Metz: ancienne ville

The earliest traces of human activity in Lorraine extend back to about 200,000 years ago as documented by the discovery of a handaxe at Montigny-lès-Metz. But it is only after the 1st century BC that Metz arises in its first economic boom when we have mention of the Médiomatriques, a celtic people mentioned by Tacitus. The current name of the city derives from this word:

Medimatricorum>Mediomatris>Mettis>Mets>Metz.

The city was already known back then for the exploitation of the beige-colored stone which forms the ancient buildings of the town. During the Roman period Metz gained importance due to its central location at a major crossroads. It used to boast one of the most important amphitheaters of the Gallo-Roman world which could accommodate 25,000 spectators. As a curious coincidence, or perhaps not, the football stadium Saint-Symphorien de Metz accomodates the local Football Club de Metz and 25,000 fans. The stadium was built in 1923 but went through a major overhaul from 1998 to 2001.

Metz was the capital of the kingdom of Austrasia from 511 to  751. Frankish Salic law called for the kingdom to be divided among the king's sons after his death. When Clovis died, his kingdom was divided into Neustria, Burgundy, Austrasia, and Aquitania. Clovis' 1st born Thierry, or Theodoric (Theuderich) in German/ic, inherited Austrasia probably because his mother Clotilde, Clovis' first wife, was Rhenish. The territories that comprised Austrasia were the ancient Roman provinces of Germania prima, Germania secunda, Belgica prima, and parts of Belgica secunda. Austrasia was the jewel of the Merovingian Frankish Empire in the decades following the death of Clovis and Metz was its capital. It was the most germanicized part of Frankish Gaul.

Enough of history. Today Metz stands out as an incredibly charming city, proud of its culture, pervaded by the air of fine yet inconspicuous cuisine, rush hour pedestrian din, parks, excellent shopping, attractive local wines, cordial people that kindly welcome you into their homes or establishments, open air concerts, fine contemporary art exhibits in historical setting, beautiful ladies; it's a place to enclose completely in your heart and is in no way inferior to Francilienne cultue.

Des Adresses Utiles à Place de Chambre

Above I've scanned the business cards of three important establishments that made my experience in Metz all the more memorable. They are for you so you can make your own stay in Metz a more pleasant one. At the top is where I dined the only evening I was there, Mala Coste, with one word of advice: dine and wine there now!!!!! In the middle you'll find the business card of the wonderful inn which Madame Hocine has created with the greatest of care, love, passion, and just plain class: Hôtel de la Cathédrale. When I go back there soon, guess where I'll be staying? I have always desisted from large hotel chains. The B&Bs in the countryside or the small family owned hotel in cities have proven to enlighten me more. Support small business because it's personal, it's family, and it's home, it's us. And finally down below, the 3rd card, belongs to Madame La Sommelière. Or perhaps she prefers being called Le Sommelier? It doesn't matter because she had a patient ear for all my queries regarding local vines and French wine in general. A lovely person who completed the sommelier course in London I believe, probably that famous sommelier school that costs a lot of money but that nevertheless is like graduating from Yale; yet what I find interesting is that here is a fine lady from France, the craddle of modern winemaking and when I say modern I mean the last 1000 years, with a thriving wine bar, yet humble enough to enhance her knowledge about wine from the English? Hmmmmm? Okay, got it. You should visit her and allow her to instruct you in the delights of local winemaking, a very unsusual experience. I had her assortment of cheeses that blew me away!

Place de Chambre

This square consists of the massive gothic cathedral on the east side located on a gentle knoll, and the row of houses that, among other cozy locations, comprises numbers 23, restaurant Mala Coste, 25, Hôtel de la Cathédrale, 27, Caves à Vins (Le Sommelier).

Ruelle

After dining at Mala Coste, I decided to take a midnight stroll through old Metz. I caught some interesting night impressions of the city. As it was Friday, many venues were full of people partying.

Esplanade

It wouldn't be a French city without an esplanade to provide an oasis of peacefulness to its citizens. The word esplanade comes from the old verb esplaner which just means to make flat, or to flatten out as was the case in the areal in front of fortresses or palaces. It used to mean the flattened or evened out terrain between a fortress and the first houses of its town, however, now it is almost synonymous with park. People like to sit here on benches, the lawn, or on the ashlars that delineate boundaries within the park to enjoy lunch and chat.

Cave à Vins et Produits du Terroir: 27, place de Chambre à Metz

I spent the last moments of my brief stay in this truly original city talking about wine with the owner of this charming wine bar. Madame informed me that the local varietal is called auxerrois which produces a fruity white dry wine with an interesting pleasant acidity that actually does nicely as an aperitif, personally speaking. Her brother runs the restaurant to the left, out of view in this picture, and my hotel is to the right. Mala Coste, the restaurant where I had dined the previous evening, is right next to Hôtel de la Cathédrale. It served a wonderful steak dish with oven baked potato gratin and some unidentifiable deliciously juicy vegetable patty (I forgot to ask what it was). To accompany this culinary delight I ordered a simple dry and fruity rosé from the Languedoc region. It was perfect. The prices are very democratic! I had the steak which was superb, two half liters of the country rosé, an assortment of cheeses as dessert, and I think I recall a little appetizer in there somewhere all for just €44,-. Considering the quality of the food, the friendly and professional service, ideal location, and reasonable prices, it was a great pleasure to dine here.

But, briefly, back to Cave à Vins et Produits du Terroir (Le Sommelier): this little vinothèque offers a wide selection of French wines including local wines and specialties. As far as the surrounding vineyards are concerned, the regional "appellation" is denominated Vins de Lorraine which breaks down into Moselle and Côtes de Toul. These vineyards are not well known abroad for historically they have been overshadowed by the Champagne region to the west which of course boasts worldwide celebrity, Alsatia to the south-east which is not too shabby itself for its beautifully rounded Rieslings and Gewürtzraminers, and of course the mighty Rieslings of the Moselle river downstream in Germany which have been blessed with elite terroirs that produce some of the finest white wine in the world (appellation: Mosel-Saar-Ruwer). Even the wines of the Luxembourger section of the Moselle river have been praised in song by Jacques Brel and Nino Ferrer. What we have here then is an unjustified little image problem as far as I'm concerned because the wines of Pays Messin are very respectable indeed; and you can convince yourself at Caves à Vin at 27, Place de Chambre, 57000 Metz across Saint Etienne's cathedral. It hasn't been easy for Lorraine to assert herself as a legitimate producer of quality wine being crunched by at least three of the world's most famous viticultural regions: Champagne, Alsatia, and the German Moselle. Ughhhh! What a tough job, but that's exactly what makes messin wines all the more charming, like its people: uncomplicated, playful, sexy.

Wine was brought by Roman soldiers in the 3rd century to this area and the region's early prosperity surely owes a lot to its proximity to the then imperial city Trèves (German Trier), capital of the Western Roman Empire. In 511 Theoderic, firstling of Clovis, the great Merovingian monarch, elects Metz as capital of his kingdom Austrasia. As the bishops of Metz needed to welcome their kings in a dignified manner, they had great demand for competent wine cellars thus the clergy played an important role in the continuation of local viticulture. It is not until after the revolution of 1789 that we see a gradual increase of bourgeoisie investment in the local wine industry. Winemaking is further developed at the time of the region's annexation to Germany as vine acreage is increased from 5000 to 6000 acres. With climate and varietals similar to those of Champagne, the interest of the German wine industry is thus drawn to the region for production of sparkling wine (Sekt). Many German and Champenoise "maisons" establish subsidiaries along the Moselle river. At first must was imported from the Moselle for local fermentation. Native companies then successfully launch their own wine labels to assert themselves on the market.

Eglise Saint-Pierre-aux-Nonnains

This temple is France's oldest church and its origins go back to the year 390. Originally it was a civic auditorium (basilica in Latin) but was transformed into a chapel in 615. Its magnificent chancel can be appreciated at the Musées de la Cour d'Or. It is no longer used for cultic purposes. Today it serves as a space for free public exhibits.

When I arrived there it was just a few minutes before 1 p.m. Coincidentally that was the exact opening time. There was this girl waiting on the bench near the entrance smoking a cigarette. I didn't know it at that time but she was waiting for a guy who had the keys to get in, a friend of hers apparently. They must have been students from the local university. She greeted him cordially in the typical French custom and in we all went. The young man turned on the lights and set up the abstract yet interesting exhibit. It was as if they had been waiting for me all along and in general that's the impression I got about the whole city as if they had been thinking: there you are, where have you been all this time!?

The exhibit by Northamerican avantgardist Anthony McCall consisted of a film projector on a pedestal set up in a completely dark room projecting a circle segment (half-moon like) onto one of the walls of the exhibition hall which was a sectioned off space of the chapel. In comes the girl, whom I couldn't see as it was pitch dark, and begins explaining the concept of this unusual art installation. I speak and understand French sufficiently enough to converse, but it certainly has lots of room for improvement. She said something about smoke and I did notice that in the light beam emitted by the projector you could see something that certainly looked like smoke. I didn't get whether the smoke was dust particles floating in the temple or if it was being produced artificially by some invisible smoke machine. It certainly created an effect on me. She further explained something about breaking up the light beam by putting your hands between the projector and the wall. She then left me alone to grapple with the exhibit. 

This was my impression of the art exhibit. But what was it in the artist's view who, born in 1946 and studied in London, now lives in New York? What I saw was apparently a concept he called "Line Describing a Cone" back in 1973. He is considered to be one of the seminal artists of "American avant-garde cinema". He likes to work wit light, film, and projectors. Some of his known works include this one and "Long Film for Four Projectors".

On my way out I thanked the girl and took some additional information about these art events. This exhibit takes place within a broader context called Constellation (En attendant l'ouverture du Centre Pompidou-Metz) and started on May 15th. It will run up to the 4th of October 2009.

La Cour d'Or, Musées d'Art et d'Histoire

This museum was one of my main reasons for coming to Metz. Founded in 1839, it houses160 years worth of archeological revelations. The photo above shows beautiful glass vases from the Gallo-Roman period.