Musee des Impressionnismes Giverny

When you get off the shuttle bus from Vernon, don't be like the others and tear off for Monet's Maison.
 

Instead right in front of you at 99, rue Claude Monet is the excellent Musee des Impressionnismes, and the only place you'll find a few haystacks in Giverny.
 

The landscaped gardens are the perfect preparation for the gardens down the road. I loved this witty haystack-shaped hedge.
 

And there are pergolas too.
 

The various gardens (rooms) are colored like paintboxes, each one a different color.
 

Purples
 

Reds
 

 

Yellows
 

Rose
 

Inside the current exhibition is an homage to Monet by Japanese artist, Hiramatsu
 

I loved his color tests and watercolor box of course
 

Some of his paintings are huge screens in traditional Japanese style, but then Monet was very influenced by Japanese woodblock prints so the referencing goes on and on.
 

Hiramatsu's waterlily pond

Some Monets are included in the exhibit.
 

 

By the time you leave the musee des Impressionismes perhaps Monet's gardens will be less crowded. Avoid the early morning masses when the tour buses unload. Simply turn left and head up the road. Et voila.