Auxerre is a mid-sized town that we stopped at on our drive home from Provence. The drive from our hotel in Aix to our home was over 8 hours, so we needed a place to pull over and stretch our legs and break up the monotony of driving. Auxerre was a good place for that because it was close to a half way point along our route.
We arrived there early in the morning, around 9am, which might give you an idea of how early we left that day - around 4am or so.
If you follow my blog and remember back to the beginning of our trip then you might recall that we had hit some major traffic congestion on the way down. It was a busy travel weekend and we wanted to avoid more traffic on the way home so we decided to get on the road before everyone else. The plan went off without a hitch and it was smooth sailing the whole way. All it cost me was a few hours of sleep, but I was used to that by this point in time.
The city of Auxerre is located in the Burgandy region of France along the Yonne River, which runs down its center.
It's known for its large Abbey and Cathedral, both of which are situated on a small hill overlooking the water. You have already seen them in the photos above and will see more in photos to come.
You can get an amazing view of the cathedral from one of its many bridges that cross over the water or from the banks on the other side.
While you are over there you can also check out the numerous house boats parked along the banks. This one had been converted into a restaurant, which I thought was pretty cool.
It was quite chilly that day and there was a crisp morning breeze in the air so we didn't linger too long by the water.
Just long enough to snap some photos before heading into town to have a coffee at a small cafe and a croissant from a local bakery.
It was a Sunday of a long weekend so the town was quiet and sleepy that morning,
or maybe everyone was attending mass at the time we were there. I can't be certain of the reason, but there were very few people on the streets nonetheless.
The town is quite old and definitely has that feeling about it. It's made up of traditional half-timber homes that are built upon cobblestone streets.
It has that quintessential French town look about it, or at least what I've come to associate with the Northern part of the country.
Just seeing the colorfully painted half-timbers makes me all misty eyed and reminiscent of our time living there...
Okay moving on.
We walked past the Cathedral dedicated to Saint Etienne on our way over to view the Abbey.
The church was pretty standard for France and not nearly as impressive at the front as it was at the back.
From there we walked the short distance to the Abbey and came to a large courtyard in front of it.
Next to that was a tall clock towner. It was nothing extravagant or anything but I took a photo of it so I may as well mention it.
The best part of this spot was the view of the town below.
I always love a good view of a cloud covered sky above old quarter rooftops. Rolling fields in the distance is a cherry on top.
You can really tell that each home in town has its own sort of character about it, even from above.
Looking to the left you could get a clear view of Saint-Etienne. As you can see, it looks an awful lot like the Abbey cathedral.
I don't fully understand how two massive churches that are almost exactly the same can be situated so close to one another. I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation for it but I would need someone to explain that to me. Perhaps they are different denominations?
We didn't go inside the Abbey because dogs aren't allowed into churches. To be honest, I don't recall if going inside was even an option. It may have been a museum that charged admission but I can't be certain.
From there we took a stroll along the river promenade.
We passed by the cathedral again and got a good view of the back.
This was one of those instances where the back was actually much more impressive than the front.
We made our way to one of several pretty bridges that span the river.
This one is called Passerelle de la liberte, which translates to Liberty Footbridge.
Its an awesome spot to view the river and the cathedral and is the location where I took a lot of the photos.
Auxerre wasn't a main destination for us during the trip but was more of a brief stop over to get out and walk for a bit after a long drive. I can't really comment on any accommodations or food, and I probably wouldn't go out of my way to travel there for more than a day if I wasn't in the area. Nonetheless, it was a really nice town along the river. It had a charming old quarter and impressive cathedral and Abbey. Those things to me, make it a worth checking out if you happen to be in the area.
My kinda town! Love that old feel to it, and the bridge is magnificent!
Yeah I really like old towns. They are my favorite
The beauty here is undeniable. Even though it has aged, it looks new to me and I'd love to experience such a place in real life.
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Yeah it was a nice little city. I really liked the charming look of the old towns in France.
I kinda miss all that architecture. Nice captures once again. Did you draw straws for the cover this time or toss coins against a wall?
Haha yeah I just close my eyes and scroll 😂
WOW! What a charming-looking town!
It's like a fairy tale, and the photos are postcard perfect.
I'm gonna send you my address so you could send me postcards whenever you print them.
This is so freaking AWESOME!!!
Haha 😂 yeah certainly parts had a sort of fairytale vibe. Any old world village has that effect I think.
I'm glad you liked them 👍
The boats are making me miss life on the canals, and Europe too. I guess you can't have it all at once, and for now, it's nice to be in the tropics.
That was a really clear, or perfect day I would say for photography. The cloud and sky are absolutely stunning :)
Winter is the best time to be in the tropics in my opinion. At least wait until spring to go back lol
Yeah, I won't be heading back to the Uk till February.
I have many more days of tropical weather to fill my heart 😍😊🙏
That footbridge is awesome looking. I do the same with long drives if I can, head out early to avoid the traffic, it sure seems to have worked with the emptiness of the place for shots. Or mass, you never know!
Yeah we always left early in the morning to avoid traffic and also to arrive with a full day ahead of us at the destination.
It's the best way. Nothing worse than travelling late morning and spending hours in traffic and arriving in the evening
I agree. For sure.
lovely old town, I guess fairly unrestored as it escaped a lot of the damage during WW2. I trust as well as coffee and cakes you enjoyed the fine local burgundy wines?
hic 🍷
We didn't end up buying any wines that day but we definitely sampled some from the region during our time in the country.
always good to sample!
Such a wide river and those buildings stunning.
What a beautiful sunny bright blue day it was.
Thanks for sharing @leaky20 👋🏻😊
Blue skies like that are my favorite, with fluffy clouds especially.
They are beautiful especially when some fluffy clouds do pop up ☀️
Have an awesome Monday 👋🏻
Wow I really like this city. Will have to put it in a collection of places to go in France. One day I will have to sit down and make a collection of the places I want to go from your posts!
I wouldn't say that this one is a must see, especially because it's in a location that isn't close to a lot of other destinations. It was a nice stop over while passing through though.
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Que geniales vistas, muy hermoso lugar 🤩🤩
Yeah the views were quite nice. Thanks for checking them out
You have captured wonderful photo frames from beautiful places. France is one of the places I want to visit
France is an awesome place to visit. You wouldn't be disappointed
Wow, these views are so beautiful and all the pictures came out way too fine and perfect. I see you had fun while taking the pictures.
I'm glad you had a great trip and having fun in France.
Yeah I had a lot of fun taking photos that day.
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What a great fin day! The Towe clock looks ancient.
Yeah, it was a nice day indeed. Thanks for stopping by
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