World Heritage Site: Church of the Abbey of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartemps

Date of visit: April 24, 2011

The weather changed rapidly on April 24, but we were able to do a lot of sightseeing because the sights were concentrated and easy to get to.

I’ve been to a total of five beautiful villages.

Mortemart（モルトマール）
Saint-Benoît-du-Sault（サン・ベノワ・ドゥ・ソー）
Gargilesse-Dampierre（ガルジレス・ダンピエール）
Angles-sur-l’Anglin（アングル・シュル・ラングラン）
Crissay-sur-Manse（クリセ・シュル・マンス））

I also visited the church of the Abbey of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartemps, which is also registered as a World Heritage Site.

It is located about 15 minutes south of the town we headed to after the third beautiful village, Gargilesse-Dampierre, and the next one we will visit, Angles-sur-l’Anglin.

The big town nearby is “Poitiers”.

The ancient Romanesque church has been listed as a World Heritage Site, according to WIkipedia, the exact date of its foundation is not known, but legend has it that it dates back to the 5th century.

It’s a very old town, don’t you think? I’ve been to many French cities, but just a two-hour drive away, you can see a different culture. It’s an amazing diversity in one country.

Saint-Savin sur Gartempe” means “Saint-Savin along the Gartempe River”.

Well, this place is “known for its 36 well-preserved Romanesque wall paintings”. Well, I didn’t have such knowledge when I went there… But if you look at the photo carefully, you can see such a picture written on the ceiling.

When I was actually sightseeing, I honestly didn’t think the inside was that great. After all, the sightseeing becomes more fun if there is a certain amount of knowledge, isn’t it? It’s no good.