Two days after the fun madness that was Halloween, my host took me to Carcassonne to visit the cité. It is a medieval castle that sits on a hill by the river Aude.
Although beautiful, it is a tourist spot. Souvenir shops and over-priced eateries can be found within the walls of the castle. However, that does not take away from the centuries of history hovering the cobblestone paths.
Built during the Gall0-Roman empire, the castle stands strong with 52 towers. I never wanted to be a princess as a young girl. I would think how boring it must be to live in such a big place with not many people. After visiting the city, I still have no inclination to live in a castle. But, I did get a postcard with a beautiful panoramic of the cité as a memento of being close to one for the first time (this excludes those belonging to Cinderella and Belle in Disney World).
If you find yourself in Carcassonne, I think you owe it to yourself to make a stop at the castle. There are tours you can take to see more, but I personally didn’t find I had missed out by opting out.