Saint Bertrand de Comminges

Today I visited a little village town called Saint Bertrand de Comminges, in the Midi-Pyranees (about 40 minutes south east from Montousse). It's listed in the official tourism guide for the Midi-Pyrenees, so there must be something interesting there!  This is a mountain town where the only way in or out of town by foot is a gravel path uphill. The town (founded in 72 B.C.) was originally a Roman colony which guarded passage to the Aran Valley (a valley that connects France and Spain). There are still signs that point to the town's fortress days such as the high walls, narrow cobble streets and single pedestrian entrance. Being that it was a fortress, it must have been a pretty good place to be a craftsmen in that time. The spirits of artisans past and present thrive throughout the town. On almost every street in the village there is a shop that cells homemade goods. There's even an umbrella shop, Creation de Parapluies, where the owner has been hand-making umbrellas for years. At €50 and up, I would consider these umbrellas investment pieces for sure!

After walking along and ducking into gift shops for a while, our stomachs were rumbling and so, we found a cute little cafe, La Bergerie,  right on the street leading up to the Cathedral. I had a huge plate of green salad, duck confit, local pâté, green salad and fries for the price of €20. (Yes, sorry for my vegetarian readers out there, there are still plenty of veggie options for you in the land of foie gras and escargot!)

Just a tip about dining out in France at lunchtime (12 - 2 pm), do not and I repeat DO NOT expect to be served/be brought a check fast. The crowds can get very busy, even in small towns like St. Bertrand. Our lunch which we thought would take no longer than an hour, took us 2 and a half. All I'm saying is, be in good company because you will be talking for quite a while.

To round out the day, we went to the Cathedral de Saint Bertrand (which had lovely roman architecture) and the L'Olivetain, which is an art gallery/sculpture garden that showcases some stunning Spanish and French pieces.

Today was a fabulous day and I am headed off to bed now (it's 10:43 PM in France) because I have an early 8 am wake-up call to do some more exploring.

Bon nuit et bonne rêves (good night and good dreams),

Truce
The Umbrella Shop

A view of the town from the road below

A residential street in town (note the steep uphill)

A view of a more active street in town

The outside of the Cathedral 

The grand organ inside of the Cathedra 

Some of the sculptures in the museum 

A sculpture in the museum's courtyard. 

A view over the rooftops of town

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Latest Happenings

April 2017: On the 2nd week of first year, I decided to go along with one of my friends, Holly, to the give it a go session of kayaking. I'd done canoeing before, but never kayaking with the full spray guard, wet suit and life jacket. I looked like a legit kayaker from that. Little did I know that I would be full on kayaking in the North Sea. One check off the list. In addition to kayaking in the sea, I was a little hesitant when the group leader led us to a little alcove by the pier and we ended up playing kayak polo (which was super fun until someone threw the ball over my head, I reached for it and I capsized). (But, on the plus side, I ended up meeting an awesome Norwegian girl, Thea, when I capsized). Update 2 years later, Thea is still amazing and I occasionally kayaked in the North Sea as a study break. Hiking the coastal path was more my thing. ---- If you need to, keep time on me...Fleet Foxes, Crack-Up, 2017 -----
Read more

Reve des couleurs

Image
Tonight as we finished our dinner at a local Japanese restaurant in Riems, I heard the faint sound of church music. Being the curious person I am, I had to check it out. The music actually turned out to be part of a light show against the cathedral in Riems. It was a wonderful, beautiful suprise. I took some video of it but I can't attach it :(  One of the displays on the cathedral. 
Read more

Cirque du Gavarnie

Image
Here I am again, up bright, early and in the car ready for another adventure. Off I go with the family and plenty of supplies to last us through the day. For those who know us, we would not be ready to go on a journey without food, courtesy of one member, Michael Jack, my Dad. He is always worried about being without food anytime of the day. And so, this morning, at 9:30 am, we, in addition to a first-aid kit, water, books, phone and dog bowl, we have half of a mini watermelon, half a loaf of bread, mustard, cheese and dried sausage in our trunk.  The drive up to Gavarnie is wonderously windy, with narrow roads and sheer cliff faces. Once we got to the town of Gavarnie, we had to find parking which took about 30 minutes because this is peak tourist season in town. We got there around noon, but if you want to have an easier time parking I would say get there around 10:30 or 11 am.  Once you find parking, follow the signs to the "Cirque de Gavarnie". The Cirque is  a natura...
Read more