Carcassonne is home to some sophisticated French fare. Since it lies within Languedoc-Roussillon, one of the largest wine producing regions in Europe, it takes its gastronomy very seriously. After all, one requires a a cuisine capable of soaking up all that wine! At the same time, due to its proximity to Spain's Catalan region, their most cherished dishes brilliantly combine the aromas of French Provence gastronomy with the influence of Spanish cuisine. Carcassonne is situate

Perhaps you are familiar with the board game, "Carcassonne," the tile-laying game in which players fill in the countryside around the fortified city. But did you know that this was inspired by a real city by the same name? The real Carcassonne is a hilltop town in southern France’s Languedoc-Roussillon area, well-known for its medieval citadel surrounded by imposing stone walls with turrets and towers. This settlement was built on the ruins of an old Roman fortress and was at

At two o'clock sharp, we met the “The Prayer Group” faction of Ms. Lady Leader's gang. Looking at them, I started to wonder how they fitted in with the rest of their tour group. They were the exact opposites of the boisterous gambling gang. Their patience must be greater than ours because they had to spend more time with their comrades. At least, all four of us, my solo traveler amigas and myself, had the choice to do our own thing. I guess this time, they were able to "esca

Outside the Sanctuary, we saw the little tourist train. We found out it was to leave in five minutes for a 7.5-kilometer tour through the old streets of Lourdes, the uptown area, and its monuments. The complete loop would take about 45 minutes. What perfect timing! Our feet were rather sore, so this was an opportunity to take a rest and do some more sightseeing at the same time. My new-found friend, who had to leave his wheelchair at the Sanctuary, and who unflinchingly did t

From the Sanctuary, we continued on with another tour in the footsteps of the visionary, Saint Bernadette. To get to know the saint, we visited her birthplace, the house where she grew up, and her neighbourhood. It was a short walk to the aptly named 2 rue Bernadette Soubirous, but in those few steps, we saw up close how bad the devastation was in Lourdes. Debris from the recent floods still littered the sidewalks. Damaged and unsalvageable belongings were still sitting in bi

We began our second day in Lourdes with an early morning Mass in French at the Upper Basilica, also known as the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. It is the second of the churches at the Sanctuary to be completed. Built in the Gothic style, the church seems to emerge directly from the rock of Massabielle and features a 70-meter spire and two smaller spires on both sides. Above the entrance is a mosaic depicting Pope Pius IX. At the entrance on the right is a marble plaqu

Our group had agreed to meet at the lobby twenty minutes after we concluded our meal. The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes was a five-minute walk from our hotel, according to our Tour Director. We were going to join the Torchlight Marian Procession scheduled at 9:00 p.m. It was a good thing I went with him. There were others that left the hotel earlier and others that left after us. I wouldn’t have known the “short-cut,” if it weren’t for him. He led us to the back alley wher

As we got closer to Lourdes, we saw more and more of the Pyrenees. Lourdes is a small market town lying on the foothills of this mountain range. It rises at an elevation of 1,380 feet and is overlooked from the south by the Pyrenean peaks of Aneto, Montaigu, and Vignemale, while around it are three summits reaching up to 3,280 feet – the Béout, the Petit Jer, and the Grand Jer. It’s my kind of place…high elevation with mountains all around. I also like the climate which is mi

I knew we had crossed the border to France when I saw road signs written solely in French. Our Tour Director finally started telling us about our next destination - Lourdes, the location of the famous Catholic pilgrimage site, Sanctuaires Notre-Dame de Lourdes and the Grotto of the Apparitions. During the past few days, we had been wondering if we would be able to go. This was in the summer of 2013, when heavy flooding swept through the towns and villages in the Pyrenees and