Mâcon is a commune of France, préfecture (capital) of the
Saône-et-Loire département, in the Bourgogne region.
read full wikipedia reference about Macon, France
• Practicalities
• Alphonse
Lamartine (1790-1869)
MÂCON is a lively, prosperous place
on the banks of the River Saône, 58km south of Chalon and 68km north of Lyon, with excellent transport connections
between the two. It's a centre for the wine trade and numerous
light industries, with a surprisingly sunny southern seaside
feel, thanks to its long café-lined river bank . There
are no great sights here, but it's worth finding the time for
a riverside drink or a stroll through its pedestrian quarter.
If you're visiting in late July-early August, look out for the
free outdoor jazz concerts.
Lamartine, the nineteenth-century
French Romantic poet , was born here in 1790 and his name is
much in evidence. He is remembered in the handsome eighteenth-century
mansion, the Hôtel Senecé in rue Sigorgne, which
houses the Musée
Lamartine (Mon
& Wed-Sat 10am-noon & 2-6pm, Sun 2-6pm), part of which
is dedicated to documents and other memorabilia to do with his
personal, political and poetic lives. Nearby, on the corner of
place des Herbes where a summertime fruit and veg market is held,
stands the town's main tourist curiosity, an extraordinary wooden
house built around 1500 and known as the Maison du Bois Doré
, with a wonderful bar/café downstairs that serves cocktails
until 2 or 3am. The town also has a medieval art and Gallo-Roman
archeological museum, the Musée des Ursulines , at 5 rue
des Ursulines (Mon & Wed-Sat 10am-noon & 2-6pm, Sun 2-6pm),
housed in a seventeenth-century convent.
The most affordable, enjoyable
and educational way to bone up on the Mâcon, Beaujolais
and Chalonnais wines is to visit the Maison Mâconnaise
des Vins , 484 av Lattre-de-Tassigny (daily 8am-9pm; tel 03.85.38.62.22),
where the N6 comes into town along the riverside from Chalon
- a ten-minute walk from the centre of town. Aside from the usual
wine-tasting routine, you can also sample vintages by the glass,
accompanied by regional dishes such as andouillette, petit salé
and goat's cheese, on the large shady balcony of the restaurant,
where food is available all day.
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