Who doesn’t love a train ride? We looked forward to riding the narrow gauge steam train through the Doux Valley in the Ardeche on day 5 of our Viking River Cruise. But first, we were treated to another walking tour, this time in the French town of Tournon-sur-Rhône where our ship docked.
As we left the boat, we were struck immediately by two things. The first was the mistral, a biting north wind that blows through the Rhòne Valley mostly in winter, causing us to huddle more deeply into our coats, like birds fluffing up their feathers for warmth. The second was the statue of the French engineer, Marc Seguin, that greeted us in the square adjacent to our docking space. Seguin invented the wire cable suspension bridge which he and his brother erected in 1824 over the Rhône River at Tournon. He also invented the tubular boiler for steam locomotives.
Marc Seguin, French engineer
As we walked to the bridge, our guide pointed out the hillside across the river at Tain l’Hermitage where vineyards cling to the steep granite slopes with the help of terraces. This is the Hill of Hermitage which claims to be the birthplace of the Syrah grape, used to produce a full-bodied, dark red wine, also known as my favorite. Too bad we didn’t get to taste any!
Hill of Hermitage across the river
We passed the Castle of Tournon, built into a granite hill overlooking the river. The foundation dates back to the 10th century but the castle that remains today was constructed during the 14th to 16th centuries. The war memorial attached to the castle lists those who died serving in WWI.
Castle of Tournon
WWI Memorial on the Tournon Castle
The current Marc Seguin Bridge is not the original but it was rebuilt in the same location, connecting Tournon with Tain l’Hermitage, across the river.
Marc Seguin Pedestrian Bridge
Passerelle (Bridge) Marc Seguin
As we turned from the river into the pretty little town, I spotted the knobby trees below like many I’d seen previously and asked the guide about it. She explained that the trees are pruned to maintain the size and dense shade desired. This process is called pollarding which you can read more about by clicking on the link.
Pollarded plane trees
Pollarded plane tree
In 1536, Cardinal Francois de Tournon founded the Lycée Gabriel-Fauré in Tournon which claims to be the oldest lycée (high school) in France. The Cardinal was born in Tournon and is entombed there.
Statue of Cardinal Francois de Tournon
Lycée Gabriel-Fauré
We proceeded to the only remaining gate, Mauves Gate, to the south of the town. The coat of arms of Tournon can be seen above the arch and above that, what looks like a wine bottle carved into the stone. The town of Mauves is just 4.4 km south of Tournon so I suspect that accounts for the name of the gate. I don’t remember whether our guide shared any information about the carving but I’m going out on a limb here to conjecture that this may have been the “wine gate” for delivery of wine that was produced in the area around Mauves.
Mauves Gate
Carved bottle in Mauves Gate
I captured a few images along the way as we proceeded along the winding medieval streets from Mauves Gate to St. Julien’s Collegial Church.
Fromagerie (Cheese Shop)
I wrote in a previous post about trompe l’oeil and we encountered some in Tournon, too. (But wait until my post about Lyons where you will see the mother lode of trompe l’oeil.)
Trompe l’oeil in Tournon
Shops in Tournon
St. Julien’s Collegial Church was built in the 14th century in Gothic style. It became a protestant church during the 1500’s as a result of religious wars during the time and then following the French revolution it was briefly named the Temple of the Supreme Being. In 1795, it was restored to the Catholic Church.
Saint Julien’s Collegial Church
Interior of St. Julien’s
Fresco in St. Julien’s
Fresco in St. Julien’s
Original church bell from 1486
The Virgin
Following our walking tour of Tournon, we boarded a coach to transport us the short distance to the train station for our steam train tour. Please come back next time for more exploits on our Viking River Cruise.
Based on events from November 2016.
