Surroundings

Saint Père sous Vézelay

  • Saint-Père (350 inhabitants) is famous for its 800 year old church.

  • It has not been possible to outdo Vézelay, but the church is still exceptional.

  • The first monastery from 858, destroyed by Normans.

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Les Fontaines Salées

  • Outside Saint Père there are medicinal springs. The Celts worshipped here the goddess Sulis, the Romans Minerva. The Celtic sanctuary and the Roman bathhouse have been excavated.

  • The spring water, slightly radioactive and containing iodine, is still considered curative.

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Vézelay

  • Vézelay lies on the 300 meter high 'Scorpion Hill'.

  • In the walled city you can still feel the atmosphere of bygone times. In the Middle Ages, Vézelay was an important place of pilgrimage.

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The caves of Arcy sur Cure

  • They are unknown, but spectacular: much older than Lascaux's, with children's handprints and many drawings of mammoths.

  • The 30,000-year-old cave paintings of Arcy-sur-Cure are 20 km downstream.

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Pierre Perthuis

  • Prachtig gelegen dorpje, waar de rivier de Cure in de diepte langsstroomt.

    Upstream you find Pierre-Perthuis, a charming little village with a double bridge.

  • An extraordinary rock formation is called 'la Roche Percée'.

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Noyers sur Serein

  • Noyers-sur-Serein is a charming little old town with old city walls, half-timbered houses.

  • Very close to the city a castle is being rebuilt in a medieval style.

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Tonnerre

  • Tonnerre has a clear, deep blue-green spring. In Celtic times it was an important shrine.

  • The medieval hospital.

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Fontenay

  • In the woods to the east lies the well-preserved medieval monastery complex of Fontenay, a highlight in this field.

  • The abbey church, the monastery, the saw hall, the carp ponds: everything looks as if the medieval monks had left it there, but could return any time soon.

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