Aubazine, haut lieu de la vie monastique

Notable for its 12th-century Cistercian abbey, Aubazine is also worth a visit for its picturesque alleyways, old houses decorated with stone from the abbey buildings, and the memory of Coco Chanel. It was at the Aubazine abbey orphanage that the future "Mademoiselle" drew some of her inspiration. The young Gabrielle Chanel spent 6 years there, between 1895 and 1901. Her austere life in the Cistercian abbey gave her a taste for clean-lined clothes, with a predilection for black, white and beige. As for the famous house?s logo, you only have to look at the interlacing of the abbey?s stained-glass windows to see where the two intertwined C?s come from!
Next stop: the Canal des Moines trail, an exceptional 12th-century work of art built by the abbey?s monks to supply water to fishponds and convent buildings.