We really don't have any concept of European history when you live in Australia or New Zealand. You've seen pictures of medieval castles. Hey we've seen the Harry Potter Films! But it is another experience altogether to actually walk on the cobbled streets of a medieval village and the ramparts of these immense structures. On J& J's recommendation, we were originally on our way to the Roman walled town of Sarlat about 50minutes from Bergerac. But we were distracted by the sight of Bayac castle clinging to the mountainside above the Dordogne river.
We couldn't resist taking a peep. And we lost all sense of time as we investigated every square inch. How on earth they built this structure with the engineering skills of the time is beyond us. Lots of blood sweat and tears I guess. Why Bayac castle is still standing is a testament to their skills, but also to its dramatic siting. Bayac Castle is double walled with a cliff face on 2 sides. The Baron of Perigueux, who was the master of the castle must have been a very wealthy fellow. I'm sure he would've have taken tolls from the river trade below, but remain inpenetrable to invasion. Good gig!!
We never made it to Sarlat. We were distracted by a delicious offering of Creme Brulee in a local restaurant. Well it would have been positively rude not to accept!! As we tapped our spoons on the crisp burnt caramel topping we were reminded of our good friends Steve & Lea (Lea is the Wanaka Creme Brulee Queen) and sent a mental toast to them enjoying the summer in Wanaka.
Returning to J&J's we were included in one of their many fun outings...Scottish Dancing. Graeme and I have never done Scottish Dancing and we were somewhat nervous about what to expect. Well we need not worry. The big crowd of expat Scots and other Brits at a local French hall made us feel very welcome. They were extraordinarily patient as we stepped on their feet, turned the wrong way and generally caused mayhem and chaos to their scripted routines. They even were gracious enough to feed us a delicious potluck meal after the first round of dancing. Tragically even after a couple of glasses of red, our dancing had not improved significantly!!
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