So we planned to visit Beynac Castle today, Phil’s favorite, and one of the huge English castles built during the Hundred Years’ War (which I’ve been told effectively lasted about 300 years). It’s further east on a big bluff overlooking the Dordogne, across from Castlenau, I think. The problem is that, while they told Martin it would be at least 48 hours before he’d be able to get his suitcase back, they phoned this morning about 8:00 and said it would be delivered to our house between noon and 4:00 p.m. This would be nice since it would mean I don’t have to drive again to Bordeaux to pick it up, HOWEVER, it is now 3:22 p.m. local time and they aren’t here yet, and we can’t leave to go sightseeing until they get here. Bienvenue en France; Welcome to France.
The good news is that the people across the street, M. et Mme. Fernand Roy, have left, at least for the weekend. They live in the old Boulangerie (bakery), a trapezoid shaped building built, like everything else around here, into the hill. The garden directly in front of ours, down some steps, is theirs. She’s an absolute card-carrying pill or harridan or whatever; he’s clearly henpecked. Well, they have two cars, AND they have a garage, but they never put one of the cars in the garage when they are here, as that’s where he does all his “projects”. There are two parking places on the road between us, one of which should be ours, but they use both of them, so we have to park down the road on the bluff. It’s a pain.
If there’s a place open when we return from something, and we park in it, as soon as we leave again they will move their car out of the garage and occupy the space. Jeannette Dumas has watched them do this several times, and says it looks like a slap-stick comedy on TV. But when I went down this morning, the gate to the garden (which is fenced in with bamboo sticks and wire, and about 2’ high) was padlocked (an old twisted coat hanger, an ancient heavy, rusted metal chain, and a padlock—hey, even with my bad hips and bad knees, I could step over and into the garden if I wanted); the house was shuttered; the dog wasn’t yapping; the garage door was closed, and there were no cars around. Which means they are out of town, at least for the weekend. I hope it’s a three week holiday, so they won’t get back before we leave.
Later…So they were supposed to deliver Martin’s suitcase between noon and 4:00 p.m. This being France, it arrived about 4:45, and I guess we should be grateful it made it at all. Then P and Martin decided we had to go to Beynac Castle NOW; it’s almost an hour drive, and the castle closes at 6:30. So we took off rapidly with zero prep, and did visit Beynac. It is great, and I made P park up on the top of the mountain so we could go straight in, rather than climbing up all those cobblestones. I took my cane; it helps going up stairs and there are lots of them in that castle, and people tend to give you a wide berth. Richard the LionHeart was the baron of this castle for 10 years, 1189-1199, I think. It was on the English side most of the time during the Hundred Years’ War. Across the Dordogne is Castlenaud and a couple of other ones. It’s a great view from Beynac. If you can minimize the steps…
Am having a lot of trouble with these photos. I may just post a couple of pages with nothing but photos...
Lillie
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