Royal Saltworks at Arc-et-Sénans

I had previously seen photos of the saltworks at Arc-et-Sénans but I didn't realise that it was only 35 km from Besançon. I was fortunate to be invited by Nadine, a friend of Corinne's with whom I was staying, to visit it with her and her charming daughter.

Director's House

The salt-works was built between 1775 and 1779 and was designed by the architect Claude-Nicolas Ledoux who was part of the Enlightenment movement. At this time salt, which was mainly used to conserve food and in manufacturing, provided the government with significant income through taxes.

Entrance to saltworks

The semi-circular design includes 11 buildings with the director's house at the centre. One of the buildings houses the Ledoux Museum where you can see many models exemplifying Ledoux's search for Utopia. The gardens are currently being redeveloped and were not at their best.

Ledoux's second design plan for Royal Saltworks at Arc-et-Senans. (Wikipedia  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Saltworks_at_Arc-et-Senans   

If you are visiting Franche-Comté, I do recommend visiting Arc-et-Sénans. We took the guided tour which unfortunately was extremely poorly done. I have never before experienced a guide who was in such a bad mood and short-tempered with the participants. It was a most unpleasant experience. I usually prefer a guide over an audioguide but in hindsight, in this case, the audioguide would have been the better option. The site is not particularly large, in spite of its 11 buildings, but I do think that the background information about the design and the history regarding the importance of the salt really does increase the appreciation and enjoyment of the site. 

If you decide to visit the site, I would allow about a half-day. It one of the few UNESCO World Heritage sites to also offer accommodation so you could do an afternoon visit and then stay on. I imagine that the site would have a rather special atmosphere at night. Definitely something to consider for another visit.

Saline Royale -Arc-et-Sénans: http://www.salineroyale.com/

Fondremand and its Mill

Fondremand is a beautiful, well-preserved historic village in Franche-Comté which has received accreditation under the Petites cités de caractère label. Thanks to Nadine, a teaching colleague of Corinne with whom I stayed near Besançon, I was able to visit this charming village of less than 200 inhabitants.

I have visited lots of villages in France but this was the first time that I was able to wander around such a pretty place and not encounter another tourist. Nadine indulgently smiled as I marvelled at each of the historic buildings dating back to the 13th century. For someone like me who comes from a country which was 'discovered' less than 250 years ago it is pretty mind-blowing to see such old buildings being actively used and occupied.

I was privileged to visit the mill restored by Claudie, an ex-teacher colleague, and who now works as a miller. She explained about the heavy work involved making wholemeal flour and walnut oil using traditional methods. She added it really is men's work because of its physical nature. The mill had passed into disuse for a period of 120 years but then Claudie who researched the history of the mill came to the rescue and over a period of 18 years restored it to working condition. The 850 kg stone for the mill came from Marnay and now is central to her work. It is intense work with 8kg of walnuts producing a little more than 3 litres of oil over a 4 hour period. Certainly not a job for everyone. The oil and flour are sold at the mill. You won't find them in the shops. I understand that the flour which is a mixture of rye, wheat and buckwheat, is ideal for making crêpes. If only I cooked! Unfortunately the day that I visited Claudie was busy mowing the lawn and preparing for the exhibitions and demonstrations she was having that weekend so I was unable to see the mill in operation, but nevertheless, I could imagine the work that she put into it and the difficult conditions she worked under.

Moulin de Fondremand, 70190, FONDREMAND

Citadelle de Besançon

The Besançon citadel, now listed by UNESCO as a world heritage site, was designed by Vauban sits high above the town on a rocky spur. From the ramparts I could see the river doubling back on itself almost completely surrounding the old town.

View from Citadelle towards Besançon's old town 

Along with the zoo, aquarium, insectarium and nocturnal house the 11 hectare site houses the Musée Comtois and the Musée de la Résistance et de la Déportation. The latter really touched me although I did find that there was far too much information to take it all in. There are some photos, letters and personal effects that have left an indelible mark on me. The images were harrowing but I am glad that I visited it. The displays in the Musée de la Résistance et de la Déportation were only in French although there was some documentation of the highlights available in other languages. I didn't check the quality of the translations but translations in the Musée Comtois were quite poor. I didn't visit either the zoo or the nocturnal house as they don't particularly interest me and so I prefered to spend time on the other areas.

View from Citadelle towards Besançon's old town 

Looking futher back along the river from Citadelle ramparts

Espace Vauban and Musée de la Résistance et de la Déportation

Muséum de l'histoire naturelle

Radio equipment, false papers, plans and codes used by the Resistance

Citadelle de Besançon

99, rue des Fusillés - 25042 BESANCON

www.citadelle.com

Sunday in Franche-Comté

Items for sale at Etuz vide grenier

On Saturday I took the TGV train from Paris to Besançon Franche Comté, 2 hours south-east, where I am staying in village called Auxon-Dessous with C, a lovely lady, and her 3 children. I had contacted the family regarding a possible home exchange and they very kindly have offered me hospitality for a week. The area around Auxon-Dessous is marked by gently rolling hills that have at their base green pastures dotted with yellow flowers. The woods are a light, vivid green which gives everything a bright, fresh look.

Being a Sunday and in rural France, it was only natural that we would head to the closest vide grenier (garage sale, car boot sale or trash and treasure depending on your roots). It didn't take us long to travel the short distance to Etuz. The store holders had set up their stands around the local school. Most of the stands were families selling items of clothing, books, toys and knick knacks that they no longer wanted. There were a few stands set up by second-hand dealers who frequent such markets. The prices were generally very reasonable.

After lunch, C, her father and I drove to Pesmes, officially listed as one of the most beautiful villages in France and with its heritage listed buildings. There was the added bonus that the Fête Art et Terroir was also on. We therefore not only visited the historical village but also saw some very high standard work by local artists including lacework, porcelain, basketry and painting, plus lots of local food products. We did purchase some rillettes, terrine smoked duck breast and chocolate. Pesmes has magnificent views from the back of the school of the river and surrounding countryside. Even with the fête it was not overly crowded making it a very pleasant place to visit. 

Decorative tiles on the church roof

Lots of delicious things to taste at the Fête 

View of Pesmes

On the way back from Pesmes we stopped at Marnay. It too was beautiful retaining many of its ancient stonework homes and church with decorative tiled steeple roof. We returned home to a feast of pancakes that we cooked with the children on an electric crepe hotplate placed on the middle of the table. Banana, dark Cote d'Or chocolate spread and rum is definitely a new taste sensation to try.

Tower at Marnay

Citroen 2CV in front of church at Marnay

Historical Michelin road sign at Marnay