Sylvie's Travels Home

October 5, 2023

We went for a drive around 8:30am because Pogo wanted to drone hot air balloons. It was so foggy at our hotel but by the time we arrived in the next town, the sky was clear and we only saw one balloon far away. We drove around the countryside for a while then came back to the hotel for breakfast. What a feast it was! Lots of fresh and dried fruits, cheeses, pies, jams, olives, ratatouille, baguettes and enormous croissants. The hostess brought us a pot of coffee and orange juice and asked if we wanted eggs as well and we could not imagine having more food so we declined.

We started talking with a couple from California at the table next to us and they said the reason the were here was because Rick Steves had stayed here and he had mentioned that the breakfast was his favorite during his stay in the Dordogne.

We went back to the room and I finished reading my Tintin book and it brought back ‘Mille Million de Mille Sabord’ great memories of my childhood.

We left again around 11am and we went to discover Sarlat-la-Canéda, a medieval town not too far away. It was really beautiful! You can tell it’s a very touristy town though, with all the restaurants and stores in the old part. One of their specialties is foie gras.

Next we went to the Château de Marqueyssac to visit their gardens where you can find 150 thousands boxwood bushes all impeccably shaped. I thought my days of walking steep inclines were over but noooo…

On our way back, we also stopped at Montgolfières de Périgord where Pogo convinced me to go in a hot air balloon a few hours later. I’ve done it about 35 years ago but this time I have to admit I was a lot more nervous.

After a little rest at the hotel, we went to meet our pilot at 5pm. Julien our ‘aéronaute’ had been flying balloons for 18 years but as a full time business owner for the last 3 years. It was the perfect night for it, clear and not windy. Actually if it had been a little more windy, we would have seen a lot more. It was so beautiful to see the region from 5000 ft in the air. You could see all the castles and a good amount of the Dordogne River. We flew for an hour.

After a soft landing, we had the customary champagne with Julien and his driver Bertrand. I’m glad I did it despite my fears.

We went to Le Tournepique, a Basque cuisine restaurant, for dinner and it wasn’t great. I ordered shrimp and they were so difficult to peel. You can’t hit a home run every time I guess.

On a different note, I finally lost the toe nail that I hurt about a month ago in Disney. 😦