Unexplored Europe. Metz
After the tourist and holiday France, I wanted to see a slightly different France - authentic and everyday. From Saarbrü cken for a day trip was the opportunity to visit with a reasonable number of docks Metz or Nancy. The first option was chosen. The reduced rate of 29 euros for two was valid only on weekends. But the only weekend on this trip is scheduled for Strasbourg. That's why we went to Metz on weekdays. On weekdays there was a standard Saar-Lorraine tariff, 11.40 euros per person OW. Not tied to a specific train. Valid all day. There is a direct train, back with a short stop at the French station Forbach. On the Saarbrü cken-Metz section there is a 2-car mini-train of the French company TER, the duration of the trip is 55 minutes. There are no stops in Germany - the first is in Forbes. The main contingent of train passengers are schoolchildren and students.
Views from the windows - completely agricultural. Metz surprises with an unexpectedly large station with an unexpectedly large number of platforms. To the side, opposite the building of the station, you can see the ultra-modern complex, which is the Metz branch of the famous Pompidou Center. A little not our interest. We go out into the city. The lack of information and souvenir kiosks at the station and the station square testifies to the non-tourist nature of this city. The map, of course, was found and printed on the Internet in advance. Immediately near the station we notice a monumental as for France Post Office of red stone. Along it and move up rue Ausone. The unexpected feature of public transport in Metz is very long - very long 3-section buses, travel very slowly, including through pedestrian areas in the center, and when approaching people emit absolutely tram signal J.
Probably, trams used to be common in Metz. This warm day, the streets are almost deserted, an area with medieval architecture (18th-19th centuries), absolutely not spoiled by modernity such as plastic windows or air conditioners sticking out on the facades, outdoor advertising at least, only signs of shops or hotels. The color of the buildings is bright yellow, no graffiti at all. Continue along HenryMallet Street to the campus. Low-rise buildings of colleges and lyceums look very authentic. Across the street from the campus is a large park with the local Arc de Triomphe. It was built in memory of the re-transition of Metz from Germany to France (the first time it happened in 1870, the second time in 1918). Further past the former barracks. Marshal Ney, now there is the art center "Arsenal" (their analogue of the "Art Arsenal" in Kiev J)), we go to the central square of the city - Republic Square.
Everything in French is modest and unobtrusive: a few cafes and a traditional for the regional centers of France shopping center elite class "Galery Lafayett". Going around the department store on the modern in width, but absolutely medieval in entourage (2-3 storey houses are blocks, most wrapped in ivy, behind the houses you can see the park) we go to the embankment of the river Moselle. Quai des Roches overlooks the city's three main churches: St. Stephen's Cathedral (right), Temple-Neuf Protestant Church (right) and St. Vincent's Church (left). We cross the bridge to the opposite bank of the Moselle. Medieval authenticity continues: 2-3-storey blocks of flats, public institutions, churches, schools built into the quarters. On the next bridge. We move to the island. The island part of the city is famous in addition to the already mentioned Protestant church Temple-Neuf, the Opera House and the City Prefecture.
If the building of the Prefecture of the city is not remarkable, then the Opera looks very beautiful. The Theater is located on a fairly large Comedy Square, famous for the fact that every year at the beginning of summer it hosts a festival of flowers - florists create the so-called. "Flower carpets". Along the embankment (both on the island part of the city and on the motorway) the houses are close to the water (almost like in Strasbourg), ie apparently the townspeople used to use boats as transport before (and maybe even now). Strasbourg is also reminded of the presence of turning mechanisms under the bridges, apparently in order to pass a sufficiently large river transport. But what radically distinguishes the Metz from Strasbourg in terms of coastal urban development - is the presence of modern old-fashioned buildings built into the old quarters, look very organic, height and number of floors, of course, observed.
The fact that Metz has not only ancient architecture, says a very interesting, fairly modern (apparently 30-40 years) residential building, located just behind the Mill Bridge - it has an indefinite number of floors (from 4 to 6), apparently the ceilings on in different entrances of different heights, but at the same time all entrances of the building have the same height, windows are located absolutely asymmetrically, and in the house several arches are made, for passage of freight transport. This style reminded me of homes from the French utopian cities of Melun-Senart or Marne-la-Vallee. Only the scale is smaller. What has also attracted attention in Metz is the lack of chain stores (such as Moniprix, Carrefour or Lidl in the city limits). According to locals - they are all outside the city. Auchan was found in the center on the ground floor of the large Saint-Jacques shopping center, and a little further down the street was a small and very narrow Carrefour Express.
So, relaxing on the waterfront and admiring the ancient fountains, on Merchant Street, past the main attraction of the city - St. Stephen's Cathedral - we move to the central square of Saint-Jasques. Despite the pedestrian area (cars are not available as a class), three-section buses crawl at very low speeds, but with traditional tram signals (probably trams once passed through the square). St. Jacques Square is famous for its many cafes and restaurants, one of which we actually dine at. Surprisingly, the shops are closed for lunch (in particular, "Nicolas" in the same area did not work from 13:30 to 14:30). Although there was no Courcell cognac in a container of 0.2 liters. Only 0.75 liters of 22 E L. However, this drink in the desired packaging was purchased in the neighboring "Auchan", located on the underground tier of the shopping center "Saint-Jacques".
Several shopping streets with boutiques of both traditional European (Zara, H&M) and little-known Asian (Kiabi) brands run from the square in different directions.
After walking around the square and visiting one of the local confectioneries (with more than 100 years of history), we move to another landmark of the city - the German Gate. To do this, going down the rue Tet d'Or past several luxury hotels and passing through the very beautiful Piazza Saint-Luis with colorful arcades, which is a destination for locals (as evidenced by the French Carousel, as well as tropical plants in one and a half meters), we go to quiet street Mozelle. The area is very quiet, walking along this street, it seems to be transported in time more than a decade ago, and not only because of the architecture.
For example, we have a philately shop that has not existed for a long time, here is a shop of Portuguese culinary specialties with fancy bottles and jugs in a shop window, here is a workshop for repairing home appliances brands that we have not remembered for many years (Pioneer), etc. The medieval Church of St. Maximus grows unexpectedly. Cocteau, where modernity overtakes us - "dry fountains" fashionable in recent years. Well, a 9-storey residential building with an unexpected mobile mast on the opposite side of the street.
Another 200 meters up the street Andre Maginot - and you can see the "German Gate" - a fragment of the ancient fortress wall with a well-preserved entrance to the city from Germany. Now we are moving in the opposite direction, already in the direction of the railway station. Medieval quarters are gradually being replaced by quarters of the Pre-Epoch Age (second half of the 19th century), storeys and pretentiousness of buildings are increasing, streets are gradually turning into wide boulevards with a zone of greenery, separating the opposite directions. Elements of Paris… At the station itself, we pay attention to another interesting object - Chateau d’Eau - "Castle of Water". In fact, it is a high (50-60 meters at a glance) water tower, decorated for some reason in the Arabic style. And here is the Metz-Ville station itself. There is still enough time before the train leaves to consider it.
The building is old, built in 1908, the impression is that the facade is carved from a whole piece of huge gray stone. The 40-meter clock tower is built in the same style, but has a characteristic regional feature - as well as the Temple-Neuf Church, the tower does not narrow to the top pyramidally or conically to end in a spire, and its edges seem to grind at an angle, forming 4 new inclined planes, from the point of intersection of which the spire grows. What is this style of architecture called - I do not know - who understands this, tell me. I know that many buildings have just been built in this style in southwestern Germany, in particular in the city of Trier. The return trip was uneventful, except for the controllers on the Metz-Forbach train, no tickets were found, absolutely all passengers presented plastic travel cards as a travel document. Apparently they drive this route regularly.
But on the Forbach-Saarbrü cken section, some passengers bought one-time tickets from German conductor inspectors right on the platform. Price 8 euros. Somehow expensive for a 20 minute trip OW
