Going back a thousand years

It has taken a long time to write this post because I wanted to express my feelings but I also wanted to be fair. I really like this town and the people are wonderful, so I don’t want to be unkind to them in any way, but I had a strong negative response to this place. It’s steeped in death, pain and suffering. The Roman Era. They call it the Donjon. It is old. It was built between 1013 and 1035. That’s more than a thousand years ago. And it’s huge! It has been a chateau, a dungeon, a fortress, prison, regional remand centre and now a tourist attraction. If we lasted long enough we’d all become tourist attractions.

But it scared me. The wooden stairs leading into it are very old, cracked and worn. I was afraid to hold the railing in case it was too corroded and gave away. Maybe I was just tired when I was there, but I saw a school group going through and my reaction was “I would not want to be responsible for any children here”. If the Disney safety people saw it they’d say “Shut ‘er down.”

If I had been brave I would have gone up those stairs and taken a shot down from the top. I’ll just have to be satisfied with the shot from the bottom.

From the ticket office I followed an arrow up some stairs….way way up.. and came out on the roof of a building beside the Keep. I was the only person up there and there was a sign limiting the number of people allowed. It was a stone roof and it was wavy. I doubt it was made that way, and I felt it was going to cave in any moment. It didn’t cave in. But it could have!

All the original floors of the Keep have caved in, collapsed and disappeared. You can see where they used to be by the placement of the windows.

It is damp.

Everything about this place was built to fight against and protect from other humans. The information they give you tells about the weapons and wars.

It was very cool in the basement here. And there is a deep well that’s still there. That black cylinder is a port you sync your electronic guide with and the electronic guide then shows you how things were in the past. They are all around the site. very technologically advanced.

At first I felt we were all just nasty brutish beasts that left monuments to how terrible we were to each other.

But there are no giant, impressive ruins left by those who loved and supported each other. The ones who lived quietly and in cooperation with each other. They left their mark in other ways. In ways that will not become tourist attractions. We have to remember them too.

Here the sun is shining onto the grass through the space in the wall that was made for shooting arrows. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in. – L.C.

And here’s a thousand year old cave for sale. Maybe I should go into real estate! Nah.

Love to you all. Be happy and love one another.