I’m finally feeling a little better this morning after a rough two days. We’re back in Bordeaux now, in a comfortable apartment in the nice Chartrons district, just a 15-minute walk from the city center. We arrived yesterday afternoon from Poitiers, where we had a short visit. There we stayed in a super nice place called the Maison de Marc, which was right in the old city center, and served an amazing breakfast of too many things to eat (bread, pastries, yogurt, cheeses, fruit, jams, coffee, real just-pressed orange juice, crepes — all delicious). The hostess Agnes was so welcoming and helpful, it made the whole experience a pleasure.
As for the city, I was feeling so crummy that I couldn’t go much, but we did manage to explore most of the old part of the town. The city was the former capital for the Counts of Poitiers, which in their heyday ruled a large part of Poitou and Aquitaine. Their palace is now used as the Palace de Justice (courthouse):
The city also contains one of the more interesting churches we’ve seen, the oldest Romanesque church in Europe, Église Notre-Dame la Grande. Started in the 11th Century, the outside has extraordinarily detailed carvings, including an interest archway of dogs.
The inside of the church is unusual in that it is painted in Romano-byzantine style. These were added in the 19th century but are consistent with much older frescos on the ceiling of the older part of the church.
The older part of the city has been turned into a pedestrian area, with several nice public squares and spaces. It has a pretty Hotel de Ville that dominates the largest square. There is a university in the city, and 1 in 4 residents are students, which gives the city a nice energy.
Yesterday we left Poitiers and made the drive to Bordeaux. Completely uneventful, and we found our apartment without any trouble. I was able to get out for a short walk to the downtown area and back.
I had a simple pizza for dinner, which seems to have temporarily cured my stomach problems. (Pizza the cure for everything.) Fingers crossed for today.
Categories: Blogging