Impressionist painter, Claude Monet, was born in Paris in 1840. As a young child, he moved with his family to Le Havre, where he began painting at a young age. Even in his very early years, he enjoyed painting outdoors, inspired by nature and the way sunlight played with images.
In 1883, Monet moved to Giverny (Northwest of Paris, in Normandy). The house, gardens and pond were inspirations for his paintings until his death in 1926.
Above, the view out of Monet's studio window. He was very specific about the flowers and trees that were planted at Giverny, in order to have exactly what he wanted to see and paint. I would call the garden ordered chaos. It is much more English garden, with its free-glowing scatter of multicolored flowers than the orderly, geometric gardens found at many French Chateaux.
Monet's pond is still filled with his water lilys. The green Japanese bridge is still maintained today as it was in his time. (Only now, it is crowded with tourists, like myself!)
I have loved Monet's works since I was first introduced to them in high school. It was such a treat to get to come here and enjoy the actual site where so many of his paintings began. :)
Walking in the village after our tour of Giverny, my friends and I enjoyed some homemade ice cream (from a cute little ice cream truck), then headed back to the bus.
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