Fondremand: Medieval Village

Fondremand was 6km from Rioz. It took us less about less than half an hour to reach there. Although it was also not far from Neuves-Granges, I had never been there.

The medieval village was rich in inheritance and story. There was a castle of which the first elements dated from the eleventh century.

At the lower part of the village, the source of the Romaine spurting under the castle was caught in a basin.

The stream of the Romaine was very beautiful with pink and

white flowers on bright green trees on one side,

a grey stone path on the other side.
and the water was crystal clear!

There was a pavilion next to the stream.

About one hundred meters from the source we found the windmill which was in activity since the twelfth century.

There was a free guided visit with explanation on the mechanism of the wheel,

on the crushing of grain into flour,

and other machines.

After that, visitors were led into the souvenir shop where Ernest bought a packet of wholemeal flour freshly ground in the windmill.

Before we left Fondremand, we went up the village for a walk.

It was very eye-catching to see pots of colourful flowers everywhere in front of houses built between sixteenth and eighteenth centuries.

That was a short visit between the marathon meals on my first Saturday in France this year.