Weekend Get-A-Way

We took advantage of Kevin's weekend off from rugby and made our way North through the center of the Dordogne region. We had lunch in Sarlat-la-Caneda on Saturday, spent the night in Beynac-et-Cazenac, and visited the Chateau de Castelnaud before heading home.

Sunflower farms are numerous throughout the entire region and it makes for a pleasant drive. We planned on staying the entire weekend in Sarlat, but we realized we weren't the only ones with this idea. The extended French holiday kicked off this weekend and we found ourselves in a very popular destination. The narrow streets were packed with vendors and visitors from all around the world. Apparently it is beautiful at night with gas lamps that light the streets, theatre festivals and international music.

 

 

We had lunch in the park and walked through the massive market for a couple hours, but we decided to escape to a small village we had passed along the way - Beynac-et-Cazernac. It's a tiny village along the Dordogne river and its single street winds up to the Chateau of Beynac at the peak.

The steep walk to the Chateau was breathtaking. This 12th century construction is perched on a limestone cliff and has a dominating presence along the river. It's fascinating to hear the history of this region, with the ownership of the Chateau changing hands numerous times throughout the Hundred Years War.
 
 

   

Enjoyed a great dinner of duck and trout before settling in for the night. We were so happy to find a last minute hotel room in this peaceful town of 500 residents, not to mention one that opened up to a huge balcony and overlooked the river!

Before wrapping up this long post, we visited the Chateau de Castlenaud on Sunday. This medieval fortress was erected to face it's rival, the Chateau-de-Beynac where we stayed the night before. During the 100 Years War, Beynac and Castlenaud were fierce local rivalries.