An Unexpected Adventure
Share or Like
An ancient bastide, the home of a world-famous person, extraordinary architecture, and more. Did I go to visit this? Nope, I was sent there to trace a lost parcel.
We live in an area so remote it takes years for posties to learn where each home is hidden. When one of these experts takes time off, it’s mayhem in the sorting office. Letters get pushed through the wrong slots, and parcels regularly go missing, as did mine.
“Go to Beaumont de Lomagne, Madame ‘aslam,” said our local postmaster.
“Why? It’s a long way from here.”
“You must make a claim for your lost parcel. This is where you do it.”
“So, you don’t think it will be re-delivered?”
“Oh, no, Madame. Anael, your usual facteur, is on paternity leave again. We have the temporary staff to cover while he is away and there have been many problems already. It is definitely our fault. I am sure your parcel will never arrive.”
And that was that.
The following day I drove to Beaumont and found the post office easily enough. Observing the new standard protocol, I waffled through my mask, and the lady hooted back through hers. After a verbal tussle, we worked out what one another was saying.
“You need a compensation claim form, Madame.”
I live in France. This wasn’t a surprise. The lady produced a dangerously complicated-looking document with many spaces. I had a bash at filling them in, quickly got stuck and asked for advice. She got stuck too, and the process ended up as a team-building event with two colleagues brought in to help.
I left the post office feeling a mixture of mental exhaustion and relief. It then occurred to me that having come all this way, I might as well have a potter, and why not? The weather might have been glum, but I was in a place of great historical significance. It was too good an opportunity to pass up.
The bastide town was created between 1276 and 1279 following a feudal treaty between the abbey of Granselve and the king of France Philippe III le Hardi (the Bold). Today, there is an air of tired crustiness about the place, but therein lies part of its charm.
As with many ancient towns, the market hall is a centrepiece, and this one is a favourite of mine. It was a quiet day, which allowed me to have a proper look.
Although planned from the original 13th century bastide foundations, it was not built until the 14th century. It became the focal point for the weekly market on Saturday mornings and still is. Silly though it sounds, I love having bought goods on the same site used by folks in medieval times.
I looked up. Talk about a wow factor. The immensely complex oak frame of this square building always fascinates me.
No wonder it needed 38 posts to support it. Each of these rests on a stone plinth set at a different level to compensate for the slope. As I was soon to realise, Beaumont is town suited to those with mountain goat tendencies.
I paused to read an information panel. The base I was walking on was paved with differently coloured pebbles. It had been sympathetically restored. In total, about 370,000 stones were placed manually to recreate the original base. The work took a year to complete. Imagine that!
The hall is sheltered on two sides by arcades. Faded yet splendid, cafés, fruit sellers, pharmacies and pâtisseries, all the essentials are represented here. Ahead, on the incline was the Mairie. Pride of place as usual, with plaques of Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité emblazoned across the front wall. The town hall looked magnificent.
As I strolled past, I admired the unusual attractive additions to civic floral decorations. Metal music clefs, notes and instruments sprouted out of plant pots, all celebrating la Fête de la Musique which had recently taken place, as had the Fête de l’Ail blanc de Lomagne, albeit in a tiny form this year because of COVID-19.
Traditionally, the garlic fête takes place at the end of July, after harvesting and drying the yield. Over 15,000 devotees flock to this annual festival, keen to immerse themselves in a packed programme bursting with garlic-related festivities.
A wide selection of local produce is offered during the fête, but nothing can compare with the star of the show. An estimated three tonnes of garlic are sold every year. One of the main attractions is the hotly contested garlic-peeling challenge, the very thought of which made my eyes water. Yes, despite its sleepy appearances, Beaumont is a happening place.
Keen to learn more about the town, I headed uphill towards the tourist information centre. En route, a magnificent bronze statue caught my eye. It was Pierre de Fermat. But just who was he?
Pierre de Fermat (Beaumont de Lomagne 1601 – Castres 1665) was possibly the most productive mathematician of his era. He is considered to be one of the fathers of analytic geometry, along with René Descartes. He, in collaboration with Blaise Pascal, was also one of the founders of probability theory.
Maths fans will be aware that Fermat’s most important work was done in the development of modern number theory, a favourite subject of his. He is best remembered for Fermat’s Last Theorem. I don’t profess to understand it, but for those of you who do, here is the link.
My mind bristling with unfathomable theories, I headed into the tourist information centre. Unsurprisingly, it was based in the quadrangle of another magnificent mansion, which appeared to be part of Fermat’s old home.
A masked-muffled exchange took place between the girl behind the counter and me. Now hopelessly inspired by the history and determined to share my photos with you, I asked for further information about the town. Her eyes lit up.
“Here you are, Madame,” she said, thrusting a wad of leaflets in my hand.
“Lovely, thank you.”
“You are welcome, and I can show you a 360 degree view of the town. You must see this, come with me.”
Intrigued, I dutifully followed the girl out through the quad, down several steps and along a dark passage. Just as I was beginning to think something had got horribly lost between the folds of my mask, she abruptly stopped.
“Here,” she said, plunging an enormous key into an archaic lock. A clunk released the internals, and the door swung open. “Take these stairs,” she said, pointing at a stone spiral staircase, “at the top, you will see the view. Please close the door when you return.”
And with that, she left.
So, there I was, down a shadowy passage looking at a set of medieval steps. Not exactly The Raiders of the Lost Arc, but I did feel slightly intrepid. I started climbing the stairs. Up and up I went.
And up and up.
Still going up, I paused to take a photo of an extremely short person’s door, but I was kidding myself. I was trying to catch my breath.
Inexorably up, and finally, there was light – a skinny flight of steps which I presumed led to the top.
Thigh muscles screaming, I finally made it. Two thoughts occurred to me. This was very likely to have been where Fermat’s theory of probability was hatched. That being the probability of the stair climber having a heart attack before reaching the top. Secondly, the brilliance of the suggestion made by the lady, who had wisely decided not to accompany me. Mind you, those views were fantastic.
I grabbed my camera and started clicking. A bastide town built on hills, I could see it all, and the gorgeous Gers countryside in the distance. Another half turn and a mass of geometric roofs lay before me. The pic could make a terrific jigsaw puzzle.
Another turn afforded a stunning view of a new focal point – the massively imposing red brick church, what a remarkable building that was.
After another few turns, it was time to retrace my steps. For someone who spends hours and hours rambling with dogs, I was surprised how wobbly my legs felt by the time I reached ground level. Extreme stair climbing evidently requires the use of niche muscle groups.
Still puffing, I returned to the tourist office to thank the girl for her help. I was about to stagger out when she had another bright idea.
“But have you seen inside l’eglise Notre Dame de l’Assomption yet?”
“The church? No,” I gasped.
“You must! It’s around the corner and up the hill.”
“Yes, I did see it. Oh, another hill?”
“Yes, you can’t miss it.”
The French are a forthright lot.
But she was right. It was such an imposing building I couldn’t leave without at least having a peek. I’m so glad I did.
Building work on the catholic church began in 1280. Withstanding wars, famines, religious struggles and storms, like many buildings of its age it suffered. Restoration work has been almost continuous throughout its history, the aim always to maintain the magnificence of the construction.
There wasn’t another soul about as I walked down the bevelled flag stoned aisle. It was dimly lit, but I could still see how magnificent the alter was, as were the side chapels. I paused to admire each one – some extravagant, others unassuming.
I looked up at the vaulted ceiling way above. It was contrastingly simple. Tranquil. Yes, the wear and tear were apparent, but it couldn’t detract from the inherent beauty of the architecture. The purity of lines and arches were intensely appealing.
I turned back to face the doorway. Above, was a magnificent organ, one day I would love to hear that played. I could easily have spent much longer enjoying the serenity and artefacts, but time was against me.
I headed back downhill over the cobbled streets, passing crumbly shutters, massive oak doors and truly outstanding buildings. It had been a wonderfully unexpected adventure, one to remember. Oh, and did my parcel ever turn up? No, of course not!
Share or Like
1st August 2020 @ 4:26 pm
Wow Beth what a culture trip that was. Beautiful architecture and the view from the roof is amazing as is the interior of the church, well worth the hike and screaming thighs. Lol. Captured for prosperity in your beautiful photographs. Thank you xx
1st August 2020 @ 7:40 pm
Thanks for the effort to take me exploring to places my silly legs would not allow! Very interesting! I’d love the marketplace!
1st August 2020 @ 11:10 pm
Coming from a "new" country, Canada, one of my favourite things (well, two of my favourite)in Europe is the history and architecture. How wonderful you were able to explore this unexpected location. Bummer about the parcel, though.
2nd August 2020 @ 5:33 pm
This was such a delightful post. Traveling to France is on my lifelong to-do list, and I've learned so much from your blog posts and from your social media posts. The photos are lovely, the text is fascinating, and the experience must be enchanting. How blessed you are to live among such history! We here in the US do not have that luxury.
2nd August 2020 @ 6:53 pm
Bless you, Lindylou, thanks so much for reading it. I am so glad I did go for an explore, as you saw, it was definitely worth it – and I'm sure my thighs will stop screaming eventually! :/ xx
2nd August 2020 @ 6:55 pm
It's my pleasure, Nancy, thank so much for reading it. I'm sure those steps were intended for Ibex goats, nevertheless the views were worth it. You would love the marketplace, it is a truly remarkable building! 😀
2nd August 2020 @ 7:00 pm
Well, if you enjoy European history, Lydia, I'm so glad you saw the blog, thank you for reading it. Luckily, the parcel contained a pair of inexpensive garden sandals, so if I don't receive them the world won't fall in. I'm so glad I decided to have a potter about, though. It truly is a fascinating town. 🙂
2nd August 2020 @ 7:03 pm
Gosh, Amy, I am so grateful to you for taking the time to read my posts, thank you. We genuinely feel extremely privileged to live here in France. It is a beautiful country steeped in the most remarkable history, a tiny snippet of which I related to you in this blog. We love it! 🙂
2nd August 2020 @ 8:03 pm
What a fabulous place, Beth. I loved being on tour with you and giggled over your mask-muffled exchanges. That view is stupendous and the church is quite glorious. And you got a workout into the bargain. That said, I do hope your parcel turns up, contrary to their expectations! Thank you for a lovely post.
3rd August 2020 @ 6:24 am
Lovely post! Thank you so much for the walking tour!
3rd August 2020 @ 8:15 am
Heh heh heh, thanks for reading it, Val, finally, I have found something else to blame my appalling linguistics skills on rather than myself! Beaumont is a truly remarkable town, I'll be going back for another explore soon. 🙂
3rd August 2020 @ 8:17 am
It's a great pleasure, Kathryn, I'm so glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
22nd August 2020 @ 2:25 pm
It's really very beautiful detail building l'eglise Notre Dame de l'Assomption …, I was amazed to see its beauty. Very lucky you can see it in person.
Thank you for showing us the beauty. Greetings from Indonesia.
22nd August 2020 @ 7:12 pm
Hello Himawan, thank you for reading my blog, it was my pleasure to share these photos. Yes, the church is extraordinary, I loved it. I must go back to have a closer look one day. 🙂