Day 11 - Of Castles and Cave-Men

Sarlat and its surrounding areas are famous for the cave systems inhabited by cro-magnon people, some of which have continued to be inhabited through modern day. Here is a picture of one of the many houses that are built into the limestone rock hillsides.

The first cave we went to, Grotte de Font-de-Gaume is the only cave in the world with polychrome (colored) cave drawings which is still open to the public. They only allow 180 people a day entrance on very carefully controlled explorations. Handler 1 made reservations in December. We managed to snag an English language tour too, which was very helpful. The Handlers appreciated being able to understand the scientific and cultural aspects pointed out by the guide.

Photos aren't allowed inside the caves (apparently, some UNESCO copyright issue is involved), so this picture of Handler 2 just outside the cave entrance is the best you're going to get from us.

Since we didn't take any photos of what we saw inside the cave, I stole this one off the web.

This shows two reindeer facing each other. The one on the left is licking the red one on the right on its head. It's kind of a famous picture.

We then headed to another cave, which the Handlers belatedly realized was closed for lunch. So, we found ourselves an open cafe in the closest town and sat down for a very unimpressive (but, thankfully, cheap) meal of cheeseburgers.

Similarly, no cameras were allowed at the Grotte de Rouffignac. This cave had no colored paintings, but it did have more of them. It was quite deep in the earth, such that you had to take an electric train down to the pictures and engravings. We were very lucky to manage to accidentally tack ourselves onto the only English language tour of the day. This place was absolutely fascinating. The picture below (also from the interwebs) was just one part of a ceiling covered in similar line drawings.

Last on the day's agenda was the fortress of Castlenaud. This picture of me doesn't really do it justice, because it's perched on the top of a high cliff. Handler 2 just loved driving up those switchbacks.

They're all about warfare at Castlenaud. The whole place is filled with ancient weaponry, like this big crossbow.

Here's a photo of the Castle of Beynac (traditional rival of Castlenaud) as seen from the ramparts.

James really needs to come here:

After returning to our Sarlat digs, an exhausted Handler 1 took a nap, while I stayed up with Handler 2 watching French TV. In particular, we were fascinted with the French version of The Price is Right, which Handler 2 proclaimed "Awesome". Somehow, it involved cheese. We then again made our way into the town, and can I just say, Sarlat is a completely amazing place to get lost in. There are about 1,000 corners and dark alleys, and something interesting down each one.

Tomorrow we really will try to find someplace to fix the car, and will otherwise be taking a long drive across the breadth of France to the cosmopolitan city of Lyon.

Quote of the Day: "Quack" - as heard from the kitchen of the restaurant where the Handlers had dinner....Handler 1 still thinks it was a chef making a joke, but then she had already finished her duck plate and had a vested interest in that interpretation.