Through Our Looking Glass

We had a full day in Moissac yesterday and a 21-kilometre walk to beautiful Auvillar today. Yesterday’s highlight was touring the Saint-Pierre de Moissac Abbey and its cloister from the Romanesque period (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). The Abbey dates back to the 7th century and the cloister was completed in the year 1100. Among the 76 capitals decorating the cloister, more than half of them depict episodes of the Bible or the saint’s lives and the rest are decorative. The…

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No wonder Lauzerte is listed among the most beautiful villages of France! It is a medieval village founded in 1241 perched on a hilltop with panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. The Main Street is lined with merchants’ houses dating from the 13th and 14th century. Old stone and timber-framed houses are adorned with metal art and flowers. Because it was market day, the central square was buzzing.  It was interesting to know that the ages of the buildings can…

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We woke  up to the smell of coffee at  6:30 AM at “The Nest of Angels” in Lascabanes. The smell of coffee sure beats an alarm clock! Birds were waking up with the sun by the time we headed out the door an hour later. Once again it was a perfect hiking temperature – cool with a mix of cloud and clear skies. I was hoping the clothes I had pinned to my backpack would dry before noon but within a half…

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Jacques at Le Deuxieme Soufflé took very good care of us this morning, making sure we knew the route out of Cahors. He assured us that the steepest hill would be at the start when leaving the city and that the rest of the day would be bearable. It was!  The cool 19C temperature certainly helped. There was much more cloud cover than in recent days but a weak sun peaked through in the morning now and then. It looked…

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Yesterday morning couldn’t have been better! We left Saint Cirq Lapopie heading for Accambal, a distance of 22 kilometres. It was beautiful, peaceful, and cool  walking alongside the meandering Lot River where massive cliffs hung overhead. We stopped to watch while a lock was opened to allow the passage of a boat. The trail lead through the well-equipped village of Bouzies where we ordered sandwiches to eat along the way, and then continued along beautiful country roads with little elevation change….

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After a night of sheet lightning, potential power outages, and heavy rain, we had no idea what to expect today weather wise, but we woke up to nothing more dramatic than light fog. It cleared as soon as we reached the Grotte de Pech Merle and then the sun came out. Richard (our host) drove us up there so we wouldn’t have to tackle a steep, one kilometre climb first thing this morning.  The Grotte de Pech Merle is one…

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A couple of times today we felt a twinge of regret that we hadn’t taken the high route above the cliffs overlooking the valley. Instead, we took quiet country “D” roads all the way from Marcilhac to Cabrerets. We were satisfied with our decision later when we heard from our host, Richard, about the ups and downs that make 19 kilometres seem like 29, especially on a hot day like this. There weren’t many cars, the terrain was flat, the…

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The Camino provided! Our plans to walk the rest of the Cele Valley variant were questionable last night. The only form of payment generally accepted in these small villages is cash and we were running out. The closest bank machine is in Saint-Cirq-Lapopie and we wouldn’t get there for two days. We expressed our concerns to our lovely hosts, Fabienne et Patrick, at Celezen last night. This morning Patrick kindly offered to drive us to the nearest bank machine ten kilometres…

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It was such a pleasure sharing the bottom floor of our little cottage in Beduer with Floriane and Florise (Flo and Flo)  yesterday. Floriane is from Mauritius in the Indian Ocean and Florise is from Melbourne, Australia. We were able to carry on an easy and enjoyable conversation in English without working out the French translation for a change. Floriane is a survivor after having a serious health scare five years ago. She feels strongly that positivity and exercise are keys…

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Today Dave found another place he would like to live. On Day 9 it was Estaing and now it’s the picturesque village of Faycelles that clings to a cliff, has unique architecture, and a population of only 680. Maybe there’s room for two more?  We went through Faycelles this afternoon but we began the day in Saint-Felix thinking of walking 21 km without spending any time in Figeac. People we’ve spoken with along the way said it would be a…

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