From Sublime to Ridiculous

 Consoled by mountain scenery on a very rainy day in the Massif Central

Just as predicted by the hikers, the next day, a Sunday, was one of continuous rains. Driving in the mountains seemed easier.  Perhaps we were restored after dining on braised guinea, a pleasant sleep, and a copious petit déjeuner. Our first stop was Montpellier-le-Vieux with its eroded boulders. From a distance this site looks like an old, abandoned town. At close range one can see rocks shaped by Mother Nature in various familiar forms, people, birds, policemen, etc. 

Modern replacement stain glass windows at Rodez cathedral: Was this our consolation for missing Montpellier le Vieux? It surely looks to be inspired by the figurine boulders.

However, the folks who ran the tourist trains through the site would not operate them that day because of the rains. This cancelled our visit to Montpellier-le-vieux, as well as,  Les Gorges du Tarn. A sunny day is a must to enjoy these two natural phenomena. 

#4 admires the Viaduct in the lower left corner.

Our next destination, Le Viaduct de Millau was certainly different from our usual old stones & museums. I would not dare try to tell you about it in my simple language. I would get skewered by #4 in the comments. Therefore, he will enlighten you on this marvelous bridge over the Tarn river valley.

#4: 

"The Viaduct at Millaud is one of the world's longest and tallest cable-stayed  bridges in the world. Designed by French engineer Michel Virlogeux* and the renowned Bristish architect Norman Foster (architect of Dallas' very own opera house), the bridge was completed on  December, 2004 to expedite car traffic on the route between Paris and Spain over the Tarn river valley. The bridge is supported by 7 piers that consist of tall concrete pylons topped with masts that hold steel (stays) cables from the top,  resulting in a repeating pattern of triangulated bows.  Attesting to the French fixation on "Grands Projets," one of the piers is now the tallest structure in France, surpassing the Eiffel tower (though Monsieur Eiffel also designed a spectacular bridge for this challenging terrain of the Massif Central, the Garabit Viaduct, just up the road from Millau.) The viaduct is a truly a engineering marvel for the twenty-first century, and has instantly become a big draw for tourists."

The plain exterior of this tourist center belies its interior beauty and functionality. It was a welcomed shelter from the rain!

Joanna again:

On the autoroute to Rodez where we would visit the cathedral, we came upon this strange site. (See below.) It's not like the French haven't made their architectural boo-boos. Both #4 & I were baffled at the architectural idea behind these strange, short, square, regularly placed cement pylons in the parking of an autoroute rest-stop. J.J. thought that there might have been a plan to build something on top of them & for bureaucratic reasons the work was halted.  Bizarre! 

Was the architect obsessed with Stonehenge?

And on to Rodez.....

Chances are that these are the original stain glass windows. Recall that the cathedral was finished during the Renaissance.

After being chased away by the continuous rain from Les Gorges du Tarn, we looked for a shelter close to our next destination, Conques. On the map, Rodez was big enough to foot the bill. It was raining heavily when we entered Rodez on Sunday around noon. When we tried to contribute to the town’s stagnant economy by taking rooms for the night, all hotels were slammed shut. 

I really didn't get the best views to show the 3 towers and the "closed" wall. 

Un peu d'histoire:

Rodez, now a town of 24,000, is one of the oldest cities in France. Circa 500 B.C. the Gaulois* placed a fort on hill that overlooks the surrounding lowlands. When it changed hands to the Romans it became a fortress which was attacked successively by hordes of Visigoths, Francs, Arabs, and the armies of Le Comte de Toulouse.*** 

This statuary of the Annunciation is one of the few things that has been completely & properly restored. It was obvious that Rodez doesn't have the resources (tax base?) for repairs, cleaning, & renovation.

In 1269 the Bishop of Rodez was powerful and rich enough to begin building an imposing new (for those times!) gothic style cathedral. It remained unfinished until 1531 due to fires, plague, & the 100-years war. It was unusual with its lateral towers duly fortified & a closed wall behind, yet the structure retained its fortress-like function. 

Unfortunately it never was never enough to save the town, & the cathedral had to be rebuilt 3 times, but always on the same model. For the present Rodez-the-town, does not seem big enough for its imposing cathedral. Far from the autoroute it is a small agricultural center that has a hard time maintaining  population.

This goes under the heading: "What were they thinking?!" Found in the same series as the figures on blue above, I just can't bring myself to tell you what this image conjured up in our minds.

Notes - 

*Gaulois - Gauls were celtic tribes who occupied La Gaule until Julius Caesar conquered them after a hard fight in 51 B. C. in the battle of Alesia in Burgundy.

**The Count of Toulouse was a powerful feudal lord, a Catholic heretic. He was an insurgent leader of southern France who resisted being conquered by the kings of northern France. He was abetted by Spanish kings and treacherous northern nobles. The North finally won under Louis XI who is credited for consolidating France, mostly as we know it today.