At the Mikve (Jewish ritual baths)

At the Mikve — a Jewish ritual bath, from the 12th Century. (One of only four existing baths in Europe.) From what I could understand, this was a bath for women only, and a woman attended every month, after her monthly cycle. We were told that, rather than thinking that women were unclean, the bath was a ritual to honour their role in life and society.

In Medieval times, Montpellier was the home of a very large Jewish community (which significantly expanded when they were expelled from Spain [1500's]). It was also the home of a large Arabic community. Both of these populations contributed significantly to the life of intellect and learning.

We climbed down some steep, narrow stairs to arrive in a small waiting room, which overlooked the bath (pictured above)

The waiting room.

A placard outside of the Jewish ritual baths.

Our guide, who spoke only French at an amazingly fast clip. I understood about one word in every 100. I stayed with the tour group for over two hours and departed prior to the end of the tour. I could only take so much. ;-)

Fortunately for me, this gentleman from Luxembourg was able to follow most of our guide's explications and provided me with some information to supplement my understanding. (What I have written is his account of his understanding of what the guide said.) His hair was the exact colour of the stone, of which most of the town in constructed.