Blogs from Aquitaine, France, Europe - page 7

CADILLAC FRANCE SEPTEMBER 29, 2018 Today we are cruising the Garonne river to Cadillac. When we tie up to shore, there is no dock, but instead a long ramp that comes out and meets a ramp from our boat. There is very little on the shore, just a few buildings. We walk about two blocks in from the river and there is a lager wall and the remnants of a city gate. There are many locals and families with children walking in the same direction. When we get through the large gate, we can begin seeing the edges of the garners market spilling out of the town square into the surrounding streets. The vegetables are beautiful, also the meats and cheeses. There are live chickens, ducks, Guinea-Bissau hens,.and of course eggs. There are also clothes, jewelry ... read more

St. Emilion and Libourne September26 & 27 As I write this we are sailing down the Dordogne River from Libourne. It is beautiful and quiet sailing along this muddy channel but I am getting ahead of myself. Yesterday afternoon we reached Libourne. We immediately set out for St emilion which was about minutes up the road. St. Emilion is a very old town predominantly of wine makers and barrel makers..the streets are all cobblestone with no cars or trucks it was originally a walled city but those are long gone. All of the cobblestones came from England as ballast on ships. The ships returned with their holds file with barrels of wine. This area originally belonged to England. There were several beautiful monasteries and churches here but they were all destroyed in either the hundred years ... read more

What a night it was? Hot and sweltering. The temperature here in this part of France had reached the heady heights of 28 degrees . We slept well apart from one blip when a larger than life motorhome rolled up late in the darkness and tried to park. He left his engine running . He left his lights on whilst he tried to find the electric sockets. He set off again round the block , parked up again , lights on , engine running until in the end he found his place for the night but that was only after disturbing the whole of the site. We woke up to croissants and jam and set off around Futuroscope and Poitiers. Familiar roads but empty this time of the morning. As we drove through each peage the ... read more

Well, we're finally getting a minute to do yesterday's blog. Our evening in Langeais turned out marvelous. After a wonderful breakfast, Mary, our hostess, found us a reservation for a B & B at our intended destination. Today involved a lot of driving through beautiful rolling hills of agricultural land. Corn stalks were being harvested and there were many fields of sunflowers that have dried on their stalk. We stopped for lunch in an adorable little village, Verteillac, where we ate with the locals. The food was amazing, and quite inexpensive. Bergerac, our next stop, has a riverside setting, and is known for its half timber houses and narrow, cobblestone alleyways. This town was the home of Cireno de Bergerac, and he is prominently honored in the town square. It felt good to stretch and walk ... read more

Run, wine repeat A few years back while on an amazing cycle tour with Tom, Rolande, Don and Debbie we had lunch in lovely park in Pauillac France. Our guide, Jean Phillipe told us about the world famous marathon that takes place here every September. A unique and fun marathon that’s course not only takes you through some of the most beautiful and famous wineries in the world - but also gives you samples of their wines many being Grande Cru status. Where do I sign up I wondered... and how many people can I convince to join me ?. As usual I would have to wait for the right time to plant the seeds that a holiday that included a marathon (to my mostly non running friends) was a great way to vacation. Oh and ... read more