We woke up to a wonderful breakfast of freshly made crepes, fresh yogurt, bread, jams, and cafe au lait at La Bastide de Chapduil. We ate with a Parisian couple and struggled with our broken French and their broken English. After breakfast, we drove about 6 miles to Bordeilles and walked around the village with an ancient castle and chateau. The morning was beautiful and it was nice to be out!
We drove from Bordeilles to Brantome and walked again along the river and by the abbey for a few photos with sunshine rather than rain (as we had the day before). Brantome is almost too perfect, without even a leaf out of place. On to Villars where we visited Chateau Puygilhem and Abbey de Boschaud. The abbey is a ruin, open to the sky, built on Roman ruins, and now in a cornfield. It is still majestic and beautiful in its odd setting.
We stopped in St. Jean de Cole and walked around the village, considered a Plus Beaux Village by France. Renovations are being done on the large chateau in the village center, which sits on a river. Another beautiful setting! Then on to Excideuil, where we had a nice lunch of chicken and frites and picked up a patisserie for dessert. A cold wind with dark clouds moved over us while we ate, and then we had rain over the next half hour or so. The rain was pouring when we came to the village of Hautefort, with a large chateau in the center. I took photos from the car, as it was too miserable to get out. Soon, the rain passed and the sun was out again.
We came to the town of Badefois d' Aris, with a chateau that was burned in 1944 after the Germans took the Count and imprisoned him. Badefois is a pretty town with quite a sad story. Our next stop was at St. Amand de Coly, with an ancient abbey. It is a tiny hamlet, picture postcard perfect at the end of a lane. We backtracked to the main road and drove through Sarlat to Vezac, where we have reservations at a bed and breakfast for two nights, on the Dordogne River. After checking in, we took the foot path along the river to Beynac Chateau. Deja' Vu! I came here 7 years ago with Whitney! From the top of the Chateau, which is quite a climb, the view over the Dordogne River Valley is like a movie setting, with several castles in view, cultivated farm land, and autumn leaves ablaze. Just beautiful!
We drove from Bordeilles to Brantome and walked again along the river and by the abbey for a few photos with sunshine rather than rain (as we had the day before). Brantome is almost too perfect, without even a leaf out of place. On to Villars where we visited Chateau Puygilhem and Abbey de Boschaud. The abbey is a ruin, open to the sky, built on Roman ruins, and now in a cornfield. It is still majestic and beautiful in its odd setting.
We stopped in St. Jean de Cole and walked around the village, considered a Plus Beaux Village by France. Renovations are being done on the large chateau in the village center, which sits on a river. Another beautiful setting! Then on to Excideuil, where we had a nice lunch of chicken and frites and picked up a patisserie for dessert. A cold wind with dark clouds moved over us while we ate, and then we had rain over the next half hour or so. The rain was pouring when we came to the village of Hautefort, with a large chateau in the center. I took photos from the car, as it was too miserable to get out. Soon, the rain passed and the sun was out again.
We came to the town of Badefois d' Aris, with a chateau that was burned in 1944 after the Germans took the Count and imprisoned him. Badefois is a pretty town with quite a sad story. Our next stop was at St. Amand de Coly, with an ancient abbey. It is a tiny hamlet, picture postcard perfect at the end of a lane. We backtracked to the main road and drove through Sarlat to Vezac, where we have reservations at a bed and breakfast for two nights, on the Dordogne River. After checking in, we took the foot path along the river to Beynac Chateau. Deja' Vu! I came here 7 years ago with Whitney! From the top of the Chateau, which is quite a climb, the view over the Dordogne River Valley is like a movie setting, with several castles in view, cultivated farm land, and autumn leaves ablaze. Just beautiful!
