Angers

On Tuesday the 2nd, we decided to head into the nearby city of Angers.   We drove in towards the center of town until we saw a sign for the tramway (light rail).  We parked there and took the tram into the city.

The historic center of Anger is as one would imagine a medieval town, old buildings and narrow streets.  The street that we walked down was lined with fancy clothing shops.

Our first stop was the Maison d'Adam, which sold art and crafts.  Cynthia bought copies of an old photo of rugby players, with an ironic commentary, as gifts for her boys, who played rugby.

Our next stop was the cathedral Saint Maurice, which was huge and impressive.  It was built in the 12th and 13th centuries.  One of the interesting aspects was a stained glass panel depicting the life of Saint Eloi, a goldsmith, who is a favorite saint of mine.

We had a nice lunch outside at the restaurant La Ferme.

Our final stop was the Chateau/Castle of Angers, which was huge and impressive.  It is hard to depict  the size in photos.  It was surrounded by a huge dry moat containing gardens.

The Tapestry of the Apocalypse is kept there.  It was made around 1370, and depicts the entire book of the apocalypse.  There were six sections, 20 feet high by 80 feet wide, containing 90 scenes.   It is truly impressive, especially the scale of the work.  It is one of the oldest medieval tapestries to survive.

The fall of Babylon

We took the tram back to the car.  We were very concerned about getting our car out of the parking lot; we picked up a card when we entered the parking lot, but we had tried to pay the parking fee without success.  However, when we got the car to the gate it just opened, without us inserting the parking card!  Much concern about nothing.  We got confused getting out of the city, but stopped for directions.

There is a lot to see in Angers, so we will be back another day.