Dijon snapshot Vougeot

Not long ago I spent time in Dijon (a town I'd only pbutted through before, for the train; it has a reputation as a boring light-industrial suburban hub today) but the Old Town is different, with luck you will be near it, or can check it out. Some AFW regulars advised me before that visit, helpfully. Here is a tiny snapshot from the old town.

Enjoy the visit! -- Max Hauser

-------- Dijon autumn 2004

Much of the old town here is ancient and re-built -- for example the ancient Cathedral of Ste. Bénigne -- "four times destroyed, four times rebuilt, by the sixth Century," declares the local account.

Museum bulges with local history which is considerable and well documented, or at least big events are, in exquisitely illustrated bound manuscripts. Thus: "The lion of Burgundy defeats the wolf of Orléans who was seeking to sieze the crown of France." (I wonder what the Orléannaise version says, I bet it's different.) Most of these old books, at age 600, hold up better than books I bought 20 years ago though let us not forget they were handmade and much more expensive, even new, than any books I bought 20 years ago.

This keyboard is demanding I have to switch keyboards when I travel light and use local computers. For the record, here are the rows without shift key:

& é " ' ( - è ç à ) = a z e r t y u i o p ^ $ q s d f g h j k l m ù * w x c v b n , ; : !

This weekend the town is overrun with little music and song and dance troupes, mostly middle-aged or older, "en costumes médievaux," a grape-harvest-and-press festival. These groups spend some time singing etc. and a great deal of time enjoying the food and drink of the many outdoor cafés in the old town (a little singing and dancing can be strenuous, after all, and demands proper nourishment). The cobbled streets of the old town are beloved by skateboarders.