Sunday 30 September 2012

Poitiers, City of Churches

Yesterday we had a treat.

One of our neighbours has lived here all of her life, and in fact her family has lived in the same house for generations.  She works for the city giving guided tours to all age groups.

What she doesn't know about Poitiers, is not worth knowing....

She very kindly offered to take a few of the neighbours on a guided tour in the afternoon. Something that we all jumped at!

We walked around a small section of the city for over two and a half hours and she had us captivated for the whole time.  Incredible stories and fascinating "extra" information that is not usually found in the books about Poitiers.  It was fabulous! 

In fact it was soo good that I forgot to take photos most of the time.....ooops.

The top picture is from Notre Dame la Grande.  The sculpture is fabulous, and having been restored fairly recently, it is in great condition. 

Poitiers is known as the city of churches as it has so many of them.  Below is a detail from another cathedral we visited.  It is undergoing restoration, and looking beautiful in the late evening sunshine.

Jeanne d'Arc is one of the patrons of this area of France, and statues commemorating her life and deeds can be found everywhere.  She is also a popular subject for stained glass windows.  This one dates from more modern times, but is still very beautiful.

As it was late in the day and the sun was low in the sky, we had beautiful views of the stained glass in the churches.  An added bonus was the wash of colour across the floors from the windows, and the somber interiors and darkened aspect.  Very atmospheric!




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