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| Local Activities and Attractions
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| Property id: |
2 |
| Property title: |
Traditional French holiday Gite for rent in Midi Pyrenees |
| Location: |
France , Midi-Pyrenees , Engravies |
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Activities and Places not to be missed: |
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Foothills of Pyrenees on your doorstep
The Pyrenees, which straddle the border between France and Spain and run from the Atlantic at one end to the Mediterranean at the other, are a range of rounded hills and sharp peaks of a quite unique beauty.
During the summer it is possible to take any of an infinite number of walking trails of all levels of difficulty right from the doorstep of the Gite. You can also take guided horseback riding tours right from the village. The tours are offered on individual basis by Mr. Zevros who owns a small equestrian ranch in our village.
One of our favorite tours is a guided tour from the village to the magnificent chateau de Montségur which is build on top of a mountain and is a legendary Cathar site.
The Pyrenees are a major area for nature conservation, and you will find getting on for a thousand different varieties of plants, from thistles to edelweiss. There are still a number of bears living in the Pyrenees.
The summer months are the perfect time to discover the ‘soul’ of the Pyrenees, the pastoral way of life. At the time of the transhumance, you will find numerous herds of cattle and flocks of sheep grazing close to the small dry-stone cabins in which the shepherds live in summer.
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 Engravies
Engraviesis the name of the little hamlet where the property is located. This tiny medieval village is in the hart of the Southern Midi Pyrenees, a slice of France that used to fall between the cracks in the guidebooks however today it is being build as the next Provence. The Midi is the national term for south of France but compared to Provence and the Riviera, the South -Western Midi is still largely untouched by tourism. The region, spoilt by the sun, has ochre-hued villages that belong to a different time. Here, lunch often lasts till 3 pm, which is good because once you try the region`s cuisine most likely you will become a big fan of it. The local specialties include such delights as cassoulet, duck confit , buttery foie gras, trout from the mountain rivers, sheep,s milk from the mountains, wild boar and wild mushrooms. You can wash down this excellent fare with wines that come from vineyards that many experts consider to be the most exciting wave of vineyards in France. Full bodied wines from the region and something you must try, the local `Blanquette de Limoux`, a local bubbly that predates champagne by a century or so.
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 Mirepoix
Staying at the property, you are only 18 km South West of Mirepoix. Mirepoix is simply a gorgeous 13th century town and is one of the most beautiful and unique in France. Mirepoix La Medievale, was rebuild in 1289 following a flood and has a perfectly preserved Gothic Cathedral in the centre of the fortified by oak arcades square all of which takes you back in time. Despite its age Mirepoix is a very lively and friendly town. All year round Mirepoix and the area offer a wide and unique range of events: a `not to be missed` is the market in the centre of the square every Monday where you can buy all the local fresh foods and crafts. Through the year there are concerts, ballets, a jazz festival in spring, a 3 day antiques market at Whit weekend, a puppet festival of International standard various festivals throught July and August, and a fabulous historical costumes parade twice in the summer. Mirepoix has several good quality restaurants for all budgets, the nicest one is Le Ramparts restaurant which offers a fine dining experience, it is recommended by the Michelin guide, the food, ambience and service are superb.
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 Carcassonne
Carcassonne is a 13th century city and a visual fairy tale with round towers capped by tile roofs and an adulating double wall that guards the approach to the city. Walt Disney is said to have borrowed it as inspiration for the castle in the film Sleeping Beauty and modern film-makers used it for the setting of Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves. Originally founded by the Romans and extensively enlarged almost 800 years ago, the handsome fortress is officially known as La Cite and it is world`s largest fortified city in existence.
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 Foix
Foix is 30 km South-West from the Gite. It is another ancient and unique town that grew up at the base of a large castle Chateau de Foix surrounded by mountains. The towers of the magnificent chateau look down on the busy cobblestone streets leading through a maze of red-roofed houses, and nearby caves and grottoes that still bear marks of the prehistoric people who first settled in the Ariege Region. In the summer, the whole town gathers to watch an enormous medieval spectacle to re-live the days of yore. Chateau de Foix was build 1000 years ago, this impressive fortress was the residence of the Counts of Foix, Gaston of Foix, transformed it into a regional capital. Today the Castle is a museum brimming with treasures.
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