I've been going to and from the airport like a Yoyo recently, so I thought I'd stop-off en route and take some snaps.
Our nearby town of Monpazier is the jewel in the crown of S W France.
Founded in 1285 by King Edward 1 of England, it is one of the better preserved Bastide towns in the whole of France.
Eleanor of Aquitaine lived here, as did Richard 11.
Do enlarge the photos; the town merits it.
If you visit in Summer, the streets are not so quiet!!
29 comments:
Lovely photos - especially the first one. Is that a market place?
Yes, all of the bastide towns had a central covered market place. This one is a beauty.
It is beautiful! Perfect time to visit.
The grandchildren have left?
Greetings Maria x
I visited in the early '70s. It looked the same then.
Magnificent.
They leave tomorrow, so yet another trip to the airport.
Since 1280, the only thing to have changed much is the lichen and moss.
It really is. Some nice little restaurants there too.
Whenever I see photos like these I always imagine the generations of people who have walked and talked there. Beautiful.
Also plenty of terrible things happened there. Probably best not spoken of.
Rare to see it so empty!
A rare pleasure.
I bet you're upset that there's no McDonald's ?!!!!!! Haha !!
Such a beautiful, preserved town .... I can imagine the dastardly things that went on there. XXXX
There are so many ready-made film sets in Europe. I love the cloistered market places.
Those are fantastic pictures. I'm guessing the first one shows a market square? I do envy all the history you get to enjoy. -Jenn
No Costa Coffee, no Starbucks, no KFC, we hardly know what to do with ourselves.
Perfect for Medieval films, onwards. No wires or TV aerials.
Plenty of history around here, mostly untouched too.
So beautiful...sigh!
Lovely, isn't it.
Thought that we'd get there today but only got as far as lunch nr Bayac!
I believe this is the story of our lives.
I've drunk my fair share of coffees in the town over the decades. It certainly has a charm but, as you say, isn't usually so quiet once the spring comes.
For a moment I thought that the town looked similar to one the band played in last June, but enlarging the photos said it wasn't, just a sized down version.
It was summer time and practically deserted.
Tomorrow is another day!
Looking at my photos, I can hardly believe that there is no-one in sight.
The French bastide towns all look very similar.
stunning. i wonder how old those beams in #1 are? Raised from the ground on stones like that to protect them from wet rot, they might conceivably be centuries old...
I have loved it from the first visit. So have my family. Who could resist. Grateful to live near enough to get a 'Monpazier' fix when I need one.
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