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Once outside the walls, you will find you have a view that extends for miles southeast towards Narbonne and the Mediterranean Sea. Turn left and look north and you will see Minervois, the pleasant downland through which the Crusaders marched on their way to besiege Carcassonne. If you come this way by night you will see clusters of lights folded in the hills; many of the villages they indicate saw combat or surrendered in fear of reprisals.
‘On his orders, the fugitives were dragged from their hiding place. He lifted his arm and thrust his blade into the parfait’s chest. For an instant, he held his gaze. The Frenchman’s flint grey eyes were stiff with contempt.’
In contrast, there is a lovely two-tiered 19th-century carousel on the piazza. I recommend the spinning teacups!
