On the plus side, as you read this I have been in Montpellier France for four days! That is a lot! And there is much I have learned and many vivid impressions I have taken of this burgeoning medieval city just inland from the southern coast of France.
On the minus side, I am writing this many days ahead of time and haven't actually been to Montpellier and can tell you nothing about it.
It's a conundrum.
But, and here's the good news: It is not entirely accurate of me to say I have never been to Montpellier! We went through it on a train twice, and we even changed trains at the train station!
But first, what is all this with Montpellier? Are we thinking of moving there? Are we disenchanted with where we are now on the Cote D'Azur? Are we looking for a new home? Are we on vacation?
Yes.
Yes yes yes and yes. In fact, at some point I was just making questions that had 'yes' as an answer!
Our Belle Epoque city is famous, lovely, sparkling, and a wonderful fun place to visit. In some ways it is a million times better a place to live than anywhere we have lived before. There is really nice food, we walk everywhere because a thousand useful and unuseful places are less than ten minutes away, the ocean is heaven, and the old town is magical.
But we live here, and it isn't a very kind place, nor a creative one. It doesn't have a lot of soul. It's not so much this city's pretty face, it's more that it's just so busy with its pretty face. It's not really that nice of a city to simply sit and talk to.
So while we were meeting our dear cousin and his dog somewhere between here and Paris, we thought maybe we'd take a look at Montpellier, a city we've thought interestedly about before. Full of students from its large and ancient university, and with a trememdous pedestrianized medeival core to the city, maybe its vibe will suit us better?
What did we see when we briefly stepped outside of the train station in Montpellier?
It was a little like a dream. There was stone, stone everywhere. And there were trams and tramtracks everywhere, and many people walking about here and there. And I don't remember seeing any cars anywhere.
I hope we like it.
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