Guest photographer Robert Landau was gracious enough to give us some photos from his recent trip to a beautiful, off-the-brochure destination: Auvergne, France.
View the slideshow here.
I recently had an invitation from a friend in France to visit a part of the country I knew very little about: Auvergne. This is a region right near the center of the country that is known more for the great food it produces than it is for tourism.
Nonetheless, if you like beautiful countryside, small authentic French villages that maintain their unique and unhurried quality of life, and really good somewhat reasonably priced fine food, and all of this off the beaten path of most tourists, then Auvergne is a destination to consider.
In the week I spent there I experienced weather ranging from bright and sunny to cold rain and driving snow storms (often all in the same day now that I think about it). As a photographer, the extreme weather conditions were a plus, offering a condensed version of how the region looks year round.
The biggest surprise for me visually was the stunning and somewhat shocking sight of a church, St. Michel d’Aiquilhe a 10th century Romanesque structure that is perched atop a giant rock pinnacle overlooking the rooftops in the town of LePuy.
It is a surrealist Rene Magritte painting come to life. I returned three different times to the spot before I got the kind of soft pastel blue sky with wispy clouds that Magritte himself might have painted.
More of Robert Landau’s photography:
Travel Photo Essay: Where in the World is Peter Greenberg?
Travel Photo Essay: Haystack Rock, Oregon
