Lagrasse

Four weeks ago we took a day off when the sun was shining brightly and made a trip to Lagrasse. The village is officially one of the most beautiful in France and the Abbey had caught our interest as a place to visit. It is in the Corbieres region of the Aude department and about 30 minutes east of Carcassonne. We felt we had not seen enough of our close neighbour on a couple of previous trips and wanted to see a bit more.

We took a secondary road via St Hilaire and through army territory with an interesting note that it reminded us very much of the Desert Road in NZ, an area also used by the army. Otherwise there was not much of a view until we were close by, but that was quite stunning.

Lagrasse street

We made a small walk around the village and found it to be very picturesque - lots of photo opportunities here. The river Orbieu runs through the village and the streets are from the 12th century and have attracted many artists, sculptors and potters from around the world.

covered market

There is a covered market where you can imagine the dealings of traders in times gone by. It reminds me a little of the village in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

medieval bridge

The Abbey is in two parts - one which is still used by monks today and is not open to visitors, the other part we visited. In its youth the monastery became rich very quickly and its lands spread as far south as Spain the in 9th and 10th centuries. These days there is ongoing reconstruction and repair work without interrupting a fascinating visit. The nearby cemetry is also an attraction.

Abbey across the river

altar

ruins

inscription

Travelling home we took another route and passed a few small villages which would be lovely to visit again for more photos as they reminded us of Mid-Wales. But no more trips for a while as we buckle down to do the last work to get our B&B running. There is dust and rubble everywhere, a big pile of debris on the driveway, hoses and pipes galore and lots of work still to do.

someone's former home

old wine stock