We were almost in Spain! Today we visited Bagnères-de-Luchon, an extremely charming town which has a wonderful view of the Pyrénées. Another ancient city, it has been known for its thermal springs for millennia. Continue reading →

In the orthodoxy of my youth, the very term “Albigensian” struck fear into our hearts, as it was never separated from the word “HERESY.” In neither the 20th nor the 13th century did you want to be connected to that phrase.  Continue reading →

For reasons related to our love affair with points, we are staying in a very modern hotel at the Toulouse airport. This makes sense when you consider that Toulouse is the center of the French aircraft industry. Rockwell and Airbus offices surround us! We went from the 12th century in Carcassonne last night to this totally contemporary hotel and very chic room. Can you say Radisson BLU?! Must confess that modern also has its charms…

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Add 12th century fortifications to an existing Roman wall and village, and the results are fairly magical. On top of that, layer on the huge renovation project of the 19th century, and you have something Disney would envy. Continue reading →

We spent the night in the town of Montpellier, which has zero Roman connections, and which we left early this morning for market day in the town of Narbonne, which definitely has Rome in its blood. The Greeks may have started it in the 5th century BC, but it was the Romans whose mark we see today. Continue reading →

There is so much history in Nîmes to appreciate. If we merely go back to Roman times, then this was a great place to be – the French Rome, some call it. Continue reading →

I do remember where we went, even though most of the day has already blurred into a feeling of deep contentment. Ah yes, we visited the towns of Carpentras and Vaison la Romaine. and both were lovely. They each have Celtic/Roman roots and idyllic settings. Continue reading →

Roman engineering is always awe-inspiring, and the Pont du Gard is one spectacular example. An ancient Roman aqueduct bridge, it is part of a 30-mile structure built by the Romans to carry water from a spring at Uzès to the Roman colony of what is now Nîmes. Built in the 1st century AD, the Pont du Gard is the highest of all Roman aqueduct bridges and one of the best-preserved.  Continue reading →

One reason, of course, is to see the place that was home to van Gogh from 1888 -1889, until he entered the hospital at Saint-Rémy. These were not his best years in terms of mental health, but certainly productive in terms of his art. Continue reading →

That’s what you do when someone you care about is in the hospital, right? And so we went today to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence where Vincent van Gogh was treated in the psychiatric center at Monastery Saint-Paul de Mausole from 1889 to 1890. Continue reading →