The department
Gers was founded in 1790 in the area surrounding Auch, Gers
present prefecture. In the Auch area, in the heart of Gascon
country, you will find the ancient manors of Armagnac, Lomague,
Condomois, Isle, Astarac and many others. The medieval town
of Auch is at the center of the department. It will immediately
lure you in with its beautiful ochre stones, its pink tiles
and the charm of its picturesque walkways that lead down towards
the Gers River. Don't miss the statue of d'Artagnan (the legendary
fourth musketeer), on the monumental stairway of the Auch Hill.
Visit the extraordinary Sainte Marie cathedral dating from 1489,
where you can admire Arnaud de Moles gorgeous stained glass
windows and 113 ornate stalls representing 1500 people and animals.
At lunchtime
and dinner you will understand why Auch has been nicknamed "the
capital of good-living and good-eating." Many specialties await
you in Auch's excellent restaurants. You will find goose and
duck foie gras, magret and confit de canard, of course, but
don't forget to also taste the delicious garbure gasconne, a
local specialty made from quail, partridge and pheasants and
served blaze in armagnac liqueur. It bears mentioning that the
Gers flock includes 150,000 geese and more than 2,300,000 ducks
and that foie gras is as much about living well as it is know-how.
In Gers the specialties are the Gers fat gray goose and mulard
and Barbarie duck.
