First, the pronunciation. It's one syllable, and it rhymes with chien or bien. Gien is on the Loire river about 80 miles
south of Paris, 35 miles SE of Orléans, 40 miles west of Auxerre (Burgundy), and 40 miles north of Bourges (Berry).
Gien is a very old town, going back to pre-Roman times — but like other Loire river towns,
including Blois, Gien was basically obliterated by German and Allied bombing
during the second world war. After the war, it was re-built in the old style.
south of Paris, 35 miles SE of Orléans, 40 miles west of Auxerre (Burgundy), and 40 miles north of Bourges (Berry).
Gien is a very old town, going back to pre-Roman times — but like other Loire river towns,
including Blois, Gien was basically obliterated by German and Allied bombing
during the second world war. After the war, it was re-built in the old style.
The Cadogan guide says of Gien: "Eighty per cent destroyed, the town was harmoniously restored...
The splendid hump-backed stone bridge was patched up. Riverside façades were recreated
using traditional brick patternings of trellises and chevrons."
I had been to Gien back in the early 1980s and enjoyed going back again in 2009.
Of course, I’ve known of Gien long before I was there in person with you. Where were we coming from? The faïence de Gien is well known. It is ironic that the factory was founded in 1821 by an Englishman. The brick patterns of trellises and chevrons are really beautiful. Also nice was it that Gien was reconstructed à l’identique contrary to the Le Havre’s Auguste Perret’s impersonal style!
ReplyDeleteWe were coming from Saclas, where we took pictures in Marthe's garden and then had lunch. She made sautéed potatoes (variété Charlotte, which she said were the best for almost any potato dish). She and Pierre talked a lot of living in the Paris region during the Second World War. By the way, not everybody agrees with you about Le Havre. Tous les goûts...
DeleteL’ennui, dit-on, naquit un jour de l’uniformité - Houdar de la Motte
DeleteYes, I remember you were especially impressed by those sautéed potatoes. I also remember remember taking a lot of photos of all those flowers in her beautiful garden. I’m waiting to get my iPhone (in the next few days) to call her. Yolande’s daughter will try to get my old phone number.
DeleteTout passe, tout casse, tout lasse, pourrait-on dire.
DeleteWere not you impressed with the potatoes? It was wonderful to watch how Marthe bathed the thin slices with spoonfuls of hot fat to brown them so perfectly. I will never forget that moment.
DeleteCHM, I would like to get you on the telephone, but I'm afraid you won't be able to hear me. Also, with the time difference, it's not easy. And I don't have your current phone number.
DeleteSo far, I don’t have ANY phone number.
DeleteI hate hearing about towns being destroyed in war, all over the world. So much waste.
ReplyDeleteGet used to it, I'm tempted to say. It has always been, and probably always will be. Can you tell I'm feeling slightly pessimistic these days?
DeleteWell I was wrong, I was never on that bridge, I thought it was Blois.
ReplyDeleteYes, Blois has a similar bridge. There are a couple of photos of it in this post.
DeleteI presume this is the Gien where the famous pottery comes from. It commands a high price, even secondhand. The most I could run to was a little dish for setting a wine bottle on!
ReplyDeleteYes, it is where the Gien faïence comes from. Here are some images.
DeleteNice that they rebuilt the town back the way it was, and did a nice job too!
ReplyDeleteSame thing with Blois and Saint-Malo.
Delete