Days in the Dordogne
The previous day had officially been recorded as France's hottest day (45.9 degrees) which was no consolation when the temperature registered 42 degrees centigrade on the car temperature gauge as we headed south. Fortunately by the time we arrived at our first place in the Dordogne region the heat had eased off....to around 36 degrees.
Our hotel was in Brantome, located in the northern part of the Dordogne, a picturesque old town, full of medieval buildings, surrounded almost entirely by water. Our hotel was small with friendly service and a room that was thankfully cool. After cooling off we set out to explore, hugging the patches of shade. The most prominent building in the town is the abbey. Built into the side of the rock face the current building is 11th century, with a bell tower that's reputed to be one of the oldest in France.
Opposite the abbey is the river Dronne, crossed by bridges that allow access to the centre. Brantome was a compact town, sleepy in the heat and it was easy to explore on foot. Many of the buildings were at least 500 years old, built from limestone and distinctly architecturally different from houses seen in the north of France.
Two or three streets had a small selection of shops and places to eat and we chose a bar in one of the squares overlooking the river, for some cold beer and some simple food. The beer was strong and refreshing but the food and service disappointing, but then we had been rather spoiled the previous day. After food we walked some more and then slept well. The hotel breakfast was very tasty and before driving further south we walked around the town again - it had briefly rained overnight and the air was cooler. Iridescent damsel flies flitted from flower to flower in the park by the river. Brantome made for a picturesque stop on our travels and a good introduction to the delights of the Dordogne.
As we had plenty of time we stopped in the main town of the Dordogne, Sarlat. It is a popular place and has an almost perfectly preserved medieval centre. Once we found a parking space and figured out the instructions for the parking meter we walked down cobbled lanes to a large square full of people and vintage cars.
A former church had been turned into a local producers market with stallholders offering tasty looking food. The main gourmet delicacy of the region is foie gras. I have no problem eating pate or terrine, but will not eat foie gras - I profoundly disagree with the method of production, force feeding geese or ducks seems to me unnecessarily cruel.
After exploring part of Sarlat we decided to get a drink and a crepe - from a small cafe on the main street. The owner wasn't overly friendly but the locally produced walnut beer we ordered was refreshing and tasty -although not particularly nutty!
The crepe was perfectly acceptable and, even better for me, Mrs B paid the bill.
Refreshed, we continued walking exploring the warm stone coloured lanes at the heart of the town before climbing through a park to get a view of Sarlat from above.
After several miles on foot it was decided we'd seen enough of Sarlat and drove on through wooded countryside to the final stop of the day, the small village of Domme. Perched on the top of a cliff overlooking the Dordogne, Domme is another place with history and more than holds its own in the pretty Dordogne village stakes, but its real attraction is the panoramic view from the cliff edge looking east and west along the Dordogne river valley.
Our accommodation was an Airbnb rental, part of a house in the hamlet of Toupinier high up on the plateau a few miles south of Domme. As there were only two houses in the settlement we were pretty much guaranteed peace and quiet!
The next morning, after breakfast, eaten in the garden, we set off to see some more of the Dordogne valley. A short drive brought us to the village of Beynac. Like many villages of the Dordogne, the village clings to an improbably steep cliff face and is topped by a medieval chateau. Before starting the climb we wandered around a small food market on the bank of the river but thought most of the produce overpriced.
It was an arduous steep climb up the cobbled streets of the village on an overcast but warm morning so we were dry mouthed and a bit out of breath by the time we got to the top of the village. It seemed even steeper retracing our steps for the descent!
Having exhausted the delights of Beynac we moved on further downstream to the nearby village of St. Cyprien. The village was decorated with thousands of paper flowers - and we had no idea why! Google provided the answer. The Félibrée is a traditional Occitan festival which takes place every year in a town or village in the Dordogne. The festival, which has been running since 1903, takes place over several days and St Cyprien had been selected to host the 99th Félibrée.
The inhabitants of St Cyprien and neighbouring villages created 300,000 flowers from paper and plastic strung as decorations throughout the town. It was a remarkable and unexpected sight, a joyful celebration of a largely forgotten culture and language. After walking up to the church and exploring the village we bought some filled baguettes from a boulangerie for lunch and then drove on before eating 'al fresco' under a walnut tree outside Chateau Milanais.
After dusting off the crumbs from lunch we paid the admission price, collected an audio guide and entered the chateau. It was built in 1489 as a new residence of the lords of Caumont. Its sits above the Dordogne and is surrounded by beautiful countryside full of groves of walnut trees and around the chateau itself both formal and informal gardens.
Its most notable recent resident was Josephine Baker who bought the property in the 1940's. Whilst some of the chateau's older history is revealed inside, many of the rooms now tell the story of her rather amazing life. Born into a poor black family in the United States she became a sensational star in the 1920's in Paris, performing at the Folies Bergere. In 1937 she became a French citizen, had numerous husbands and love affairs with famous people, was a member of the French Resistance in World War 2, being awarded the Legion of Honour, was a civil rights campaigner who refused to play to segregated audiences when touring the USA and, not being able to have her own children, adopted ten children from many different countries - that she called the Rainbow Tribe. It was really fascinating to learn so much about a remarkable and rather inspiring woman and this made the visit much more interesting than expected.
After touring the inside of the house we wandered around the gardens and then got to see a bird of prey display. I still find it thrilling to see these magnificent birds up close. The falconry team flew a variety of birds, various hawks, a magnificent bald eagle and an eagle owl.
Chateau Milanais had turned out to be full of surprises and have both informed and entertained us in equal measure. After driving back to our own more modest country retreat, we prepared a simple salad, I finished off a bottle of Bordeaux Superior and then took a stroll through the fields to watch the last of the sun's rays filter through the hazy cloud as a hot air balloon came down to land in a nearby field.
We'd only had a short time in the Dordogne and the nature of our travel plans meant that it was time to pack our bags and move on, but it was easy to see why many people return to this part of France. It has history, pretty villages, winding rivers, forests and the sun and limestone gives everything a warm glow. Having finished off a bottle of Bordeaux wine that night our next destination would give me a chance to resupply. We were headed towards St. Emilion - one of the most famous wine villages in France.
Our hotel was in Brantome, located in the northern part of the Dordogne, a picturesque old town, full of medieval buildings, surrounded almost entirely by water. Our hotel was small with friendly service and a room that was thankfully cool. After cooling off we set out to explore, hugging the patches of shade. The most prominent building in the town is the abbey. Built into the side of the rock face the current building is 11th century, with a bell tower that's reputed to be one of the oldest in France.
 |
| Brantome Abbey |
Opposite the abbey is the river Dronne, crossed by bridges that allow access to the centre. Brantome was a compact town, sleepy in the heat and it was easy to explore on foot. Many of the buildings were at least 500 years old, built from limestone and distinctly architecturally different from houses seen in the north of France.
 |
| The centre of Brantome |
As we had plenty of time we stopped in the main town of the Dordogne, Sarlat. It is a popular place and has an almost perfectly preserved medieval centre. Once we found a parking space and figured out the instructions for the parking meter we walked down cobbled lanes to a large square full of people and vintage cars.
A former church had been turned into a local producers market with stallholders offering tasty looking food. The main gourmet delicacy of the region is foie gras. I have no problem eating pate or terrine, but will not eat foie gras - I profoundly disagree with the method of production, force feeding geese or ducks seems to me unnecessarily cruel.
After exploring part of Sarlat we decided to get a drink and a crepe - from a small cafe on the main street. The owner wasn't overly friendly but the locally produced walnut beer we ordered was refreshing and tasty -although not particularly nutty!
The crepe was perfectly acceptable and, even better for me, Mrs B paid the bill.
Refreshed, we continued walking exploring the warm stone coloured lanes at the heart of the town before climbing through a park to get a view of Sarlat from above.
Our accommodation was an Airbnb rental, part of a house in the hamlet of Toupinier high up on the plateau a few miles south of Domme. As there were only two houses in the settlement we were pretty much guaranteed peace and quiet!
The next morning, after breakfast, eaten in the garden, we set off to see some more of the Dordogne valley. A short drive brought us to the village of Beynac. Like many villages of the Dordogne, the village clings to an improbably steep cliff face and is topped by a medieval chateau. Before starting the climb we wandered around a small food market on the bank of the river but thought most of the produce overpriced.
 |
| Beynac |
Having exhausted the delights of Beynac we moved on further downstream to the nearby village of St. Cyprien. The village was decorated with thousands of paper flowers - and we had no idea why! Google provided the answer. The Félibrée is a traditional Occitan festival which takes place every year in a town or village in the Dordogne. The festival, which has been running since 1903, takes place over several days and St Cyprien had been selected to host the 99th Félibrée.
 |
| St Cyprien |
After dusting off the crumbs from lunch we paid the admission price, collected an audio guide and entered the chateau. It was built in 1489 as a new residence of the lords of Caumont. Its sits above the Dordogne and is surrounded by beautiful countryside full of groves of walnut trees and around the chateau itself both formal and informal gardens.
 |
| Chateau Milanais |
Its most notable recent resident was Josephine Baker who bought the property in the 1940's. Whilst some of the chateau's older history is revealed inside, many of the rooms now tell the story of her rather amazing life. Born into a poor black family in the United States she became a sensational star in the 1920's in Paris, performing at the Folies Bergere. In 1937 she became a French citizen, had numerous husbands and love affairs with famous people, was a member of the French Resistance in World War 2, being awarded the Legion of Honour, was a civil rights campaigner who refused to play to segregated audiences when touring the USA and, not being able to have her own children, adopted ten children from many different countries - that she called the Rainbow Tribe. It was really fascinating to learn so much about a remarkable and rather inspiring woman and this made the visit much more interesting than expected.
After touring the inside of the house we wandered around the gardens and then got to see a bird of prey display. I still find it thrilling to see these magnificent birds up close. The falconry team flew a variety of birds, various hawks, a magnificent bald eagle and an eagle owl.
Chateau Milanais had turned out to be full of surprises and have both informed and entertained us in equal measure. After driving back to our own more modest country retreat, we prepared a simple salad, I finished off a bottle of Bordeaux Superior and then took a stroll through the fields to watch the last of the sun's rays filter through the hazy cloud as a hot air balloon came down to land in a nearby field.
We'd only had a short time in the Dordogne and the nature of our travel plans meant that it was time to pack our bags and move on, but it was easy to see why many people return to this part of France. It has history, pretty villages, winding rivers, forests and the sun and limestone gives everything a warm glow. Having finished off a bottle of Bordeaux wine that night our next destination would give me a chance to resupply. We were headed towards St. Emilion - one of the most famous wine villages in France.
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