The lastest update about the covid situation in France is that the country will be opening back up on May 3rd. Whoop whoop! In a few more weeks I might actually have some new material to talk about. For now though, I'm left looking back on some of our previous adventures. In this case I'm going back to Amiens with some pictures that I hadn't posted in my previous article on the town. I hope you enjoy.
Historically Amiens was a textile town known for its linens, tanneries and the manufacture of colorful dyes, most notably the color blue. You will notice a lot of blue in the photos throughout this post.
To me, color is a major theme of the city, especially in the Saint Leu Quarter which historically was where most on the tanneries and textile plants were located in the town.
As I understand it, water is an important element for the creation of textiles and leather and in this part of town there was an abundance of water making its way through the district.
Many of the shops and restaurants in the area were sometimes completely surrounded by canals and were only accessible via an iron and wood bridge.
The quarter had quite a few neat little shops, including this quaint little book store. Fun fact, the word "librarie" actually means book store in French, which is not to be confused with the word "bibliotheque," which actually means library.
The area also has a lot of bars and restaurants, including this very Canadian Poutinerie. For those of you who may not be familiar with poutine, its a Canadian dish that was invented in Quebec. It consists of French fries, cheese curds and gravy which is combined into a melty gooey deliciousness. When done right its quite amazing and certainly checks the box for Canadian comfort food.
Of course, if poutine is not your thing then there are plenty of other restaurants to choose from in the area.
Here are a few more shots of canals and bridges. This particular spot seemed to be completely surrounded by water as if it were built on a man made island.
Maybe its all the iron and wood in the area, but to me this part of town felt like an old industrial area that had been converted to a more modern residential living space.
I imagined the residences looking like industrial loft type homes on the inside, like the kind that you see in large cities in North America. I don't know if lofts are a thing in France but that's how I picture the homes in my imagination.
This next part was a particularly beautiful part of Amiens. It had rows of colorful homes, a golden leafed weeping willow and a distinct blue guard rail surrounding the canal. It was a great spot for photos.
Many cities in France and Europe in general have lovers bridges and gates. You've probably seen them around in your travels. Its where couples will write their names on a metal lock and then fasten it to the bridge. Its sort of a symbolic gesture of the permanency of the couples love for one another.
Amiens has one of those bridges as well, but instead of locks couples tie a piece of fabric to the gate. Its a tradition that relates back to the city's textile past.
Me seeing something in the distance. "Okay, what the heck is that thing?"
Apparantly its called the "Tree of Socks." Its basically exactly what it sounds like, a metal branching structure covered in socks and other bits of fabric. Strange, but also very unique and cool.
We found this mural painted on one of the old textile mills and stopped to take a photo of my wife and our dog.
The next photo is of "Marie sans chemise" (without a shirt). The statue created quite an uproar when she was unveiled to the public several decades ago.
She sits on an old clock tower that is intricately designed in the Rococo fashion style. The curvy nature of the aesthetic is fitting for the curvy nature of the statue. Wink wink ;)
I think I'll end this post with another shot of me, looking like a millennial hipster ready to drop an Indy pop album. Enjoy!