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As there is no time limit on parking here we decide to stay anther day to make use of the laundromat and see some more of the historic centre. But before that there is good news; the fridge is working on gas again. It's possible that the steep roads and uneven parking last week disturbed the refrigerant and now on level ground it's settled back - fingers crossed...
It's a 15 minute walk to the laundry and once the clothes are sloshing we have forty minutes to walk round he block. There are some beautiful buildings in Beaune. We pass a recently closed restaurant in what was once a truly grand house with hammer-beam supported balconies and an imposing iron and glass porch but now the grounds are turning to weeds and trees are overgrowing its features. A plaque on the gate post identifies it as the former home of Paul Chanson, 1899-1974, Ambassador des vins de Bourgogne.
We pass some of the Bouchards or wine houses; these grand baroque mansions surrounded by iron railings and stone walls were the domains of the major wine families of Burgundy, and today are visitor attractions as well as high class wine merchants. A tour and tasting at Pere et Fils is €25/person.
These streets full of grand mansions must have been the pinnacle of wealth, housing the high fliers of society and reinforcing Beaune as a centre for the rich and powerful, perhaps as places like Monaco are today.
We return to a less grand street, Rue du Lorainne, but still very Parisien in style, and to number 63 which now houses coin fed machines for the dirty public, just as our laundry finishes. Ten minutes in a massive tumbler and it's Beaune-Dry in time for us to find some lunch.
In Rue de Zeim, named after artist Felix Zeim, we find Le Galion, and take one of the few remaining tables. Lunch is leisurely and delicious; we share a cheese and tomato bruchetta to start then for main course we opt for the region's signature dish, beouf bourginon with pommes dauphinoise and haricot verts. A bottle of local pinot noir helps it, and the following shared platter of local cheeses with walnuts, go down smoothly.
The rest of the afternoon we wander across the ramparts and around the sidestreets until we arrive back at Place de Mong and its statue of Gaspard Mong - mathematician and inventor of descriptive geometry. There is time [and room] for an ice cream before we make our way back to the van.
We have a quiet evening, reflecting on what a surprising, interesting and pleasant stop Beaune has been.
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