Claude Monet’s house and gardens - August 2022

On the drive from our holiday house in Honfleur, Normandy to our next holiday stop of Disneyland Paris we stopped off in Giverny to visit the house and gardens of Monet. It was absolutely beautiful, my photos do not do it justice at all - it was a very bright sunny day which isn’t great for my limited photography skills. My favourite kind of garden, natural and wild looking, free flowing flowers all tumbling into each other. I am completely fascinated with Monet creating these gardens, and even diverting the local river to create his water garden.

It was a very very hot day, and because it was a stop off for us we got there at probably the busiest time around midday so it was extremely busy. We also had two small hot children in tow so it was quite stressful and hard to take much of it in! I’d love to go back in the cooler Spring one day and take my time looking around more.

Monet spent 50 years collecting Japanese woodblock prints, and owned over 200 of them which are throughout the walls of the house. I could have spent a few hours just looking at these I think, but the house was extremely busy and hot so we didn’t make it very long, although I did spot The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai which was great to see in real life.

The gardens are in two parts - a flower garden called Clos Normand in front of the house and a Japanese inspired water garden on the other side of the road. Back in Monets day he would have crossed the road and railway but there is now an underground passage for visitors to walk through.