Day 5, Thursday May 8, 2014
Today we left Chinon and headed to the town of Sarlat. On the way we stopped for lunch in the small village of Mortemart. We then made a stop at the sombering Oradour sur Glane World War II Memorial. Once we reach Sarlat we had a short orientation walk and a group dinner.
Mortemart was indeed a small village. We had lunch under an outdoor pavilion that came with a handy fountain to wash our fruit and vegetables. Below are some pictures of the buildings in the village.
Mortemart was indeed a small village. We had lunch under an outdoor pavilion that came with a handy fountain to wash our fruit and vegetables. Below are some pictures of the buildings in the village.
Our next stop was the World War II Memorial at Oradour sur Glane known as the Village des Martyrs. On June 10, 1944, Nazi troops rounded up the entire population of 642 people (200 where children). The women and children were tear-gassed and shot in the local church. The men were rounded up and executed. The town was then burned to the ground. The reason for all this is still not clear today. The town was left untouched for about 70 years on order of President Charles de Gaulle. Below are some somber reminders of that day. Today there is one word that greets every visiter: Remember.
After our visit to Oradour sur Glane we headed to Sarlat for an orientation walk and a group dinner. Here are some pictures of the highlights below.
Day 6, Friday May 9, 2014
Today we took a side trip from Sarlat to visit the prehistoric cave of Rouffignac. After that the plan was to canoe the Dordogne River and then return to Sarlat.
The first stop of the day was the cave of Rouffignac. The cave was known to the locals going back to the 18th century, but the 13,000 year old paintings were only discovered in 1956. In the cave you will find images of woolly mammoths, rhinoceroses, horses and mountain goats. You also see crater-like burrows made by hibernating bears made long before the first humans painted in the cave. Pictures were not allowed in the cave so I only have a picture of the entrance below.
The first stop of the day was the cave of Rouffignac. The cave was known to the locals going back to the 18th century, but the 13,000 year old paintings were only discovered in 1956. In the cave you will find images of woolly mammoths, rhinoceroses, horses and mountain goats. You also see crater-like burrows made by hibernating bears made long before the first humans painted in the cave. Pictures were not allowed in the cave so I only have a picture of the entrance below.
Our next stop of the day was supposed to be a Dordogne River canoe trip. However it had been raining so we took a covered boat trip from Beynac to Castelnaud and back. We were disappointed that we didn't get to do the canoe trip!
After our boat trip, we had some free time to explore the feudal village of Beynac. Here are a few pictures below.
Surprise!! Rolinka had a surprise for us after our free time exploring Beynac. The rain had stopped and Rolinka asked if anyone still wanted to do the canoe trip. About ten of us said, yes of course, so Rolinka went out of her way and guided us down the Dordogne River. We were not disappointed. Thanks Rolinka! Here are some pictures highlighting the canoe trip.
After the canoe trip, we headed back to Sarlat for a free evening and dinner on our own. Below are some pictures of Sarlat taken of dinner (dessert).
Day 7, Saturday May 10, 2014
Today is Saturday and market day in Sarlat. This was a free day to explore Sarlat on our own and pick out our lunch for tomorrow's barge ride on the Canal de Midi.
Tomorrow we ride a barge on the Canal du Midi on our way to Medieval Carcassonne.