We arrived back in France to absolutely beautiful weather. It was so nice to finally see the sun and be able to put the sweaters away! We only had 10 days here but we packed a lot into those days. Here's our itinerary.
Our first stop was Amiens. Having never been to this city we weren't sure what to expect but, boy, were we pleasantly surprised. It is considered the Venice of France and you can see why.
The main attraction, other than the canals, was the Church of Notre Dame. This is one huge church. Two of Paris' Notre Dames would fit inside it. And, once again, we had a serendipitous moment. Back in the 60's it was discovered that during Medieval times the west facade of the church had been painted in vibrant colors. So, a company created a light show to bring the Cathedral "back to life". While we could watch the spectacular show from our hotel rooms, it was even more dramatic to watch it "up close and personal". This show went on for a half hour (I'm attaching a couple of short videos to your email to give you an idea of what the show was like). But, here is a "before" daytime picture of the Cathedral . . . . .
and two "after" photos during the light show. Look at the detail on the figures. Pretty amazing.
Our next stop was Honfleur. And, though there are more tourists than there were 20 years ago when we first visited this town, it still is very charming. There was the Old City,
and the Old Port (I know the background looks like a painting but, seriously, that's the actual photo - no photoshopping)
where for lunch we had the specialty of Honfleur, Moules au Roquefort et frites (mussels with roquefort cream sauce). And, no, we didn't get a picture of them - we were too busy eating. Don't we look happy?
One of the major "must sees" was, again, a Church. This time, it was the largest timber-built church in France, Église Sainte Catherine. The original stone church was destroyed at the end of the 100 Years War so in the late 1500's the townspeople rebuilt it but, as they were poor fishermen, they couldn't afford stone. Being fishermen, they used their shipbuilding talents and, as they say in France, voile! A real testament to their talents that it's still standing over 500 years later.
After these "Apéritifs", it was on to the Principale Cours . . . our favorite area of France, The Dordogne. This time, however, we were staying in a town not familiar to us, Beynac et Cazenac. What a find! How could we have missed it? For those of you who saw the movie "Chocolat", this is where it was filmed. The opening scene of the movie was the street leading to our house. Look familiar?
Each morning the guys would walk to the Patisserie to get our Almond/Chocolate croissants (and sometimes yummy ham and cheese sandwiches on seeded baguettes for lunch) so we could sit on our terrace and enjoy a leisurely breakfast before venturing out to experience all that the valley had to offer.
The Dordogne is, we think, one of the most picturesque areas of France. The Dordogne river winds its way through this valley - sometimes through lush fields and hardwood trees (its know for its walnuts) and sometimes hugging the towering limestone cliffs with castles and chateaus perched atop with towns nestled at the bottom, built into the side of the cliff or, like the castles and chateaus, on top of the cliffs. It is just one photo op after another.
This is the area known for its food and wine (in the country that's known for its food and wine). Foie Gras, Cepes (mushrooms), truffles, walnuts, cheese, duck confit, cassoulet, bread, wine. The list goes on and on. These people know how to enjoy life. First, there's at least one town market everyday with fresh fruit, cheese, bread, meat, prepared foods, etc, etc etc.
Next, some of the towns have evening markets. These are for eating all that fabulous food. There are food stalls selling everything imaginable and a big area with long communal tables and chairs. The locals normally bring their own tablecloths, plates, utensils and glasses. Or, you can buy a "set up" for 2 euros. And, there's live entertainment later in the evening. It's just one big party where families (we sat next to three generations) gather, strangers become friends (we also sat next to a family from The Netherlands) and everyone has a lot of fun.
When we weren't buying food, consuming it or gawking at the gorgeous scenery, we were visiting beautiful Chateau gardens . . .
. . . touring Troglodyte dwellings (this one, Le Roque de Christophe, was continuously occupied from Prehistoric Times through the Middle Ages and stretches 260 feet high and 2 miles long) . . . . .
. . . . looking at Prehistoric cave drawings at Lascaux IV . . . . .
. . . . . canoeing down the river . . . .
. . . . and visiting castles (Beynac's was the best and just a walk up the hill from us). . . . . .
To add to the magic, all of the towns, castles and Chateau gardens were even more beautiful when viewed at night. Truly magnificent.
And, just because it was so hard to choose which pictures to include, here are a few more of our favorites.
We had a week here and it wasn't nearly enough. We've always been in love with the Dordogne and we think Jeff and Denise have fallen in love also. We will all definitely be back.
But, it was time to head to Carcassonne, our last stop in France. This is a very special town. The Bastide Saint-Louis, the "newer" part of town, is on the left bank of the L'Aude River but the Medieval Walled City, where we stayed, sits on top of a hill overlooking the entire valley and it is only accessible by foot. It's a double-walled fortress 1 1/4 miles in diameter.
When we first visited 20 years ago it was a quiet town but the tourists have found it and, like Honfleur, it was packed! But, we still managed to enjoy ourselves for the short time we had.
Spain is calling now, though. So, after one last delicious dinner, we bid you Adieu.
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