Issue No. 28

fronts) of perennial houses and a public
car park.
Perhaps the best times of the year to
visit are during the spring, when the
blossoms and jonquils perform their brief
but beautiful annual display, and during
the summer, when the hydrangeas
cascade over the tiny bridges.
It’s not unusual to see amateur painters
with their easels and half-finished
canvases on the path.
The walk is not long, less than a
kilometre and perfect for a Sunday stroll.
When you cross the canal there is also a
chance to explore the tannery building,
which made Chevreuse its fortune
for many centuries, now used as an
exhibition hall.
Close to the pretty stone bridge in the
centre of the chemin you’ll find a wooden
lavoir, or public wash house, long since
abandoned.
Abbaye des Vaux de Cernay
Beautifully restored by the outrageously
wealthy Rothschild family in the late
19th century, the buildings and extensive
grounds of the Abbaye des Vaux de
Cernay are the perfect setting for a
peaceful wander on a sunny spring
afternoon. Only the shell of the ancient
abbey remains, but one can imagine
coloured shards of sunlight streaming
through the rounded rose window a
thousand years ago.
Now, the ravages of time and greenery
have taken their toll. The abbey was long
associated with the pious Saint Thibault,
abbot of the monastery in 1235.