This is the best here other than the Cathedral to walk its cobblestone streets of medieval look , just wonderful , we love it. This is gorgeous Bourges and we were here again with plenty of posts but this is new places and new pictures! Enjoy it as we did, and thanks for reading me since Nov 2010!!! This is the beautiful sights of Bourges!!!
First, we have a beautiful French garden, located at the foot of the cathedral. It is very flowery, designed in the 17C by a student of Le Nôtre, is organized around a lawn located below and framed by sumptuous beds and magnificent trees. It has a charming centenary bandstand. This is call the bishops garden or the city hall garden of Bourges.(see post).
The former palace of Duke Jean de Berry. This old palace was rebuilt for Jean de France, Duke of Berry, probably from 1375. In 1405 took place the consecration of the Sainte-Chapelle, destroyed in 1757. The remains of the palace still include a vaulted floor and a ground floor made up of two rooms. The smallest of these rooms only preserves fragments of a sculpted band which received the joist of the floor and a door with a gable bearing the Duke and Duchess’s coats of arms. The larger one preserves the important remains of two monumental fireplaces out of the three that heated the room. Today, the hotel houses the department of Cher no 18 and it serves as a meeting place for the general council of the Cher. Another nice government building is next door of the prefecture of the Cher.
The Bourdaloue Fountain 19C. This fountain was erected in execution of a bequest granted to the city of Bourges by Paul-Adrien Bourdaloue, deputy mayor, engineer who worked in particular on the leveling of the Isthmus of Suez, who died in 1868. The work consists of ‘a circular stone basin and, in the center, two superimposed basins adorned at the foot of three winged lions and, at the top, with a “love”. This set is extended, in front of the square, by a stone fire hydrant, surmounted by a cast iron motif representing a “love” surrounded by dolphins. The city of Bourges on fountains such as Bourdaloue : https://www.ville-bourges.fr/site/fontaines
The Hôtel de Panetta, 1 rue Henri-Ducrot . In the heart of Bourges, an 18C mansion in the wake of the cathedral. It was built in 1418 by the Duke of Berry as the Hôtel des Trésoriers de la Sainte-Chapelle or the treasury of the holy chapel. It only retains its street frontage from this period. Acquired by the Marquis de Tristan in 1757, following the destruction of the Sainte-Chapelle, it was rebuilt, then sold to the Marquis de Panette in 1818. Rented by the government of Louis-Philippe from 1839 to 1845, it housed the exile of the pretender to the throne of Spain Charles de Bourbon. The doors of the Hôtel de Panette were opened to everyone on September 16, 2012 . Today is a hotel!! good to have rented here… see webpage : https://www.panette.fr/welcome.html
I have to tell you about my two favorite places to walk here, and it is recommended , really glorious medieval, this is beautiful Bourges.
The place Gordaine, bottom of the rue Bourbonnoux is therefore entirely pedestrianized, the most beautiful and the most photographed, because it is characteristic of medieval Bourges. It is in this place that the “Stone of Calvin” is found, and legend has it that standing on this stone, Calvin made his first communications for the new religion. Symbolic place of Bourges, its attraction in the evening in the summer season attracts many tourists, with its terraces finally free of cars and from nightfall, the magic of the Nuits Lumière. Really quant nice square!!
The rue Bourbonnoux goes down from the apse of the cathedral to the place Gordaine. It is identical to what it was in the Middle Ages, and cobblestones, if they are the delight of lovers of urban heritage, are a calamity for ladies with high heels …It will change its name only once, during the French revolution in 1793, to take the name in accordance with current events, the rue des Bonnets-Rouges. Today it has many shops, very typical, with decorators, antique dealers and other luthiers. Descending from the oppidum towards Porte Gordaine, it is pleasant, with many half-timbered houses dating from the end of the 15C. The color of the visible beams can be brown, blue or… pink. At the corner of rue Bourbonnoux and rue de La Thaumassière, was the most popular hotel of the Middle Ages, the Hôtel du Bœuf Couronné. In recent years, it has become a guest house which has taken the name of Bonnets Rouges. Another wonderful street to just walk it up and down for delightful experience of old and nice!
The Bourges tourist office: https://www.bourgesberrytourisme.com/
The city of Bourges on its heritage in French: https://www.ville-bourges.fr/site/ville-tourisme-patrimoine
The local Berry province tourist office on Bourges: https://www.berryprovince.com/ma-destination-le-berry/les-destinations-en-berry/bourges-et-ses-alentours/##
There you go folks, a nice beautiful town to just walk and walk amongst nice history and beautiful architecture; this is beautiful Bourges. Hope you like the tour and see you around here…
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 
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