Bergerac

Wearing freshly laundered clothes I set out from the hotel for the Notre Dame Square and the Wednesday markets. Bought some delicious fresh strawberries and a few apples which I later enjoyed while walking alongside the Dordogne River. The market had lots of fresh produce and flowers. Some stalls were quite large and others were quite small, having maybe just a few boxes of asparagus and a few potatoes, grown on a local farm.
I wandered in the old town for a while, which had a few interesting part-timbered buildings I hadn't seen in the south of France before. Then I took off for a walk along the Dordogne River. Gorgeous sunny day, maybe about 21C or so and just the slightest of breezes. My walk took me past some rowers, then a military area, then a dam. Then it all became narrower and reminded me a little of the Bridle Track in PN, just narrower. But instead of a golf course beside me, I was passing fields of crops, then some very flash houses which may have been for holidays. I wondered if the Stronges filled such a place! It seemed like the track might be one of these old European tracks that have been in use for centuries. But maybe that was fond imagination! I followed the track until a man ahead of me left it with his three gorgeous dogs: it seemed a bit unpeopled after that for my safety. So I returned to town. And bought train tickets for tomorrow for Sarlat (aller et retour) then Cahors on Friday. Heaps more to see in this region but you really need a vehicle. Next week will head to Orleans and may have a bike purchased before too long!