Vatan

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Introduction

Vatan is a municipality in the French department of Indre and is part of the arrondissement Issoudun, just north of the centre of France, roughly between Paris and Limoges, in the Loire Valley. It has approximately 2000 inhabitants and hence is quite a small city.

An impressive array of buildings traces the history of this small town, but they merge so well with the modern landscape, that if you don't know about them, you'll probably overlook their historical significance. First, notice the halle au ble (wheat warehouse), built over the course of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance on the place de la Republique. Today, it's also the place where the Tourism office is located and is a great place to start the discovery of Vatan.

Humor is a key trait for people living in a town whose name means ‘go away’. The local inhabitants have embraced their town's peculiar and strange name, using it in their slogan "Vatan, tu reviendras" (Vatan/Go away, you'll come back). They have also joined forces with other funnily pronounced French towns like Bouzille (Broken), Corps Nuds (Naked Bodies), and Monteton (My Nipple). This group of 35 strangely named towns makes up the Association Des communes de France aux noms burlesques et chantants and every year they gather to celebrate their comic names and also their local culinary specialties, history, and artisan heritage.

For more information about Vatan and its surroudings, check the official Vatan-en-Berry website, which has details about what to do and see.

Neighbourhoods

Sights and Activities

The imposing Grange aux Dimes (tithing barn), one of the rare such constructions to have been preserved is a strong reminder of France's strong religious history. The clergy members used to store in this building the farm produce and wine given to them—one tenth of each farmer's production!

There is also a Circus Museum housed in a building used formerly as a school. Through a great collection of posters, costumes and models, the museum traces the history of the grandest names in French circus—the Zavatas, the Pinders, and the Rech-Bougliones—many of whom still tour the country today, bringing it to France's great cities and offbeat villages.

Events and Festivals

The first half of July, the town hosts an exhibition for the region’s amateur painters.
There is a market every Wednesday morning, which is a good place to sample some of Berry’s (Berry is the region Vatan is located) culinary delights: pies, potatoes, goat’s cheese, honey and foie gras are certainly some of the highlights.

Weather

Vatan and its surroudings have a temperate climate with generally warm summers and still mild winters, but not as mild compared to the southern parts of France. Summers last from June to September when average temperatures are around 25 degrees during the day and nights are usually between 10 and 25 degrees. Temperatures can be substantially higher though during hotter summers. Winters are mild with generally 6 to 10 degrees during the day, though nights in December and January average around zero, so frost and snow are a real possibility when more severe winters strike. Precipitation is fairly even distributed throughout the year, with 50-60 mm a month. Spring and summer are slightly drier compared to the wintermonths from November to February.

Getting There

By Plane

Vatan doesn't have an airport but Tours Loire Valley Airport is a good alternative. It has flights with Ryanair to and from Dublin, London-Stansted, Porto and Marseille.

By Train

By Car

Vatan is located just west of the main highway A20, which runs almost north-south between the bigger cities of Vierzon (northeast of Vatan) and Chateauroux, south of Vatan. Numerous smaller roads (routes nationales and provinciales) connect Varan with surrounding settlements, including Issoudun just southeast of Vatan.
The A20 eventually connects with the A71 towards Orleans and the A85 towards Tours.
Paris is just a few hours away in northern direction.

By Bus

By Boat

Getting Around

By Car

By Public Transport

By Foot

By Bike

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Budget

Mid-Range

Upscale

Work

Learn

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

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