Apparently the author, Victor Hugo, stopped by Montreuil-sur-Mer on his way back to Paris in 1837. He liked the town so much that he featured it in his novel. Jean Valjean was the mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer, and Javert was the town's police inspector. Montreuil-sur-Mer was also Fantine's hometown.
So of course we had to check out this town where so much of the action of Les Mis took place.
(No, actually, we had to buy groceries and Montreuil-sur-Mer, 10 minutes away, had the closest Carrefour.)
Visitors (big and small) can wander through the remains of the 13th century castle, ramparts and towers.
It is also the stage for Les Mis the musical, performed here open-air in July and August every year.
In the vaulted cellars of the main tower, there is an exhibition on Montreuil's involvement in World War I.
 |
| Entrance to the vaults. |
 |
| On the way up to the ramparts. |
 |
| Awesome views. |
 |
| Coming down the ramparts. |
 |
| The brick gateway entrance. |
One hour away in Azincourt, the Battle of Agincourt is still raging on six centuries later. In miniature Action Man figurines, that is.
 |
| Knights furiously riding to battle at the Medieval Centre of Agincourt. |
 |
| The longbow that made all the difference to the English during the battle. |
There were some impressive armours and weapons on display.
 |
| Somebody forgot to free this knight. Help? |
No comments:
Post a Comment