In front of you is a pale peach-colored building with rows of grey-blue windows stretching up several stories, a large arched doorway, and another big arch displaying exhibition posters-just look for the elegant house with plenty of windows and stone frames.
Welcome to the House of Memories, also called Maison Joë Bousquet-famously known as the “house with a hundred windows.” Imagine standing here in the sixteenth century, horses clopping by the stately mansion of Joseph Dupré, a bigwig cloth merchant and even mayor during ancient Carcassonne politics! But things get even more intriguing inside. In 1924, the surrealist poet Joë Bousquet, wounded and paralyzed by war, made this his sanctuary. Picture legendary artists and thinkers tiptoeing up the stairs, drawn to Bousquet’s charisma and mind, cramming into his preserved room on the first floor to exchange ideas and maybe a secret or two.
Later, high society gathered for debates, dances, and heated discussions in the “Cercle du Salon”-even Napoleon’s ex-treasurer popped by! In more recent decades, the House buzzed with researchers, ethnographers, and even Cathar historians prowling the upper floors. Since 1995, it’s invited everyone to dive into Bousquet’s world-see his bedroom just as he left it, marvel at original manuscripts, and even visit the special “library in the sky.” Step inside and let Carcassonne’s memories sweep you up; but don’t worry, I won’t make you recite poetry-unless you want to!
