More of the Dordogne area

We knew today would be a long day, and we promised the kids that tomorrow we could sleep in and have a "home" day.

Left the house at 8:15 am and headed to the town called Montpazier, listed as one of the most beautiful villages, where they have a morning market in the medieval square.... they have had markets in that very spot since the beginning of time so it was cool to see the covered area, with the old beams and archways.  What more can I say about the markets in France?  They are so lively and interesting!  Rodger bought a few different olives (bleh) and of course we bought our typical market lunch of baguettes, cheese and sausage to enjoy at the picnic tables at the edge of the pretty village.

Cozy little sitting area... they have no yard but they make do, right by their front door for all to see,.

Next stop was Sarlet, which has been on my list of places to visit since we started planning our time in Bordeaux.  I had been looking forward to seeing it for such a long time.  And it was beautiful!  Again, very lively and loaded with people, shops and market stalls, street performers, cobblestone streets... the architecture was really interesting, and there were some cool walkways and narrow, dark alleys wherever you looked.  We had some ice cream and wandered for a bit, then all of a sudden I was just "done"..... let's go! There's only so many medieval villages to ooh and ahh over, so much of the crowded street scenes you can see before you say "been there, done that."  The question is, if you don't make the effort and go to these places on your list that you've dreamed of for so long, will you regret it later?  Maybe.  Maybe not.

I want to eat here... in this quaint little alley

The real highlight of the day was going to the evening dinner market in Issigeac.  They set up tables in the centre of the village and there are several vendors selling hot food, and bottles of wine that they uncork for you, desserts, etc.  So much fun!!  We gave the kids money and said, go get us a bunch of things to try and we will share.... we ate escargot!!  And mussels, crepes, spring rolls, samosas, tempura, fries.... and I drank a bottle of wine.  As it got darker the lights came on and the live music kept playing,... some people were dancing.  A really lively, friendly atmosphere.  (An older Dutch woman sat next to me and talked my ear off... she was a bit different, some of her stories were strange... oh well... they live here for 8 months of the year and go back to Holland once in awhile to see their family and check on their house.)

Got home at midnight.... a very long day.  But a good one.  Looking forward to a sleep-in day tomorrow.