Girls' Road Trip - Bergerac, France 12th-27th of June, 2026

The heat is on!

Earlier in the week, today was set to be the hottest, but this has now changed to Monday and Tuesday. I had a look at things to do inside, where it would be cooler, but couldn't find any interesting galleries or museums locally. I had a look at the free map that I'd found at the tourism office in Monpazier, and saw a chateau that looked interesting - the Chateau de Hautefort, about an hour away by car, and reachable on the A89. I honestly don't think we can be cooped up at the house from Sunday until Thursday, pleasant though it is to read and laze about all day!

We enjoyed granola and yoghurt for breakfast outside and made sure we called Keith to wish him Happy Father's Day and to see if he was OK. He said it was warm as well in the UK, and that he had seen the cats, so that was a relief. Milo is also about, and taking advantage of the water that Keith puts down in the garden.

We spent the day lolling by the pool, floating about in its azure depths (it doesn't have a deep end, which I quite like) and reading. I was heartily glad we'd bought so many books with us! The sky overhead was a white-hot dome, and nothing moved, just the odd insect buzzing about. We finished off the paté we'd opened yesterday for lunch, and I toasted some bread to go with it. We discovered a jar of sweet cornichons in the supermarket, and they're delicious with the paté.

By about 3:00pm, we'd had enough and ventured inside to the cool of the house. Of course, today is the Summer Solstice, and we wondered whether we'd hear any music later. We have Alexa playing in the house and by the pool in a shady spot, so we have our own music festival - the Spanish Summer playlist!

After showers, we played cards in the house (it was too hot to play outside) and then prepared chicken burgers, salad and wedges for dinner. This was eaten outside with a glass of local wine made from Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. We didn't hear anything, not even a hint of music, so perhaps our local village is too small to put on such an event.

We watched two more episodes of the Mormon documentary tonight, and then it was time for bed. At 10:00pm, it was still 30 °C!

Girls' Road Trip - Bergerac, France 12th-27th of June, 2026

Shocking news...

The Rachel Nickell murder documentary was definitely not a good idea, and I was awake at 12:30pm and scrolling through Facebook to help me go back to sleep. I was horrified to read there'd been a train crash on the line we regularly use to get to St Pancras, and that one person had been killed. Two trains had collided and as well as the fatality, several people were badly injured. It put me in mind of our last journey to London when we were all crammed in like sardines.

I did manage to go back to sleep and was awake before the alarm went off at 7:30am. Today, we were going to Saint-Emilion, and we were both looking forward to visiting this gorgeous and very famous wine area. When she woke up, Sophie was similarly shocked by what had happened, and we learned that the fatality was the train driver. He had been driving the Corby to St Pancras train when it had collided with the Nottingham to St Pancras train. It was terrible news.

Coffee amid the vines

We left at 9:00am again and took the A89 towards Bordeaux. The earlier shower of rain and clouds had given way to sunshine and blue skies again. The autoroute was quiet and was a pleasure to drive on; we didn't mind paying the small toll to use it! Once off the autoroute, we followed a two-lane road that wound its way through farmland and small towns. On a couple of the sections of the road, tall trees lined the route, providing beautiful shade. It was a classic French scene.

By now, rows of vines had started appearing, and we saw signs for tastings. Jeeves told me to turn left, and all of a sudden, we were in serious wine country and close to Saint-Emilion and Pomerol. We stopped by the side of the road to enjoy the flask of coffee we'd brought with us, and to call Keith. We have agreed to call him every day at 10:00am our time, to check in on him and the cats!

We had pulled up outside a chateau called La Grave Figeac, and rows of vines stretched in all directions. We drank our coffee, spoke to Keith and gazed out over the vines. The soil seemed dry and powdery, but it must be doing something good to produce wines of this calibre!

https://chateau-lagravefigeac.com/

After our coffee, we drove the short distance to Saint-Emilion and managed to park on the outskirts of the town, next to the ramparts. We were delighted to see a Maison du Vin, which sold wine from all over the region from the different chateaux. First up was a little game to play - guessing at aromas!

  

We put our noses into the tubes and then tried to guess which of the three aromas it was. Sophie did very well indeed! Perhaps she should study wine for a living!

After this, we had a delightful wander along the aisles of the shop, and we picked out three wines, one of which was a Grand Cru from 2008. The prices were more reasonable than I'd expected, and we paid 60 euros for the three bottles. These will definitely be going home with us!

Mr Sniffy

Sophie took the wine back to the car and asked Desmond* to look after it, and not drink it! We then set off to explore and stumbled upon a beautiful square with a tall bell tower overlooking it.

There was a lovely café here, with people sitting and enjoying a coffee. We had no hesitation in joining them! On the other side of the square was the upmarket Hotel de Pavie, and there was a shop selling expensive cushions and other gifts to take home. We ordered a café creme each, as well as a small bottle of sparkling water.

Saint-Emilion was busy with people visiting, and as well as being a famous wine town, it was also beautiful, with gorgeous views around every corner. We sat and enjoyed our coffee, until one of the waiters - or it may have been two? - started sniffing loudly every couple of seconds. It was most off-putting!

We paid the bill and visited the shop. Sophie saw a couple of canvas bags that she liked, but she was put off by the 80 euro price tag! Funnily enough, some of the items for sale she already had and had bought for a much lower price elsewhere!

After visiting the shop, we strolled to a viewing point and took photos of the town below us. We could see another square with restaurants, and we began to regret bringing a picnic of quiche and salad!

A friendly chat

We strolled along the streets, looking in the windows of the numerous wine shops and seeing if there was a bar where we could have a glass of wine. We just had to have a glass of Saint-Emilion while we were here. Most wine bars didn't open until 12:00pm, so we were able to wander the streets and explore for a while.

It's a wine lover's dream!

There were so many wine shops offering tastings, or a glass of wine, and we were looking at the prices of one establishment, when we gasped at the price of a 1945 Chateau Petrus... 13,300 euros. Another couple were similarly shocked, and we struck up a conversation with them. They had been exploring northern Spain with their dog and were travelling slowly home through France. The man came from the north-east and had once lived in Ferryhill, like Keith! They were lovely, and it was great to stand and chat to them for a little while and swap stories.

We carried on exploring and picked out two wine bars that looked promising. We walked down to the part of the town we'd seen earlier and had a look in a couple of shops. 

Getting back to the upper level was quite hairy as the pebbles making up the steep path were smooth and quite slippery! It was a bit like rock-climbing, and you had to search for footholds! Luckily, there were iron railings to help and cling onto!

Once back at the top, we went into an establishment, but they wouldn't serve drinks without food. We eventually chose a beautiful place with an outdoor, covered seating area. It was called Le 7 and offered platters of meats and cheeses, as well as glasses or bottles of wine, and specialised in Chateau Valandraud wines.

We were the first to arrive, and we ordered two glasses of the Virginie de Valandraud, a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru. We were a little worried when the waitress brought out the bottle and asked Sophie if she wanted to try it! However, after pouring two glasses, she returned the bottle to the bar! Phew! 

As we sat sipping our wine and enjoying the gorgeous surroundings, more and more people arrived, of all different nationalities. We looked around at what people were ordering and realised we were in the minority by drinking red wine. Saint-Emilion doesn't produce a white wine; it's all red with a mix of grapes, but it is predominantly Merlot. Why would you visit a town famous for its red wine and not drink it? It would be like going to Champagne and insisting on drinking a red wine! 

The wine measures weren't large, so we ordered another glass each, this time the Domaine des Sabines from Pomerol. Sophie really liked this wine, and I suspected it was mainly Merlot as I detected the runner bean taste when I drank it. Merlot for me equals runner beans! This was confirmed when we bought a bottle to take home, and I asked if Merlot was the major grape. The man selling us the wine said it was, and we later found out the blend is 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. The three grapes are the classic blend for Bordeaux wines.

A picnic in Pomerol

We reluctantly returned to the car and set off to find a shaded spot for our picnic. Driving out of Saint-Emilion was beautiful - acres of vineyards interspersed with shuttered chateaux built from gorgeous pale stone. The small roads were empty, and there seemed to be nobody about.

We drove around for about fifteen minutes and finally found the perfect spot, just as we entered the village of Pomerol. A large tree shaded a small car park, so we pulled up and enjoyed our lunch. We'd cooked the quiche last night and wrapped it in foil, along with a pasta salad box. We drank from a large bottle of water (it was very hot!) and then finished our picnic with Greek yoghurts. We had kept all the food cool in our insulated bag containing the frozen bottles of water. It was perfect! Sophie even found a handy loo nearby!

While we were eating, we read a display board about the writer, Gérard de Nerval. I'd never heard of him, but he sounded like an interesting individual who apparently had a pet lobster he used to take for walks! Unfortunately, he committed suicide in 1855 in Paris and in his photo, he looked a bit tortured:

I don't know why there was a display board about him, as he seemed to have no connections to Pomerol, but this would be good knowledge for University Challenge, but no doubt we'll forget all about him!

After eating, we decided to try to find Chateau Petrus nearby and then return to the house. Not one car had passed us while we were having our picnic, and the whole area was silent. Perhaps everyone was inside escaping the heat!

Jeeves gave us directions for Chateau Petrus, and it was a good job we were using the satnav as there were no signs at all for the winery, not even on the road signs which indicated other chateaux. They were closed today, but it's not the sort of place you go to for a casual tasting! I think the average price of a bottle runs into thousands of euros. We did find it, but there was no sign on the building, and the place was shuttered up. A French car had stopped outside, so they were obviously doing what we were doing! Another famous vineyard was also nearby, Chateau Cheval Blanc, but we needed to get back to the house, pick up our shopping list and visit the Super U in Mussidan.

The hunt for sun tan lotion...

We reluctantly left the gorgeous area, but I would love to go back and just drive around the vineyards again one day. We drove back to the quiet A89, and it wasn't long before we were turning off at junction 13 for Mussidan. We quickly drove to the house, and then before popping to the supermarket, we called in at the recycling bins in the village and got rid of two bags. 

At the Super U, we bought more foodstuffs for lunches and dinners, more water and some more wine to drink at the house. We looked in vain for sun tan lotion as we had hardly any left in our bottle of Factor 50. We couldn't find it anywhere, and I suspect it's only pharmacies that sell it, along with painkillers and any other kind of off-the-shelf medicine. We are spoiled in the UK, where supermarkets sell virtually everything you need.

We had no choice but to visit the pharmacy in Mussidan, but when we arrived, it was closed. As well as all the other shops in the town! It was very strange, but we could only guess it was because of the Summer Solstice when the French go crazy for the Fete de Musique!

Sophie looked on her maps app for another pharmacy, and there was one about seven miles away. We followed directions, passing through arable farmland and crossing railway tracks twice. Luckily, the large chemist in Neuvic-sur-l'Isle was open, and we could park easily outside.

However, this was no Boots with a huge range of sun creams! We were limited to a couple only, and they weren't cheap! But we had to have some as the sun has been so strong! I paid for the cream, and we returned home using one junction of the A89, which cost us 70 cents!

Back home, we unpacked and put all the food away, and then relaxed in the pool. Keith asked me to call him as he was worried about the cats and hadn't seen Mooney all day. This didn't worry us as they are always off somewhere, and if Mooney doesn't get heaps of attention, he takes umbrage and won't come home!

Tonight, we enjoyed paté and French bread for supper, and we drank the Pécharmant we'd bought in Monpazier. It was delicious and disappeared rapidly!

After eating, we watched the last half hour of the Rachel Nickell documentary, and then switched to one about Mormons in Utah. Definitely not as scary!

*Desmond is our stuffed dog who used to belong to Keith's brother, Valentine. We take him on our holidays as he lives in the car. He used to go to work with Val and had his own lanyard! We have carried on the tradition of taking him with us!

Girls' Road Trip - Bergerac, France 12th-27th of June, 2026

Visiting Monpazier, a bastide village

We set the alarm for 7:30am this morning as we had decided to make the most of the cooler temperatures today and visit the gorgeous village of Monpazier. Before we set off, we had coffee at the table outside. It was deliciously cool at this time of the day! We set off at 9:00am with a bootful of recycling, but in the village we had to separate it, so we decided to try somewhere else. In Bergerac, you can put the whole lot into a recycling container as long as it's in a yellow bag.

Jeeves directed us onto the D709 (our road) and towards Bergerac. Wherever we go, we always have a road we use all the time, and on this trip, it's the D709! We skirted Bergerac today and drove along the Dordogne River, which looked beautiful. The area along the riverbank looked worth exploring and was very pretty.

We then ventured out into the countryside, passing the airport and through the vineyards of the Montbazillac appellation, which makes a sweet white wine. Vines stretched in all directions, and numerous vineyards were offering dégustations or tastings. The roads were empty, and the route to Monpazier was lovely, passing through the medieval village of Issigeac and another bastide town, Villareal.

"The Smugs" 

It took us just over an hour to reach Monpazier, and we were able to park on the street. We discovered the meaning of bastide - it's a "fortified new medieval town", which was ahead of its time, and set out on a chequerboard grid with a central square, dating from the 13th century.

We came across the square and ordered a coffee from the friendly waiter. The café was mainly a cocktail bar and had a wide choice of drinks. I can imagine it's a great place to sit and have a drink in the evening. Two men sat next to us dressed in Lycra, and opposite was another couple, similarly attired. We had passed several cyclists on the way, so the area is obviously popular for bicycling. In fact, we discovered that Stage 8 of the 2026 Tour de France will be from Périgueux to Bergerac! That will be worth watching!

While we sipped our strong coffees, we couldn’t help overhearing a lively conversation at the next table. The British couple in Lycra were chatting with two other people about a recent house purchase. It turned out the other man had actually sold them their house, and soon the two couples were sitting at the same table and chatting.

Annabel and Giles, the Lycra pair, spoke loudly and enthusiastically about how wonderful life was. Giles had retired just two weeks earlier (as he kept telling everyone) and was still adjusting to this new period in his life. They were spending four months in France, and talked endlessly about all the changes they’d made to their house, as well as telling the other couple about their lives so far (including a spell in South Africa).

Looking back on this episode now, I think that Annabel and Giles were a little lonely and had seized on the opportunity of talking to another British couple. Giles looked a little panic-stricken at times, as if the enormity of what he'd done was finally dawning on him. I presumed he'd had a high-powered job to afford a second home in the Dordogne and to retire so early (he was probably in his mid-to-late fifties).

We finished our coffees, paid the bill and set off to explore a lovely street leading away from the square. Sophie made friends with a gorgeous little dog with a black patch on his head, and I thought he was going to follow us! Overhead, flocks of swifts wheeled about and when we went into a beautiful ceramics shop, they had little pottery ones to buy. Sophie bought one for her bedroom, as well as a gorgeous little bowl which we'll use for snacks.

Sophie and "Patch"

It was very pleasant to wander the beautiful, old streets and peer into shops. We found a lovely place selling wine, beer and local produce (including soap), and we couldn't help making some purchases! At the end of the street was another square and the restaurant that we'd earmarked for lunch. It was closed, but we were hoping it would open at 12:00pm.

Turning back towards the centre again, we walked along another parallel street and popped into a wine shop, this time selecting two local bottles, one of which was a Pécharmant, from a chateau near Bergerac. The owner was a real character!

Sophie took our purchases back to the car, and we decided to have an aperitif before lunch. We wandered around the square and down another street and found a brocante shop run by an American woman and her little dog, Bean. The shop had some lovely antiques and pottery, and we bought a bag of lavender and a card. How lovely to run a shop like this in such a beautiful place!

Bean

Next to the brocante shop was a hotel - Le Chevalier Bleu - and bar. We took our seats outside and ordered two small glasses of wine. It was heaven to sit outside and relax with a drink. What a delightful place! The woman who served us then brought out a delicious quiche for us to eat with our wine. Bliss!

We sat and chatted about France, and although we love the Dordogne, Sophie said she would still prefer to buy a place in Normandy. We do need to up our game with speaking French, though!

Lunch... at last!

We paid the bill and wandered back up to Bistrot 2, where we wanted to have lunch. Unfortunately, even though the opening hours had been advertised as 12:00pm until 1:30pm, it was still firmly closed. This was a little disappointing, so we walked back to the square to look at the choices there. There were several eateries on the edges of the square, but we didn't like any of the menus, so we walked back along a parallel street to the very end, where we found the restaurant, Privilège du Périgord. A couple of tables were set out in front of the restaurant, but when we enquired about a table, we were taken to one in the pretty, shaded courtyard.

Most of the other tables had been taken, and we detected several British accents (although the couple next to us were Australian, despite my thinking otherwise). There was a set menu for 26 euros which included a couple of starters, main courses and desserts. We ordered a carafe of rosé, a bottle of sparkling water and perused the menu. We both chose the intriguing melon gazpacho with a ham tartine to start, followed by cod for Sophie and duck for me. We also had to choose our dessert, so we opted for clafoutis, a favourite of mine.

Only one woman was serving the food, and she was calm and unhurried. We didn't mind, though! It was lovely to sit and sip our water and wine, which was salmon-coloured and looked like it hadn't been filtered, chat and do some people-watching. It had been great to relax around the pool for two days, but we do love getting out and seeing all that this area has to offer.

Our food arrived, and we tucked in. The melon gazpacho was served in a little Mason jar with a straw, with a slice of baguette, ham and tomato on the side. It had a peculiar taste and reminded me of a French shop selling candles, incense and soaps!

We had a short wait between courses, and a party of four Brits arrived. To the left of me were two older English ladies, one of whom looked familiar, so we were well-represented in this establishment! The party of four didn't seem to speak any French and made a big fuss of ordering their food from the very patient waitress!

Our main courses were served, and Sophie's cod looked beautiful. I began to wish I'd ordered that instead! My duck was good, but it was a little chewy, and the fat hadn't been rendered down enough. Having said that, the mashed potatoes it was served on, and the cherry sauce, were delicious.

We made sure we were drinking plenty of water, and we had soon emptied our bottle, so the waitress brought over another that was half full. We have learned a new word over the last couple of days: canicule, which means heatwave! We could feel the temperature rising as we sat and relaxed over lunch, and the thought of the pool and its cool water was enormously tempting!

Our desserts arrived, and they were a delicious ending to the meal, and a dish I'd like to recreate at home. The cherries still had their stones, and the custardy filling was gorgeous.

By now, the restaurant was emptying out as service was finished. We had seen two men turned away when they arrived, presumably because they were too late. We paid the bill, a very reasonable 66 euros for three courses, wine and water, and left. One of the Brits smiled at Sophie and said, "Bonsoir," even though it was only 3:00pm. At least he tried!

We walked back to the car, trying to keep to the shaded areas as much as possible. The countryside was baking in the afternoon heat, and it was lovely to get in the car, open all the windows to let the heat out (it had been parked mostly in the shade), and switch on the aircon.

Vines everywhere!

We took the same route back to the house and saw a couple cycling who looked to be in their 60s. The temperature was about 34 °C, and we both thought they were mad! There are warnings not to go out in the heat of the day, and certainly to be careful of doing anything strenuous!

We made good time back to Monbazillac, and Sophie asked me to stop so she could take some photos of the vines. I pulled onto a layby, and she snapped away.

Jeeves took us on a different route around Bergerac, and we crossed the Dordogne further up the river. Before long, we were nearing the house, and that pool was within reach! As soon as we could, we donned our swimsuits and were straight into the water to cool down! It was bliss to float about in the pool and get cool!

It was also lovely to retreat into the house a little later, relax and decide what we were going to watch on Netflix after the final Michael Jackson episode. We decided on a documentary about the Rachel Nickell murder, and while we watched the Michael Jackson documentary, we had a supper of chicken and cheese toasties. They were delicious!

Perhaps a documentary about violent murders wasn't the best of ideas for this evening, and we watched an hour of the show before going outside and making the most of the relatively cooler evening. This house and the surrounding area are so quiet, and even the birds had gone to bed, with only the bats out for their nightly ritual! 

Girls' Road Trip - Bergerac, France 12th-27th of June, 2026

A day of relaxation, part 2

Today has been a repeat of yesterday, and it's been lovely to relax, do lots of reading, soak up the sun and cool off in the pool when we get too hot. The groceries we bought on Monday are doing us well for lunches and dinners, but we have decided to venture out tomorrow for lunch and maybe have something different. Although we love salad, we are getting a little fed up with it now!

Sophie had the rest of the pizza for lunch, and I boiled three eggs to have for lunch and to add to the salad to eke it out a bit. Unfortunately, without Keith around, I always find it difficult to get the eggs right, and I had difficulty peeling them... Next time, we'll add them to boiling water and let them stand in ice-cold water for a while before attempting to peel them. They were a complete mess!

In the afternoon, while floating about in the pool, Sophie said she had spotted something in one of the filters. It looked like a dead animal... When she said this, I peered in as well, and at first I thought it was a snake, because of the speckled brick behind the filter. I nearly took off to the other end of the pool! It turned out to be a very dead baby rat, so we scooped it out with a fly swatter and threw it onto the grass. No doubt our resident magpie will make use of it!

The other excitement today was the appearance of a car driving along the track behind our house. We have never seen anything other than a tractor on this track, which eventually leads to the village. The car stopped opposite our house, so we stood at the kitchen window watching it! It was probably a poor person who was lost, but the only other cars we see on the tiny road opposite the house are our neighbour's or the postman's.

At about 4:00pm, we retreated inside for naps and then lovely showers. I checked the weather again and discovered we have an Amber Warning for heat here:

This was a little alarming! We had decided to stay at the house on Sunday and Monday, but it now looks like we'll have to lie low on Tuesday and Wednesday as well, which is annoying. We would like to visit Périgueux and explore more villages in the area, especially the bastide villages. 

After dinner of cold meats and salad eaten outside, we watched two episodes of a Netflix documentary about Michael Jackson's trial in 2005. We both agreed that he was seriously weird and very disturbing.

Before bed, we sat with our feet in the pool and watched the bats fly low over our heads. A lovely end to a very relaxing day!