France Stop #2: Metz – Where Cool Breezes Meet Timeless Charm 🌬️🇫🇷

Stepping off the train from Italy, I was immediately greeted by crisp autumn air – a refreshing change from the Mediterranean warmth! Metz unveiled itself in a palette of soft yellows and mossy greens, its sandstone architecture glowing under diffused northern light. While different from Italy's vibrant hues, this city's beauty whispers rather than shouts. ❄️ Weather Whiplash (In the Best Way) Temperature drop: Swapped Italian sun for sweater weather (perfect for exploring!) Golden-hour magic: Late-afternoon light turns the cathedral into a honey-colored lantern 🏮 Local tip: Always carry a scarf – Metz's microclimates shift when you least expect it! 🎨 Architectural Time Travel 1️⃣ Metz Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Étienne) 42-meter nave arches like a petrified forest Chagall's stained glass paints the floors with liquid cobalt and gold (best viewed at 11AM when sunlight hits the apse) 2️⃣ Seille River Promenade Follow the waterway past half-timbered houses leaning like tipsy scholars Spot the Graoully dragon sculpture – a local legend come to life 🐉 3️⃣ Quartier Impérial Wilhelm II's German-built quarter with Prussian symmetry meets Art Nouveau curls 🍂 Autumnal Slow Travel Bookshop hopping: Gibert Joseph's €2 vintage postcards 📜 Café ritual: Hot chocolate at Le Magasin aux Vivres (their Mirabelle plum tart = edible poetry) 🥧 Unexpected joy: Getting "lost" in the Marché Couvert, where cheesemongers offer free Comté samples 🚆 Why Metz Over Paris? No museum queues: Had Pompidou-Metz's rooftop all to myself at sunset Affordable bliss: Three-course student menus for €15 (with wine!) Train hub: Day trips to Luxembourg City (40min) or Strasbourg (1.5h) #MetzMoments #EuropeanAutumn #HiddenFrance