After all we have seen and heard around us, it is like turning, with a thankful sense of rest, from the contemplation of some tricky effect of colour, to a painting by Titian or Velasquez; it is, in an artistic sense, transition from darkness to light--from the glare of the lamp to the glory of the true day.
Sketch of Route, showing the Distances, Fares, &c., to and from the principal Places in Normandy.
TRAVELLING EXPENSES over the whole of this Route (including the journey from London to Havre, or Dieppe, and back) do not amount to more than 4l. 4s. first class, and need not exceed 3l. 10s. (see p. 240). HOTEL EXPENSES average about 10s. a day.
Thus it is possible to accomplish month's tour for £20, and one of two months for £35.
There are _no good hotels_ in Normandy (excepting at the seaside) according to modern ideas of comfort and convenience. CAEN, AVRANCHES, and ROUEN may be mentioned as the best places at which to stay, _en route_.
Havre to Pont Audemer.--Steamboat direct.--Fare 2frs. Or viâ Honfleur or Trouville, by boat and diligence.
Dieppe to Pont Audemer.--Railway (viâ Rouen and Glosmontfort) 65 miles. Fare, first class, 12frs. 50c. (10s.)
PONT AUDEMER (Pop. 6000). Hotels: _Pôt d'Étain_ (old-fashioned in style, but no longer in prices); _Lion d'Or_.
Pont Audemer to Lisieux.--Diligence. Distance, 22 miles.--Or by Ry. 43 miles; fare, 8frs. 50c. (7s.) Fare.[64]
LISIEUX (Pop. 13,000). Hotels: _de France_, (on a quiet boulevard, with garden); _d'Espagne_, &c.
Lisieux to Caen.--Railway, 30 miles. Fare, 5frs. 50c. (4s. 6d.)
CAEN (Pop. 44,000). Hotels: _d'Angleterre_, (well-managed, central, and bustling); _d'Espagne_, &c.
Caen to Bayeux.--Railway, 19 miles. Fare, 3frs. 40c. (2s. 9d.)
BAYEUX (Pop. 9,500). Hotels: _du Luxembourg, Grand Hotel_, &c.
Bayeux to St. Lo.--Railway 28 miles. Fare, 5frs. (4s.)
[Bayeux to Cherbourg. Rly. 63 miles. Fare, 11frs. 40s. (9s. 6d.)]
ST. LO (Pop. 10,000). Hotel: _du Soleil Levant_ (quiet and commercial.)
St. Lo to Coutances.--Diligence, 16 miles.
COUTANCES (Pop. 9000). Hotels: _de France, du Dauphin, &c._ (indifferent).
Coutances to Granville.--Diligence, 18 miles.
GRANVILLE (Pop. 17,000). Hotels: _du Nord_ (large and bustling, crowded with English from the Channel Islands); _Trois Couronnes, &c._ (See p. 123.)