This Region of France is made up of the following Departments: (11) Aude, (3) Gard, (34) Harault, (48) Lozere and (66) Pyrenees-Orientals. There is lots to see from the vineyards, marshlands, and endless array of Romanesque buildings.
Not to be missed in this Region is the town of Carcassone and Montpellier, the Hérault Valley, Narbonne, Perpignan, Pézenas to name a few. We have spent time in this Region on a number of different trips and have always enjoyed the opportunity return and drive the small roads.
If you only had a few days, an often suggested route is to drive from Monpellier, Sète or Béziers into the Héault Valley. Have lunch in a town such as Ganges. Then travel up the Viz Valley and see the natural mountain amphitheater at Navacelles. Carcassone is a must because of its remarkably well preserved state and the sheer size of the walled town.
We have found that Carcassone is so impressive, especially when you see it in the distance as you approach the town.
Of course, this is the "Region of the Cathars" and for a period of time was the scene of horrific battles. The Cathar Sect held the view that good resided only in the spiritual world, and therefore, the material world of man was intrinsically evil. The Cathars rejected the sacraments of Catholicism and raised a clergy that included men and women — known as the Perfects. The Cathars centered in the Languedoc and lived under the protection of the Counts of Toulouse.
Well rejecting the sacraments of the Catholic Church had a price. The movement was condemned by the Pope. After the Papal Legate to the Region was assassinated in 1208, Simon de Montfort, an Anglo-French warrior, lead a crusade that would eliminate the Cathars Entire villages were sacked and destroyed. The battles ended in 1229 with the fall of the Count of Toulouse to the French Crown.
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Think
wine and be ready to enjoy bottle after bottle. The region has vineyard after
vineyard. It was the Greeks, and then the Romans who inhabited the region
and set up colonies to produce wine and olives to be shipped back. It has never
stopped.
Along the sea, this was the first are in Gaul to be settled by the Romans. They left their mark. There is the impressive amphitheatre at Nîmes and the stunning Pont du Gard.
The abbeys of Saint-Martin-du-Canigou, Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa and Saint Guilhem-le-Désert are great examples of early Romanesque architecture.
The great craggy-looking Cathar castles and medieval Carcassonne gives a food feel of the history.
We visited Montepllier and Uzès on a couple trips, with the most recent being our 2002 visit where we rented a house not far from Narbonne and used that as our base to tour the area.
Cloisters in the Cathedral of St. Nazaire. |
Interior of the Cathedral of St. Nazaire. |
The Orb River looking from the top of the Cathedral. |
We
visited Béziers in 2002 and this
town really gave off a good feel.
The town, originally founded as a Roman colony of Julia Septimania Biterae, is located on a hill impressively overlooking the Orb River.
There are the narrow streets as well as a large boulevard street through the centre of town. It was from this town that Pierre-Paul Riquite, Baron de Bonrépos conceived and built the Midi Canal - the canal that links the Mediterranean to the Atlantic by way of the River Garonne.
The town was completed sacked in 1209 as a result of the Crusade against the Cathars. The Cathedral of St. Nazaire, rebuilt during the 13th and 14th Century is like a fort. The memories of being wiped out must have been in in everyone's minds!
On the South-West edge of the town are the Fonséranes locks. These locks lift the water in the acqueduct for the Midi Canal over 25 meters.
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Of what a different a return visit can make. We visited Carcassonne in our 1998 tour of France and frankly would not wait to get out of the town. It was a cold, rainy day. Tourist shops seemed to be everywhere. We stayed in a small hotel built into the walls, had a dinner and left taking note how impressive the town look when driving away from it. (It really is an impressive sight as you approach the town.)
We returned in 2002, and although the morning started out being very cold, the day only got better and we really enjoyed our visit and the town. Should you go there? Certainly. How could you miss it!
The upper town is completely enclosed within double walls and has the most complete fortifications in Europe. Much of the fortifications were restored in the 1800's.
The lower town has old homes and buildings down by the river Aude. Place Carnot, a shaded market square is the centre. The Rue Clemenceau, a pedestrian street, runs length of the town area.
When I became very ill in Spain I just had to get back to France
where at least I could talk to a doctor in French. Karen took over the driving
as I was out in the back seat. She picked the scenic town of Collioure. Wonderful
place, at least as I hear from her.
After seeing a doctor I was out to the world for a couple of days but as I recovered, I remember seeing part of the town. Karen and the VISA charge card saw much more! Various painters of note spent some time here and there are numerous gallerires. When I was well enough to eat again, there were some good reasonable restaurants in town.
Theatre Comédie |
Aqueduc St. Clément |
Its history is routed in commerce - a trading centre - and education - a medical school founded in the 13th Century. The Place de la Comédie is the centre of the city. Line with and 18th century fountain and the theatre this is where all the action seems to centre. |
Standing at the Promendade du Peryou you view the Aqueduc St. Clément that dDespite similarity to thePont du Gard was actually built in the 17th century to bring water beneath the Promenade de Peyrou and feed the city's numerous fountains. For our visit, s tayed part of a day and an envening.
Narbonne was founded in 118 BC as a Roman port. It's now a city of 40,000 and a few kilometres from the sea. The Canal de Robine - which joins the Canal du Midi - runs through the centre of the city. It's really quite lovely.The Cathedral and the Archbishop's Palace are worth a visit. The cloisters date from the 14th and 15th century. So is the covered market, les Halles, next to the canal. It runs everyday from 7 am to 1 pm.
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We were in Narbonne in 2002 and liked the town. The Archbishop's Palace is in the centre of town is open for visits and well worth it. The Palace and the adjacent museums all make an interesting morning in Narbonne. The old town has narrow streets, medieval monuments and there are pleasant shady streets running along the Robine Riber that cuts through the centre of town. The Cathedral St. Just has 13th Century cloisters and an impressive organ.
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Actually part of the Ardèche Region of France, Nîmes is one of the towns not to miss. With the canal running through the centre of the old town, the impressive Maison Carrée and Roman Amphitheatres. |
Our first visit to Nîmes was unplanned. Karen needed a root canal. Nîmes was the largest town near us and we headed three, checked into a good hotel, asked for assistance to find a dentist. Karen spent a few days recovering and I spend the time walking the interesting streets and shopping at a great pen store.
The Maison Carrée is the best preserved of the Roman temples that are still standing today. Build under Augustus's Reign in the 1st Century BC it was inspired by the Temple of Apollo in Rome. Try out the steps, they were purposefully calculated so that if you start on the left foot, you arrive at the top with your left foot.
The Roman Amphitheatre is well preserved and a two to the arena in Arles and is the best preserved.
We returned in 2002 and once again, Nîmes was well worth the visit.
We had a great lunch here and enjoyed a short stay in this town. The town is located 23 km from Béziers and about 50 km from Montpellier. In the 15th and 16th Centuries this town was the cultural haven of the area as it was also the sea of the Languedox regional government. In the old centre there are numerous houses to see.
This
is one of the wonders of Ancient Times, still standing, and for us, worth
a couple of visits. On our first visit we stayed in the old centre of Uzès -
and there had our car broken into... but still have gone back; and on
our most recent visit in 2002 we stayed at the fabulous La Bégude
Saint Pierre which is one of our Great
Places to Stay in the area.
The aqueduct was built by the Romans to bring water from an area near Uzès to the centre of Nîmes in 198 BC. Despite its 2,000 years of age, it remains incredibly intact. On our first visit we walked along the top, no handrails but that has since been closed off to the public. The road bridge along the bottom was added in 1743.
Take the D981, there are signs for the car lot. Park the car and walk back in time as you approach the Pont.
A
charming medieval town. On our first visit here we had a car break-in.
Took the charm off the place for awhile but we did return in 2002 to
once again enjoy the sights. A combination of being a ducal seat, a bishopric
and a consular seat that lead to the town establishing itself as a medieval
central with considerable economic clout.The duchy of Uzès dates
back to 1486 and included some pretty connected folks!
The 18th church, St. Étienne has parking nearby. The St. Théodorit Cathedral dates to the 17t Century has has the circular Fenestrelle Tower, unique in France, (pictured to the left) with the tower being the only part of the 12th century Romanesque cathedral that remains. The cathedral being destroyed in the Wars of Religion.
The
Place aux Herbes, pictured to the left, is surrounded by arcades walk
ways and shaded with large plane trees. This square really gives the
feel of the town.
