BERGERAC AND THE DORDOGNE

After a  few sunny days  and the promise of an Indian summer, today autumn has returned. Grey skies and a chill east wind are back and we must now look forward to next Spring before we will get any more warm weather.

What a difference a few miles makes if you go south. South across the channel; south through Brittany; south through the Loire Valley; South through  Poitou-Charentes and then, finally, South to Bergerac.

That is what we did in September 2007 and what wonderful weather we had and what wonderful sights we saw.

 

  First may I introduce CYRANO DE BERGERAC, guardsman and poet,  cursed with an enormous, bulbous, blossoming beak of a nose.To compensate for his belief that no woman could ever love him on account of this affliction, he  made himself renowned in Paris for his personal bravery and the charm of his verse. The town of Bergerac sits on the banks of the Dordogne river which flows from  the mountains of Auvergne, from the confluence of two small torrents above the town of Mont-Dore: the Dore and the Dogne. It flows generally west about 500 km through the Limousin and Périgord regions before flowing into the Gironde, its common estuary with the Garonne, at the “Ambès beak”, in the north of the city of Bordeaux.The Dordogne is one of the few rivers in the world that exhibits the phenomenon known as a tidal bore as does the Severn in England.

This is the quay where, for hundreds of years, trade has taken place.

 

This  boat is typical of those which used to transport grapes and other things across the country. 

Let’s moor the boat here and go into town.

 

The well-restored and working old centre of Bergerac is adorned with 15th century fixtures and its cute lanes are home to many half-timbered houses. Bergerac is also famous for its good museums, which depict the areas long history. Particularly interesting, the Museum of Tobacco exhibits a collection of tobacco items and paraphernalia. The centrally located Wine Museum is worth a visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Restoration is an ongoing process, this property looked in danger of collapsing.I wonder just how old it was.

Part of the old town square where the new statue of Cyrano is set on a very modern stainless steel plinth.See the first photo.

 

Come back next time for more photos of this lovely area.

JJ