Millau

It took us several attempts to access the freeway out of Lyon, but soon we found ourselves on a lovely series of sweeping back roads up over the Massif Centrale and across the spectacular Auvergne region dotted with “puys”, or volcanic hills.

  

Ingrid decided that we would stay overnight in an obscure little town called Millau (pronounced “mee-oh” as in O Sole Mio !!). She wondered why I was obviously a bit excited by this prospect. She eventually understood when we came around a bend and she saw this – the Millau Viaduct, the tallest bridge in the world. Apart from all of the engineering superlatives, this structure is just mesmerizingly gorgeous. 

We stayed just outside the town in a very cheap, but quite cheerful motel attached to a bowling alley. We had an aperitif in the main square and afterwards, a particularly enjoyable dinner at La Mangeoire restaurant. In the morning we found a good coffee at the covered market and then Ingrid let me drool over the bridge for another couple of hours.

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