Mo, I hope you don't think your visit didn't warrant a blog entry! It certainly does. I had a super time having you here and being able to share what I love about France with you. And now I'm on a serious diet before the next round of visitors come.
Although visiting a country in the off season poses some challenges such as weather and some places being closed for the season, it has it's rewards as well. It's not often that you can visit a place like Conques and be the only two tourists there (sometimes it felt like we were the only two people there). You can often negotiate a better price on hotels as there isn't a line up of people behind you wanting that room. I think however, the biggest benefit is that the locals have time to talk to you. I think you are able to get a more true sense of a place - good or bad. And of course having a friend to share it with is just icing on the cake.
I met Maureen in Bordeaux after a little delay due to a snowstorm in Montreal which delayed her flight and as such made her miss her train but she arrived a little worn out from all the travel. The first few days that she was here we explored close to home. An afternoon to Bergerac, the Thursday market here in Eymet, a visit to Castelmoron d'Albet (France's smallest village), a walk in the country, driving all the backroads and discovering beautiful little hamlets. On the Saturday we drove to Sarlat for the weekly market. Maureen is quite the gourmonde (food lover for you anglophones) and so I learned to trust her instincts on where to eat. In Sarlat, we had a lovely lunch - the food was good but what made it really special was the ambiance. We shared a long table with some locals. The waitress was really fun and she was very excited that we were from Canada. I got to practice my French and Maureen inspired them with tales of whales and bears and the beauty of Haida Gwaii. The weather couldn't make up it's mind, one moment sunny and lovely, the next blowing a gale with rain and hale. It didn't stop us from discovering the beautiful village of Beynac perched on the hill and another hilltop village called Domme. The next day I introduced Maureen to a Mindfulness Day at Plum Village. It was a treat for me to share this with a friend who is open to new experiences. Monday we headed to Conques via Cahors. It was a lovely drive and as usual there was a pretty village at every turn. It would have taken us a week to get to Conques if we stopped at every one. Revisiting some of the places that I walked to last year was really special. It seemed so strange to drive from Cahors to Conques in a couple of hours when it took me a week to walk. Conques is one of my favourite places in France. We checked into the hotel and then went for a wander. It was almost eerie to be the only ones in the magnificent cathedral. Dinner that night at the hotel was delicious. The next morning we wandered through the streets and then headed off to Rocamadour. Set off in the wrong direction at first but we sorted ourselves out. Rocamadour is quite spectacular, it is built on the side of a cliff. Winter seemed to be renovation season and pretty much everything was closed. We couldn't even go into the cathedral as there was a funeral. It was still worth it to see to beautiful village. We gave ourselves the day off on Wednesday and then Thursday we headed south to St. Jean de Luz. We had hesitated a little about maybe just seeing something closer to home but I am so glad we chose to go. I adore St. Jean de Luz. It is a beautiful Basque town built around a gorgeous bay with the Pyranees rising up behind. We were told that in the summer there are so many people you can hardly see the sand on the beach. But in the winter, other than the surfers the beach is empty. There is life in the town though and we found a great little restaurant serving traditional Basque food. I could easily spend a week there just wandering with my camera. But unfortunately Mo's time was running out so we headed up to Bordeaux for a night before catching the train up to Paris for a couple of days. We had a fun, busy few days in Paris. I love spending time at the Musee d'Orsay, it's a perfect thing to do on a cold, snowy Paris day. Voila, two weeks passed faster than I could have imagined. Hope you had as much fun as I did, Mo. I have posted a few shots from Mo's visit below.
On my way home, I stopped in to see Pauline, the woman who gave me a ride to Bordeaux last year when I finished my walk. It was one of those instant connections last year but I think we were both curious to see what I would be like when we met again. Well, I get off the train, we see other, break into a smile and then giggle and then we didn't stop talking for about two and half days. Talk about bizarre - it's like we have known one another for a very long time. We have decided to walk the Arles route this spring when I have to give up the house here.
I think I must have an allergy to Paris because each time I go I come home with a nasty cold. It knocked me out for a couple of days just before I had to go to Bordeaux for my medical for the visa. Finally got the visa all sorted out and that's where I'm at now. Sticking to my diet so I can live it up for the next round of company!!
Although visiting a country in the off season poses some challenges such as weather and some places being closed for the season, it has it's rewards as well. It's not often that you can visit a place like Conques and be the only two tourists there (sometimes it felt like we were the only two people there). You can often negotiate a better price on hotels as there isn't a line up of people behind you wanting that room. I think however, the biggest benefit is that the locals have time to talk to you. I think you are able to get a more true sense of a place - good or bad. And of course having a friend to share it with is just icing on the cake.
I met Maureen in Bordeaux after a little delay due to a snowstorm in Montreal which delayed her flight and as such made her miss her train but she arrived a little worn out from all the travel. The first few days that she was here we explored close to home. An afternoon to Bergerac, the Thursday market here in Eymet, a visit to Castelmoron d'Albet (France's smallest village), a walk in the country, driving all the backroads and discovering beautiful little hamlets. On the Saturday we drove to Sarlat for the weekly market. Maureen is quite the gourmonde (food lover for you anglophones) and so I learned to trust her instincts on where to eat. In Sarlat, we had a lovely lunch - the food was good but what made it really special was the ambiance. We shared a long table with some locals. The waitress was really fun and she was very excited that we were from Canada. I got to practice my French and Maureen inspired them with tales of whales and bears and the beauty of Haida Gwaii. The weather couldn't make up it's mind, one moment sunny and lovely, the next blowing a gale with rain and hale. It didn't stop us from discovering the beautiful village of Beynac perched on the hill and another hilltop village called Domme. The next day I introduced Maureen to a Mindfulness Day at Plum Village. It was a treat for me to share this with a friend who is open to new experiences. Monday we headed to Conques via Cahors. It was a lovely drive and as usual there was a pretty village at every turn. It would have taken us a week to get to Conques if we stopped at every one. Revisiting some of the places that I walked to last year was really special. It seemed so strange to drive from Cahors to Conques in a couple of hours when it took me a week to walk. Conques is one of my favourite places in France. We checked into the hotel and then went for a wander. It was almost eerie to be the only ones in the magnificent cathedral. Dinner that night at the hotel was delicious. The next morning we wandered through the streets and then headed off to Rocamadour. Set off in the wrong direction at first but we sorted ourselves out. Rocamadour is quite spectacular, it is built on the side of a cliff. Winter seemed to be renovation season and pretty much everything was closed. We couldn't even go into the cathedral as there was a funeral. It was still worth it to see to beautiful village. We gave ourselves the day off on Wednesday and then Thursday we headed south to St. Jean de Luz. We had hesitated a little about maybe just seeing something closer to home but I am so glad we chose to go. I adore St. Jean de Luz. It is a beautiful Basque town built around a gorgeous bay with the Pyranees rising up behind. We were told that in the summer there are so many people you can hardly see the sand on the beach. But in the winter, other than the surfers the beach is empty. There is life in the town though and we found a great little restaurant serving traditional Basque food. I could easily spend a week there just wandering with my camera. But unfortunately Mo's time was running out so we headed up to Bordeaux for a night before catching the train up to Paris for a couple of days. We had a fun, busy few days in Paris. I love spending time at the Musee d'Orsay, it's a perfect thing to do on a cold, snowy Paris day. Voila, two weeks passed faster than I could have imagined. Hope you had as much fun as I did, Mo. I have posted a few shots from Mo's visit below.
On my way home, I stopped in to see Pauline, the woman who gave me a ride to Bordeaux last year when I finished my walk. It was one of those instant connections last year but I think we were both curious to see what I would be like when we met again. Well, I get off the train, we see other, break into a smile and then giggle and then we didn't stop talking for about two and half days. Talk about bizarre - it's like we have known one another for a very long time. We have decided to walk the Arles route this spring when I have to give up the house here.
I think I must have an allergy to Paris because each time I go I come home with a nasty cold. It knocked me out for a couple of days just before I had to go to Bordeaux for my medical for the visa. Finally got the visa all sorted out and that's where I'm at now. Sticking to my diet so I can live it up for the next round of company!!