Lees in France

After a brief walk through the town we headed back to the hotel to get settled and add on a few layers for the night. Walking from the hotel office to our room felt as if we were on the set of Oliver. Lots of turns and straight tight walkways. We decided to start the evening with a walk around the outside of the city wall.

The path took us high and low, close and far, around the towering walls on dirt and cobblestone led paths. Joshua and the Battle of Jericho came to mind as we walked, wondering if this was anything like the Bible story.

Back at the entrance we observed the Christmas lights and adventured inside for dinner. Our eyes saw the city anew enjoying the holiday atmosphere.

Ten minutes after we sat down for dinner an Irish bachelor party arrived and shared the space with us. The guy pictured below led the group in a traditional pre-wedding ballad. Our evening meal consisted of salmon, a sirloin, French onion soup and Cassoulet, a local dish. https://www.grand-carcassonne-tourisme.co.uk/  has a wonderful description of the Cassoulet, “The serving dish, made in Castelnaudary: with a squashed cone shape for better distribution of the heat, contained Lingot beans: these white beans are now only grown in Lauragais and confit duck thighs. Slow cooking on a fire, preferably, breaking the crust regularly. A bubbling appearance at the end of the final cooking, when you serve it delicately. Accompany it with a red wine from Corbières, Minervois, Cabardès or Malepère. And don’t forget some crusty bread to mop up the sauce!”