Explorations in the valley

The past couple of days have been somewhat busier than the rest of the week, which has been nice. Thursday we went to the market in Libos, about 20 minutes away. It was your typical French village weekly market, with everything ranging from farm-fresh produce, meats, cheeses, breads and pastries, huge batches of chickens turning on rotisseries, stands for paella, crepes and waffles, new and second-hand clothing, flowers, jewelry...you name it. There were even a couple of vendors selling live animals, from cages of baby chicks to the odd kitten, pig or goat. We shopped for about an hour, buying produce, some new flowers to plant at the Baran, and a delicious roast chicken and potatoes, which we devoured as soon as we got home. We also tore into the loaf of "cornbread" we'd bought--I put quotes around it because it is completely different that what we think of as cornbread at home. It's not sweet at all, but basically like a regular loaf of French bread with a mild corn flavor and nuts inside. Still very yummy.

Yesterday we drove the 45 minutes or so to Monpazier, a "bastide," or fortified town, built by the English in the 14th century. Today, it is one of the most well-preserved bastides in the area, and the quaint village attracts many tourists. I've included a map below to give you an idea of where these places are. The blue star furthest to the right represents the Baran, lodged between Duravel and Puy-L'Eveque. The purple line right below is the Lot river, and you reach Libos by following the river west. Monpazier is the star way to the northwest.

We originally went to Monpazier to have some paintings framed. Since William and Rosalie built their artists' studio last May, they have been starting to accumulate a small gallery on the wall. Artists leave their works here with a desired price, and William and Rosalie frame them, hang them up and sell them to other guests for a fee. There are some beautiful scenes from the surrounding countryside, so guests looking for a souvenir of the region can buy paintings that would sell for quite a bit more in a US gallery. So, we had to visit the frame shop. We went through a dozen or so paintings, with Rosalie and I picking out frames for each one and Monsieur and William running the numbers. It's always interesting to watch the back and forth in situations with the locals, as Rosalie speaks very little French, leaving the task of translating to William (whose mother is French), and lately, to me. But eventually we got all the particulars figured out, so we set out to explore the village.



We got sidetracked by a clock shop full of eighteenth and nineteenth century clocks, from alarm clocks to wall clocks to grandfather clocks. We chatted for a little while with Monsieur l'horloger (watchmaker), who was in the process of repairing an antique clock. Rosalie inquired as to the prices of various pieces, since she's been looking for a large wall clock for the studio and she loves antiques. Promising to return at a later date, we left Monsieur to his repairs and picked a restaurant in the square for lunch.

After our simple meal, which included du potage (vegetable soup), roast chicken with mushrooms, and the best chocolate mousse I have ever tasted, we continued our walk around Monpazier. We stopped inside the ancient village church, where a theramin player began playing the Ave Maria. Very haunting. We also poked around inside several shops, looking at jewelry, furniture and antiques. I bought a shameful amount of dried fruit (a mix of bananas, strawberries, peaches, pears and apricots--yum) and, on the advice of William and Rosalie, some honey-scented "donkey soap," or soap made with donkey milk. William swore by it, saying "Donkey soap will get you your man." Apparently it has worked wonders for their daughter. In a shop on the main square, we also ran into the large fake life-sized sheep pictured here. Tempting buy, isn't it? However, it was a tad pricey and might have confused the dog. But later on I was seriously tempted to buy a beautiful light blue art deco alarm clock I found in the antique store; alas, it was 80 euros and needed repair to get it working. I'm still thinking about it.

Today we stayed put, as we had some work to finish up. Together, Rosalie and I finished making up the remaining rooms. As she continued with some gardening work, she put me to task "dead-heading," or snipping out any dead flowers or leaves out of all the potted plants. Peaceful work, but considering the vast amount of potted plants on the property, somewhat time-consuming. But at last, I am finished. The evening promises reading, Tarot and a home-cooked meal. Not a bad way to pass the time.