NEAR OUR FLAT IN POITIERS, FRANCE

Around Poitiers....

 
The Mairie or city hall plus the "Place" or meeting area surrounded by cafes.
Eglise Notre Dame, around which there is a vibrant farmer's market five days a week.

Ornate Romanesque facade with painted columns and statuary on the beautiful interior.

Other churches in Poitiers dating from around the 12th century include St. Hillaire, which was the oldest Catholic Church in France;  St. Radegone, the Cathedral St. Pierre, where Eleanor of Aquitaine was married,  and the first Baptistry in Gaul, a Gallo - Roman building which was built much earlier. 

 

The commercial mouth of Rue Carnot. Your apartment is two blocks further south.

Here are many restaurants and cafes as well as some businesses.  it is an entry into the city from the south, and terminates at the garage "Parking Carnot." Oour apartment is in an attractive complex just south of this commercial area which looks  old but which was built in the 1980s, and so has a modern elevator, all services, and is very clean. 

Book sellers and second hand merchants gather near the Noter Dame Church during Friday markets.

The Notre Dame farmer's market is very robust 5 days a week, and people from miles around come to sell fresh fruit/ vegetables / home made cheese / wine/ brea and pastry/ meat and all type of game birds -- it is glorious. ANd then on Sunday, you can take a bus to the market at La Providence which is more eastern in characters, but has produce from local farms. 

Blossac Park has a small zoo, places to eat and dance, formal as well as wildly eclectic gardens, and an amphitheater for special events. It is a 10 minute walk from our apartment.

The other grand green space is the botanic gardens, at the north end of the city. It is perhaps a 45 minute walk -- all along interesting old streets that date back centuries. 

Ancient street leading to the Cathedral...

 

Blossac Park has formal walkways as well as informal flower gardens, small resraurantseat, and places that overlook the Clain River, which winds through Poitiers.

This is the entrance to a large shopping complex with upscale boutiques, a department store, and Monoprix, an inexpensive supermarket. It is a ten minute walk from our apartment.