is pretty pathetic.
"You DO know Nancy, don't you?", the French will ask us. "You HAVE been to Lille of course? And you can't have missed the cathedral at Reims?"
Non, non, and oui. So I was very happy to check one at least one of these off my list recently, while we were in the Champagne region.
Ron claims to have cathedral fatigue, he has seen one too many of them in our European travels. But even he found Notre-Dame de Reims to be exceptional. It's special because so many of the kings and queens of France were coronated here. And for other reasons, as you will see.
Reims (pronounce it 'rance', unless you want to be terribly gauche), is centered around the cathedral. The first thing that sets it apart is, it's enormous. And every inch of the exterior is carved and ornate.
Before you go in you must of course look for the Smiling Angel (above), the muse of Reims. There were many angels and we were scratching our heads over this when a friendly guard wandered up and pointed her out. She does indeed have a cheerful and slightly enigmatic smile, and her giant visage looks down on you kindly.
Inside, it has the usual reverent elegance of a French cathedral, only bigger. But they've done something very interesting and very French, as the French have no fear of mixing the ultra modern with the ancient (SEE the pyramid at the Louvre). In the rear nave, they've replaced the towering stained glass windows, destroyed when the cathedral was bombed in WWI, with unabashedly modern stained glass by artists Marc Chagall, Imi Knoebel, and Brigitte Simon-Marq. The effect is spectacular.
The museum next door showcases some of the robes and finery of the royalty who began their reign with a march under the hallowed arches.
After your tour you'll be feeling virtuous, so reward yourself with lunch and wine at on one of Reims's lively restaurant rues. We discovered L'Apostrophe, which was stylish and different.
So my French city list has gotten shorter, but my "beautiful villages" list just keeps growing!
Photo right: an artistic, and modern, stained glass window. This one is by Knoebel. Learn more about them here.
Below: The cathedral, outside and in.
And one aside: In Reims we encountered the world's smallest library. The sign said, borrow a book and bring it back, or add a new one. Bonne idée!
And speaking of books: our loyal reader Natalia won Emily Dilling's My Paris Market Cookbook: A Culinary Tour of French Flavors and Seasonal Recipes
RECIPE: Golden Swiss Chard Gratin (Gratin de Blettes)
Emily says: "This is a simple and nourishing autumn dinner, easy to prepare after work and a great way to use the ubiquitous Swiss chard that arrives with the changing of the leaves. Bake until golden and bring a little autumn sunshine into your evening!"
Ingredients
Serves 4
4–5 stalks, Swiss chard, chopped
1 cup Béchamel sauce (medium-thick white sauce)
1 cup (120 grams) grated Gruyère
Salt and pepper
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Wash and dry each stalk of Swiss chard. Remove the ends of Swiss chard stalks if dirty and then chop each stalk into thirds. Arrange Swiss chard in a large baking dish. Pour béchamel sauce over the Swiss chard. Top with grated Gruyère, salt, and pepper and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
In the COMMENTS: VERY interesting comments this week from our readers, on the election. I’m reminded, by comments from Julie and others, that living in a foreign country gives you a fresh and global perspective that you might not otherwise develop. In my husband’s ideal world, everyone would be required to live a year in a foreign country, to get out of their box!
Ken, I love your timely quote. No matter who you’re supporting, I think we can all agree that election fatigue has set in, and this election has been, as Herm says, a “vicious race”. We are all longing for the “respect and compromise” that’s been lost, as Suzanne discusses, and Michaela already misses the “civil tone at the top”.
Mark and Mel, Lady Liberty was spotted on the right bank at the base of the Trocadero. Michaela, felicitations, at having wine from your own vineyard sitting on the best of tables, at the Obama state dinner! We are dead impressed.
13 thoughts on “Reaching Reims, at Last”
The USA is not alone in having to choose between the least worst. Our French friends are deeply disappointed at the choice of candidates for the next election and the lies that were propagated during the British Referendum were shocking.
I love Reims! The cathedral is stunning for all of the reasons you’ve mentioned. The “new” glass is a vivid reminder to look around for other evidence of WWII. I was surprised by the bullet damage to the pillars inside the cathedral. And the ange de Reims is on my Lalique Champagne flutes…her face connects the stem to the flute!! They’re exquisite!
Thanks for this brief vicarious visit!
Reference the tiny library: A friend of mine energized the scouts on our military post in Germany to build a few of these book-share boxes. They were placed in an area close to where the single soldiers live, in addition to one on the walking path that encircles our family housing area (with a separate box for children).
I was in beautiful Reims in Sept 2014 following a few days with friends on canals in Champagne Ardenne. We happened to arrive in time for the spectacular sound and light show at the cathedral. If you are ever there on Summer evening be sure to add this to you list of most dos.
Reims is still on my list of towns to visit, but as “cathedral aficionados my husband and I have visited Chartres and Bourges. Bourges had been on my list since reading Ina Caro’s Classic “The Road From the Past”– a must read for all Francophiles. It is one of the largest and last gothic cathedrals to be built in France. Moreover, it is located in the charming and lightly touristed Berry region–home to Valençay, Talleyrand’s well preserved magnificent estate. The town of Bourges is a true delight with great restaurants and the home of Jaques Coeur, the 17th century dashing trader both friend and victim of the French King (see Ina Caro!).
Oh, what a grand city. And yes, everyone, if everyone could, would benefit by living in another country and attempting to speak the language. Alas, many cannot afford that luxury, but then again, many do it anyway on a shoestring, especially when young.
I think young may be the key…
Thank you for your inspiring newsletter/blog/info magazine, from a Southern Fried Friend.
That smiling angel with a bit of a smirk is precious Lynn. It does make you wonder how he came to be. The Swiss Chard recipe sounds interesting. I’m adding your recipe to my list. Thank you!
As much time as I’ve spent in Champagne (while working for Domaine Chandon when it was a startup), I’ve never seen the cathedral in Reims. On the list – thank you Lynn for the reminder! We are still savoring the thrill of having our Sangiovese served at Obama’s final state dinner…Villa Ragazzi’s 15 seconds of fame.
These little free libraries are all over the U.S. I was happy to see on my last residency in Dijon that they were finally making it across the ocean. Since France is so book crazy (I rarely see anyone on an e-reader) I would figure the popularity would spread.
I did make it to Nancy this summer. Ate a lot of good food, but once we went to the Musée de Beaux Arts (great) and the Ecole de Nancy Museum for Art Nouveau architecture and style, we didn’t feel there was much outside the Place Stanislas. There are probably other worthy museums we didn’t visit, but it didn’t seem to be a place to lock arms and stroll on lovely Saturday afternoon like Lyon or Dijon or other places large and small in France. If someone can change my mind I’m open to suggestions.
Finally we will be visitng Strasbourg in a few weeks – the first city off my list since we moved here – 6 years ago! So many more to go. I guess I have to add Reims to the list now. Thanks as always!!
It’s been quite awhile since we visited Reims;your wonderful commentary and beautiful pictures
are a mini vacation and exactly what we needed to give us tranquility during these unsettling
days.
Thank you!
And!THANK YOU again,Lynn and Emily,for Emily’s gem of a cookbook.
Every recipe has become a favorite and it was almost impossible to choose which one to share!
This Golden Swiss Chard Gratin is absolutely delicious!
PS I sent my comment yesterday and for some reason it apparently took a journey to cyberspace instead!
The recipe sounds tres delicieux (or delicieuse?)
Reims also was General Eisenhower’s headquarters in the last months of World War II, and the place where German officers presented themselves to surrender on May 7, 1945 (since the German delegation didn’t include an officer of Ike’s rank, protocol required that the surrender was actually accepted by subordinate American generals). The fine little Musee de la Reddition (Museum of the Surrender), which includes the room where the surrender occurred, is west of the gare, on the other side of the railroad tracks from the centre ville.