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06 October 2017 - day 20 - Le Mans.
We walked to the village nearby which is called Yvré-l'Évêque. We crossed a very old stone bridge. It is called the 'Roman Bridge' and was built in the sixteenth century.
We found our way to the bus stop and didn't have to wait long. We were absolutely amazed at the speed the buses do through narrow streets while negotiating cars parked on both sides, two-way traffic and bicycles!
W e arrived in Le Mans, asked the driver where we caught the bus from to go home, consulted our tourist map and headed off.
We were going to look at the 'Old City'. We walked from the bus stop through Place de la République. Our first glimpse of an old building was on the edge of the 'Old Town'. It was an old four storey building, its original use unknown.
As we tried to find our way to the 'Old Town', we came upon Saint Benoit's Church. (It was built in the 12th century). It was very untidy and didn't look like it was in use.
We found our way into the 'Old Town'. No modern buildings have crept into the precinct. It was a walk up some steep hills to get there, high above the modern city. We couldn't believe the beauty of some of the old buildings, the carving of wood, the working of stone and to think these beautiful objects were created so long ago and still survive!The handiwork of stonemasons and woodworkers crafted into the fronts of buildings was truly amazing considering the tools they would have used at the time. Unfortunately, the ravages of time is evident in some of these buildings
Walking through the cobbled stoned streets and alleys we saw shops now in what could have been an ancient residence.
We crossed over a road that looked like it had been carved from stone and then bricked over. The road was a long way down!
The age of some of these buildings is incredible. We saw a plaque on a hotel saying it was built in 1479.
One thing that fascinated us was the number of floral wreaths on the front door of houses in the 'Old Town'. We tried to research the meaning but could find nothing. We thought maybe there had been a death in the family but we could not confirm this theory. Similarly, we also saw displays of vegetables on door surrounds but could not find any explanation.
Then we came to the Cathedral of Saint Julien. (Construction dates from the 6th through to the 14th century).Very magnificent interior. But then Wayne says that about all Churches that we visit! He talks about the stained glass, the Altars, the statuary and the number of pipes on the organ! Opposite the Cathedral is the Bishop's house, a lovely 16th century building and next to it the Pilgrim's house, also 16th century.
From here we walked down the steps at the back of the Cathedral and found ourselves in a small farmer's market.
We started to find our way back in to town so we could have some lunch. We walked past the site of the Old Roman Spas.
Late lunch over so time to catch the bus back to Yvré-l'Évêque.
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