While our week in Libourne was a positive first taste of Southern France, our week in the Dordogne sealed the deal about us really loving this area – and being surprised about that!
The Dordogne region in France
Our perceived notions steered us towards Andalusia, Spain, to gauge it as a potential place to grow roots one day. France had never been on the radar, because we didn’t know much about this country (despite it being next door to Belgium) and encounters with French people around the world hadn’t been pleasant, generally. We obviously should reconsider and look forward to exploring more of France in the future!
Périgueux
But let’s get back to the middle of April, when my cousin, Griet, and her husband, Wim, picked us up at the train station of Périgueux after our one-hour ride with Maya and the luggage. To our surprise – but not theirs – all our belongings fit next to their vacation gear in the magical trunk.
(As always, hover over or click on the photos in galleries to read their caption.)
Since this was the start of our Dordogne travels, we began with a walk through the region’s capital Périgueux itself, hitting some of the highlights and chatting with friendly locals.
We didn’t have a lot of time, but strolled through some of the narrow streets, discovered a nice park, and photographed historic buildings.
Saint-Avit-de-Vialard
The four of us had rented a small mobile home at a campground in Saint-Avit-de-Vialard, which is a popular way to vacation in France. There are a lot of facilities – bathrooms, swimming pools, laundry, a restaurant, and a shop – of which we only used the bakery section in the store.
This is not really our style of accommodation, but when you’re in good company, the place you stay in doesn’t matter so much. Plus, this last cabin on the property was in a great location, far from the entrance and the commotion and next to nature.
We really lucked out with the sunny weather during our time in the Dordogne! We ate every single meal outside on the patio and managed to explore the region in depth and in shorts.
Limeuil
Our first afternoon excursion took place in Limeuil, another picture-perfect historic village. It swiftly became our favorite one in France.
The five of us climbed the hill and strolled through the medieval streets, taking in its beauty and cleanliness. We seemed to be the only tourists around on this weekday, which made the experience extra special.
