A Cycling Tour of Giverny: Monet’s Water Lilies

Having finished exploring the colourful mosaic that is Monet’s house, as I shared in A Cycling Tour of Giverny: Monet’s House, it was time to move on to what I consider to be the masterpiece of his Giverny home, the water lilies.

A Secret Garden

Surprisingly, the gorgeous garden in which they reside is actually hidden from view from his house. For Monet’s property is divided by what was once a raised railway track. In fact, it was while passing through Giverny by train on this berm that he first spotted the property that was to become his home and inspiration. And because this elevation divides the grounds, you must pass through a tunnel in order to access the wondrous water garden. Emerging from this burrow, a lush, green stand of bamboo bordering a meandering stream greeted me.

From here a profusion of flora guided me alongside this curving stream until, happily, the edge of the lily pond appeared. Entering the water garden was like entering a secret world. The wall of bamboo gave way to a loose circle of willows and other deciduous trees, many of which Monet himself had carefully chosen and placed. And at their feet, an abundant variety of lavish perennials provided shots of bright colour among the coolness of the greenery.

Life Imitates Art

As I continued further along the neatly trimmed path, the pond opened up to reveal the famous water lilies. And off in the distance stood the iconic Japanese bridge. After having fallen in love with Les Nymphéas – The Water Lilies – housed in la Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris, to have the opportunity to observe the subtle mauve of the lily pads nestled among the gentle ripples of Monet’s pond in real life was such a treat. Accented by his signature weeping willows, it was as though a series of the artist’s most beautiful works were being laid out before me.

Paying Homage

And, as I had discovered while reading Mad Enchantment, a biography of his time painting Les Nymphéas, those willows held a deeper meaning for Monet. For World War I affected him so deeply that he painted the ‘Weeping Willows’ as hommage – homage – to its fallen French soldiers. I had only a few minutes left before it was time to meet up with the rest of my cycling tour group so I spent it soaking in the surrounding beauty and listening to the bird song. Take a listen!

Having reconnected with the group, our ramble took us on one last stop before we hopped back on our bikes. It was a visit to the Monet family burial plot located in the churchyard of Église Sainte-Radegonde de Giverny. We took a few minutes here to pay our respects to this great artist who gave so much beauty to the world.

Our visit having come to an end, we pedalled back along the Seine River to Vernon for our return to Paris. I had the pleasure of the company of a young Australian tour guide as my partner during this ride. So we exchanged stories about our respective commonwealth countries as we glided along. It was a lovely end to a wonderful day.

If you would like to visit Monet’s other famous garden, you can do so in my post A Cycling Tour of Giverny: Monet’s Garden.

Fondation Claude Monet  84 Rue Claude Monet, 27620 Giverny, France

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