Metz, a beautiful little known cityBy Emmanuel TresmontantAfter 10 June 2007, Metz will be merely 1h 22 from Paris by the Eastern TGV. The capital of Lorraine will then emerge from anonymity and will prove to be what it is: a splendid city of art and also a town in the full swing of development where the future Centre Pompidou-Metz is to be located. Lorraine is the homeland of two geniuses of light and darkness: drawer Jacques Callot (1592-1635) and painter Georges de la Tour (1593-1652); it inspired Barrès and Péguy, and Alain Fournier died in a way for it in 1914, near Verdun. All these talents were sensitive to the charms of its undulating and flowerful scenery, the poetry of its country churches, and also its hectic history reflecting the fits and starts of Europe's past. Hitherto tucked away between the Champagne and Alsace regions, Lorraine, with the arrival of the Eastern TGV, is at last going to unveil its riches, beginning with those of its capital, Metz.  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin Metz station: a relic of second Reich architectureWhen you get off the train at Metz, whether you're coming from Paris, Brussels, Zurich or Frankfurt, you'll be amazed first of all by the beauty of the station that looks like a Romanesque cathedral! This colossal, over 300 m long monument was built from 1905 to 1908 on the orders of Kaiser Wilhelm II who, Lorraine having been annexed by Germany after the 1870 war, wanted Metz to be the prestigious symbol of German architecture With its tens of sculpted frescoes representing warriers, peasants and scenes of daily life, its clock tower, stained glass windows and Art Nouveau clock, this building is the work of the Berlin architect Jürgen Kröger who also built around the station a 'new town' in pink or grey sandstone and in granite. The main function of this station featuring a 'high platform' for men and a 'low platform' for horses was to allow the many troops of the Reich stationed on the spot to rapidly reach possible battle fields. In the evening, the square in front of the station is magnificently lit by sleek street lights designed by Philippe Stark. The future Centre Pompidou-MetzThe brand new 'amphitheatre district' close to the TGV station will see the inauguration in spring 2008 of the Centre Pompido-Metz, exceptional by its content and by its architecture. The city of Metz will be able to lend each year part of the 58,000 works of the Centre Pompidou (which cannot exhibit simultaneously more than 1,300!). Europe's biggest modern and contemporary art collection will thus be able to be shown to the public in its totality on a rotating basis. The future Centre Pompidou-Metz commits to organise a new exhibition once a year, for instance on Picasso, Matisse, Braque, Kandinsky, Modigliani, Brancusi, Magritte, Pollock, Warhol, Bacon. Metz is banking on 300,000 annual visitors. This project has been entrusted to two architects, the Japanese Shigeru Ban and the French Jean de Gastines. In the same way that Bilbao has enjoyed spectacular development with the creation of the Guggenheim museum, Metz intends to become an international art destination with this project! The building does promise to be sensational with an undulating laminated timber roof covered with a protective fibreglass membrane. Inside, the immense galleries, extending to 1,500 sq. m. each, will offer views of old Metz and the cathedral.  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin One of the most beautiful cities of FranceMetz has long been associated with sad images of a garrison town, of an iron and steel industry in ruins, and of November fogs, yet now fascinates those discovering it on account of its bright and southern French aspect! Most of the buildings have been erected with the fine Jaumont stone, a golden rock with many different shades, still today extracted from a quarry 9 miles out of town. The city has an enthralling patchwork of architecture: Gallo-Roman remains; the Italian-influence Medieval town; French squares dating back to the 18th century (like Place d'Armes and Place de la Comédie); the imperial district laid out in 1900 with its Art Nouveau buildings around the station; and the very futuristic Amphitheatre district where the Centre Pompidou-Metz is currently being built alongside the new Park de la Seille. With 27 sq. m. of garden per inhabitant, Metz is also one of France's greenest cities. By pedestrianising parts of the town centre, and by creating parks, lawns, a pleasure port and 22 miles of cycling track along the rivers Moselle and Seille, the mayor has brought Metz out of the suffocation it still suffered at the beginning of the 1980s. Interestingly, the second biggest flea market in France after that at Saint-Ouen takes place at least once a month on a Saturday morning in Metz at the Palais des Expositions (exhibition centre) when10,000 collectors or occasional visitors from all over Europe come here. You can find a very broad range of end-19th beginning 20th century items (furniture, decorative sintered glass that may be signed by famous names like Daum, Gallé, Croismare, Prouvé, Majorelle or others). You can also find collectibles, curios, paintings, jewellery, crockery, musical instruments, household linen, etc. International art is also present (Asia-Africa). One of the specific characteristics of the Metz market is that it also provides places for 500 private individuals selling their personal items, which adds additional interest. Next flea markets: 2 and 16 June, 7 and 21 July from 6 am to noon.  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin A few must-visit sitesIf you opt to stay at the magnificent Hotel de la Citadelle, you can easily reach the town centre on foot in a few minutes. Shortly after leaving the hotel you'll pass in front of the Arsenal, a former military building erected by Napoleon III and entirely restored by Ricardo Bofill. The Arsenal houses an extraordinary concert hall combining classicism and modernity and whose accoustics were conisidered 'fantastic' by Rostropovitch when it was inaugurated in 1989. The surroundings of Metz, it should be remembered, have always been a land of music, from Gregorian chant, which originated at the Abbey of Gorze at the time of Charlemagne, to the great Lorraine composer Henry Desmarest (1661-1741) to whom we owe many superb motets*. After the Arsenal, the Esplanade offers a fine view over the pleasure port and verdant Mount St-Quentin (358 m high).  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin You'll now pass in front of Paul Verlaine's birth house on Rue Haute-Pierre. Then turn into one of the city's most beautiful pedestrian streets, Rue aux Ours, that leads directly to the covered market (one of the most picturesque and busiest places in Metz). It is then very tempting, before visiting Saint-Étienne's Cathedral, to head to the welcomingly leafy quaysides along River Moselle. Here, the Moyen Pont offers a splendid view over the river highly appreciated by swans and kayakers, the pleasure port (mooring for 60 pleasure crafts), the oldest opera-theatre in France (built in the 18th century on Place de la Comédie) and also over the imposing Temple Neuf built on the orders of Wilhelm II and inaugurated by him, at the tip of the island.  © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin At night-time, throughout the year, the circuit 'Metz en habit de lumière' (Metz illuminated) allows pedestrians to discover the town centre in an original and entertaining manner, the buildings being transformed by lighting designed to enhance their architectural beauty. In Saint-Étienne Cathedral, already dubbed 'God's lantern' in the Middle Ages, light is projected from the inside onto the 6,500 sq. m of stained-glass windows so you can admire them from the outside! Metz Cathedral, which greatly benefited from the revival of French stained-glass after the Second World War, boasts a few masterpieces of modern art like the stained-glass windows by Marc Chagall and those by Jacques Villon (brother of Marcel Duchamp), installed between 1957 and 1963. Where to spend the night? Inagurated in 2005, Hotel de la Citadelle is the only 4 star in Metz and in the whole of the Moselle for that matter. This former military bastion built in 1559 to repel the attacks of the armies of Charles V has been magnificently restored by the city and now houses a luxury hotel with 44 bedrooms, 2 suites, and 33 appartments, as well as a piano bar and a gastronomic restaurant that has been awarded a Michelin star.The building's freestone architecture has been enhanced by a remarkably plain and understated interior design. Located in a green setting, ten minutes from town centre, between the Arsenal concert hall and the governor's palace (a masterpiece of end-19th century German architecture) the Citadelle enjoys extremely relaxing peacefulness! And a superb breakfast awaits you, what else could you expect of the chef Christophe Dufossé? Treat yourself to brioches, home-made breads and jams, freshly squeezed fruit juices, scrambled eggs with sausages and traditional cooked pork meats. Expect to pay 185 ¤ per night inclusive of breakfast.  Mural in Sillegny church © E. Tresmontant/ViaMichelin A day in the surroundingsAt Jouy-aux-Arches and at Ars-sur-Moselle (both located 7 miles from Metz), you'll discover the remains of a 14 mile Roman aqueduct built in the 2nd century to carry source water from Gorze to Metz. The surroundings offer different scenery and villages that are equally peaceful like Scy-Chazelles, atop Mount St-Quentin, where you can see the house of Robert Schuman (1886-1963) dubbed the 'father of Europe'. The vine-growing village of Vaux is also worth a detour for its steep little streets, beautiful houses and excellent Moselle wines. Sillegny church, modest in appearance, is decorated inside with magnificent murals dating back to 1540. *Discover his Grands Motets Lorrains interpreted by William Christie and Les Arts Florissants (Erato). Practical informationMetz will now be 1h 22 from Paris (with 10 daily round trips), 1h10 from the station at Roissy airport, 1h 15 from Strasbourg, or 2h 05 from Lille. Metz Tourist Office 2, Place d'Armes 57000 Metz Tel: 03 87 55 53 75 Centre Pompidou-Metz La Citadelle 5, Avenue Ney 57 000 Metz Tel: 03 87 17 17 17 |
Tourism and Gastronomy
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