Adios Espana! Bienvenue a France!

Platja del Miracle, Tarragona

  I took some lovely resting days in Tarragona, Spain before crossing the boarder back into France.  Tarragona is on the Mediterranean coast.  It is a perfect location with the city on the hill that leads down to the beach.  I'm not the only one who thinks that.  The ancient Romans did when they founded Tarragona almost two millennia ago.

Tower to the Roman Preatorium, Tarragona.

The city's history is layered:  Roman, Medieval and Modern.   I was most impressed with the Roman Ruins.   An amphitheater right off the water would make any modern developer drool.  The aqueduct till amazes me as to the craftsmanship of the ancients and the forum is just a reminder that people were created to be together.  There were also remains of the procurator's palace.

Remains of the Procurator's Palace, Tarragona

Medieval structures consisted mostly of the cathedral, some historic buildings, and the city walls.  The cathedral was most impressive especially the cloister.  It was simply beautiful.

Cloister and Cathedral, Tarragona.

The cathedral also had a sad introduction to the modern era with a plaque listing over 75 priests from the area who had died during the civil war at the start of the last century.   But the modern also consisted of a concert hall on the Rambla Nueva and some other buildings and the refurbished port.

Roman Amphitheater along the Mediterranean, Tarragona.

I was able to get some good walking in along the beach.  It was great walking without 25 lbs strapped to my back.

Medieval portal and wall, Tarragona.

From Tarragona I crossed to Narbonne, France.  A lovely little village just off the coast.   Again so much effort was put into the public spaces here.   There is a great walkway along the canal.  Narbonne's Cathedral is only a portion of a church - the top of a cross as you will - of a cruciform church.   It was never completed and yet it dwarfs most churches at home.

Narbonne also has Roman Roots as the statue of
Romulus and Remus being nursed by the wolf remind us in the evening twilight.

Yesterday there was a train accident here.  Six people died and twenty more seriously hurt.  I love train travel.  And I am paying the price as it is more expensive than air these days.  I don't think of it as dangerous but I forget at times how fragile life can be.   Tomorrow I will be in Montpelier for Bastile Day.

Park along the Canal de la Robine, Narbonne.

Vive la France!

Cathedral of St. Just et St. Pasteur,  Narbonne.