We started off in Beynac for a morning beverage and then drove up to the chateau, which we had not done before. Chateau Beynac reigns as our favourite, most spectacular site looming over the Dordogne. The look of the chateau was a little different from up above and although we didn’t tour it, I just can’t get over the initial awe you suffer from, when this place comes into your line of sight.
Next, we headed to Sarlat, since we had only toured the old town in the pouring rain and we wanted to see it in a different light – literally. There are some fabulous buildings in its medieval core and we were glad to have returned.
After a quick stop in Cadouin the other day, we did some more reading and discovered that a) it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its ancient abbey and b) it had a restaurant with a kickass garlic soup. So, back we went. We started with a fabulous 4 course meal at the Restaurant de L’Abbaye. The garlic soup lived up to its billing and we followed that with a mixed salad for Dawn and a duck pate salad for me, then we both had a delicious veal dish. Dessert was new local strawberries in panacotta for Dawn and crème brulee for me. Yeh, I’m boring. With a half litre of the house white, our bill was only 34 Euros. Lunches like this make us realize why we don’t eat out much in Canada.
Then, as if we hadn’t already had more then enough to eat, we zoomed across country through Belves
and finally to Domme for some of their famous ice cream. Of all of the Plus Beaux Villages, this one seems to be the biggest tourist draw. The Dutch and the Brits by far make up the majority of seasonal visitors anywhere in the Dordogne.
Views down from Domme to the Dordogne, confirmed that the past few days of rain have really swollen the river to it’s max. One might wonder how things are down river, as the Dordogne merges with the Gironde and then it passes through Bordeaux. It seems to be staying within its banks here for the most part, but it sure is moving at an incredible speed.
After some house cleaning and packing we settled in for the evening and sure enough, the rain returned. The long range forecast for our next destination includes daily rain. We may have to grow webbed feet.
Believe it or not, we left St. Vincent de Cosse in the sun and had beautiful weather the whole trip and for the rest of the day. The difference between the Dordogne and Languedoc is remarkable. As we approached St. Chinian, the landscape grew bleaker - gone were the lush fields and foie gras producers, replaced by vineyards and nothing but vineyards. They've had the same crap weather we left, but there was no sign of flooding here.
We got to St. Chinian by mid afternoon and loaded into Aurelie, our digs for the next two weeks. This extremely well appointed house is in the centre of an 1800 population St. Chinian. The front is relatively austere, but from the terrace we have an excellent view of the gardens in front of the Marie and beyond that the main road through town. We are a short walk from any necessity - bank machines, restaurants, wine shops, epicerie, etc.
We are feeling pretty lucky in our choice of accomodations - the Dordogne was great and perfectly located and St. Chinian is back in wine country and a short leap to the Mediterranean. Neither place had that old musty odour, which I have to particularly note, is a great relief. There has been no need for antihistamines on this trip.
After cracking some champagne to announce our arrival, we went for a short walk about town and got our first education in St. Chinian wines. In the same appelation, the wines different greatly due to terroir. This is not a new story, but here there is a totally different wine from the schist area of the appelation than from the limestone area. We tasted one of each at one of the shops in town and were amazed by the difference. Therefore, if you find a St. Chinian wine you like, you'd better know what terroir it came from or the next St. Chinian might be disappointing, if it's from the other region.
The following pics will give you an idea of Aurelie - clearly, we need to start naming our residences in Canada.
The picture above is the front of the house. We park across the street.
The next picture is the view from the kitchen window.
If you look back towards the kitchen window from the Mayor's rose garden in town, this is what you see. You can see they cut away part of the roof to create a terrace. Smart move!
The next shot is of the spacious kitchen, with sitting area.
If you walk down the hall from the kitchen, into the salon and look back towards the kitchen, this is view.
So, there's a brief tour of Aurelie. We're tickled to be here and whatever the weather brings, this is going to be a great two weeks.
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