La Cité de Carcassonne

February 19, 2010 by Maz · Leave a Comment
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Carcassonne from below the Ramparts

Just 20 minutes from our holiday accommodation in the Cabardes, Les Coquelicots, and our friend’s gite, Les Libellules, is the magnificent Cité de Carcassonne.   With its 54 towers and turrets, and set on a hill at the side of the River Aude, it dominates the surrounding countryside. The first time I saw it across the vineyards with an azure blue sky behind – I could almost believe I had stepped into a fairytale.

It is easy to see why it has achieved the status of a World Heritage site.

This incredible fortified city has an amazing history dating from earliest  times.  It has been invaded, occupied by the Romans, Visigoths, Franks, has more legends and tales than you can shake a stick at, and has been used as the film set for many historical films.  Look closely at Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, Sleeping Beauty and many others, and if you know La Cité, you will recognize it immediately.

Along the ramparts

However, it is probably best known for its Cathar history.  The Cathars were a religious group in the 13th Century, persecuted by the Catholic Church of the time.  Roger de Trencavel of Carcassonne was a leading sympathizer of the Cathar religion and from the Chateaux de Las Tours in the Cabardes  to the north of Carcassonne, down to Peyrepertuse and Montsegur to the south, was a Cathar stronghold.  The remains of these magnificent fortified chateaux, built for the most part on spectacular  pinnacles of rock in the most dramatic scenery, provide a fascinating insight into the history of the area.

Criss-crossed by many paths and trails, the area also offers stunning walking and hiking opportunities.  Why not take advantage of a week’s rental at our self catering cottage and discover the Languedoc for yourself ?

The Canal du Midi

January 30, 2010 by Maz · Leave a Comment
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Early Spring on the Canal du Midi

As we wandered along the path beside the Canal du Midi, absorbing the peace of the surrounding countryside, with its villages, fields and vineyards, and watching the boats navigating the locks, I reflected on the original purpose of the Canal du Midi.  It was intended to be a shortcut between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.  During the 17th century it took a full month of sailing, enduring the risk of attack from Barbary Pirates, to navigate around Spain and reach the safety of the French ports on the Mediterranean coast.

Riquet was 63 when he started the project which, for the time, was a masterpiece of hydraulic and structural engineering, and the Bassin de St Ferreol situated in the mountains  above Revel, just a few miles from our cottage, was built to supply building materials for the Canal du Midi.  It was only the second major dam to be built in Europe.  It is now a large and beautiful leisure lake, where you may bathe or sit and contemplate on its sandy beaches, sail or fish, surrounded by spectacular scenery.

Lac de St Ferreol

The Canal du Midi was eventually completed in 1681.  Sadly Riquet himself did not live to see his dream completed, as he died in 1680, just months before the Canal opened.  I wonder if he could have imagined that over 300 years later it would be awarded the honour of a World Heritage site, one of two at Carcassonne?

Cycling along the Canal du Midi

As you might expect from a World Heritage site, the towpaths alongside the Canal are well maintained and make for easy level walking or cycling.  There are 240km paths alongside the Canal du Midi, one of the more famous cycle ways in Languedoc, but that shouldn’t stop you exploring the endless possibilities elsewhere.  Those with more energy could even try some of the routes taken by the Tour de France, which passes through the region every year.

Cycles may be hired from Evasion 2 Roues, 85 Allee d’Iena, Carcassonne, Telephone 04.68.11.90.40 or email evasion2roues@club-internet.fr Prices at the time of writing are around 10 euros per half day, I believe.

Springtime in Carcassonne

January 11, 2010 by · 1 Comment
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Wood Anemones

If you are toying with the idea of a Spring break in France, the best of the weather is to be found in Languedoc.

Famed for its average of 300 days of sunny weather each year, it is often blessed with an early Spring, when the “garrigue”, or moorland,

Spring Blossom

comes to life with an abundance of beautiful wild flowers – the deep purple and pale primrose colours of the wild irises, the woodlands white with wood anemones, and shy orchids peeking from between the meadow grasses.

View of the Pyrenees in April

It is also a great time for the best views of the snowcapped Pyrenees, a magnificent sight,

Wild Pansies

which on a bright Spring morning can present the entire range, from east to west, crisp and clear against the azure sky – what a backdrop for La Cite de Carcassonne!

It is a time, too, when La Cite de Carcassonne shakes off its winter slumber and bursts into

Early Spring in "la Cité"

life again.  The pavement  cafes and restaurants are filled with lunch time diners, music, and everything is fresh and cleaned for the coming summer.

I can’t wait… can you ?

November in the Aude….

January 10, 2010 by Maz · Leave a Comment
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Autumn across the vineyards

Late Autumn across the vineyards

At the end of November we took a few days out at our cottage to brace ourselves before the Festive Season.  As we were going so late in the season, we were not expecting too much of the weather, so we were pleasantly surprised that we were rewarded with almost a whole week of clear blue skies and warm sunshine.

So warm was the weather that we had lunch on the terrace in our

The Lake at St Denis

The Lake at St Denis

tee-shirts on several occasions.  In the afternoons we sometimes walked in the woods near the cottage, or up by the lake at St Denis, perhaps collecting walnuts or chestnuts, and savouring the stunning colours of the trees. The air was so clear, as it often is in this region in the autumn, that we had magnificent views to the Pyrenees, from just outside the village.

Late Autumn in front of a fire

Late Autumn in front of a fire

The evenings were cool and crisp, with a hint of woodsmoke in the air, and it was so relaxing to come home after our walk to supper and a glass of wine, and to curl up with a good book in front of the fire.

We had heard much in praise of Mirepoix, and for one reason or another we had never visited.  As the weather was so kind, we thought we would make a day of it and meander through the bywaysMirepoix town centre and back roads to see the town for ourselves.

We paused in one of the many small villages and bought ourselves a picnic lunch, and stopped to eat where the fancy took us, and took time out to explore

Mirepoix is a fascinating town, steeped in Cathar history, and with its “galleried” medieval centre of colourful timber-framed shops and houses still intact.  The backdrop of the Pyrenees, already snow capped, set the scene to perfection.  In short, it was a day to remember and an excursion I shall be keen to repeat.

What we are about…..

January 10, 2010 by · Leave a Comment
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For a some time now we have wondered how we might let our guests know of places and forthcoming events in the Carcassonne area, that would help them to plan their holidays.

For example, if you have an interest in jazz, it would be helpful to know when the Jazz Festival was planned to take place, or if you love cycling, perhaps you would be interested to know what is the nearest point that the route of the Tour de France passes and the date this will be.

Much of this, can of course be found on specific web sites and from tourist information offices, but what of the smaller events…. the local Chestnut Festival, our Village Fete… the things which make French country life so attractive.

Through this blog we would like to offer something more – to bring you a flavour of our part of France, a taste of French life that passes by the tourist.

We do hope you like it, and if you should find an event we have missed, please do let us know.