The Port of Rouen

I had a chance to walk down the River Seine. Rouen is a major port city, although now the Port of Rouen actually stretches over 100 kilometers between Honfleur at the mouth of the Seine River and Rouen. The port had to be rebuilt after it was heavily damaged during World War II. Now different cities along the route handle different materials.

 Rouen itself is the largest European port for grain.

Grain elevators can store 1.2 million tons of grain: wheat, corn, barley, peas and field beans. I was surprised at how many corn and wheat fields I saw in my travels. The corn is grown mainly for feed. The French eat very little corn, maybe a few kernels in a salad or a casserole. Corn on the cob here is unheard of.

 

Along my walk I saw a monument dedicated to Robert Fulton. 

He was an American ex-pat living in Paris who developed a model of a submarine in the 1780’s that the French could use against the English. He tested his model in Rouen.

Another historical note – Rouen was the port city from which the Statue of Liberty sailed when it was given as a gift to the United States from the government of France in 1886 in recognition of the good relation between the two countries. The statue was created by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi. He received a US patent on the design in 1879 and chose the location where it would be erected in the harbour of New York.

Walking along the banks I was also intrigued by the Gustave-Flaubert bridge.

 I found out that it was a vertical lift bridge built between 2004-2006. A look from underneath, between the double roadway. 

It has the capacity to be raised in order to accommodate the tall ships.

Every five years Rouen hosts the Armada – a major gathering of the tall ships. The last gathering was last year, so I missed a chance to see the spectacle. Maybe I will have to come back again!

One of the boats I did see on the other side of the bridge was also intriguing...

so I took a closer look.

It was a off-shore construction vessel from a Malaysian company.

The life-raft holds 90 people.

 It has its own helicopter pad.

 

It is used for subsea construction and installation work. Any welders I know ready to sign on to this?

Rouen is a great place to live. I have enjoyed my time here a lot. It's hard to believe it is coming to an end. I leave in less than a month. I have been practicing for my DELF exams coming up this week. There are days when I think it will be just fine and days when I think I will fail miserably. The teachers at the school have been great in getting us ready for it. They are very encouraging. I received my letter of registration and the time of my exams. Wednesday is the oral exam. It is only 15-20 minutes, but it has three parts: saying something about yourself, taking part in a role play where you are in dialogue with the examiner about something spontaneously (e.g. explaining to the owner why you are unhappy with your hotel room) and finally, choosing one of two topic and explaining your point of view. In the practice session, the topics are very diverse: ecology, globalization, not allowing cars in the centre-ville on Saturdays... You never know what you will get thrown at you. And you have only a few minutes to prepare for your response. 

Thursday the exam is in three parts: oral comprehension (listing to a recording and answering questions on what was said), written comprehension (reading a document and pulling out the pertinent points) and written expression (writing a letter, report, review or a reflection based on a scenario or picture you are shown). My written work is probably my strength right now. There are grammatical errors to be sure, but the flow is usually good and my vocabulary for my level is not bad.I will have a good idea of how I did by the end the time I'm finished. A busy few days of review ahead.