- Puy Saint Vincent
Station 1600. As huge as it is, it still somehow fits. - Chamonix
A lovely house in the centre of Chamonix: an hommage to great climbers and sportsmen who lost their lives. - La Grande Vadrouille
A mural with Louis de Funès and Bourvil in Rue Rousseau Deslandes. What a fantastic film! - Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune
Chapel of Saint Leger or the Chapel of the Cardinal Jean Rolin (15th century). The paintings by Pierre Spicre depict the raising of Lazarus and Saint Martha on the right. - Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune
A lovely detail in the chapel of Saint Leger. - Beaune
Usually one would not want to connect driving school and vineyards. Usually. - Vézelay Abbey
The famous tympanum, which is within the narthex, serves as a spiritual defense of the crusades. It was here that King Richard the Lionheart and King Phillip Augustus met for the Third Crusade. - Vézelay Abbey
The ones who have not yet received the Word of God are not quite human: some are dwarfes... - Vézelay Abbey
... and some have elephant ears. - Vézelay - St anthony's vision
Probably Saint Anthony's vision. With St Anthony on the left, there is a figure tortured by three feathered demons. - Vézelay Abbey
Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine was under repair, so we only saw a part of it. - Château de Chenonceau
16th century door leading into Salle des gardes, saying: "S'il vient à point, me souviendra". Basically - if I ever finish building this castle, I will be remembered. But I forgot who wrote it :-) - Château de Chenonceau
Lions on a 16th century Flemish tapestry. Their faces seem somewhat off. - Château de Chenonceau
The butchery. Of course the castle had its own butchery, right above the water and separated from the rest of the kitchen. - Château de Chenonceau
Every room had its own fireplace, making the castle rather cosy. This is a detail on the fireplace in Chambre de François Ier. - Château de Chenonceau
The classical view of the castle. Built in 1514-1522 on the foundations of an old mill, the bridge was added in 1556-1559 and the gallery in 1570-1576. - Château de Chenonceau
Royal pharmacy - Château de Chambord
A very symmetric Renaissance castle. Sorry, hunting lodge. - Château de Chambord
Royal oratory of François Ier has a wonderful vaulted ceiling. There is the letter F (for François Ier) and the salamanders extinguishing "bad" fire. - Château de Chambord
The vaulted ceilings in the 2nd floor: F as the initials of François Ier and plenty of salamanders, some eating the good fire and others putting out the bad fire. Just don't know which are which. - Château de Chambord
Lapidary deposit. Some original carvings of F, with a crown and plenty of ropes. Now imagine a gigantic castle full of such beauty! Sorry, hunting lodge. - Château de Chambord
My kids were fascinated by the 'minecraft trees'. - Château de Chambord
View of the castle from the road. - Vallouise
One of the 'maisons plus riches'. Influenced by Piedmont architecture, the rich had stone staircases and arcades. - Fort du Mont Alban
Built around 1560s. - La Rue Obscure in Villefranche
La Rue Obscure, the completely covered street dates from 1260s! - La citadelle Saint-Elme in Villefranche
La citadelle Saint-Elme is from the 16th century. - La citadelle Saint-Elme in Villefranche
Roof of the remparts at the citadel. - Beach in Cannes
The main beach in Cannes was closed for renovation. - Église Notre-Dame-d'Espérance
The church of Our Lady of Hope in Cannes dates from the 16th century. - Valbonne
La mairie, the town hall in Valbonne. - Old houses in Valbonne
Through the whole old town of Valbonne, portraits of previous inhabitants are displayed. A wonderful idea as these houses surely have a lot to tell. - Place Garibaldi in Nice
- Place de l'Église in Biot
- Église Sainte-Marie-Madeleine in Biot
A very interesting church as you have to walk down to enter it. But there is a limited amount of asymmetry I can handle - and a main entrance that is off is just too off for me :-) - A gargoyle?
I actually don't know what or who his is, but he surely looks scared. Or scary. - La Légende des siècles
I wonder what is behind these doors... Maybe just a huge Hugo fan? Place des Arcades in Biot. - Local art in Antibes
Some tiles on an old building in Antibes. Rue du Haut Castelet. - La Tête Carrée
A library (2002). If you design modern architecture, make a statement. Well done. - Puy Saint Vincent
View towards Station 1600. And towards Mont Pelvoux (3943 m), Pic de Clouzis (3465 m), and Cime de la Condamine (2940 m). - Grand Hôtel des Alpes, Chamonix
The Grand Hotel in the centre of Chamonix. - Church in Les Praz
The chapel was built between 1941 and 1960. - Beaune
What a lovely sign above the O'100dwich sandwicherie in Beaune :-) - Beaune
Remparts de la Comédie, the ramparts around the town is actually a street with some charming houses. - Beffroi de Beaune
Belfry, dating from the 13th-14th century, renovated and repaired multiple times after that. - Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune
The porch dates from the mid-13th century. A great place that protects you from the elements. - Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune
A 12th century romanesque basilica in Beaune. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
The reason why we came to Beaune: The hospices. Founded in 1443 as a hospital for the poor by Phillip the Good was in use until 1971. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
Trente-trois. Trente-trois. Trente-trois... Thirty three. Thirty three. Thirty three... Oui, oui, oui, oui, oui... - Christ of Pity
A 15th century sculpture of Christ of Pity sculpted from one oak trunk. The craftsmanship on the crown of thorns and ropes is wonderful! - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
The ceiling in the Room of the Poor is an upside-down boat-skiff shape. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
Such lovely beams under the ceiling. I think the inscription says Seule * as seule etoile, meaning the founder's wife. - Hospice kitchen
The kitchen in the Hospice. My (second) favourite part in this kitchen is the rotating spit with Mr. Bertrand apparently rotating it. It was made in 1698 by a local clockmaker Defresne. - Hospice kitchen
This is my favourite part in the kitchen. The two swan-like faucets for running hot water. - Hospice Pharmacy
A very interesting pharmacy. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
View of the glazed-tiled hospice roof from the cour d'honneur, the main inner court. The roof type probably has central European origins, but is now a trademark of Burgundy. - Maison du Colombier, Beaune
What a lovely house with plenty of dovecotes. And doves in the cotes. - Basilique Notre-Dame de Beaune
A magnificent stained glass window. But I have no idea how old it is. May be old, but my uneducated guess would say quite recent. - Meursault
We obviously went to Meursault because of the Grande Vadrouille, but did not regret it. What a picturesque, friendly and lovely town. - Meursault
A restaurant in the town centre. - Vézelay Abbey
This Benedictine abbey, which is a well-known pilgrimage church, was constructed between 1120 and 1150. Here stood initially a Roman villa, then two Carolingian convents, then then reformed Benedictine order of Cluny. Built to accommodate pilgrims, and extended to accommodate even more pilgrims... - Vézelay Abbey
The portal on the exterior of the church. - Vézelay Abbey
A lovely detail on the facade indicates the grandeur inside. - Vézelay Abbey
The narthex was added to accommodate the influx of pilgrims, who came to see the relics of Mary Magdalene. - Vézelay Abbey
St Paul the Hermit's burial. Saint Anthony burying Saint Paul, with two lions digging the grave. - Vézelay Abbey
The crypt - Vézelay Abbey
Adam and Eve. A snake climbs the Tree of life and gives grapes(!) to Eve. - Derrière une porte
I once had to write a story "Derrière une porte" being given an image similar to this one. I probably could write another one for this door as well. - Vézelay
The hollyhock grows in every corner of the town. So beautiful. - Vézelay Abbey
- Château de Chenonceau
Chambre de Diane de Poitiers. - Château de Chenonceau
One of the many chandeliers in the Gallery across the river. - Château de Chenonceau
One part of the castle kitchen, with modern equipment. - Château de Chenonceau
Another magninficent fireplace, this one is in the Salon Louis XIV. The salamander and the ermine are the symbols of Francis I and his wife Claude of France. - Château de Chenonceau
La tour des Marques The only remaining (and renovated) part of the medieval castle owned by the Marques family. - Château de Chenonceau
La chambre de Catherine de Médicis A typical renaissance baldachin bed. - Château de Chenonceau
Chambre de Louise de Lorraine, the black room. She was mourning the death of her husband Henri III. - Château de Chenonceau
View of the castle from the gardens of Catherine de Médicis. - Château de Chenonceau
A 16th century farm in the castle gardens. Here all the flowers used for the castle decoration are grown. - Château de Chambord
Chambord is the largest château in the Loire Valley. Built in 1519–1547 as a hunting lodge for François Ier. A hunting lodge! - Château de Chambord
The double-spiral staircase in the centre of the castle. The castle is so wonderfully symmetric, it's quite easy to lose orientation. - Château de Chambord
The 18th century castle kitchen. - Château de Chambord
The centre of the spiral staircase has a lantern at the top. - Château de Chambord
One of the famous Flemish tapestries commissioned by Francis I in 1532. It depicts the story of Scipio Africanus, the Roman General who defeated Carthage. The oxen are taken to the temple of Jupiter to be sacrificed, while the elephants and camels carry the wealth brought back from Africa. - Château de Chambord
The almost perfectly symmetric castle. - Château de Chambord
Laurel bedchamber was refurbished in the 18th century. Parquet floor was added and the walls covered with wallpaper. I love love love this pattern. - Château de Chambord
Ah, the castle terraces. The lantern tower is topped by a royal crown with a fleur-de-lys. - Château de Chambord
All the details of the castle become visible from the terraces. - Château de Chambord
The view of the French gardens. Louis XIV had a similar view from his bedroom. Not bad. - Château de Chambord
Am I repetitive with these pictures? Maybe. But the castle, pardon, the hunting lodge, is splendid. - Château de Chambord
The NE facade of the keep. It was here that we realised that we 'lost' our younger son somewhere in the castle. It's just the largest castle in France, no biggie. - Château de Chambord
Lapidary deposit. This is a part of the original lantern tower. Obviously showing more salamanders. - Château de Chambord
Chambord in all its beauty. The keep was finished under François Ier in 1519, the wings were added later on. The castle was first open to visitors in 1821. - Longues-sur-Mer battery
More WWII bunkers with original guns on the Normandy coast. - Fougères
This belfry was the first in Brittany, built in 1397. - Mont Saint-Michel
What a perfect architecture. - Mont Saint-Michel
We planned the visit to avoid the crowds. But we didn't think it would be so empty on a Sunday afternoon. - Mont Saint-Michel
Plenty of lovely souvenir shops and places to eat in the town, but some of them closed fairly early in the evening. - Mont Saint-Michel
What a magnificent place indeed! - Côte de granit rose
An old tidal mill at Grand Traouïero. The mill's been here since 1375, the current building is from the 18th century. If I remember correctly, it was used to crush ice for the fishing trade.