Vezelay, France - There are many reasons to visit the Basilica of Saint Magdalene in France's Bourgogne region. Some come for the classic architecture while others want to listen to hymns. But others come for something entirely different.
"This is where I learn to come to peace with myself," says Erika Luettke, 70, from Aachen after attending one of the morning services. Like many others, she is taking part in a pilgrimage along the Way of Saint James to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northern Spain.
Such sentiments are common. Wisps of incense filter through the morning sunlight in the high-ceilinged basilica. Its massiveness dwarfs the seated monks and nuns. They seem to disappear into themselves and the white robes of their order. Choral music echoes from the walls, helping to melt away visitors' cares and worries.
The four main pilgrimage routes start in Vezelay before winding through France.
"This is an important experience for me," says Luettke who is wearing hiking boots and telescoping walking sticks. "I want to know what I'm capable of physically. But this is also about my beliefs."
The town is not simply a destination for pilgrims. Fans of Romanesque architecture also flock to the town. The basilica is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is one of the most important religious structures dating from the early Middle Ages.
Perched on a hilltop, the church has many unique aspects. Light is one of its main features ... a trait that can only be grasped, if visitors try to understand the symbols of the Middle Ages.
The transition from dark to light, from misery to salvation, from paganism to Christianity - these are the central themes of the nave, which visitors access through a dark antechamber. Arches reach up to the choir gallery which looks like an illuminatedpainting in the sunlight.
The abbey's archways are adorned with symbols. Placed between columns or creating entrances to various vaults, they are covered with stone figures of plants and animals telling biblical stories and aphorisms. They stem from an era in which few people were literate, but most could understand the stories told by such symbols.
One column in the left-hand row includes a scene from a grain mill, which is also a message about the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy through the arrival of Jesus Christ. Moses, the main figure of the Old Testament, stands on the left while Paul, the prophet of the New Testament, stands on the right. The mill's wheel is the symbol for Christ, and stands in the light.
The church sits on a hill covered with vines. Visitors can sample the fruits of those vines - pinot noir wines - in local guest houses along with hearty Bourgogne cuisine which includes traditional dishes like ox meat served in a red wine sauce or vineyard snails in herbal butter.
Anyone visiting Vezelay in the off season has a good chance of finding a room in the medieval city centre.
The "Maison des Glycines" was built in the 18th century and its attics offer wonderful views of the basilica at twilight.
Internet: www.vezelaytourisme.com
