The Events of Saturday, April 23, 2011

                The adventures of our day began as we drove along a wonderfully curvy mountainous road through amazingly green hills. Our plan was to see the gorgeous French countryside along anything but toll roads on our way to see three of the most beautiful little mountainous French villages. There is a federation, of more than 150 villages scattered all over France, each of which has had to fulfill certain obligations (population less than 2000, quality of buildings, setting, heritage, etc.) in order to join the ‘Most Beautiful Villages’ association”. The Lot (the area of France we want to explore) proudly claims five of these, and we chose to visit the three in the Dordogne valley: Carennac, Loubressac and Autoire.

                Through the trees, we saw a big gray bridge – the tollway. We felt somewhat high-and-mighty not paying to drive on a highway, and we were enjoying such picturesque scenery too! The greenery was such a bright green, so lush and lovely, because of the overcast gray sky. A while ago, in Yosemite National Park, I took a photography class with Dad and learned that green is the opposite of gray. So when those two colors are next to each other, they each make the other stand out more. The gray sky makes the green trees look greener, and the green trees make the gray sky look grayer.

                On our way through the town of Cras, we saw three young horseback riders, butter-yellow cows out at pasture, irresistible irises and lovely lilacs. The French town of Saint-Sauveur-la-Vallée had quaint French flags and wistful wisteria.

                Upon entering Labastide-Murat, we saw an RV, and then a bakery with a line out the door. Having a need of bread, we stopped and followed suit, sending our French ambassador Lindsey in with our treasurer Daddy to make a purchase. While we waited out in the car, Mom spotted three RVs all at the same time, quite a surprise for Europe, especially in rural France!

                Next, we drove through Goudou and saw wisteria growing on a pine tree, only the pine was not visible, so it looked like a gigantic wisteria Christmas tree. Driving past about fifty black-and-white speckled ducks in a field and twenty or so sheep grazing nearby, we discussed the upcoming royal wedding and our upcoming travel plans. After a drive-through of the town of Rigalou, we saw a brown hawk fly away from the road. Le Bastit’s beautiful horses somehow got us on the subject of discussing the planets, the cosmos, and the universe.

                Deeply involved in discussion, we next missed a turn, but then we saw a pretty house, turned ‘round, and then went the right way, all in the French town of Gramat.

                Not too soon afterwards, Mom yelled, “STOP!” and Daddy slammed on the brakes. Mom pointed to a tree and said, “Look how that tree splits right in the middle of the trunk and then comes together again before sprouting branches. Isn’t that fascinating?” Daddy looked at her and sighed, and then we cracked up. “I want this outing to be educational!” Mom exclaimed giddily. When we had recovered a bit, Daddy drove on, and we looked back at the tree to see that it was actually two trees, a live one and a dead one, and the angle had hidden the second, dead tree. As we doubled over laughing, Mom, with tears streaming down her face, said, “Good thing I’m not driving! I can’t see!” to which Dad lovingly and laughingly replied, “That’s one of many reasons you’re not driving!”

                As we continued our drive, the town of Thégra was rather uneventful, and Dréle, La Pujade, Gaule, Forges, La Remise, Giral Bas, Lardois, Bournazel, Miers, Les Tannettes, and Pech d’Alon followed suit. Soon, we arrived in Carrenac. Following signs to the Tourist Information Office, we accidentally left the town – it was that small! Returning and parking by a stone wall, we found that we were conveniently at a very scenic picnic spot. After lunching while sitting on several wooden benches overlooking a river, we wandered down to the WC near the river.

                Exploring the riverside, we encountered a few shiny-feathered ducks and a huge orange and black speckled fish; we crept closer to the water’s edge. It was here that I found a huge snail! It was at least two inches in diameter, and its shell was creamy tan. No wonder escargot is such a specialty here in France; French snails actually have some substance to them! Mustering all my courage, I picked it up for a picture, and then Ben took a turn posing as if he were about to eat it. Eventually, we put the poor thing back down and hiked back up to the town, away from the river, towards a quaint bridge we had twice driven over and wanted to further investigate.

                On the way, Lindsey’s ankle (the one she sprained in Spain) began to bother her, so we found a stone wall, and wrapped her ankle, which was very difficult. We had to hold onto her so that she wouldn’t fall off, in addition to holding up her leg for her for Mom to wrap. It was all very humorous, but, in time, we got the job done. We explored the bridge, which was really a delight because of the flower pots of pansies on either side, before wandering through more of the town and back to our car, just as it began to rain.

                Driving on to Loubressac, we drove along the lazy Lot river, went through the towns of Gintrac and Granou, and again through Lepoujade, before we arrived and parked. We strolled through the town and marveled at the beautiful views, which were exceptional from one particular stone bench. Walking back, we drove on to Autoire.

                Along the way, we saw many cows and calves out at pasture, and discussed the emerging fad of jumpsuits, of which we heartily disapprove. Autoire had a quaint fountain, a lovely old church, a view of the river, and a free wine-tasting for Daddy. Soon, it was time to go home, so we took a vote: tollway or scenic route? It was unanimous; all of us wanted more green scenery and winding roads.

                On the way, we discussed drunk driving and missed a turn just outside of the tiny French town of Marinhac-letour. Our Gypsy saved the day, but took us basically the same way we had come, so, instead of seeing new scenery, we saw the same scenery a second time. On the way home, we stopped for groceries at E.Leclerc, where we each bought a little something sweet and special for tomorrow, Easter Sunday.

                At home, we used our gite’s oven (which was not cleaned very well) to heat up some frozen pizzas for dinner. It filled the house with nasty-smelling smoke, so we opened all the windows and doors and dispersed lilac bunches everywhere to scent the fresh air. After dinner, we read about the posting of the guards at Jesus’ tomb in the Gospel of Matthew before heading to bed.