The last few days in gorgeous Sarlat...

June 5, 2010
It was another day of Chateau admiring today, with the morning starting out at Azay le Rideau where we saw more scarcely furnished rooms adorned with ancient tapestries and big, beautiful wooden chests. Oh, and portraits of the royals, their wives and their mistresses – though sometimes it was hard to tell which was which.
Next stop was Villandre where we chose to skip the Chateau admiring and head straight to the gorgeous gardens, renowned as some of the most beautiful in the world. Having sufficiently appeased our aesthetic palettes – simultaneously satisfying my own palette with green olives and chav (goats cheese) on olive bread – we moved on to the task of driving several boring hours to the house we hired in Sarlat. Finally got there, the place is cute, has a swimming pool (swiftly in use due to searing heat) and some friendly ewes that a slight case of the black lung. I'm thinking the back paddock = last legs. Oh dear.
With my glitter polish all but chipped off my nails and a week-long forecast of happy family time, I knew my London party days were over. At least for now. Upon arrival, this realization was met equally with sadness as with a sense of somewhat relief, given the pounding I had treated my liver to over the past two weeks, let alone the last two years. Saying that, dad has just returned with a case of beer and several bottles of wine so I may possibly be jumping the detox gun…

June 6, 2010∫¨
Today we explored the town of Sarlat, the closest kind of civilisation to where we’re staying at the cottage, and considering it has the most listed buildings in all of Europe, we weren’t disappointed. Gorgeous, aging structures made of stone and timber… I could go on an age but alas, the patisserie calls. But not before an incredible meal of fois grais (could’ve done without that, TBH, it’s a liiiiiittle freaky eating something I’m so morally against – seriously, do some research on that shit) and duck breast mm mmmmm.
Grabbed a few pamphlets of horseriding in the area and moved on to Domme where we ate with an AMAZING view of regional France… how’s the serenity. Pretty bloody good. Tomorrow I will wake up and ride to Sarlat on the bikes to find the internet, since today (Sunday) the town virtually closed. Welcome to the millennium what???

June 7, 2010
Woke up with no interest AT ALL in biking to town. Turns out after my brother and sister’s boyfriend’s hectic 3-hour lost mission from town the day before they’d abandoned the bikes as well and were back from a morning run. Screw that.
After much faffin’ about, we finally made way to La Cevis (?) where we were due to go horseriding – but having gotten there way too early we took advantage of seeing the prehistoric museum with Cromagnan and Neatherthal man artifacts in them. Yay! Old stuf, I luv it.
Horseride was super fun, I managed to wrangle myself the leopard appaloosa which for those of you who don’t know is the one that looks like a Dalmatian or a snow leopard. Cool horse, a liiiiiittle bit lazy. Which served me well when some hounds that were part of a filming situation got loose and terrorised my sister’s horse at the back of the pack and it went flying, losing my sister in the process. Bit embarrassing. But all was good and now, after a lovely home-cooked meal from sis, I’m relaxing with bro watching badly dubbed French TV, slugging back lots of beer and praying for decent weather tomorrow…
Oh and I quizzed the guy at the horse place about working there over summer and he said it was possible - organic farm hand and staying in a treehouse with the possibility of riding his gorgeous horses in my spare time? Hell yeah!

June 8 - TODAY!
Must be quick but the weather is SHIIIIITE today so who knows what we'll be up to. Logged in for the first time in a few days, was itching a bit but now the reason I was itching hasn't actually surfaced and I'm still left waiting for USELESS people back in London. Argh, can't trust anyone but myself dammit. I'm going to soak my sorrows in a rich pomme tarte, or something of the like. Mmmm....... what was I annoyed about again??