Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei, Commune in the arrondissement of Alençon, Orne, France
Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei is a commune in the Orne department, in the arrondissement of Alençon, in northwestern France. The village sits on a rocky hill above the Sarthe river, with houses built from a local roussard sandstone that gives the streets a warm, earthy tone.
In the 7th century, a hermit named Céneri came from Italy and settled here, founding a small monastery. Over the following centuries, a Romanesque church was built in his honor on the same rocky spot, and the village grew around it at the border between the old regions of Maine and Normandy.
Near the church stands the 15th-century Petit-Saint-Céneri chapel, built on the spot where the hermit once lived. A local legend says young women come to stick a needle into the feet of the saint's statue, hoping it will help them find a husband within a year.
The village is best explored on foot, as most lanes are narrow and parking is easiest at the entrance to the village. A marked trail called "Saint-Céneri sur le motif" covers the main viewpoints and makes for a gentle walk through the area.
The Romanesque church is said to have housed bees nesting in its stone walls since the 9th century. Legend holds that these bees once drove away attacking Normans by stinging them, with some attackers said to have fallen from the cliffs in the chaos.
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