Metz

Metz is a really pretty little medieval town at the confluence of the Moselle and Seille rivers. 20 bridges criss-cross the rivers and canals and there are heaps of parks and green spaces. Metz is the capital of Lorraine and has always been a pawn in the game of border chess – annexed by Germany in 1870, regained by France in 1918. Quite a few of the city’s most impressive buildings date from the 48-year period when Metz was part of the German Reich.

Beautiful weather when we arrived – 32° at 5.30pm. To go into town, we pass the railway station – a massive building designed to detrain 100,000 of the Kaiser’s troops and their gear in just 24 hours – should great power rivalries make this necessary. Then there’s the Place St Louis – a beautiful triangular square surrounded by medieval arcades and houses dating from the 14^th – 16^th centuries. Really impressive city ramparts but the most amazing thing has to be the Cathédrale St Etienne – it’s a gigantic Gothic cathedral with flying buttresses and long-necked gargoyles. It’s famed for its curtains of stained-glass windows (13^th – 20^th centuries), including two by Chagall. The place is incredibly tall and there’s stained glass simply everywhere you look – I’ve never seen anything like it.