Traveling to Rocamadour

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We started out this morning with a beautiful breakfast of croissants, baguettes and yogurt. This was complimented by 8 hard made jams which the owner makes himself. There were a total of 24 flavors in the breakfast room this AM. Not that I counted, he told me. It was wonderful, we thought lots about family: how if Mom and Dad were here they would have enjoyed the novelty of the many homemade flavors or how Carol would appreciate the work it takes to make jam to begin with. Anyway, our breakfast was consumed with conversation about family back home. What a great way to start the day. Cristiana continued to impress the owners and was a brave translator for all the departing questions. We left the car at the hotel and took a stole around the town. The town was cute; the old part contained several beautiful old “Tudor” like buildings given a bit of an old English look to it. It is amazing how cultures intermixed, even 500 years ago.

We shopped for meat and bread at the local markets and said goodbye to the hotel owners. By 12:30 PM, We had fueled the van, purchased beverages and were set to head out. Our mission was to drive to Rocamadour, the home to an ancient pilgrimage site housing “the black virgin”. Enjoying our journey we stopped at a private Chateau in Belle Aire with yet another beautiful garden. This one however; was enchanted. It included fairies and their houses, bush dwarfs, a walk though dragon, and forest giants. After the exploring the garden and the maze, visiting the ducks and peacocks, we continued on. We doubled back to see a dilapidated old chateau, still with its façade mostly intact, giving a glimpse of its former beauty. It was very strange to see this massive structure is such a state in the middle of the countryside. We drove most of the afternoon arriving at Rocamodour @ 5:30 PM. We found an unusual town perched on the hillside with a Chateau on the top and the city below. We set out to find a hotel and ended up driving to the bottom of the hill, well below the city. I was following a sigh for a S. Marie Hotel. So were dove several Km in the valley before starting to climb. After a few “thin” passages, we ended up on the far side of the town, still perched on the hill. Quite precarious, but neat. Because of the width of the road, we were forced to continue our quest on foot. We arrived at the hotel only to find it closed, as it seems most of every thing else in this town. To our surprise (and delight), we noticed signs leading to the Chapel in which the Black Virgin was displayed. We lit candles and stood in awe of this small but beautiful relic. Upon exploring, we found that the way we came to this part of the city, was indeed the back way and was the only way that did not involve hundreds of stairs. Now the stairs might very well be part of the whole pilgrimage thing, but I was thankful to have missed them. We found a hotel in the less deserted sister town Rocamadour Hopitalete, named because of its foundation remains of an old hospital.

Hotel Belvedere has kind, young owners who were very accommodating making sure we could add extra beds for the girls while still providing us a room with a view of the valley and Rocamadour. We dropped our bags and headed downstairs for dinner. I had Foie Grae, an area specialty and Duck, while Lisa selected salad with pieces of bird, (we are not sure the type: “somewhere between a bird and a chicken”. Sounds like pigeon to me, but don’t tell Lisa) and the Roasted Lamb. (For Lisa, that is like eating a relative). Both of us enjoyed our meals with a bottle of wine (Chanon) from the region. The girls also had a multi-coarse meal consisting of Vegetable Soup (puréed), Chicken/pasta (Mar), Ham and Fries (Sweet Pea), followed by dessert. It was a lovely evening of laughing and enjoying each other, while overlook the stunning valley and illuminated city. After dinner, we went for a short walk to partake in the view and let our food settle. The evening concluded with a computer slideshow from all our cameras, except Grady’s whose was left in the car. Oh well, tomorrow.

Cristiana’s Favorite part of the day: Enchanted Garden
Margrethe’s Favorite part of the day: Seeing the Enchanted Castle

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Photos

Didero Breakfast
Wonderful homemade jams

Hotel Didero
Girls in the Window