What a lovely way to begin our Overseas Adventures Travel (OAT) tour!  We were greeted with a gorgeous sunrise at the airport in Paris, following our red-eye flight from Atlanta.  Next, we boarded a flight to Toulouse, France, where we were transported by car to Carcassonne to begin our six-day pre-trip extension (in late August).

The old city of Carcassonne, located in southern France, is surrounded by a fortress high up on a hill overlooking the rest of the city.  Step inside the walls, and you will feel like you have been transported back in time to the medieval period, 2,500 years ago.

(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)

Our hotel was in the old city, just a short walk from the entrance of Cité de Carcassone, the medieval citadel (or fortress).  We had arrived one day early, so we had three nights at the hotel with plenty of time to explore the charming old city on the hill as well as the newer city down below.

Although it rained during much of our time in France, we were fortunate to have some beautifully sunny periods to get in some good photography.  We also enjoyed exploring and photographing the lighted citadel walls at night.

A look inside the citadel museum:

After getting a birds-eye view of the cathedral, we stopped in for a closer look:

Coming up next: SOUTHWEST FRANCE, NORTHERN SPAIN & PORTUGAL #2: CAPTIVATING “NEW” CARCASSONE