Chateau de Commarque

One of our favourite authors is Martin Walker who lives for part of each year here in the Perigord region. Amongst many other things, Martin writes a series of policiers with the central character a local policeman called Bruno. We love the way that Martin incorporates the food, wine and culture of this region into each of his books. Each is based on a feature of the local history, whether it’s prehistoric cave art, the resistance during WW11 or the wine industry.  His latest book is called The Templar’s Last Secret and talks about the Chateau de Commarque , so we decided we should visit this site since it’s not so far away.

On a very hot Sunday, we drove deep into the countryside in search of the ruins of this chateau. The area is forested and the roads just one lane wide and in poor condition. Luckily there are signposts or we would never have found it.


A group of car enthusiasts had the same idea, judging by what was in the carpark huddled in the shade of the trees.

We had taken Lily with us for a bit of exercise and culture and she does love exploring new places.

Lily not looking entirely happy with the idea of a walk on a hot day

the path disappearing into the forest and no sign of the chateau yet

It was a 600 metre walk downhill through the forest to the base of the chateau. Apparently, when the chateau was inhabited, the  valley floor was 20 metres lower than it is today, so the surrounding countryside would have looked very different.

the forests here are delightfully cool and lush 

you'd never know it was almost 40 degrees in the sunshine

and here we are !

Now there is simply a small stream wandering through meadows with a few cows. The base of the cliff opposite is a complex of abandoned troglodyte caves which would have been high above the valley  when this was a thriving community.

you can see what would have been cave openings
when the valley floor was much lower

There is evidence that man has lived in the Perigord region for 100,000 years so it has always been considered a desirable address. Beneath the chateau is an example of cave art said to be 15,000 years old. Who knows how long people have lived in the caves, but this fortress was built during the twelfth century . 

a view of the neighbour

the original gateway into the fortress

the great hall as it would have been...

...and as it is now

an original door...

...and it's replacement  

in the Dordogne this is called a chabanos.
It could have been used as a shepherd's hut,
a toolshed, a henhouse, anything

   

another view of the neighbouring chateau from the guardhouse

The neighbouring chateau is privately owned and not open to the public and I wasn't able to find any information on it's history. The Dordogne region is known as " the land of 1000 chateaux" and I'm sure there is even more than that . It is always a surprise in winter when the trees have dropped their leaves to be driving along and discover a chateau that was hidden from view during the summer. This area is known as Perigord Noir (black) because of the lush, dark holm oak forests, as you can see.

 There are so many fascinating places to visit in this country and we haven't scratched the surface yet.

After la canicule ( heatwave) of the past couple of weeks, we now have cooler stormy weather. So, so pleased for the change and the garden is grateful for the rain.

J'espère vous voir bientôt

It's been the hottest June in recent years, so where did we go ?

We had the opportunity to catch up with daughter for a few days  during her holiday in Europe. Madrid seemed to be the most convenient option, so off we went. Unfortunately, this happened to be one of the hottest weeks in June in recent history and the temperature hit 40 degrees. Luckily our apartment had airconditioning, otherwise we would never have slept. And those double decker tourist buses are a wonder for getting around when it’s too hot to walk far.

Sunday morning there is a big flea market at El Rastro just around the corner from our apartment so that's where we started our visit. A few smaller lanes of old bits and pieces, an amazing shop full to the roof with old luggage, and then a long tree-lined street of clothes, hats, fans, hammocks, and the usual market offerings. It felt as though everyone in Madrid was there for their sunday morning entertainment.

this is the place for collectors of vintage luggage

dressing up

playing musical glasses

a hammock chair ?

don't know who this "Topo" is 

Jingle Django having lots of fun

this is a vet come coffee shop - a novel idea

The queue at the Prado wasn’t too long so we were able to enjoy a morning of browsing indoors.  The Parque del Retiro was an oasis of shade and peace in the centre of the city. The crystal palace with it’s little lake and waterfall is a surprise , and we enjoyed lunch at a café under the trees. The boating lake was abuzz with row boats and there were musicians entertaining those strolling about enjoying their afternoon in the park.

the crystal palace in Parque del Retiro

a mischievous sculpture

messing about on boats on a sunday afternoon
in the centre of the city

The Palacio Real has some of the most amazing decoration I’ve ever seen. Quite often in these places the fabrics are showing  their age and a bit dusty, but here everything was immaculate. The fabrics on the walls, the gilding, the painted ceilings, and the glass chandeliers were magnificent.  Unfortunately, photos were not allowed.

the Palacio Real 

Archbishop's palace facing the royal palace

We wandered the streets of the Salamanca district , the most expensive area of town, with it’s smart shops and restaurants. Can recommend lunch at Ornella with it’s  wall of greenery.

http://www.ornellamadrid.com/

Ornella

unusual sight outside one of the hotels in Salamanca

We watched the buskers and performance artists entertaining crowds of locals and tourists at Plaza Puerta del Sol in the evening. We tasted the hot chocolate and churros at Chocolateria San Ginés  where they’ve been making chocolate since 1894. 

the chocolate was so thick the churros
could have stood up on their own

We jostled our way through the crowds in the Mercado de San Miguel along with the other tourists busy taking photos. This is supposed to be a food market but there were more bars than food stalls , but we did try the jamon.  

Paella Negra - no we didn't try it

the land of ham 

we did try some of these

And of course we tried the local tapas, though personally , I prefer the pintxos in San Sebastian.

There are many beautiful buildings .......

in Plaza Mayor

a message from the city

And some examples of how to personalise your garage door.....

don't bother with a street number -
just tell people it's the house painted like a shawl !

Casa Hernanz has been selling espadrilles since 1840,
and there is a queue all day long

Glad to be back home where the temperature has dropped to a more reasonable 30 degrees and we are expecting rain this week. 

Una buena semana para todos