During the short week I spent in Balaruc-les-Bains with my man, we went to the beach a lot and did a lot of naps but we had also booked a day at Montpellier . We lost a lot of time waiting for the bus which pass only twice per hour in rush hours and that morning decided to be desired. Once at the station in Sete, we took the train and after 20 minutes we arrived at the station of Montpellier St Roch.
No major projects in mind, we decided we could take the time to get lost in the streets of Montpellier but we came very quickly to the Place de la Comedie. On this great site are the Montpellier Opera and the beautiful fountain of the Three Graces. From here you can quickly reach the Polygon Shopping Centre, the Charles de Gaulle’s garden and the historic center of Montpellier called Écusson neighborhood. What is really nice is that it is pedestrianized and you can enjoy a drink on one of the many terrace without being bothered by traffic. Depending on the time of day, you can see street performances or stroll among the stalls ephemeral market. And a purely practical point of view, it is also here that is the tourist office.
For our amble, we decided to dig into the Écusson neighborhood and walking the streets of stone and do a little shopping while stumble upon some great things as here a trompe l’oeil in front of the Saint Roch church. Besides talking about the rue de l’Ancien courrier, we came across two cute little shop like the Boutique de Louise in Paris: Oxygen at number 13 and Le Petit Souk at number 20in this street.
After a nice morning stroll in the sun, after lunch we decided to hide a little in the Polygon mall to avoid the big hot weather early in the afternoon. Afterwards, we walked again with a specific purpose this time, go and see the Arc de Triomphe built in the seventeenth century. Located just behind the Arc de Triomphe (when coming from the Foch Street), Place Royale Peyrou which is simply a gazebo where you can have some rest on a bench or even on the grass in the shade of the many trees. In the center of the square, the statue of Louis XIV.
After this short break in a cool place, we left to wander again and we headed to the Cathédrale Saint Pierre which dates from the fourteenth century. This is certainly not the most spectacular that I visited but this cathedral must be visited just its porch and pillars of nearly 5m in diameter.
After this last visit, we did big detour to the Esplanade Charles de Gaulle before heading to Montpellier St Roch Train Station and go back to Balaruc-les-Bains. And it was a shame because I would had been great to saty another day to complete the tour of the city. I would have liked to visit the Botanical garden, go to the mikvah and see Arches aqueduct closer example.
