Pau Things to Do

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It is unusual to encounter a painting that is a very great work done by in an off the path place. Of course it is the finest work in the museum. It was created by Degas while he was visiting New Orleans in 1872-73. It is also the only painting sold to a museum (in 1876) during his life time. As became his usual technic, the people in the painting are unaware of the creator and the picture occurs in an instant of time. A variety of actions are going on in a busy commercial office with 12 persons at work or looking on in several sites.

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A walk in the Parc Beaumont was a fine place to start a Sunday morning. Here the most attractive sight is the bevy of swans. We then headed to the Musee-Beaux-Art but first saw the late 19C Casino which seems to never close. The last sight to visit will be the Chateau.

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Along the South edge of the upper part of Pau the Blvd. extends from the west at the Chateau to the east at the Parc Beaumont and the Casino. Looking south along the promenade immediately ahead the city falls to a lower level along the Gave de Pau. Next to the promenade is a funicular and a little further west is the modern roadway to the south. Only fifteen miles further south we are into the first of the tall mountains. On very clear days the tops of the Pyrenees are sharply defined but often the view is misty. On the day we were walking around town at our level the sky was bright but the distant peaks were dim. We left the next morning and it was no clearer. Luckily we were headed east through Tarbes and along the way there every became clear and bright.

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This old roman church has typical columns with higher middle age style chapiters ( picture 2), representing biblical scenes or the wolf with the snakes coming from his mouth; more modern also with the fir cones.
The throne with its angels in baroque style fits quite well in this austere roman building ( picture 3); notice the painted ceiling.
The church as a whole is well decorated, with the raw stones making the walls, and the different styles of decorations fit quite well. (main picture).
The pillar in the stoup is a bit special, strange, I do not know if kids were baptised there? (picture 4).
This part of the ceiling (Picture5) is from the 16th century, a painting from a local artist , Jerôme Ribère, who also decorated the cathedral of Oloron.

To visit this church in good conditions, it is good to go on an afternoon, at a quiet time; it is possible to switch on the tape player with the explanations located near the small entrance door; this plays the explanations about the church and controls the lights which underline the successive topics; it is well done (in French!, not Bearnese, sorry!); it is about 15 minutes long , and at the end comes an Ave Verum ; listen in the following link:
Ave Verum
which just fits with what we have seen so quietly, peace. . . . . .

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The Musée Bernadotte is dedicated to Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte. Even now, you probably are still wondering why there is a museum dedicated to someone about whom you have never heard. In fact, Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte later became Marshall of France and, in 1818, the King of Sweden. In fact, he is the first member of the current royal house to have sat on the Swedish Throne. This, then, explains the presence of the Swedish flag at the entrance to the Museum. I didn't go into the Museum (it was closed, despite the fact that I was there during the opening hours), so I cannot say anything about the contents of the museum or its significance. I believe that the building is the same one in which Bernadotte was born and raised, and it includes some good examples of regional architecture.

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Like all French cities and, indeed, many cities in countries whose forces participated in the fighting during the two World Wars, Pau has a monument dedicated to the memory of those who served their nation in 1914-1918 and 1939-1945. Pau's memorial is remarkable for two reasons. The first is that it is in the form of a woman defender and not an arch, unlike so many monuments dedicated to the fallen in France. The second is that the statue, at its base, has two small plaques commemorating Spanish Republicans and Portuguese exiles who participated in the Liberation of France and the defeat of Fascism outside of their own countries. In a way, it is a small reminder of the important role that these exiles played, not only in the Second World War but also in the general development of the south of France and modern French history.

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It seems that Pau's largest churches were built in the latter half of the 19th century, when neo-Gothic architecture was all the rage. Just like the Église Saint-Martin, the Église Saint-Jacques, which is built in the northern, newer part of Pau, is a massive neo-Gothic structure that dominates the end of Rue Bernadotte. This appears to be part of a large-scale reconstruction, when the city fathers decided that they would build over Pau's romanesque heritage hulking, cavernous neo-Gothic churches and neo-Classical buildings for the civil administration. In any case, the Église Saint-Jacques, in my opinion, is not as impressive as its contemporary Église Saint-Martin. Perhaps it is the fact that the latter was built in an area that is dominated by older buildings, but this church just feels more modern than Saint-Martin, and less impressive because of it. It does have the same beautiful stained glass, although less of it, and it is brighter inside than the Église Saint-Martin. All in all, however, I found less reason to hang around in here and see the church than I did at the Saint-Martin, and the traffic and noise from the busy shopping area around it doesn't help to give it a sense of tranquility and peace.

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The Église Saint-Martin is probably the first church that every visitor to the city enters. It is a large and centrally-located building, steps from the Château and the Place Royale, which is why I say that it's likely the first one anyone notices. I remembered it from the first trip that we took to Pau, when I was struck by its size and, more importantly, the fact that it I picked up a few religious pamphlets in Gascon dedicated to the older parishioners who still used the language. Now that I am more mature (I hope), I decided to revisit the church to see if there was actually more to admire than just its size and its Gascon-language services (this time around, however, there were no signs or pamphlets in any language other than standard Parisian French). The church is in the neo-Gothic style, having been constructed in the latter half of the 19th century, and it has the usual dark, cavernous interior that is associated with Gothic and neo-Gothic structures. The real beauty is in the stained glass, as there are many examples of this art medium, with the real crowning jewel being a stained glass rose that tells the story of Saint Martin. Given that there are relatively few visitors (there was only a Spanish couple there at the same time as me), you are likely to be able to enjoy this stained glass and other examples in relative quiet.