Exploring Montpellier

I start my first full day in Montpellier, France, wandering through the narrow streets of the old town, stopping occasionally to admire food on display in the shop windows.  The old town is built on a hill and steps lead between different levels of the town, with restaurants and shops scattered everywhere.

 Streets of old town

 Intriguing shop windows

In the center of old town, the Halles Castellane contains an incredible food market that is packed with shops offering all  kinds of appealing delicacies.

 Halles Castellane

Outside the hall, restaurants prepare to serve meals made from the great ingredients.

 Restaurants getting ready

I continue to wander through old town, finding steeper and more narrow streets to explore, and whimsical art on the walls throughout the area.

 Continuing through old town

 Art on the walls

Exiting the old town at the northwest corner, I walk past the Jardin des Plantes, which is closed today, but still offers great views of the grounds from the sidewalk outside.  This botanical garden is one of the oldest in Europe, created by an order of Henry IV in 1593 and served as a model of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris.

Jardin des Plantes

Returning to the central Place de la Comédie, I head east into modern Montpellier, the Antigone District, an area of grand neo-classical structures located between the city center and the River Lez, containing housing, public facilities (including a community Olympic pool), restaurants, and shops.

 Antigone District

On the other side of the district, the Lez flows quietly through the city to the Mediterranean, with walking/biking paths and parks along the way.

 Along the River Lez

Returning to Place de la Comédie, I track down lunch, a good looking sandwich to eat while sitting on a bench in the Jardin du Champ de Mars, just off Esplanade Charles de Gaulle and near the convention center and universities.

 Lunch

 On a bench in the park

Montpellier and the South of France

Montpellier is located near the Mediterranean, in the Langedoc-Roussillon region of France, which runs along the curve of Frances's western Mediterranean coast between Marseilles and Spain.  With a Mediterranean climate, Mediterranean beaches, and Mediterranean seafood diet, the region has a lot to offer and is off the normal tourist path:  Nice, Cannes, Saint Tropez, and Marseilles are on the central and eastern parts of the coast and the closest and westernmost of those, Marseilles, is 170 km (105 miles) to the east.

I've been interested in spending time in the region for a while and this is my first trip.  I fly into Paris's Charles de Gaulle Airport and catch the TGV high-speed train at the airport for the 4 hour, 800 km (500 mile) trip to Montpellier.   On arrival, I drop off my luggage and start to wander, immediately noticing that the city is well-connected with a modern tram system throughout, and I follow the tracks to the central square, Place de la Comédie.

 Montpellier train station

 Tram lines through the city

 Place de la Comédie

Leading away from Place de la Comédie, a small esplanade brings me to the convention center and opera and the entrance to some of the seven universities located in the city (Montpellier was the site of the first medical school in Europe, founded in 1220, and the Université de Montepllier is the world's oldest medical school still in operation).

 Esplanade Charles de Gaulle

 Convention center and opera

West of the convention center, Montpellier's old town is an incredible maze of small streets, great restaurants, and intriguing shops and is a lot of fun to wander through (even in the rain).

 Old town

Reaching the other side of old town (from the convention center), I find a beautiful park, Place Royale de Peyrou and the Peyrou Arc de Triumphe, modeled after the arc of the same name in Paris.  In the center is a statue of Louis XIV, who decreed that no structure could be built higher than the walls surrounding the lower walkways of the park, preserving the panoramic view for all of us to continue to enjoy.

 Arc de Triumphe

 Place Royale du Peyrou

As night falls, I stroll through the old town, back to Place de la Comédie to complete my first spin through the city.

 Old town at twilight

This has been a great introduction to an intriguing city and I'm looking forward to more wandering and discovery tomorrow!