Peoniette: Betties in Beaune

Beaune: a tiny town made of cobblestone streets, 15th-century architecture, and Bourgogne wine. It is the epitome of what you would imagine the wine region of France to be!

Friday morning, Danielle and I visited Beaune, a small town near Dijon about 2 hours away by train. We arrived in the late morning to a beautiful, cold day and meandered around town until we found the Hôtel-Dieu. We learned that the building is actually now a museum, not just a square you could walk into, and used to be a hospital for the poor. I definitely should have done more research because I just thought the whole town was decorated with these types of roofs, but instead it's really just the Hôtel-Dieu, also known as Hospices de Beaune, and a couple other rooftops.

We decided to purchase tickets for the tour anyway, which was a great decision. It was extremely interesting to learn about the history and see the interior of the former hospital. Essentially, the Hôtel-Dieu was founded by Nicolas Rolin (a Bourgogne's Duke's Chancellor) and his wife Guigone in 1443, after the Hundred Years' War, and run by nuns. Repercussions of the war left the people of the town sick, extremely poor, and in desperate need to medical help.

Hanging out in the courtyard

The most impressive room was La Salle des Pôvres, The Great Hall of the Poors, where poverty-stricken townspeople would receive their care. The hall is very pretty, lined with fifteen beds on each side, and meets with a chapel at the end.

The rest of the tour took us through various rooms on the ground floor and taught us about the architecture, medicine, nun costumes, and evolution of the hospital. The hospital still serves patients, but in a newer and separate wing.

La Cour d'Honneur

We spent the rest of the day roaming the cute, cobblestone streets, discovering a church, several cute stores, and a perfect place to stop for tea time!