Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In the second part of his tour of the town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, Daniel shows us the Montjoie Tower, a Romanesque dungeon whose walls are still standing today. He also takes us to a beautiful garden filled with rare plants.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel shows us around the old quarter of the village of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, a charming area that dates from the Middle Ages and contains some beautiful gardens and courtyards. Some of the streets and alleyways have even retained their medieval names, such as the "Rue de la Savaterie" (Cobbler Street).
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel concludes his tour of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine by taking us along the quays to see some of the barges that are docked there. Among them, you will find a houseboat that doubles as a chapel and the last tug boat ever built in France!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this first part of his tour of Rambouillet, Daniel shows us the town's beautiful castle and its surrounding forest, islands, and gardens. Do you know what a "quincunx" in a garden is? If not, you'll find out in this video.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel takes us to the Rambouillet castle, which includes a very interesting building on its grounds: the Laiterie de la Reine, or Queen's Dairy, which was built for Marie Antoinette in accordance with the "pleasure dairy" trend of the eighteenth century.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this third episode on Rambouillet, Daniel shows us an interesting "shell cottage," a railway museum, and the beautiful Church of Saint Lubin and Palais du Roi de Rome. Rambouillet is full of wonderful surprises!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this last video on Rambouillet, Daniel shows us around the beautiful and enchanting Espace Rambouillet nature preserve, a large forest filled with deer, birds of prey, and other free-roaming animals. It's a perfect spot for nature lovers and animal lovers alike!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel shows us around L'Isle-Adam, which was recently ranked among the 100 most beautiful detours in France. From its historic stables to its fantastic covered market, this village is an essential stopover for your next trip to France!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel continues his tour of the town of L'Isle-Adam, making stops at the city hall, the beautiful Église Saint-Martin, and the Maison des Joséphites, which was built for a community of priests in 1661. Despite its age, the Maison des Joséphites keeps up with current technology—by swiping your smartphone in front of the QR code at its front entrance, you can read about the building's history on your phone.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel shows us some more of the town of L'Isle-Adam, from a river pool inaugurated by Johnny Weissmuller (best known for playing Tarzan) to a mermaid statue that recalls the famous "Little Mermaid" of Copenhagen. Stay tuned for the next and final segment to discover even more hidden gems of L'Isle-Adam.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel takes us to Soissons, an ancient city that was the first capital of France. He shows us the memorial commemorating the victims of World War I and depicting the legend of the famous Soissons vase.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In part two of our discovery of Soissons, a very ancient town indeed (it was founded in the year 20 B.C.), Daniel Benchimol takes us on a sweltering summer day to visit some interesting places, including the Église Saint-Pierre, part of a seventh-century monastery where Charlemagne's daughter lived. He then shows us a baroque-style building on Little Red Riding Hood Street opposite a magnificent century-old fish market.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol continues to explore the town of Soissons on an exceptionally hot summer day. There's no better time to explore the magnificent twelfth-century cathedral of Soissons to cool off and admire this gothic architectural masterpiece, including the stained glass wall depicting religious scenes.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Meet Daniel (still in sweltering Soissons) in front of the "Jardin du Haricot" (Bean Garden), which is not a garden but a confectionery store that sells a local specialty, a delicious jelly-bean-like candy. He also takes us to the old bishop's palace where Napoleon once stayed, then onto an eleventh-century abbey called the Abbaye de Saint-Jean-des-Vignes.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel introduces us to the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, famous as a source of inspiration for a number of impressionist painters, notably Vincent Van Gogh. He also gives us a sneak peek into the Daubigny Museum, dedicated to the work of the pre-impressionist Charles-François Daubigny.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel finishes up his tour of Auvers-sur-Oise with an appreciation of Vincent Van Gogh, who completed an astounding eighty paintings during his two-month sojourn in the village. In this video, you'll see the inn where the artist stayed during his visit, along with some of the gorgeous stops on the "painters' discovery" tour of Auvers-sur-Oise. It's easy to see why the village was such an inspiration to the impressionists!
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel takes us to another town within easy reach of Paris. Monfort-l'Amaury boasts a huge church called the Église Saint Pierre et Saint Paul with some magnificent stained glass windows. If you are a music lover, you might want to check out Maurice Ravel's house, where he composed many of his great works, including Le Boléro.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol continues his tour of the small medieval town of Montfort-l'Amaury, an hour west of Paris. He takes us to an unusual cemetery building that has a human skull in every corner. On a less spooky note, Daniel tells us about famous figures who have lived in Montfort, such as the composer Maurice Ravel and the singer Charles Aznavour.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel begins his tour of Nemours with a visit to the twelfth-century castle, which has the rare distinction of standing right in the center of town. Nemours was the hometown of the famous Du Pont family, who immigrated to the United States in the 1800s and created a business empire.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
The town of Nemours is linked to the history of the United States in two important ways. Daniel will tell you more about that in this segment of his tour, and he'll also show you a group of charming bridges called the "Ponts des Petits Fossés" (Little Ditch Bridges).
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In the next part of his tour of Nemours, Daniel shows us the Church of Saint John the Baptist, a medieval church that was destroyed in the 1600s and then rebuilt over the course of the next two centuries. It houses a bell called the Cloche Philippe (Philippe Bell), which has a lengthy history of its own.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Nemours is nicknamed the "Venice of the Gâtinais" (a former French province), and you'll see why in the final part of Daniel's tour of the town. Traversed by many streams and rivers, Nemours is also a great place to go hiking and immerse yourself in a medieval atmosphere.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol takes us to Mont-Valérien, the highest vantage point just outside of Paris, where you will be able to take in a sweeping view of the capital. Mont-Valérien also represents a sad part of history, a site where thousands were executed during World War II. General de Gaulle inaugurated a memorial in 1962 to honor its victims.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol visits the Memorial of Fighting France on Mont Valérien, west of Paris. He reads us a moving message from an anonymous person who wrote a farewell letter to his family just before being executed by the Germans in 1942.
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