Honfleur, a lovely old port

Honfleur is an old picturesque port in Normandy (France). It is located near of the stream mouth of Seine: like the much bigger city of Le Havre, but his port is older. The port of Honfleur was originally founded by Vikings. The centre of the old port is the Vieux Bassin with the historic building of old Lieutenancy.

There are a lot of memorable sights in Honfleur. The biggest tourist attraction is probably the Vieux Bassin with the Lientenancy. Touristst may visit the Naval Museum or the flea market nearby.

The Saint-Catherine’s Church is dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria. The first nave was constructed after the Hundred Years War. In the 16th century, a second nave was added. The church was built by the famous “axe masters” of the naval yards without using saws – just like their Norman ancestors. The church is partially covered in chestnut shingles. The doorway was built in Renaissance style. The oldest church in the city is the Église Saint-Étienne (St. Stephen’s Church). It was built in Gothic style (14th- 15th centuries). St. Leonard’s Church (Église Saint-Léonard) has a flamboyant Gothic style façade; the rest of the building was rebuilt in the 17th-18th centuries, which explains the unusual form of the bell tower.

Two salt barns remained until now, the 3rd one has been destroyed by fire. They were constructed in the 17th century. Both buildings contained about 11.000 tons of salt.