Lisieux - Pilgrimage Site with Saint at Easter

On our journey, we made a stop in Lisieux, which became known as a pilgrimage site in the 20th century.

We first headed to the city's main attraction, the Basilica of Saint Therese.

There we had to realize that visiting a church on Easter Sunday might not have been the best idea. The mass started at 11 a.m., and the faithful were already streaming into the house of worship.
So we decided to take a ride to the city center on the “Petit Train”.

We had the little tourist train all to ourselves that morning.

In the old town, we even went through an alley that just barely fit the train, passing by a chocolaterie in an old timber-framed house.

The ride initially ended in front of the Cathedral Saint-Pierre, where the Easter service was still taking place, and we had to postpone our visit to it for later.

For the history of the town, we found a little tour in the “Adventure Lab” app, which started at Roman ruins discovered during the construction of a hospital.

From the once Celtic settlement, a bishopric was established in the 5th century, of which the large churches of the city and the bishop's palace are evidence.

Our path led us to this and the adjacent bishop's park.

A medieval market was just taking place there, which we also visited. Compared to German markets of this kind, the exhibitors here seemed more like Vikings.

In search of the answer to the next question of our treasure hunt, we circled the cathedral until the mass was finally over, and we found the answer inside.

Our path led us to some houses in the old town that had survived the heavy bombing during World War II.

To conclude, we saw the foundation stone of the reconstruction after 1945, which is located across from the theater in a building.

Then we took the little train back after a tour through the city to the basilica.

In the meantime, the mass had ended, and we could also view the church from the inside.

It is dedicated to Saint Thérèse Martin, who entered the monastery in Lisieux at the age of 15 and died here nine years later.

The basilica, the construction of which began in 1929, houses the relics of the saint, and the mosaics on the walls tell her story.

For the believers, there was a large number of candles available for purchase and payment via a screen set up for that purpose.