Besancon is about as far as you can get in a day without driving insanely, and close enough that we can go up tomorrow, so seems a good choice. It's also a nice place. And it's also where M spent a year doing the first year maths course, though she has forgotten all about the city now.
We arrived 19:30 at the Hotel de la Citadelle and after refreshment headed out into town to find food; D had tartare; and after, down to the river to admire the Vauban ramparts reflected on a still clear evening.
Next morning (Sunday 21st July) M and I get up early, 7 ish, to have a look around (GPS trace). The interesting bit of Besancon is inside a meander of the river, which is cut off by a "tunnel fluvial" (part of the canal du Rhone au Rhin) as well as by a more boring road tunnel.
We then went slowly going anticlockwise until opposite the tunnel, then in via the Grand Rue to the cathedral.
Victor 'Ugo woz 'ere. So were the romans. Indeed the approach to the cathedral is framed by a roman arch.
The cathedral was good. We had about an hour to wander around and could have spent much more. Some other time, perhaps.
Then back to the hotel for b'fast with D and E. Speaking of hotel, there are some pix of it's setting, starting here. And here are the young master and mistress, all fresh and eager at the start of our adventure.
The next step is to head out from Besancon through the Jura to Switzerland and Chamonix; but that's the next story.
No comments:
Post a Comment