Day trip to Macon

Recently we decided to take a day trip to the city of Macon, which lies at the lower end of the Bourgogne region.  This was our first foray into the main wine regions of Burgundy.  It was an easy train ride from the Gare de Perrache in Lyon, which is regular metro stop for us.  The ride on the  train was pleasant but I was surprised that there was very little indication that we were riding through the region of Beaujolais, which lies between Lyon to the south and Macon to the north.  I surmised that this is because the train is on the flat plain to the east and the grapes are generally grown on the slopes to the west.  Sure enough, there were vineyards visible when we got close enough to the slopes to see them.

Macon is, like all the towns we have so far encountered, a pretty combination of the old - very old by our standards - and new.  The very helpful Office de Tourisme was an easy walk from the train station and sat on a lovely square in front of the eglise St. Pierre.

This church had, as have all that we have seen, beautiful stained glass windows.  I'll give you only a taste as they are really hard to photograph well.

This church is from the 19th century, much newer than many of the large churches and cathedrals we see.  It has a beautiful organ which, as usual, I didn't get to hear.

In walking around the old section of town, we found the ruins of the old Cathedral of St. Vincent.  A major church-cathedral existed on this site since at least the 7th century, and was rebuilt several times between the 7th and 13th century.  Only ruins exist now, and there is a "new" St. Vincent Cathedral from the 19th century.  We didn't walk far enough to see the new one, but the much older ruins are very interesting.

The base of the towers, which are square, date from the 11th century, while the octagonal tops of the towers are from the 13th century.

We made a less-than-optimal choice of a day for this trip because we went on a Monday, when many of the stores, etc. are closed - apparently throughout France.  However, the Office of Tourisme gave us a recommendation for lunch where we could also do a tasting of wines from the region.

We walked (a long way) to the Maison Maconnaise des Vins, which turned out to be a wonderful restaurant with an accompanying tasting room.  Check Lorraine's blog:  Lorraineinlyon.blogspot.com for pictures of our fabulous lunch - with several different wines.

I purchased Grand Cru versions of Mercury and Maranges wines which we had enjoyed during lunch.  We are waiting for a slightly more auspicious occasion than a standard chicken and pasta dinner to open them.

On the way back to the train station, we passed the Wooden House, built between 1490 and 1510.  It is without doubt the oldest house in Macon, and the most famous.  Its façade is entirely built with wood.

We walked back to the train station for a relaxing ride back home to Lyon.  Even though it was Monday, this was a very satisfying trip!  A bientot.