Delightful Dijon

Sunday, a big city day, if possible!  So Dijon was given the royal treatment- well, a good look around might be more to the point. 

To get a premium parking place close to centre ville we left Velars-sur-Ouche before 7 am, arriving in Dijon shortly after 7.45 am. We were able to get a spot just behind The Palais de Ducs (The Dukes Palace) right at the centre of the main area of the city. Here we had breakfast before venturing out to explore Dijon. 

In Celtic times, Dijon held a strategic position on the tin merchants’ route from Britain to the Adriatic. It became the capital for the dukes of Burgundy around 1000 AD, and in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, under the auspices of the dukes, Dijon flourished. The dukes used their tremendous wealth and power – especially their control of Flanders, the dominant manufacturing region of the age – to make this one of the greatest centres of art, learning and science in Europe. It lost its capital status on incorporation into the kingdom of France in 1477. 

The Palais du Ducs and Place de Liberation. 

Place de Liberation

Place de Liberation

Dijon is also famous for its mustard and pain d’épice (gingerbread), a reminder of the town’s position on the spice route. Gingerbread is available all over the city. 

Today, much of that wealth is on display by what still remains from those times. Many of the old streets still retain their character with timber frames houses alongside more palacial sandstone, wealthy, merchant houses. 

The Palais de Ducs now is the home of the Dijon Museum of Art. It houses some outstanding works from Flemish, Italian and French artist of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The first floor is dominated by the giant, almost decadent, mausoleums of two of the dukes and a duchess. 

A cute little story of the sculptured owl on the 13th century Notre-Dame Church. It is said that if you rub it with your left hand then this will bring you luck! It didn’t work today when looking for LPG at the end of the day, and, people have been doing this for over 600 years!

An intesting expo in the foreground of the  The Palais de Ducs promoting women’s fashions and health care. Fashion parades for the latest Italian and French designers were part of this outdoor expo. 

The visit to Dijon was well worth it. We spent many hours exploring the place and found it a great city to while-away a sunny Sunday. 

We later drove to the canal marina at Maxily-sur-Saône for the later part of the afternoon and overnight.