Greetings From France - Part 6

I have to stop talking about what wonderful luck with the weather we have been having, because it is at the expense of the French. They have been having a drought and there are parts of the country under severe water restrictions.

That being said, it was another great day! It did rain a bit on our way home, but we were on the Autoroute (French equivalent of an interstate) with no traffic. It also rained just before we went to bed, but this morning (Friday) it is clear and sunny.

We started out by driving to Sarlat in the heart of the Dordogne. Sarlat is one of the biggest towns in the area, having grown up around the original medieval city. We ventured into the old part of town and it reminded me a bit of Tuscan villages. Stores everywhere hawk foie gras and duck confit as this is the section of France from where it all comes. We had a lunch of local specialties in an outdoor restaurant. These included a garlic soup, an escargot cassoulet, pate, magre de canard, local sheep's milk cheese, and walnut cake (this is also the region that produces most of France's walnuts).

Then, we were off to Domme, a city built on a high hill overlooking the Dordogne River. A 13th century village, its sole purpose today is for tourism and it is understandable why. A beautiful drive up the hill takes you to one of the gates of the walled city. Once inside, the quaint village and shops surround a park set on the edge of the cliff with gorgeous views in three directions.

Next stop was Chateau Castlenaud, a castle not far from Domme. Originally built in the 1200's, the castle has been added to through the 1600's. We were able to go through most of it and I think that it was probably the first time I have ever been in a castle. I was more interested in the history and architecture, but there are a lot of exhibits having to do with weaponry and what was worn during battle (think armour and chain-mail). Again, glorious views of the Dordogne valley were provided. My main observation was that the people of the time had to have been shorter and with smaller feet as traipsing up and down the circular stairs within the castle's towers was an exercise in foot placement and could have been claustrophobia-inducing for some.

Leaving the castle, I had my first (and so far only) negative experience with driving stick. I stalled out on a hill (facing up) - a classic test for those learning to drive a manual transmission car. It was an anxiety-producing event as there were blind curves both in front and behind and my frantic efforts to get us out of there kept causing me to accidentally try and get the car started in third instead of first. After about 5 minutes which seemed like an hour, we were again on our way, but not without my sweating bullets.

On to another chateau at Beynac-et Cazenac. I decided to sit this one out and catch up on my reading - especially since I was a bit tired after doing battle with that hill. Betsy went in and was not very impressed so we were on our way agin shortly.

Our last stop of the day was in the town of La Roque-Gageac. It is not really a town, per se, because the 449 inhabitants live in homes built into the side of a cliff along the Dordogne River. It is quite an amazing sight, especially given that the origins of the town can be traced back to the 700's AD. You are free to climb up the paths that lead to the charming little homes, and take in the beautiful view.

I never thought that I would encounter rush-hour traffic in the French countryside, but that is exactly what happened. We had to drive back through Sarlat which, as I have mentioned, is one of the bigger cities in the area. We must have sat in stop and go traffic (made all the more fun with a manual transmission . . .) for over 15 minutes.

We made it home a few minutes late for another wonderful meal with Peter and Helen - confit de canard, along with an Austrian wine from the village in which Peter's dad grew up and more local cheeses. A good night sleep was then had by all.

I don't know if I will have a chance to post again before returning home. Today we are off to a local market and then to some pre-historic caves. We leave very early tomorrow morning to make our flight from Bordeaux to Paris, connecting back to NYC. Will blog once more about trip in the next few days. Thanks for reading!