Limeuil is at the confluence of two rivers: the well-known Dordogne and the smaller Vezere (wish I could do French accents!). Both rivers were important transport routes in the past. Hence those drunken boatmen who were dragged up the hill to la Maison de la Justice to face the consequences of their revelries. (I think of this every time I venture into the cave under the house to do battle with the washing machine. This cellar was the lock-up.) Tomorrow, we will be investigating the Vezere from the water (hiring a double kayak for a 2-hour trip).
Yesterday, though, we explored above and below ground.
The Vezere is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its numerous prehistoric caves. There was a flurry of activity in the area after discoveries of cave painting and humanoid remains in the 19th century. The best-known cave system, Lascaux, was closed in the 1960s after they realised the thousands of tourists passing through had brought in bacteria that threatened the 17,000 year old paintings. Lascaux II is an exact, hugely popular reproduction of the original cave. People book tickets months in advance or queue early on the day to get in. Organised people, that is...
We always prefer the road 'less travelled by' so first stop was in the little hamlet of St Cirq. Five of us crammed into the small cave to listen to a 30 minute explanation of the cave drawings. We got the gist. This cave contains one of only two prehistoric drawings in France of a human figure: 'Le Sorcier', a very well-endowed chappie of some spiritual significance.
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| la Madeleine |
Both the Vezere and Dordogne rivers meander in great loops throughout the countryside. The French call these meanderings 'les cingles'. One consequence of this randomness is not knowing which side of the river you're on at any time...I THINK we may have crossed the river to visit la Madeleine, our next stop.
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| the river from medieval vill | age |
Another pleasingly quiet spot up in the cliffs above the river,
Abri de la Madeleine is the site of both prehistoric and medieval villages. With a good English language booklet, we were able to meander happily, building up an appetite for lunch.
The impossibly pretty village of
St Leon sur Vezere was our lunch destination. Some intense research on my part (reading the guestbook recommendations as well as the hosts' own suggestions) had revealed that most visitors to this region take a gourmet's interest in what they eat. All of the suggested restaurants would be very popular, they warn, and must be booked days or weeks in advance. Peasants at heart, we bowled up to the
Auberge du Pont and enjoyed hearty peasant fare from the
menu de jour (15 Euros each).
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| St Leon sur Vezere |
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That just left the biggest and most impressive
village troglodytique:
Roque St Christophe. This is massive! Over 1km of caves have been carved out of the limestone bluffs above the river, over 5 levels, providing shelter to man since prehistoric times - or,as the advertising claims, for 55,000 years. Certainly during medieval times, from around 900AD, it had been a fully-functioning fortified city. With some ingenious use of machinery to lift and pull loads, as well as to eject unwanted intruders, this was a much-prized piece of real estate. So much so that said intruders, especially the English, were a regular nuisance. As they were throughout much of France during the 100 years War. Apparently, there was a successful English attack in 1401 - by starving the inhabitants out - but they managed to hold it for only 5 years.
Coincidentally, France is under attack again: Bradley Wiggins seems to have an unassailable lead on the Tour de France, and David Miller today was the fourth Brit to win a stage of the 2012 Tour. Vive les Anglais!
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| The view from the fortified city |
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