A Big Fat Party Pig, A Full Moon Over Castle Walls, and Man Purses

the lices between the two walls, carcassonne
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Monday, September 24.

I awaken to a beautiful sunny day. Perfect for Carcassonne, France's oldest walled city. I enter the Porte Narbonnaise (there are 4 gates, this one points to the road to Narbonne on the coast). A bust of Madame Carcas welcomes me, who legend has it saved the town Of Carcassonne 1200 years ago, and so was named for her. The city was being besieged by Charlemagne, and just as all food was running out, she took the last grain and fed it to the last pig and threw it over the wall where it landed at the army's feet. Splat! The troops decided they could never succeed at starving the people out if they had enough food to throw a fat pig over the wall, so they withdrew. Madame Carcas sounded the victory bells (sounded in French is sonne, thus the name Carcas-sonne). Cute, but it's also said that the original Catalan name of the town was "Carcas". I wonder about the coincidence of a dead animal being a "carcasse".Hmmm.

There is a full moon tonight, and I thoroughly enjoy my quiet walk on the cobblestone paths...I could be standing here in 1125, I can't tell the difference

the crooked drawbridge, see how the openings don't line up?
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Carcassonne is wonderful. I have two more weeks in France and I am running out of words to say charming, inspiring, spectacular, breathtaking. There are two sets of walls, outer and inner, and the blank space between is called the Lices. That's where the "moat" was, only deeper, but again, the moat is not what WE think it was. There was never any water in it. It was to keep the enemy from rolling a siege machine right up to the walls and climbing over. With two walls, it wouldn't do them any good. They also had ingenious machines that would pull rock out of the lower portions of the wall to weaken it until it collapsed.

Porte Narbonnaise
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Carcassonne was considered to be absolutely inpenetrable, and most intruders were so sure of its reputation, they didn't even try. Also, this is cool...the drawbridge is crooked, on purpose. Before the last gate entrance there is a slight bend to the right, which would prevent a straight on attack at the gate. The entrances and the bridge don't line up. I walk around the Lices first, up on the ramparts. In some places it is very narrow and high, with no guard rails. The French figure it's your own fault if you fall! The inner medieval walls were originally built by the Romans; they were lower and had "u" shaped towers, and not so many of them. You can distinguish the older Roman parts by the smaller rock and stones layered with red tile and brick, and there were no arrow slits to shoot through. The outer walls, with their half moon "barbacanes" weren't built until the 1300's. The barbacanes were in front of each gate, so if the enemy entered there, they were like sitting ducks on a big stage, and the soldiers from the inner walls would just pick them off.

the older roman part of this tower has the smaller stones and strips of red tile. See?
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In 1855 the whole castle, town and walls were falling down. The crown sent someone to inspect and tear it down, but the young architect, Eugene Viollet-le-Duc saw the value in the historical fortified town and petitioned instead to restore it. Thanks, Eugene! Now there's a staue of him in the Place du Chateau. Also, here's some good trivia for you. This is where "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" with Kevin Costner was filmed in 1990. They turned the whole place into a movie set. Doesn't that just make you want to run out and rent the movie?!

Dame Carcas!
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Inside the walls is a little like Disneyland, too perfect, lots of shops and restaurants (no costumed characters...yet!). But still totally intriguing. I go into the most elegant hotel, La Cite' (costs like $800 a night!), and they chase me out of their garden for taking pictures...."prive', madame"! Oh well. I would still love to spend one night inside the walls just to see it all lit up at night, and have access to the restaurants. Trebes is seriously hurting for good food, and I didn't come to France to eat pizza. After hiking and sightseeing all day, I don't always want to get back in the car, even though this is pretty close.

St. Nazaire, Basilica
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I go into the Basilica,

St. Nazaire, the big church, and it was more interesting than I expected. I don't have alot of churches or abbeys on my list after Mom and Dad dragged Devon and I through every church in Germany when I was 12. Devon may not remember, she was too busy checking out the bathrooms! Anyway, I admit I didn't appreciate them at the time. I've read alot about the local history of Languedoc, and it makes the visit much more meaningful. The stained glass windows are spectacularly colorful and rise upward to the vaulted ceilings. The tombstone of Simone de Montfort is inside; he's the lord who was handed the reins by the Catholic Church, and totally in charge of the crusades against the cathars. A very, very bad and greedy man. He killed alot of innocent people in horrible ways for his own gain. Fortunately he was finally killed in the early 1200's- hit in the head by a rock catapulted by the women of Toulouse. You go girls! While I'm snooping around a group of 6 men gather at the front of the church and begin to sing a' capella. I don't think this was a planned or sanctioned event, just an impromptu performance by a bunch of unlikely guys who had the voices of angels. The light is streaming in through the stained glass windows, and the acoustics transform them into something almost holy. It brings tears to my eyes, it's so sweet and beautiful. I always try to figure out which voice belongs to which person. One little chubby guy has a high, clear tenor, and you can't help but wonder how this soaring, clean sound could possibly come out of him. Another guy looks like a construction worker, but he has the "old man river" low voice, that just makes the marble floor tremble under your feet when he hits those low, low notes. I am feeling so lucky to witness this. Seems like alot of singing following me around this week.

stained glass
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I miss lunch because all the restaurants close at 2pm. I find a wine bar and take Devon's suggestion to taste some local whites. I sit outside under an olive tree with the warm sun on my shoulders. Ah, good idea!

I go to Chateau Comptal last. It is a fortress within a fortress. No wonder they though it could never fall. I have missed all the tours, the last one was around 3pm, but this turns out to be lucky for me. Just inside to the left as I start my self guided tour is a desk to rent "audio" tours. I chat with Xavier, who laments that people are not told about these devices. Do not go into the castle without one! It is the best money I have spent today! It is a small handheld recorder that you can start and stop at your convenience, and hold to your ear to listen, like a phone. It is clear, consise and immensely informative, told from the point of view of Eugene, the architect. He was fascinated with the middle ages, and far from thinking they were only "dark" ages, recreates all the nuances of architecture, true to their original purpose and beauty. That's why this whole place is so revered...it shows you how things really were. He has rebuilt the wooden "hoistings" which hang like balconies high on the ramparts of the castle. This is where the soldiers dropped rocks and other sticky things on the bad guys below. He recasts friezes and gargoyles, recovers the cobalt blue painted ceilings and wall paintings that were plastered over. He basically devotes his life to restoring Carcassonne to its glory. What drives a person like that?

nanny nanny nanny goat!
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I loved the castle! From the towers there are red tiled roofs of the Ville Basse (lower city) for as far as your eye can see. It's too early for dinner, even though I'm starving. The restaurants really don't serve before about 7:15pm. I find a cute outside terrace, Le Bar A' Vin, and order some bread and goat cheese, and , oh, OK, a glass of white wine. I am people watching and eavesdropping, and the next table over is full of Americans from California, on a Rick Steve's Tour. I recognise two of them from a bistro in Amboise! How is it possible that we are in the same place at the same time, 7 hours away from Amboise, on the same day? I strike up a conversation with them. They invite me to have dinner with them, but I shy away from groups, even though they are all perfectly nice and personable.

night at Carcassonne
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I find my own restaurant, L'Auberge des Lices, and it is just perfect. The waitress asks if I have a "book", meaning reservation...have I booked? She has darling black and white striped ankle strap shoes and a tongue pierce.She seat s me on a tranquil terrace in the back, with ivy climbing up the stucco walls. The marble tables have orange and cream striped cloths and comfy rattan chairs. It isn't crowded. I have pate', and a succulent piece of salmon served with dauphinaise potatoes, and steamed artichokes.

Simone de Montford, the bad guy
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Observation:

French women smoke really long thin cigarettes.

French men wear the sweaters ties around their necks.

French men, all ages, still have one pierced earring and carry man purses.

dusk
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I love eating at fancy places.

After dinner, I walk the perimeter of the castle again. There is almost nobody around, but it feels so safe. I pass a few other people strolling, and a couple of bicyclers.  The castle walls are lighted from below and contrast against the navy blue sky. There is a full moon tonight, and I thoroughly enjoy my quiet walk on the cobblestone paths. I walk down to the Pont Vieux (old bridge) and look back up at the walled city. I could be standing here in 1125, I can't tell the difference. It is a moment that seems special in some way. Timeless, seamless. This is why I came to France.