Il pleut

On a damp day in Caen, the market stall holders were undeterred.  The Sunday market stretches around two sides of the Bassin Saint-Pierre, with attractive reflections, despite the rain. This car was about to be removed from the water.  It seems to have formed part of some sort of event at La Fermeture Eclair (which in English means "the zipper") - an arts centre.

Inspired by the artiness, we went to shelter in the Musee des Beaux-Arts, where the champagne reception was closed to us but lunch at the excellent Cafe Mancel was not.

Caen has two magnificent abbeys - the Abbaye-des-Dames to the east of the city centre and the Abbaye-des-Hommes to the west. Despite it being Sunday, the latter was open. There, we visited the tomb of Guillaume le Conquerant. He has a lot to answer for.