Villages of France

After a visit to the dentist – the Fox’s check-up this time – we went along to the golf club. He needed to satisfy his urge to muck up his teeth again after that visit.

While we waited for our sandwiches to arrive, my eyes landed on a book entitled “Villages of France”. (The club often has coffee mornings to raise money for charities – this year it’s in aid of Dementia - & clearly some items were already arriving for the event.) As all my regular readers must have realised by now, we love France & like to visit most years.

We decided to have a look at the pictures, and it was essentially a photography book by a well-known British landscape photographer. We were curious as to whether we had visited any of the villages illustrated & to see if any of the pictures inspired us for our next French destination.

Sure enough the cover & inside the book was a place we stayed just outside of only a few years ago. Inside the book we found another familiar village we had visited further back.

After a while we were also struck by how similar the pictures were & rather drab. They certainly wouldn’t inspire us to visit. What was more there was no sign of life. Not a person or animal strolled the streets or sat in a doorway. There wasn't even a car or van around. Nothing to indicate life & a place lived in. On the whole we were happier with the pictures we had taken. With this is mind I thought I’d dig up some for this blog.

So first is Semur-en-Auxois in Burgundy, a place I would have called a town rather than a village.

Porte Sauvigny, Semur

Semur-en-Auxois

Tour de l'Orle-d'Or, Semur

Pont Joly, Semur

Next is the other village, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie in Lot. This village was absolutely teeming with tourists when we were there. It is impossible to think of it without them.

St-Cirq-Lapopie above the River Lot

Looking down on the mediaeval village of La Popie

The steep slope between the two up & down which the Fox  pushed me

 

It’s certainly not a book we will be buying. We have a suspicion it was probably a present for another Francophile who equally felt disappointed & hastily donated it to charity.