Bonus Nachos

We recently spent an entire year living in France, staying in 12 different cities and visiting 6 more via day trip. These stops were spread throughout the country, as we tried to soak in the flavor of the many distinct areas. In every region we found a plethora of amazing art and we did our best to see as much of it as possible. In total we went to 27 art museums. We also visited at least that many cathedrals, themselves filled with incredible art and architecture. We ate large quantities of the delicious bread and cheese that’s available everywhere. This long stay allowed us to learn a lot about the country, attitudes, and their way of life. And we even picked up a little French. 

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Nancy welcomed us with warm summer weather, parks of all sizes, and extensive Art Nouveau architecture. We fell in love with both the botanical garden and the art museum. Nancy has a canal, a river, a man-made beach, and plenty of hills around that offer area views. We also found some great street art, something that’s lacking in most French cities. It was an eclectic mix that melded together perfectly. We were both surprised by how much we enjoyed Nancy. 

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Lille is a French city without French roots. On the border with Belgium, it’s about as far north as one can go and still be in France. This gives Lille a different feel from other cities in France, especially when it comes to architecture. We found loads of interesting buildings, including government offices, cultural centers, apartments, and churches. A lot of our time was spent simply walking around and looking at these unique facades. We also took advantage of our summertime stay by frequenting several great parks and taking long walks beside the canal. A nice art museum rounded out our visit.

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Rouen is an attractive destination for lovers of history and churches. There are multiple impressive worship buildings, none more so than the Rouen Cathedral. Once the tallest building in the world, it was depicted in a series of famous paintings by Claude Monet. The Fine Arts Museum proudly displays several of these Monet masterpieces. Rouen’s proximity to Paris allowed us to take a day trip to see even more art. Our summer visit also included a World Music Day party, a professional baseball game, a bit of the Tour de France, and even an impromptu swim in the river. 

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Downtown Rennes feels as much like old Europe as anywhere we’ve been. It’s filled with half-timbered buildings that have settled and shifted over the many years since construction. The result is a number of structures that are leaning sideways, out into the street, or are out of plumb in some way. Instead of straightening or rebuilding, Rennes embraces these imperfections. Several of these structures even accentuate their flaws by highlighting the off-kilter sections with shingles or other materials. Closer inspection suggests that it’s (mostly) just the outer facades that are uneven and that the actual risk of the buildings falling over is minimal. But it sure looks like a stiff wind could knock an entire block over.

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Nantes may not have the name recognition of more popular French cities, but we really enjoyed our stay there. It has a large art museum, a lively downtown, and excellent thrift stores. But the nice parks throughout the city are what stole the show. We were pleasantly surprised with both the quality and quantity of these green spaces. Our spring visit coincided with a plethora of flowers and most days were spent exploring at least one of the various choices. Nantes strikes a great balance between natural and urban areas. 

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Bordeaux is the 9th largest city in France, but definitely ranks higher in fanciness. The downtown area is large and grand, filled with ornate buildings and extravagant fountains. There are several massive cathedrals and a nice art museum. Everywhere has an upscale feeling. Even the thrift stores are sophisticated. Bordeaux offsets its urbanity with access to multiple large parks and a popular riverwalk as well. But the city’s best feature is definitely its large downtown area. 

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Toulouse is an attractive pedestrian friendly city filled with parks and split by a river. The downtown is almost fully car free with lots of impressive architecture. Our visit coincided with the start of spring, allowing us to take full advantage of the city parks and enjoy long walks along the waterways. A couple of nice art museums, historic churches, and an incredible day trip to nearby Albi rounded out our experience. 

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Dijon is a charming city filled with romantic half-timbered buildings and patterned roof tiles. The capital of the Burgundy region in eastern France, it has been a seat of power in the area for over a millennium. Of course Dijon is famous worldwide for the eponymous spicy condiment which was developed here, but mustard is only a minor attraction. It impresses visitors with two cathedrals over 700 years old and an expansive art museum housed in a 600 year old palace. Like many French cities, it features an excellent pedestrian-only downtown. We found it to be pleasant and inviting with unique architecture that captured our attention.

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The exquisite French capital is filled with top notch art museums, classical architecture, thriving neighborhoods, massive cathedrals, and large parks. There’s just so much to see and do in Paris and almost all of it feels fancy. The main target of our visit was art and we definitely hit the bullseye often. When not in museums, we were soaking up all of the sights, sounds, and smells of various cathedrals, book stores, thrift shops, and bakeries. We did our best to experience as much as possible and just about wore ourselves out doing so. 

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