France - Exploring

Does it count as exploring if you know the place well? If it's your favourite town in the area? Well we explored Monpazier, both during the market and when the streets were clear. Monpazier is a bastide town, built inside a large square outer wall of houses, with the streets on a grid. They were built to be easily defended, but they are also often very beautiful.

Monpazier has a central market where the upper floors of the buildings overhang the lower, and are held up by huge old stone arches. The resulting arcade underneath is home to wooden toy shops and antique shops and dressmakers selling things I would only wear to a fancy dress party!

The central square houses the market on Thursday mornings, and though I do love a market, I almost prefer this little town without. It is also home to Gaya, a beautiful home wares shop tucked into a side street. Full of old furniture, vintage style canisters and clocks, and ornaments and decorations almost always to my taste.

 

I bought two of the same little stoneware chicken ornaments as presents, and was given one myself the following day by my Ma. I would happily furnish and accessorise my house entirely from this shop.

The lovely man inside also took a shine to Fred, and gave him this little metal elephant coat hook as a gift. It is now waiting patiently on my chest of drawers for the boys room to be separated when it can take up its rightful position on the back of Fred's door.

And castles, always have to find a castle or two. This is Castlenaud. Again, we have been here before, but it's still exploring.

And after a hot trawl around a castle you obviously have to paint yourself with chocolate ice cream.

Then there is the kind of exploring that I think I inherited from my Mother. The kind that drives my husband mad. Its the kind of exploring that happens when you catch a glimpse of something as you drive past, and insist on stopping for a better look. Its the kind that has you running around unknown villages looking a bit like a stalker!

But look at this!

Apparently it's owned by Americans who don't have the funds to repair it, so instead they visit occasionally to watch it crumble. I could cry for it's lost splendour.