Pack Your Bags | Carcassonne, France
We were eating dinner tonight and in the middle of my (second) bowl of soup, a thought appeared in my brain out of nowhere: I never blogged about Carcassonne! I'd been so excited to share this hidden gem tucked in the Southwest of France with you & the rest of the blogging world... I edited the pictures, I put them in a folder on my desktop, and then... well, honestly, who knows. But here it is today! Better late than never, right? With a place this special, the answer is: absolutely.
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It was about 1.5 hours drive from where we were staying (remember the crazy-gorgeous-yet-affordable Chateau Les Carrasses?) to Carcassonne....On our way towards the Spanish border, I grew increasingly allured to drive to Barcelona for dinner. {Tyler did not, however, or this Carcassonne adventure would have ended here.}
All I knew about Carcassonne before arriving was that it was a medieval city... which, to me, meant it was a city during the medieval times and not today. So imagine my surprise when we walked through the city gates and then realized: it's still an active/real place!
The flavor of the city (and yes, I believe that cities have distinct flavors) was undoubtedly French...with strong Spanish notes. A crepe stand would sit next to a store selling handmade espadrilles...A cafe sign would have the price for une biere & una cerveza.
It was one of those days in traveling when you are left totally refreshed even after a long day out.
The four of us (Tyler, Lauren, Viola & our dear friend, Kyla) wandered through the cobblestone streets, explored the gorgeously preserved castle overlooking the valley, and, obviously, ate enormous crepes stuffed with nutella, coconut & almonds.
I've tried to say it in previous posts, but I'll say it again: the southwest of France is one of the best-kept secrets there is. Affordable, stunning, rich with history & gorgeous. It's waiting for you.
More Southwest France posts here for your drooling pleasure!