Bummerland, Here I am (in Carcassonne!)

Three Days in The Historic Fortified City of Carcassonne, France

It felt wild to be saying goodbye to our time in Biarritz. It was hard to put a finger on exactly what, but it was just one of those places. One that you could effortlessly slip right into and never look back on your previous life. But, ultimately we were excited to continue on and discover more of France. During this portion of the trip it would be just me and the boys. Chip’s 'month of pause' was up and he had to fly back to the U.S. to work. So on me and the boys traveled, our next stop being a visit to a fairytale city in the South of France: Carcassonne!

The colorful and narrow streets of Carcassone

Just before heading into Château Comtal

LOST AND FOUND

Alain, our host dad/uncle/cousin in Biarritz, was kind enough to safely deliver us to the Bayonne train station where we hopped on our train towards Carcassonne, France. It felt strange not having Chip with us - I realized in this moment that I had to do it all on my own. I was anxiously excited about this portion of the trip. It felt like a decent challenge for me. Two weeks of travel around France with just myself and the boys. Could I do it? Would it be fun? Would we be safe? Would we arrive two weeks later in Durango in one piece? So many unanswered questions as we boarded our train to Carcassonne. Spirits were high though and our first train ride to our transfer was eventless.

Next up, Toulouse to Carcassonne. We had quickly made our way to the correct train platform and when the train arrived, we jumped on, stowed our luggage and headed down a couple rows to our seat. I remember sitting there watching the French countryside go by, listening to the boys relive their Legends of Zelda accomplishments together, and thinking confidently ‘this isn’t too bad. I think I got this travel thing with kids down.’ Several stops later we heard the conductor announce that we had arrived in Carcassonne. We had three minutes to grab our belongings and depart the train (or else it was moving on). We all got up from our seats then walked to grab my bag from one of the upper bins. Only it wasn’t there. We scrambled around the train, yelling to each other down the row. “Do you see it, Bennett?!” “No,” he yelled looking nervous. Reid said the same thing. We were frantic. I knew we had to get off, or the train would leave and we would be stuck on it heading to another destination that was no longer Carcassonne. I quickly asked the woman who was seated near where I placed my bag. Luckily she spoke a little broken English and told me that a man took it. So we dashed. All of us. As fast as we could we sprinted through the train, out the doors, down the stairs, and into the train terminal. Our eyes were scanning every bag, every human. We ran out the station doors and straight to any departing cars. We saw nothing. The boys were helping me navigate my thoughts all while this was going on. They lead me to security where I naively asked if it was common for someone to steal a bag. They casually answered ‘it happens all the time.’ Damn it. My bag had been stolen.

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

The bag debacle was a downer but I was not about to let that ruin our day. Over and over I thanked the boys for helping me, for staying positive in that scary moment. I assured them that what was in that bag was nothing of importance. There were no valuables or souvenirs. in fact, Chip shipped a huge box back to the U.S. before we left Biarritz thankfully. We truly had everything we “needed” with us: each other, passports, money, and the Nintendo Switches, of course! We were bummed, but we were safe.

Arriving on a Sunday afternoon in Carcassonne felt oddly depressing. I don’t know if it was because of my stolen bag situation but the city was devoid of humans and noise. We trudged from the train station to our Airbnb which was about a mile away. The streets were barren, storefronts were shut down, and the city felt lifeless. But, I can assure you from here on out, things were looking up. We made it to our Airbnb and it had a huge pool! The boys threw off their clothes and hopped into their suits, and off we went. While they swam (because remember, I have no swimsuit), I ordered a pizza for delivery.

ExplorIng medieval Cité de Carcassonne & Château Comtal

The following day, we woke up refreshed and ready to settle in to a new day, new city, and new adventure. We were out the door early so we could explore the Cité de Carcassonne, which is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, without too many people. To get a feel for the layout, Carcassonne is divided into two parts: the Lower Town located outside the city’s defenses, and where our Airbnb was, and the Cité or Upper Town/Old Town, where the ramparts and castle are located. Both are near each other, and the whole place is totally walkable. Along the way, we saw a beautiful little chapel, called Notre Dame de La Santé, at the foot of Pont Vieux de Carcassonne bridge which we were drawn in to. The boys were still hanging on to our “bad luck” from yesterday, so it was at this church that we collaboratively decided our luck was about to change for the better. We knelt down on an old wooden bench, closed our eyes, and prayed for a safe and fun time in Carcassonne. This was exactly what we needed to turn our luck around.

Fountain of Neptune in Carnot Square, Carcassonne

Pont Vieux bridge crossing into the Cite
https://www.tourisme-carcassonne.fr/en/leisure-activity/old-bridge/

The smallest, little chapel, Notre Dame de La Santé, where we knelt and prayed that the rest of the trip would go smoothly

After a fifteen minute walk, we embarked on a steady uphill climb that led us to the Narbonne Gate, one of the main entrances leading into the Old Town of Carcassonne. Here, we crossed a medieval drawbridge into the city which instantly transported us back in time with its cobbled streets and centuries-old architecture. Exploring the Old Town is free, and is filled with quaint shops, cafes, and gift shops selling medieval souvenirs.

One of the most important buildings in Cité de Carcassonne is the fairy-tale looking castle nestled against the protective ramparts of the city walls. Château Comtal, or Count’s Castle, is a 12th-century castle that overlooks the lower town to the west. We booked the earliest ‘skip the line’ tickets to visit Château Comtal, and basically had the place to ourselves! This was an absolute highlight for the the boys as we literally explored the ramparts and castle in awe and excitement. If you plan to come all this way, do not miss out on purchasing tickets to the castle.

Running around the castle, Chateau Comtal.

A Fairy Tale Ending

We didn’t stop talking about the castle and Cité for days. It was a highlight of the whole trip for the boys, and truly felt as though we had stepped back into time while visiting here. We think our prayer worked because the rest of our time in Carcassonne was filled with so much fun. Fun that we needed. We found adorable shops with yummy smoothies and treats, we explored the main square in downtown Carcassonne, we handed out ice cream cones to strangers to keep our stoke high, we swam every day in the hot sun, and the boys even helped me shop for a few necessity clothing items. We were back in the groove again.

On our final day, we walked back to the train station where the bag theft originally happened. While I knew it was a slim chance we would ever see my luggage again, we still asked at the counter if something was turned in. It wasn’t but that was okay. So we boarded our train, and still looked back with fondness on Carcassonne.

Up next, we spend one week along the Mediterranean Sea in the adorable seaside village of Palavas Les Flots. We had no idea all the adventures that were in store for us here!