Carpentras

Being a tourist, I like to investigate what there is to see in a village before I actually visit. I usually look at the website of the town's tourist office and then I scan through other regional sites and the blogs of people who have visited the town of interest.  Recently, when I was preparing to visit Carpentras, I noticed a remark that someone had said about the town.  The site said something about how Carpentras wasn't a big tourist destination.  This did not deter my decision to visit, and in fact, it made me want to see the city even more. 

Our first stop in Carpentras was the tourist office where we were able to obtain a map of the town and see two interesting exhibits. The first exhibit was about architecture in comic books.  Wow! The rooms were filled with large images of different types of architecture featured in comic books.  

 Click here to see the press release

While I explored the other exhibit, Sophia was busy building a structure with lots of little pieces of wood. 

Tarascon

Vaison-la-Romain

The second exhibit focused on the history of Carpentras.  The history was from pre-historic times up to the present time.  There was an interesting time-line in the shape of an arch that visitors walk under to continue with the exhibit.  I won't go into all the details, but what really interested me was the fact that there was a rather large Jewish community in Carpentras.  It seems that in several villages we have visited there have been signs indicating Jewish streets or neighborhoods, but there usually is no explanation.  

Bonnieux

Bonnieux

I learned that there was an active Jewish community and neighborhood in Carpentras until the French Revolution.  Why Carpentras? Carpentras is located in a region called the Comptat Venaissin and in 1274 it was controlled by the Popes of Avignon who allowed the the Jewish community to live in Carpentras and in the Papal Territories.  The Jews were  subject to many restrictions; they had to live in ghettos or carrières, their jobs were limited to only certain professions and even their dress was dictated by the Papacy.  Unfortunately it was not permanent and during the next few centuries their rights were revoked and reinstated by different members of the Papacy.

https://structurae.info/ouvrages/synagogue-carpentras

The sign said not to take pictures and I didn't.  Most of the pictures that I have included are from other sites.  The guided tour of the active synagogue was interesting.  We started in the basement of the building in the parts dating from the 14th century. We visited the bakeries and saw the tools used to make matzoh. We were able to see the ancient mikva baths (ritual purification baths) and the place where animals were butchered following kosher laws.  Our guide explained that the oldest parts of the synagogue were accessed from the carrière or ghetto.  

https://structurae.info/ouvrages/synagogue-carpentras
"This house of prayers was built in 1367
It was reconstructed from 1741 to 1743
It was reestablished in 1929"

http://www.carpentras-ventoux.com/fr/synagogue-communautes-juives-festival-musiques-juives/
Mikvah 

http://www.carpentras-ventoux.com/fr/synagogue-communautes-juives-festival-musiques-juives/
Matzoh machines

http://www.provence-ventoux-comtat.com/photoAlbum.html?webfolder=289

After visiting the oldest part of the synagogue, we went up the 

grand staircase to visit the sanctuary that is still in use today.  This part of the synagogue was built before the French Revolution.  The upper and newer sanctuary was built in two phases 1741-1746 and 1774-1776.  This room is decorated in the Rococo style with ornate pillars, wainscoting and chandeliers.  We were told that the chandeliers were gifted by different families to the temple.  The guide told us that the synagogue was in various stages of disuse from the French Revolution until around 1929.  During the Revolution it was used as a club for revolutionaries.  In the 1800's it was once again used as a temple. I asked the guide about the synagogue during WWII.  She said that many items in the temple were saved because congregants told the authorities that they were to have a funeral in the sanctuary.  While in the sanctuary the men filled the coffin with as many items as they could in order to save the temple's possessions from destruction.  Today the synagogue of Carpentras is the oldest active temple in France.  It was a pleasure to visit such a beautiful example of history.

 After our visit to the synagogue, we continued our stroll through town.  We walked by the Passage Boyer, a glass covered street. Jean Boyer had the idea to build a glass and iron structure over the existing alley in 1848 bringing a Paris like feel to Carpentras. 

Nearby, the Roman Arch dating from the 1st century stands next to the Church and the courthouse.  The Arch was constructed under the Emperor Augustus to commemorate the Roman victory over the Barbarians. The bas-relief on the left is the depiction is of chained prisoners.

The Church of Saint  Siffrein is located in Place Charles de Gaulle in the historic center of Carpentras.  It is a beautiful example of Gothic architecture in a recently renovated square. The church has origins going as far back as the 12th century but the original Romanesque church was destroyed to make way for the new Gothic structure. 

On further exploration, we ventured to the side of the church and looked at the "porte des juifs".  This is the door nearest the baptismal and Jews who were to convert used this door to enter the church.  At the synagogue, the guide told us that all Jews who converted were made to use that door even after their conversion.  

"God the Father and Christ sitting on the dove of the Holy Ghost appear in the clouds surrounded by angles of which the faces were cut away in 1793."  

The rat ball and the relique of Saint Mors (Holy Bit)

Inside the church you can visit the relique of Saint Mors.   It is said that the Holy Bit was made from the "nail of the Passion" - the nail that pierced the right hand of Jesus on the cross.

The Rat ball

The southern door is decorated with the "rat ball" which has several interpretations. The rats might represent the world being gnawed away by sins and sacrilege or perhaps it symbolizes the plague that took so many victims from the Comtat Venaissin.

The last thing that we visited before leaving Carpentras was the fortified gate.  La Porte d'Orange is the only remaining gate from the 14th century. At one time, Carpentras was surrounded by 32 towers and 4 gates.                                                                                                          

World War I monument - Place de Verdun

Le Mont Ventoux - view from downtown Carpentras

I can't believe that someone would say that Carpentras is not a big tourist destination.  The city is full of history, charm and tradition.

Dragons and Châteaux - Beaucaire and Tarascon

Beaucaire and Tarascon, two lovely provencal cities, are located on the Rhone River, half way between Avignon and Arles.  They are distinct cities in different French departments.  Tarascon is in the Bouche du Rhone department while Beaucaire is in the Gard department. Although there may be many differences between the two cities, there are two similarities that the average tourist can't miss; each city has a château and a dragon.

Castle from the outside

Our visit of the two cities started at the Château de Tarascon, a medieval castle and fortress built from 1400-1435 for the ducs d'Anjou, counts de Provence.  We walked through the gates into the outer courtyard and we crossed over a bridge into the inner court yard and the heart of the castle.  The Honor Courtyard is especially beautiful with a pierced spiral staircase that allows one to visit each floor.  The visit took us through the different chambers belonging to the counts and kings.  Although they were not furnished, the rooms were very interesting to look at. 

View of the clock tower from the outer courtyard.

Pierced spiral staircase - escalier à vis ajourée
This staircase tower in the Cour d'Honneur goes
right up to the roof.

Meurtrière, not the kid, the hole in the wall.

Vaulted ceiling in the Grande Chapelle

The castle had many uses throughout its lifetime; it was a medieval fortress, a residence of kings during the renaissance and eventually it was used as a prison until 1926.    Below are some carvings that were left by 15th century prisoners. 

View of Eglise Sainte-Marthe de Tarascon 
from the roof of the castle

View of the Rhone from the roof of the Chateaux Tarascon

Dragons are things of legends but in the town of Tarascon, dragons more than a legend, they are part of the history.  The Tarasque is an beast from Provencal folklore.  The monster has six short legs, a bull like torso, a scaly turtle shell and a stinger on the end of it's tail. You can see representations of the monster throughout the city. In fact, June is the month that the dragon is celebrated with all sorts of festivities. 

This is my favorite kind of dragon, the edible kind!

According to the legend, the Tarasque is an amphibian dragon with red eyes and terrible bad breath.  The dragon lived under the rock where the Château de Tarascon was built.  The dragon would attack travelers on the Rhone river.  The legend tells the story of Sainte Marthe, who came to spread the word of Christianity to the area, and how she tamed the feared dragon.  The dragon was eventually killed by the villagers because of the terror it brought to the community.

Eglise Sainte-Marthe de Tarascon 

We did not enter the church because mass had just finished.

 We continued our stroll through the town.  We inhaled the overwhelming fragrance of jasmine on the flowering wall.

We meandered through one of the old gates of the city that was draped in Provencal fabric.  Souleiado, whose headquarters are located in Tarascon, 
 is famous for producing the beautiful, 

colorful Provençal fabrics

Covered arches = Medieval shopping malls

Town Hall

Sophia and I got a kick out of this sign:

"Here on April 17th 1897, absolutely nothing happened..."

We decided to have lunch in Beaucaire, and we crossed the Rhone river into the Gard department to have enjoy the view of the port. Beaucaire is at the beginning of the canal that connects Beaucaire to the town of Sète on the Mediterranean Sea. Although there is no longer access to the Rhone River in Beaucaire, the marina is active with many boats.

http://dicksandy.org/Travel/HTML/FranceHTML/maps.htm

Marina - Beaucaire

After lunch we wandered through the deserted streets. We saw the exterieur of Saint Paul Church, town hall, Eglise Notre Dame de Pommiers and many streets with arches.  We walked up to the château through a manicured park.  The access to the château is through an fortified gate.  entrance



Eglise Saint-Paul was under construction and we could not visit. We were able to get near a side entrance that was boarded up even though it looked restored.  I was able to get a good picture of its ornate steeple.

The town hall was on this lovely square. The Beaucaire dragon was hiding inside the town hall , underneath a stairway.

 Notre Dame des Pommies is an impressive church with a facade

 Collègiale Notre Dame des Pommiers 

CLICK HERE to see the bells ringing.

Chapelle Saint-Louis XIII century

Fortified gate

The ruined castle of Beaucaire sits on the hill looking out over the Rhone river.  From its heights, you can see the Château de Tarascon across the river. The structures date from the 12th and 16th centuries. The tower with its weird polygonal shape, dominates the cliff. We climbed the stairs leading to the ramparts and the view over the cities was outstanding. 

This is one of the many different dragon stories:
According to the legend, a dragon lived on the banks of the Rhone river.  It would attract the people to the water with its precious stones and then it would eat the unsuspecting victims.  A baby dragon, Drac, was born and it needed a nurse to feed it.  The dragon lured a young girl who was washing her clothes at the riverside but did not kill her.  The dragon brought her to his lair and he gave her a container of human fat that she would apply to the baby dragon each night to make him invisible but before that she had to wash her hands with special water. 

One night the young girl forgot to wash her hands and she was able to see the dragon.  The dragon did not like to be seen and he poked out her eyes.  The dragon was never again seen in Beaucaire. http://www.legendes.occitanes.eu/bestaire/drac.htm

Enough Dragon tales!  Beaucaire and Tarascon were lovely towns to visit on a warm spring day.   Our last stop before going home was a café in the Place de la Republique.  It was a gently, shaded square which we both welcomed after our exploration of the château.