Week-end in Beaune in the Burgundy Region

On Saturday morning, January 15, Roger and I left promptly at 6am to head up to Beaune.   It is a beautiful town and wine capital of Burgundy which produces the Côte d'Or wines.  The prosperous town was the residence of the dukes of Burgundy until the 14 century when they moved permanently to Dijon.  The well-preserved ramparts form a walk around the town and the encircling moat now is occupied by gardens.   We arrived at 9am, checked into our hotel and were right on time for the Saturday morning marché set up on the place de la Halle.   After lunch we visited the famous medieval hospital,  Hôtel de Dieu.  In 1443, after the Hundred Years War and the Black Plague had devastated Beaune,  Nicolas Rolin, the chancellor of Burgundy, paid to build the hospital for the people of the town.  The building is perfectly preserved with its medieval decor and was used as a general hospital until 1971!  We also visited the Musée du Vin de Bourgogne( BurgundyWine Museum) and visited the Collégiale Notre Dame before leaving Sunday morning.