After two weeks in Beynac-et-Cazenac on the Dordogne River we have settled into village life quite nicely.  We can even walk up to our apartment without puffing, well almost.

Breakfast

We begin every day with a very leisurely breakfast in our apartment – there are no cafes here, only a patisserie and patisseries don’t serve coffee or breakfast food, but Jeff has been known to scoot down there for a fresh croissant 🙂

Lunch

Lunch time is very interesting in France, especially rural France.  Everything closes for 2-3 hours from around noon, everything except restaurants.  Supermarkets, shops, patisseries, businesses – all closed for hours.  So, if you want to eat something light or eat at home you need to be well organised in the morning.  No ducking down to the shop for bread, a sausage roll or a quick snack.

And, there are no takeaway shops in rural France.  The closest we have seen to takeaway is in butcher shops where you can buy homemade preprepared caseroles, terrines, lasagne and other meals made by the butcher.  You buy these cold by the spoonful and take them home to heat.  We have done this twice – once was a rolled pork casserole, and another was a seafood lasagna.  Both delicious.

For lunch you have two options – eat at home, or eat at a restaurant.

When we stay in, our favourite choice for lunch is a collection of simple antipasto type foods collected on foraging expeditions at local markets, with a fresh baguette of course.  Lilac is in bloom at the moment.  I managed to pick a fresh bunch while out walking.

All restaurants offer a Menu de Jour which is a 3 course midday lunch for around 15-20 euros.  Wine is the drink of choice and lunches are leisurely affairs lasting it seems until one has to go back to work.  Businesses then reopen around 3.00-3.30pm and stay open until around 7pm.

Afternoon Drinks

Apertifs late afternoon set you up for dinner.  People begin to gather from around 5.00pm to 7.00pm to sit in outdoor bars although we’ve seen plenty of patrons sitting in town squares around 4.00pm – it’s a very social time of the day.

Apertifs are designed to stimulate your appetite and most have bitters included.  We really loved the Martini (either rouge or blanc), both refreshing but they do pack a punch.

Dinner

Restaurants open after 7.00pm with both a Menu de Jour (3 courses) or you can choose dishes from the “Gourmet” menu.  The French eat late.  Our favourite restaurant in Beynac is La Petit Tonnelle – we ate there a few times (lunch and dinner) and the staff got to know us well, helping us with our French.  You can see the wall behind Jeff has been built around the rockface.  There was natural water running down the rocks.

The Dordogne Region is famous for duck and Jeff managed to eat duck every time we ate out.  Duck heaven!

Out and About Adventures

Small villages are scattered throughout the countryside, most with barely 5-10km between them.  We loved picking one off the map and setting off with our GPS directing us through country lanes and narrow streets, never quite knowing what to expect.

There’s also Chateauxs everywhere, each with its own history of families, plus castles and fortresses dating back to the 1100s and earlier, churches galore and farming areas in between.  We visited many small villages to walk through their town centres enjoying the architecture.  Often they seemed deserted, with shutters closed, then we would realise that it was after 12noon and everyone was tucked away for their midday siesta.

And the times inbetween, we walk in and around the village.  Spring is such a beautiful time here with bulbs naturally growing in fields and streams.

Local Markets

There is a local outdoor market at some village or another nearly every day of the week within a radius of 10km from Beynac-et-Cazenac.  Local produce markets are huge here – they are crowded and packed with stalls of every produce imaginable.  You can tell the locals as they all carry woven baskets over their arms and wander in a leisurely manner between stalls.

Us – we wander in a wide eyed manner trying not to lose each other in the crowds.

Jeff is drawn to the cannard (duck) and foi gras stalls, loitering to sample their wares, while I simply can’t go past the fromage (cheese).

These cheeky French girls were trying to photo bomb me.

The fresh fruit and vegetables are irresistable and we are getting so much better at conversing in our stilted French for what we want including the weight, paying and then being so pleased with ourselves that our “Bonjours”, “merci beaucoups” and “bonne journees” flow easily from our tongues as we proudly walk away, feeling quite chuffed that we didn’t make a fool of ourselves, or so we imagine…….

Simple home cooked meals with simple fresh produce.

I have no idea how the French maintain their health and slim figures with their daily food regime.  But, you hardly ever see a French person who is overweight.  My theory is that it’s the wine so I’m conducting my own experiment 🙂

So, that has been a glimpse into our daily life in the French countryside (so far).

Jeff and Catherine xx