Advent Day Thirteen, Poitiers nativity scenes

Nativity scene, St Pierre's Cathedral, Poitiers 

Advent Day Thirteen

Thirteen might be considered unlucky for some, but as I got to spend the day with Ed in Poitiers, today was a lucky day for me. Ed might not think the same, as the reason I was with him was because he had a small procedure at the hospital this morning. I was prepared to spend a calm day, at his side, with lots of books to keep me company, but having tucked into the three-course meal the hospital provided him at lunchtime, he was in tip top form all afternoon. 

My recent finds

 

The great thing about having given birth to a fellow book nerd is that he too fell into the pages of the two books on Poitiers that I recently got my hands on. Over a cup of tea and piece of cake, we poured over the pages before wrapping up warmly and setting out to explore. He might have lived there for four years now, but we are all still learning so much about its history. 

 

Remains of Roman amphitheatre, Poitiers

We covered about seven kilometres on foot (not bad for someone who was under anaesthetic this morning) and as well as taking in the Christmas markets and decorations, we also found what remains of a Roman amphitheatre. Admittedly there isn’t too much left to see now, but in its day, it was one of the largest arenas in the Roman Gaul, measuring one hundred and forty metres in length, holding over thirty-thousand spectators, and was older than the amphitheatre in Nimes or even the Colosseum in Rome. All this history just tucked away and hidden amongst the houses, in a quiet street in Poitiers, just blows my mind.

Beautiful interior of St Radegonde's church, Poitiers

 

Poitiers is famous for its many churches, but we only had time to visit a couple today, both of which had beautiful nativity scenes. It was my first visit to the impressive St Radegonde church, where we were lucky enough to hear the organ playing and enjoy the stained-glass windows, although in the late afternoon gloomy light, the underground crypt where the tomb of St Radegonde lies, was rather creepy, especially when we managed to lose each other. 

The nativity scene at St Radegonde, Poitiers

 

Thanks for a great day Ed. I’m already looking forward to our next visit.