Lessay
 

I am very fond of Lessay. a quiet little town, it is blessed with two world-class attractions; the Abbey and the Fair. The abbey was founded in the middle of the 11th century, its church a perfect example of romanesque simplicity of design; robust, solid, yet light and luminous inside. The other buildings of the abbey (now a private house, the gardens open once a year) are of the 18th century. The Fair, Foire de la Sainte-Croix, takes place on the second Saturday in September, and has done every year since at least 1240. It is a Mecca for horse traders, especially gypsies, but also for livestock dealers, dog breeders, antique sellers, agricultural machinery salesmen.... lessay has 2000 inhabitants, and over the three days of the fair welcomes 400,000 visitors. Long rows of rotisseries and vast marquees feed the thousands, and every field within a mile becomes a car park. There is also a smaller fair at Pentecost. The whole of Lower Normandy flocks to Lessay for the fair, and the permanent camp on the outskirts expands to become the largest Gipsy town in Europe.