Carcassonne

So, after four lovely days in Rome, we flew back to Nice, picked up our rental car and left luggage at the airport, and drove 4 hours around to Carcassonne -- an amazing medieval walled city in the Southwest of France, not far from the Spanish border. During the summer, the town is mobbed with tourists, but in late winter/early spring, it was just pleasantly busy. We stayed in an apartment in the "new" (i.e. 15th century) town outside the city walls. The old city dates back to the 10th century (and before: it was originally a Roman fort), and was a stronghold of the Cathairs, a Christian sect that was wiped out by the Pope, in league with the French king, in the 15th century. Several thousand people still inhabit the old city, within the walls, but most of the population is now in the lower town. A beautiful spot.   Some pics of the walls and one of the interior: