January 9 - 16, 2014 - Gran Canaria

Hola Amigo's

We were off for a week to celebrate my birthday in Gran Canaria at the Sheraton Salobre Golf Resort and Spa.  As we had an early flight on the 9th we took the train out to Manchester airport on the 8th and stayed over at Bewleys Hotel.  Our flight was mostly uneventful other than the fact I was asked by a women, when I excused myself squeezing passed her to use the facilities, "what are you doing on our plane as you're clearly not a Brit'.  Taken back I politely answered that I lived in the UK and that I was going on a vacation.  I really should have told her what I thought but being the good polite Canadian I am I didn't bother.  I must be getting old.  We had a private transfer to the hotel which was a good 35 minute drive away and it was nice as there was waiting around for the stragglers you get when being on a large bus.  The weather was wet and our driver told us that the weather had turned and may stay cool and wet for the next day.  Great, but at least it was warmer than the UK and you can't control Mother Nature.  Our room was very nice, on the ninth floor so we had a good view.  We were on a half board program which gave us breakfast and supper in a buffet style restaurant.  There were also two a la carte restaurants, and we booked into one of them for the next day (the 10th) while we were checking in as we told the receptionist that it was for my birthday dinner.  Dinner on arrival day was in the buffet restaurant where we met two couples from Sweden and had a nice chat with them.  They were all golfers and had nothing but good things to say about the resort.  The food at the buffet was fresh, plentiful and the bread was to die for.  The house wine was also good, so we enjoyed a very good supper.

Jan 10.  We woke up to a bright sunny day.  The picture,  top left is of the view towards the hill from our balcony.  Once breakfast was done, I headed up to the pool to catch some much needed sun. There were massive beds with large vinyl mattresses but these were all taken up so I planted myself by the pool on a lounger.  The pool area we were at was for adults only so it was nice, quite and the pool was salt water and warm, a bonus.  Fred joined me about a half hour later and we enjoyed the sun relaxing and reading.  When we returned to the room in the late afternoon there was a bottle of champagne and a card from management wishing me a Happy Birthday.  A very pleasant surprise. We relaxed before supper enjoying the champagne then headed downstairs to the restaurant.  The staff were very friendly and attentive.  Fred ordered a Tempranillo Reserva and a bottle of water,  and to start us off we were given bread and a little tray of appetizers which consisted of olives, honey pork rinds, almonds, cheese, crostini's and olive oil.  For our appetizers I ordered a mushroom carpacchio and Fred had a shrimp gazpacho.  My main course was a sirloin steak with a tomato salsa and Fred had a tenderloin steak with potatoes done two ways.  We were given dessert menus and were in the middle of deciding who should get what, as the choices were all so good, so we could share when a surprise birthday cake arrived as pictured on the right.  It was delicious,

a cheese cake with fruit and a chocolate fondant.  It was far too large for just the two of us.  I saw the Swedes we met the previous night in the restaurant so I cut the balance into 4 and asked the waiter to give it to them.  We enjoyed our dinner and as we were leaving I was thanked by the Swedes for the cake.  I explained that the cake was for my birthday and it was too much for the two of us I didn't want it to go to waste, were upon they broke into song, Happy Birthday.  Just when I thought I had avoided being embarrassed.  A great day and end to my 62nd birthday.  Where did the time go I can't believe my age.

We spent the next two days relaxing and enjoying the sun.  I managed to get one of the large sun beds on the Sunday and it was very relaxing and comfortable.  The hotel had a shuttle bus to the beach and we decided to take it on the Monday for a change of scenery and to get some wine for the room.  It was much warmer but windy on the beach.  We had a nice walk which I have missed doing while at the resort.  The beach was a nice long stretch of sand with restaurants at one end and a natural dune

with a protected area at the other end.  The area with the dunes was broken up into clothing and clothing optional areas and they are well signposted.  The nude area is further broken up into a normal nude area and an area for male gay's.  This was the first time we had ever seen such a segregation and are not sure if it is the norm for Spain.  We walked along the beach for about a hour and a half before heading to the store to purchase wine and then to find a place for a drink and lunch.  It was been a nice change from the resort and considerably warmer.

Our next couple of days at the resort was much cooler sadly to say but we managed 4 good days of sun and had a relaxing time.  The picture on the right is of a sunrise on the Wednesday, our last full day at the resort.  It was about all the sun we would see as the weather had changed again.  So after a short time on the sun bed we headed to the room to read on the balcony and enjoy some wine. Our last night we had supper in the a la carte Tapas Restaurant. Once again the service and food was great.

We have enjoyed our stay but this is one location I would say one and done.  It was a bit isolated and I did miss having a beach to walk along.  However, we did get excellent service, food and accommodation for the money we paid.

Adios,

Sandy & Fred 

Dec 28 - 31st - Post Cristmas

Greetings All, 

Dec 28 - We had made arrangements to meet up with Geoff and Tracey to explore and walk more of the sites of London.  Little Venice was the area we explored today.  It was a wonderful sunny day as we walked along the canal path.  Some area's were blocked off to walking along the water but we eventually got down to the canal path.  The picture on the right is of Regent's Canal with barges that are lived in year-round.  Our walk took us all the way to Regent's Park. I am amazed that some of the bushes and trees already have blooms on them and it's still only
December (see the picture on the left).  After leaving the canal path we strolled through Regent's Park enjoying the sun.  We stopped for a late lunch at a pub before carrying on with our walk, down Park Lane and eventually back to the flat where we left Geoff and Tracey and head back to the hotel to pack as we were moving accommodations the next day.


Dec 29 - It was moving day for us.  We had made arrangements to move in with Keith, Sandra and Nicholas for a few days so we could stay for the New Years Eve Celebration in London.  Fred had also offered to drive Judy and Peter, Keith's in-laws to the airport.  After some confusion, we finally arrived at the flat they were staying at, as just by chance as we saw Peter and Judy outside the building, the address we were given was very vague.  Unfortunately, Fred got rear-ended on his return from the airport, sometimes it just doesn't pay to be a nice guy.  Thankfully the car was still driveable and Fred was not hurt.  Fred and Nicholas were heading off to the Liverpool vs Chelsea match at Stamford Bridge as John now was very ill so couldn't take Nicholas.  I had the afternoon to all to myself so I headed off to the Whole Foods Store.  The place was amazing and spread over two floors I spent over a hour exploring what was available and thought of our son Jonathan, as the gluten free section was phenomenal and with good prices.  He would be in seventh heaven with what was available plus unlike in Canada they do not gouge you with the prices.  I have been searching for preserved lemons and they have a whole shelve of them.  Four bottles were purchased along with some Moroccan spices, and a large gran couscous; I am a happy camper.  I also got some laundry done as the flat has an American style washer and dryer, a real treat for me.  Fred and Nicholas returned from the match a bit downcast as Liverpool lost 2-1 but at least Nicholas did get to a game while in the UK.  We all headed out and had supper in a pub in the Kensington area which is a favourite of the Farwell/Mowatt's.

Dec 30 - Keith, Sandra and Nicholas had made plan to go to Paris but Keith was sick all night so those were cancelled.  With all the illness going around Fred and I decided enough was enough and decided it was best to head home early.  We headed out John and Adrienne's to pack up the car which was parked at their place in preparation for an early morning departure on the 31st and say our goodbyes to Geoff and Tracey and to thank John and Adrienne for hosting Christmas.  Gifts in hand we returned to our current accommodation to sort out our packing and then visit Whole Foods again to get some supplies for New Year's Eve.

Dec 31 - As we were in the North end of London it took us very little time to get out of the city.  The drive home was uneventful and we were back home in Liverpool in good time.  We rung in the New Year with our goodies of some amazing cheeses, crackers, and smoked venison that were purchased Whole Foods, Prosecco and watched the fireworks across the river as well as those in London on TV.

Cheers,

Sandy & Fred

Dec 26 - 27 - London Post Christmas

Greetings All,

Boxing day Fred and I headed out too find breakfast before going for a walk to Trafalgar Square and then down through St James' Park.  It was busy with many people out enjoying the day.  The black swan in the picture on the left is one of the many species of water fowl that live in the park.  This and Regent's Park are my favorite parks to visit whenever we are in London, tranquility in the midst of a hectic city.  We eventually headed to the flat for an afternoon of footie for the boys as Liverpool were playing Manchester City.  Sadly, it was not a good result as Liverpool lost.  Dinner was leftovers with everyone fending for themselves.  After dinner Fred and Nicholas played a game of Subuetteo, a table football game, where you flick the players with
your finger.  After a few trail runs and a bit of cheating on Nicks part the game began.  Fred was declared victor after 2 halves.  Nicholas was collected by his parents who had enjoyed an afternoon out and about.  We headed back relatively early as, unfortunately, John has now taken ill, Geoff was not feeling well and Tracey was not any better. 

Dec 27 - After breakfast we met up with Geoff and Tracey to do a London Walk, "The Hidden Secrets".  Our walk started at the monument to The Great Fire of London and took us along some main streets but also through some little hidden alleyways where we saw some of the shops that have existed since 1663 when this area of the City was a major port on the Thames.  We also saw and learn of the liveries in the City.  In the previous blog I mentioned Cutlers Hall, a Livery.  The Livery Companies of the City of London are various historic trade associations, almost all of which are known as the "Worshipful Company of..." their relevant trade, craft or profession.  The medieval Companies originally developed as guilds and were responsible for the regulation of their trades, controlling, for instance, wages, apprenticeships and labour conditions.  Each Livery Company was granted a Royal Charter.  Some of these companies still exist today even though their trade or craft is no longer, for example, the Tallow Chandlers Livery.  Tallow candles are not made any longer but the Livery Company is now responsible for the edible oils market.  There are a few new liveries being established like the one for computers "The Worshipful Company of Information Technologists", which has its own motto and robes.  All of the Liveries also have a religious affiliation of some description.  The picture on the left is of a bargeman or a Swan Upper who is responsible for identifying the owner of the swan.  Once a year in July, a ceremony known as "Swan Upping" takes place where all mute swans with cygnets on the River Thames are caught and ringed to identify their owner; either the Queen, the Worshipful Company of Vintners or the Worshipful Company of Dyers. They used to put nicks in the beaks to identify the owner of the bird (one for the Queen and two for the Vintners and Dyers).
Our walk ended at Black Frairs near the Black Friars pub where we stopped for a drink before heading back to a pub we had passed while on the walk.

After lunch we then walked along Fleet Street/the Strand and explored the area with its temples, courtyards and the court district. We were lucky with the weather as it had only rained briefly in the morning during our London Walk the afternoon was clear and pleasant for walking.  The picture on below on the right is of an old cannon topped with a cannonball that was once used to protect the city and has been made into a bollard. There are a significant number of these around the City of London proper.

We wandered through some more alleyways and made little discoveries such as Dr Samuel Johnson's home, an 18th century English writer and lexicographer, and a cute statue of Hodge a cat who was owned by Dr Johnson.  We continued to explore and ended up in Leicester Square.  The square still had a Christmas Market and Fair and was very colourful and busy.  We checked out the movies but the start time were a little later so we decided to search out a place to have supper as we have been walking since 11:00 a.m. with a stop for lunch. We decided to see if we could find the Italian Restaurant that we all had dined at on previous visits to London.  Fred found their business card in his wallet and booked us a table.

It pays not to clean out your wallet I guess.  We enjoyed a great meal, a perfect end to a great day.  We had walked a good eight miles in total.





Cheers
Sandy & Fred

December 23-25th, Christmas in London

Greetings All, 

This year the Brothers Parkins/Mowatt and their wives were all together for Christmas, the first time they had been together since the Italy trip in 2008.  As well, Keith's in-laws joined us at John and Adrienne's who were graciously hosting Christmas dinner.  A big undertaking the feeding of 11 people.  We drove down to London on the 23rd and stayed in the Marriott County Hall which is by the London Eye an easy walk to John and Adrienne's flat.
Our first evening was spent as a family at The Orange, a lovely pub in the Pimlico area.  It was a miserable night, weather wise, but the company and food was good.

On our first full day in London Fred and I headed off to explore.  We walked and explored some old but also some new area's of London.  The picture on the upper right corner is what remains of the gate at Temple Bar that one had to pass through to enter the City Of London and is located behind St Paul Cathedral. This is what Fred and I love about London it is a great walking city with always something new to discover.

The picture on the left is Cutlers Hall the most ancient of the City of London's Livery Companies.  It received its first Royal Charter from Henry V in 1416.  It was responsible for the production, sale and maintenance of swords and knives.  We walked a good 7 miles in all today.  Our last stretch took us along Southbank and the Christmas market stalls where we and a snack of German Sausage on a bun.  The picture, lower right, is salmon being smoked in another of the food stalls.

Our Christmas Eve dinner was with John, Adrienne, Geoff and Tracey.  Keith and his family went to the Royal Albert Hall for the
Christmas Carol concert.  Dinner was the most amazing Lamb Lasagna, salad, wine and Christmas goodies for dessert which John, Adrienne and I had made.  We kept with the Parkins tradition of opening

our gifts on Christmas Eve; opening those that were to each other, leaving those that were part of the gift exchange for Christmas Day. We walked back to the hotel and enjoyed a nightcap in the hotel bar before heading off to bed.

Christmas Day we had a bit of a lie in before heading down to breakfast in the hotel.  We could not believe the state of dress of some of the hotel guests.  Slovenly to say the least, track suits, ripped jeans and grubby t-shirts.  Now I know not everyone celebrates Christmas, but really at least dress decently for ones own self respect.

After breakfast we headed out to John and Adrienne's for our Christmas celebration with the family. The food was plentiful and delicious as always when J&A cook.  A traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings, then an abundance of sweets.  After dinner we opened our gifts from the name exchange and everyone was delighted with their gifts.  I was especially pleased as I had Judy, Keith's mother-in-law, and not really knowing her tastes I found that she was very difficult to buy for.

We then took photos with the boys and their wives as seen on the left.  After Keith and his brood had left, we head out for a walk to burn off some the the food and drink we had all had.  It was quite busy out but the weather was very nice.  We then had night caps at the flat before heading off to the hotel.  We had an early night as Tracey was not feeling well, she arrived in London with a very bad cold, and everyone has had a very busy day especially our Hosts.

Cheers,

Sandy & Fred

October 22-23-24, 2013 - On the Road and Homeward Bound

Bonjour mes Amies,

We were on the road again this time a long drive of 8 hours until we reach our final stop in France.  The weather did not look very promising but luckily it stayed dry for the most part and we missed the major downpours.  The picture on the left is of a rainbow in the area known as Cotentin which is on the Atlantic and channel coast. Our hotel is in Barneville-Cartaret a small village near Cherbourg.

Hotel-des-Ormes is a pretty little hotel that has just 12 rooms.  The room we had is a good size and comfortable.  After we had checked in we took a walk into the town along the seafront to stretch our legs.  It was brisk out and quite refreshing after sitting in the car for a full day.  The picture on the right is of our home for the night.  Once back from our walk and photo opportunities we headed to the bar.  Fred ordered a beer and I had a scotch. I am poured a very generous glass and then given another glass full of ice.  I guess the guy serving us doesn't realize that you don't ruin a good scotch with ice.  Fred's beer is bottled and for the price I think he should have gone with the scotch.
We had our dinner in the hotel and the food was absolutely fantastic.  We were both given an aperitif to start, Pommeau du Normandie and it was tasty and not as sweet as we thought it would be.  We were then given an amuse bouche of mushroom soup.  Fred ordered us a bottle of wine from the Loire region, Les Valengenets 2011 Saumur Champigny aoc Le Javeau, a long name for a bottle of red wine.  Our starter was Bisque de langoustine served with a flourish by our waiter who wears many hats, as he was the receptionist and bartender.  Each dish we received was explained to us.  My main was Filet de boeuf, champignons du moment et coing poeles (steak & mushrooms).  Fred had Saint-Pierre poele ecrose de vitelores endives braisees et beurre blanc a toneth (fish with veggies).  It sounds so much more impressive in French.  We were asked if we had enjoyed our meal and I told our waiter we Canadians have a saying and told him that the food was to "Die For".  He then brought us our dessert.  Mine was a combination au chocolat et a l'orange as pictured on the left and Fred had poire pocee de vin chaud,
creme glace carmel a la fleur de sel (red wine poached pear).  The waiter asked whether we were dieing yet again with a laugh. Gourmet quality and perfect portions, a fantastic last meal in France.  Breakfast was awesome, a large bowl of fruit, ham, cheese, yogurt, baguette, croissants, chocolate croissants, orange juice, tea and coffee.  We headed off to Cherbourg where we caught the ferry to Poole.  There was really nothing to see in Cherbourg but as we are far  too early for the ferry we drove around for a bit then found

a mall where we wandered around the stores and checked out the grocery store.  We purchased a bottle of  Pommeau du Normandie the aperitif I enjoyed the previous night and a bottle of wine for the hotel tonight.  The statue on the right is on a roundabout near the port.  It rained off and on during the day and was also windy so I was hoping we would have a choppy crossing.  The ferry was different from the one we took to Spain as the cars were parked on the deck, and the restaurant was cafeteria style.  We had curried lamb for supper which wasn't too bad considering the style of service and a half bottle of wine.  The seats that we were assigned were away from the noise of kids and people and were quite comfortable.  They reclined and had leg rests so our 5 hour ride passed quickly and sadly smoothly.

Our last stop was in Poole at a Premier Inn as it was after 10:00 pm when the ferry arrived.

After breakfast we took secondary roads back to Liverpool.  The day was bright and sunny and the drive was quite enjoyable.  The trees had started to turn but they lack the colour that you get in Ontario.

We hope you have enjoyed this portion of our travels.  Check out my Facebook wall and our Flickr account for all the pictures of this trip (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fredparkins).


Ta ra,

Sandy & Fred

October 21, 2013 - Exploring the Dordogne

Bonjour mes Amies,

Breakfast at the chateau does not start until 8: 15 but we were up and ready to go early.  We were first to arrive and the buffet table looked delicious.  Ham and other cold cuts, cheese, yogurts, fruits and cereals and juices.  We were asked if we would like eggs.  I asked for one egg and tell her how I would like it cooked.  She cooked it perfectly.  Fred had 2 eggs.  The young lady asked us what we had planned for our day and gave us even more suggestions of what to visit in the area. Teeth brushed we headed out to Beynac-et-Cazenac an hours drive away from the Chateau.  Beynac is a commune in the Dordogne that was first mentioned historically in 1115 when Maynard de Beynac made a gift to the sisters at Fontevrault Abbey.  We parked in town and started to walk up to the Chateau.  The picture on the upper right was the point where we stopped and Fred returned for the car.  We had paid for parking for a hour and we had already wasted 15 minutes walking to the chateau which was no where in sight.  It was a good thing we decided to return for the car as the drive up was longer than we thought.  We paid our entrance fees and enter the chateau to explore.  We spent a good 1 1/2 hours walking around the chateau more than we had intended but there was a lot to see.

The stables in the chateau were used in a Joan of Arc movie filmed in July 1998.  From the top of the fortress the view down into the valley was fantastic and you can still see the mist hanging in areas. The picture on the left is of the Chateau du Beynac.  Additional pictures can be found on our Flickr site to really appreciate what we saw here.

The picture on the right is a view of the valley and the Dordogne River.  Our next stop was Sarlat-la-Caneda a short 15 minute drive away.  Sarlat is one of the best representative towns of 14th century France and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  When we arrived most of the shops were closed.  We were warned that the French close down between 12:00 - 2:00 pm for lunch and as it was not yet busy we took the opportunity to explore and take pictures.

The town  developed around a large Benedictine Abbey and has a medieval cathedral as well dedicated to Saint Sacerdos.

The picture on the left was taken from the square.  In the square we located a small cafe and had a late lunch of savory crepes, salad, fries and a carafe of red wine and water.  We then headed off to shop.  There were so many Foie Gras stores and they all had offers on as it is the end of the tourist season, so we are spoiled for choice. We purchased some Foie Gras then wine before heading off to our next stop, Chateau de Castelnaud.  We only took a couple of photo's of the chateau as the sat nav chick got confused as there were road closures.  We were hoping to go into the town and check out a restaurant that Andrew, who we met in Spain,  told us about as it had some spectacular views but that was not to be.

Our final stop before heading back to Chateau les Merles for the night was Bergerac.  Bergerac is a market town and has two statues of Cyrano de Bergerac one an old stone statue and a newer more colourful one. Interestingly enough Cyrano never lived in Bergerac.  The historic part of the town is undergoing some major renovations and we or rather Fred did not really check out what there was to see or what the major points of interest were.  Our Frommers Guide had nothing at all to say about Bergerac and Wiki also had very little to say.  We explored a bit of the old town rather handily taking pictures.  It was now rather late, after 5:00 pm and we headed back to the waterfront where we had parked.  The sun was starting to set and the reflection on the river was amazing.
The picture on the right is of one of the bridges in Bergerac over the river Dordogne.  We picked up a ham and cheese baguette for our supper and a chocolate eclair as we had had such a late lunch and were not really that hungry.

Once back at Chateau les Merles we repacked yet again as we now only had 2 nights on the road so there was no need for the big suitcase.  Once this was done we headed down to the bar for a glass of wine.  We purchased 4 cases of the chateau's wine, three red and one white, in hindsight we should have purchased more as one can never have too much wine.  Tomorrow we will start the last leg of our holiday in France as we head back to the UK.

Au Revoir,

Sandy & Fred

Oct 18-19-20th - Leaving Spain and Exploring France

Hola All,

Today we left the resort and headed off towards France.  Our first stop after driving 6 1/2 hours was Alcala de Henares just outside of Madrid at an AC Hotel.  The staff at reception was very laid back.  We were given free parking and free WiFi and when we checked out we found that we were not charged for the drinks we had, but we owned up to them.  The following morning, the 19th we were off by 8:30 am before sunrise.  The picture on the right is of the sunrise taken while we were traveling in the car.  We have not been off and out this early since our working days which was 7 years ago.  The next leg of our drive was 7 hours through some very rugged Spanish country with fields of solar panels which looks like they are growing them as there are so many of them.  The Spanish make good use of mother nature as a power source also using windmills high up in the hills. We headed into Basque country which is very green and full of trees.  We also saw some bridges that still have signs for independence as the Basques want to be separate from Spain.  The towns we pass through look very poor and rundown compared to other areas we have seen in Spain.  France is lush and green and from what we saw has a logging industry.  We pass an area where the logs were stacked and being watered very curious.  We arrived at the hotel in Bordeaux took a short stroll to stretch the legs, then had dinner and an early night.

I'm excited today as we headed out to explore the Dordogne.  At 8:00 am it was still dark.  Our plan was to be on the road by 9:15 with the sun up by then.  It turns out leaving Bordeaux was no easy task.  The highway we needed to take was closed and there are markers for the deviation that you were to take.  Well the detours took us in a circle.  We realized this after following the signs around twice.  Fred found a place to pull over and reprogram the sat nav chick to avoid highways.  We finally got going in the right direction but have wasted 1/2 hour, which

would have had us in Saint Emilion our first stop of exploration.

Saint Emilion is surrounded by vineyards and is on a limestone plateau overlooking the Dordogne Valley.  The wine made in this district has been called "Wine of Honor".  I am surprised that there are things open as it was Sunday and the start of the low season.  The picture on the right is of the Bell Tower of the Eglise Monolithe, the largest underground church in Europe carved by the Benedictine monks during the 9th to 12th centuries.

The roads in Saint Emilion were very steep.  The picture on the left is an example of the narrow steep streets.  Fred manages this hill quite easily but it took me a good five minutes to negotiate the steep incline thanks my knees and sciatica but as they say no pain no gain and I was not about to let anything get in the way of enjoying this vacation.  We spent a couple of hours exploring the town taking in all of the old structures and the wine shops.  To really appreciate the beauty of the town you will need to check our Flickr account.  I have also posted pictures on Facebook as well.

After our visit to Saint Emilion we headed off to Monpazier about an hour and a half drive away.  Monpazier is a 13th century Bastide town begun in 1285 by King Edward I of England who was also the Duke of Gascony.  It is considered a model Bastide even after 7 centuries.

The picture on the right is an entrance to the town.  Sadly, almost every thing was closed.  There were only a few cafes and stores open.  We spent around 45 minutes walking through the town and taking photos. We stopped for a panini of ham and cheese from a little sandwich shop in a side street.  The owners of the shop were very friendly and spoke very good English.  We were joined by two cats one black and white and the other white and tawny.  The black one kept its distance but the tawny one decided that it liked me, rubbing up against my legs as we sat.  I don't know how cats know that I am not a cat lover but they always seem to gravitate to me.  The picture on the left is of a very old grape vine that was growing in the centre of the town square.

Next, we headed to our hotel for the next two nights, Chateau les Merles. This was a short 1/2 hour drive through some very pretty countryside covered with vineyards and Chateau's.

Our home away from home for the next two nights is a golf and country  hotel with its own vineyard.
We were welcomed with a glass of champagne and an amuse bouche of carrots and cucumber sticks with a mustard flavoured mayo, smoked salmon pasta and seranno ham with peppers.  Yummy.  We were then shown to our room after this lovely respite.  The picture below on the right shows our little taste of yumminess. 
 
We settled ourselves in and our room was large and spacious as was the bathroom.  Our room overlooked the garden and the pool.  We headed down to see where we could get a drink and enjoyed a glass of wine in the garden by the pool.  Our red wine was from the Chateau's own vineyard and was very nice.

We made a dinner reservation at the hotel and had quite the gastronomic experience.  Fred ordered a bottle of Chateau Terre Vieille Pecharmant, a very nice red wine for our dinner.  We were given an amuse bouche of mini tart with peppers in it.  My starter was salade "maison" de chevre gratin (grilled goat cheese salad ) that was a meal in itself and absolutely delicious.  Fred had champignons de Paris aux herbes et poireau fruit (mushroom salad).  My main course was escalopes de veau Viennoise, salad des legumes au citron sale risotto.  Fred had "steak au poivres" salade et pomme frites.  The portions were quite large and the food was gourmet.  I am too full for dessert but Fred enjoyed a creme brulee avec vanilla glace.  We were again given another amuse bouche this time a tiny scoop of vanilla ice ceam with chocolate bits and two local pastries.  I asked for coffee American style and explained about my previous experience with coffee, a tiny cup of pure caffeine, far too strong.  The waiter delivered a perfect cup of coffee.

Our day has been full and we headed back to our room to plan our next day of exploration of the Dordogne armed with suggestions from the staff.  Our plan changed a bit as we had wanted to visit  Rocamadour but found out that it was a two and a half hour drive from the chateau so we adapt.

Au revoir,

Sandy & Fred