We were in St Emilion by mid-morning. This is in the heart of the Bordeaux district. This is again a walled city but is inland from the ocean and on a hillside. It’s again very old, all cobblestones and terra cotta roofs.
We did our usual wander around a bit together then split up. Wes and I also split up and wandered down the narrows streets.
This is a large city but all we have to do is locate the very tall steeple of the church and head towards that, so there was no worries about becoming lost.
Some of the streets are very steep and the cobblestones are quite large so it was sometimes hard to walk. A few walkways are so steep they’ve put in hand rails to hang onto as the cobblestones can be slippery in the rain or even when it’s dry.
We met up and lunched in Saint-Emilion at the main entrance to the city.
Then we went the visitor center as Thierry wanted to show us this beautiful courtyard with a covered walkway that has archways all around it that he thought we would really like. It was a definite 'must see'.
And this is another doorway leading away from the courtyard.
These are very old and common throughout France.
Next to the courtyard is another church with an unusual greenish tint inside. This is the doorway leading into the church from the side. Never did find out what was causing such a distinct color cast.
And inside the church there were cats as the doors are always open. Seems to be cats everywhere but they are not wild. They all are pretty laid back and pay the people no mind.
We then headed to Chateau Franc Mayne for an underground wine tour wine tasting that Thierry had made reservations for. He sure did a lot of work putting this trip together, have I said what a great guy he is? The Chateau is naturally surrounded by the grape fields which are not yet fully grown as it’s still early spring but it’s still pretty.
We went through the winery where all the huge vats are kept. The guide told us all about the process of making the different wines. Then we saw all the kegs of different wines.
After this we went to the underground areas where they had to hide their wines many years ago.
After the tour there was the traditional wine tasting. I have never in my life had so much wine in such a short period of time.
We went back to Saint-Emilion and toured the main church. During the tour there were no photos allowed. The guide told us this church was built from sold rock.
As the sun was setting we had dinner in this nice little restaurant. We ate outside in a small courtyard that was surrounded by the stone walls of the other buildings. It was one great day.
No comments:
Post a Comment