These 2 departments are just next to each other. I was torn on what to do at this stop, because there were just too MUCH to do! Mr. Rick Steves suggested staying in Sarlat for his "15 Day whirlwind tour of France", but I was mesmerized with what these 2 departments contain. The endless number of beautiful villages, car circuits for an eye feast on the overhanging cliffs and the rivers, and the chasms. I guess this is one place we will come back again and again.
Where we chose to stay and go...
Beautiful, more beautiful and even more beautiful villages in Lot and Dordogne. We visited 4 villages, each with their own character, and all of which looked like film sets.
Rocamadour
Rocamadour is a village built on the edge of a cliff, well known for its pilgrimage. The story goes that the body of a hermit, believed to be Saint Amadour was found in 1166. Legend has it that Saint Amadour is Zaccheus, whose wife, Saint Veronica wiped the face of Jesus with a handkerchief when he carried the cross. After Veronica died, Zaccheus lived as a hermit in today's Rocamadour. Hee built a sanctuary in the rock, and locals called him Amator, hence the village is named Roc-amadour. After Zaccheus' body was found, there were many miraculous healing, and pilgrims started arriving. The grand stairs was the path that pilgrims used to take to the churches - on their knees. Today, visitors can take the elevator that can take most of the walking pressure off.
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| This was where we parked our car to take the next picture |
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| Rocamadour behind us |
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| This door is on the side of the tourist office, this way down to Rocamadour |
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| Porte du Figuier |
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| Praying for safety for the rest of the trip |
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| View of the castle from the cross |
Domme
We were planning to go to the village of Domme for a good scenery of the valley. On a fine day, we should be able to see 5 castles from Domme. Unfortunately, this is the season of rain, that is why it's the low season...Nonetheless, we still got a bird's eye view of the fertile land beneath us. However, the roads from Rocamadour to Domme...I wouldn't want to go through it again.
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| Foie gras is as abundant as broccolli here |
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| Lots of rain!!!!! |
La Roque-Gageac
This is a very tiny village perched at the side of the cliffs. No worries if you can't find it in google, just drive through D703, and you'll see the river on one side, and La Roque-Gageac on the other. It is only minutes from Domme by car. If not for the weather, we would have proceeded to Chateau de Beynac, which is another few minutes from La Roque. There is a boarding point here, for a boat ride along the river, which I think will be very scenic, as there are a number of pretty villages thereafter along the river.
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| Boarding point for a boat ride |
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| Cliff-perched houses and winding roads to bring residents to their houses higher up |
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| The 1st row of houses looks much newer and targeted at tourists. Those higher up are older and look more authentic |
Saint Cirq Lapopie
This village stands high above the Lot valley like a sentinel. In medieval times, people settled here to seek protection. Many beautiful villages like this along the river were neglected after the railway killed off the river trade. Maybe that explains why they are still beautiful.
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| Lapopie from the bottom. The cliff on the upper right hand corner is accessible by car for a panoramic view. |
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| Here we are at the cliff. Pay-parking here, so we parked temporarily for a few shots and off we went to the other side. |
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| This is "the other side". See the cliff where we were in the previous picture? |
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| Be prepared to park some 500 m and walk up to the village. No parking within the village, and you'll know why later. |
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| This is not re-built for tourists I suppose? |
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| This is why we were thankful for NOT parking here. |
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| Using my might to climb the slope |
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| The iconic cathedral we saw from afar |
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| A quick glimpse of the interior of the church |
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| And we were there! |
Terrain here is mainly limestone. Through the actions of water through millions of years, you can find many beautiful caves that look so magical. Can't help awakening the archaeologist in me with the series of gouffres and grottes that lined the region.
Gouffre de Padirac
This is a chasm with gigantic stalacites of 60 metres high. Here, you can appreciate the power of water. I'm amazed that water can actually carve out something so magnificent. True enough, I felt a drop of water inside the chasm on my face, and it was painful! The entrance fee includes a boat ride to bring you across the lake, and then a guided tour in French on foot. This place seems more popular for local French, the tour guides speak minimal English, and have only a small leaflet for translation.
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| Somehow, the rock minerals and the environment support the vegetation growth at the entrance of the chasm |
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| This is not all that you have to descend, a little bit more for a magical underworld |
Photos are not allowed inside. Link attached for reference.
Grotte du Pech Merle
The famous Grotte de Lascaux is already closed to the public based on preservation reasons. I was afraid that I might not have another chance to see the footprints of our ancestors, so here we are. This homosapien prehistoric cave limits 700 visitors/day. This is off-season, so there is no need for pre-booking. Impressive collection of prehistoric paintings and carvings. This is such a mysterious place, until now, nobody knows exactly how our ancestors got into these caves without modern technology. Is it by magic? I'm imagining that in their time, they probably have different occupations too...artists, chefs and scientists. How else could they know about stencils, mixing their saliva with minerals to paint, and tele-porting themselves into such impossible caves?
The guide whom we met here can speak English very well. However, since the tour is conducted in French, we loaned a folder to explain the contents in English, very well organised. No photo taking as well.
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| Iconic painting in the Grotte. Our ancestors loved to draw lots of mammoths, some horses and bears...but it seems that they don't have mammoths in their diet, I'm suspecting that mammoths were a kind of religious icon to them. |
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| Entrance into the cave |
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| 3 trees with their roots seen inside the cave |
Wine and Dine
This area is well blessed with fertile land and 2 major rivers running in them. It's hard to forget that truffles and ducks are the region's speciality, as there is a farm in sight every 1-2km. There are also farm tours if you are interested. Having said that, this is the place for foie gras, truffles, canard (duck), melons, walnuts and honey. They grow all the expensive stuffs here, including the red herb, saffran! Of course, not forgetting wine, since the region house Cahors and Bordeaux.
Hotel Chastrusse at Nadaillac-de-Rouge
Don't bother if you are not driving. This Chambre d'hôtes is really hard to reach with unreasonable roads. The road leading to the hotel seems like a one-way road, but it is actually two-way. Take care to stay on the right, trucks may appear all of a sudden from that 300 degree hairpin bend. But once you arrive, you'll fall in love with the serenity, view and the hostess. The nearest town is Souillac, which is in the middle of northern Dordogne and Lot department. I picked this out of payment convenience, since it can be booked via the booking sites, and most of the B&Bs use pretty primitive modes of payment.
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| Hotel Chastrusse |
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| Entrance to reception |
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| Ample parking space |
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| All the rooms are facing the pool |
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| Private entrance for each room |
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| Basic but spacious |
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| Plenty of space to jump around |
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| The dining area that looks like what could be the living area previously |
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| Pan sheared foie gras with honey and black pepper |
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| Cassoulet confit canard. Very flavourful dish, gravy is very good to dip with bread. |
Madame is a great cook and hostess. For breakfast, she makes Coing (a kind of jelly) as a bread spread from berries harvested in the region. For dinner, she serves the regional specialities, traditional Perigord style. A little too rich for me though. For a 32 euros menu, it is very value for money, the portion was so generous that we only ordered 1 menu the next day.
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Veau with moreilles sauce. The sides are simply delicious; carrots sautéed with honey, potatoes with truffle oil, and a quiche-like egg.
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| Last tip: Get your own bedroom slippers during the cold months. The rooms' floor are not carpeted, we were literally having cold feet here. |
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