Amiens

Places of Interest - France

introduction

Amiens is the capital of the Somme department and of the former Picardy region. The city where writer Jules Verne lived his last 2 decades of his life here and the city has one of France's most important and beautiful cathedrals, the "Notre Dame". This colossus has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1981 and is one of Europe's largest Gothic cathedrals.

Despite the fact that the center is almost completely bombed during WW2, the center has retained its charm; the St. Leu quarter with its bright colored houses and the pedestrian area near the train station and the town hall and the multitudinous students contribute to this. Amiens can also serve as a basis for a visit to the nearby WWI battlefields.

highlights

The cathedral Notre Dame:

The Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady is the largest Gothic cathedral in France with its height of almost 43 meters and is 145 meters long. It belongs to the cathedral of Chartres, Reims and Bourges among the purest examples of Gothic in the country.

On 12 December 1854 she was elevated to basilica by Pope Pius IX. Since 1981 the cathedral is on the World Heritage List of UNESCO. Construction began in 1220, after the former cathedral on this spot was destroyed by fire. It should contain the skull of John the Baptist which is still visible between Easter and October. You can take a walk to the top of the church for the beautiful view and take an audio guide.

The cathedral is also part of another world heritage site, Pilgrimage routes in France to Santiago de Compostella. The nearby bell tower is a third world heritage site in this city: the Belfries in Belgium and France.

Other attractions:

Amiens has other tourist attractions in addition to the cathedral. One of those "sights" is the house where French writer Jules Verne (known from, among others, "journey around the world in 80 days") lived for about 20 years. It is now a museum.

Another is the stone circus Cirque Jules Verne. Between the cathedral and the Somme river is the new district St. Leu Quarter risen; partly old houses that are still standing despite frequent bombing during WW2; this hip colored district with small narrow streets and restaurants is definitely worth visiting. The tour Perret was part of a large reconstruction project near the station of Amiens. In 1949 the works were started, and they lasted until 1954.

In 1959 the tower is really put into use because only then apartments and offices are installed. In the time of its construction, the tower was considered an extraordinary achievement in reinforced concrete. The tower has 30 floors and is 110 m high when the 6 m long mast is included. For a long time she was the highest skyscraper in Western Europe.

The Hortillonnages form a 300 hectare swampy area, which consists of numerous small allotments, which are separated from each other by means of equally numerous narrow channels. Most of these allotments are only accessible by boat. The name hortillonnages is derived from the Picardian word hortillon which means warmoozenier or horticulturist. You can take a boat trip through this marshy complex.

history

The city was founded by the Gauls under the name Samarobriva, which means bridge over the Somme. Julius Caesar spent here the winter during his campaign to subjugate Gaul from 54 to 53 BC. by. The current name is derived from the then occupants, the Ambiani (which means on both banks). Amiens is one of the medieval Somme towns along with Ponthieu. Amiens has a university and is an important industrial city (textile).

The writer Jules Verne spent a large part of his life in Amiens, died and is buried there. His name was given to the stone Cirque Jules Verne of Amiens. It is one of the seven stone circuses that France possesses. On 25 March 1802, the Treaty of Amiens was signed between France and Great Britain. But peace did not last. During WW1 the city was badly damaged due to shelling.

Amiens-Cathedral-France-Coloured-Houses-Cathedral

tips & advice (2016)

The train and bus station of Amiens are located close the center, on the east side. The latter is located in the basement of the Center Commercial Amiens 2. MeinFernBus (or Flixbus) also stops in this basement. This building is closed on Sundays; buses then stop between the bus and train station.

Amiens - Rouen: Flixbus travels 3 times a day to Rouen. Certainly there will be one every day at 12:05 (arrival 13:40). Price is 5 euros per person.

Name: campsite Parc des Cygnes

Address: 111 Avenue des Cygnes

Price: 9.60 euro per person (person + tent)

Website: http://www.parcdescygnes.com

Content:

Located on the northwestern edge of Amiens is this very quiet green campsite. With 145 pitches a great campsite to stand for a few days. There are two large clean and professional wash blocks (of which the one in the rear is only open during the high season). There is a large - ugly – modern reception building where, among other things, there is a small reception area (where you can order bread, among other things).

There is a bar/snackbar (which is often open only on weekends) and there are opportunities for playing ping-pong and/or bicycle rental. There is also a TV room. The bus stop is in front of the campsite and with bus 9B (1,20 euros) you are within fifteen minutes in the center of Amiens. Owner and staff are very helpful and friendly.