Posts Tagged With: Carcassonne

We got up early to head back into the old city of Avignon.  We went to Les Helles – an indoor food market that opens early and has a living plant facade.  We had lots of fun strolling around looking at the various vendors – meats, cheese, seafood, baked goods, produce and more.  We chose some delicious pastries for breakfast and grabbed a few snacks for our trip.

We packed up, walked to the train station, and boarded a train for Nimes where we had a quick stop and train change on our way to Carcassonne.  Our Airbnb in Carcassonne was just a short 5 minute walk from the train station. We tested our travel philosophy to only pack what you can carry with our apartment on the third floor (which to Americans is the 4th floor) in a building with no elevator.  Karen wished she had packed a little lighter!  We were rewarded for the effort with a nice, spacious loft apartment.

With lots to see on our one day in Carcassonne, we quickly dropped off our things and headed out to the old medieval city  (a 10 minute drive/30 minute walk from the new city where we stayed).  This is a stop Kelsey was really excited about, as the Carcassonne board game is one of her  favorites.  All the guidebooks told us to expect lots of people and tourist trap type shops, but we found the old city to be charming and not crowded that afternoon.  We really enjoyed the audio tour walk through the old castle with descriptions of medieval fortress life.  Although it was a very warm day, it was cool inside the stone castle and there was a nice breeze as we walked along the castle’s ramparts.

After exploring the fortress and ancient town, we found a hidden garden bar that was a fun place to stop for a drink. Meandering a little more, we found a great restaurant for dinner. 

As we traveled through France we found that many cities host festivals in July. Kelsey noticed a festival banner in Carcassonne that announced the performance of the opera Carmen in the old city amphitheater that night.  She convinced us to experience this performance. It didn’t begin until 9:30 pm, and though it was still light at that time, the breeze really picked up causing the temperature to drop. By the end of the first act, Lindsey and Karen had enough and started the walk back to our Airbnb. Kelsey and I stayed until the end of the four acts which was after midnight. Although we were cold, we stuck it out to see an amazing performance in a unique and beautiful theater.

We really enjoyed our afternoon in this medieval city.

#HammondAdventures #LifeonPurpose #FamilyVacation