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In Puy-de-Dôme don't miss Saint-Flour, crouched on its hilltop, and Issoire with its tiny cathedral in Auvergne romanesque,  little round chapels clinging to its apse like a litter of piglets. Clermont-Ferrand has a statue of Vercingetorix. in the Place de Jaude in front of the theatre.  He, of course, was the Gaulish warrior who defied Caesar, defeating the Romans at Gergovia just outside the town, only to be crushed a year later at Alésia. (see Côte d'Or) The statue (known to the locals as Papa Gaulois) is by Bartholdi, the man who did the Statue of Liberty. Clermont is a town unjustly neglected by visitors. Set in the spectacular National Park of the Auvergne volcanoes (all happily extinct), it offers splendid views and a wealth of medieval houses and churches, from the romanesque of Notre Dame-du-Port to the Gothic of its unusual black cathedral, built of volcanic rock from Volvic. The old district of Montferrand is especially worth a visit.

   Issoire (Puy-de-Dôme)

Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-Dôme)

Viaduc des Fades (Puy de Dôme)
I only saw it once, on a misty morning many years ago, and the slide has deteriorated; but I include the picture because one day I'll go back. 400 feet from railway to river, an inspiring sight.