For those of us in aviation, today is a day of solemn remembrance. 18 years ago today, I was in Seattle and watching the morning news imagining just how much the events of the day were going to change the world of travel forever. We all feel the effects of that day on aviation security and it’s not for the better! Today, we experienced the city of Narbonne in southwest France located 849 Km from Paris in the Aude department. It is located 15 Km from the Mediterranean Sea and was historically a prosperous port, but declined from the 14th century following a change in the course of the Aude River. With a population of approximately 60,000 this city is known for its « liveability » as there are more than 300+ days of sunshine a year, its proximity to The Mediterranean, and a great year-round market. While it has none of the grandeur of Avignon or Carcassonne, it’s still a pleasant place to spend time wandering the old medieval core and its lively streets. Narbonne’s glory days though, when the town was the capital and steaming metropolis of the entire Languedoc region, are long gone. The local economy is based squarely on the wine industry (what’s wrong with that?) and also functions as a transportation hub at the junction of the A9 and A61 motorways making it easy to reach both Toulouse and Barcelona in no time. Built by decree from Rome in. 118 BC as a trading post along the newly constructed Via Domitia that connected Rome to Spain, Narbonne grew to become the capital of the Roman province of Narbonensis and one of the most important cities in southern Gaul. Following the departure of the Romans it became the capital of the Visigoths when they moved in during the 6th Century. We visited the Archbishop’s Palace, the Cathédral de St. Just and St. Pierre (the only Gothic cathedral in the Mediterranean) and Les Halles (the indoor, year-round market). Afterwards we cruised through the locks up the Canal du Midi to the port of Homps.
Comments