Leely, I'm very impressed with how quickly you are posting your trip report. You're off to a great start. Keep up the good work!

Great to read this Leely. You strike me as the type of person who makes the best of any situation that you are in! Wherever you are bound to have a good time. More, more, more.

Can't wait to hear more. You helped me out last year on my Africa trip,thanks. We are going to the Dordogne in Sept so I'm waiting for the details...especially the bad and ugly!

Oh Leely, I'm hooked. Don't bother to make it a short report. Long would be perfect.

Anselm

I'm happy to hear you stopped at Oradour.

Oradour sur Glane

Within 20 minutes (19 of those circling the same 4 blocks in Limoges) we were out in the countryside. Lush, green and pretty.

The previous night I had emailed Logis de France and attempted to reserve a room at the La Glane, one of 3 hotels in the new village of Oradour. After all that hassle in Limoges, I was glad I had done so, and we arrived to find we did in fact have a reservation. Not that we needed one!

I’ll post my thoughts as well as websites or email for the various hotels in a separate section, but here’s the short version: it was fine.

Dinner was at the hotel’s sister restaurant, Milord. This is an old-school restaurant with an old-school décor and old-school cooking. We were, I think, the only people staying at the hotel and one of three tables dining that evening.

I forgot to bring my Marling Menu Master--and my Paris guidebook, any Paris guidebook—so ordering was an exciting-yet-dangerous game of French Roulette throughout the entire trip. I spun the barrel and got an enormous brick of foie gras, some grilled apples, onions and some sweetish hearty country bread as the entrée. My first foray into foie gras and I enjoyed it but it was HUGE. And of course I had ordered steak for my plat, wanting to try the Limousin beef.

My friend went with the Salade d’Hiver, which was good and involved the (to us) mystery ingredient gesiers as well as chestnuts. She liked it, but once again this course was gigantic. We both had the beef filets for our plats and they were quite good. The accompanying potatoes were shredded and rolled into balls and wrapped in bacon, normally my idea of heaven, but it was a little too oily. There were also some tempura-style vegetables on the plate and something else I can't quite recall; this was really gilding the lily, in my opinion.

Dessert was profiteroles for me and a fruit-covered crème brulee for her. Nothing to rave about, but, hey, I am in France and I am not going to skip dessert. Oh, yes, I had the cheese course as well and enjoyed whatever on earth they served.

All in all, a fine but not spectacular meal, with some strengths and some weaknesses. Madame was kind and put up with my “French” with no audible laughter. With two aperitifs, a bottle of Cahors and a bottle of Vittel, we came in at around 75-80 Euros or so for the both of us.

The Martyred Village and Memorial Center

I feel creepy following a detailed dining report with our visit the next day to the sobering Memorial Center and Martyred Village. There’s nothing I can say that will do justice to this place. The Memorial Center is well-designed and impressive. The Martyed Village is extremely moving and you will most certainly cry. We spent about three hours there. I learned about the village and its inhabitants, about the Vichy government, about the Resistance, about post-War France, about many things. I am glad I went and highly recommend a visit.

http://www.oradour.info/

Cigalechanta, I can't believe I forgot to thank one of Fodor's most respected France-goers. Thank you!

Leely, I don't need thanks, I LOVE to share what little I know but this is for those that don't know about this village:

http://www.oradour.info/

Oh wow! You have me giggling already. Can't wait for more.

mea culpa, I didn't see your url.
Glad it made you giggle, amwosu

Enjoying your report Leely! I agree with AnselmAnselm - do not bother to keep it short!

Leely, it's sometimes better not to know in advance what something is. Gésiers are gizzards, not at all disgusting, but off-putting for some people.

I don't know if I would have eaten them the first time if I'd known. Now, when something on the menu has gésiers, that's what I'm having. Sometimes, they're just cooked in broth and are stringy but very tasty; at others they are en confit, which means they've been simmered for a long time in goose or duck fat, which makes them tender and wonderful.

I don't know why people have (potential) problems with gésiers. I always thought that giblet gravy was very traditional in the States.

We liked the gizzards; it was more of a quantity problem and in fact my friend ordered a similar salad later and, if I recall, one other time. She became a bit of a gesier connoisseur and declared the ones in Oradour the most tender.

Giblet gravy: my mother always removed the giblets before serving. Perhaps it's done differently in other households.

Other random thoughts:
The Limoges train station is impressive, a very attractive building. I was disappointed all my waiting and wandering in Limoges never took me to the "old town." I think I'll revisit Limoges and the Limousin in the future.

This series contains some photos of old Limoges:

http://www.photoworks.com/share/shareLanding.jsp?shareCode=A127712BB7B&cb=PW

Michael, thank you for the photos. I knew I was missing the charming part of Limoges.

Sarlat and environs, plus further afield

As the rest of the trip flew by, with many, many highlights, I’ll forgo the day-by-day.

We got lost (a lot!) on the way down to Sarlat, but once we cleared Limoges it was all very pretty lost-ness on tiny country lanes. For those of you with driving-in-France anxiety, I can’t say enough how easy and pleasant it is once you get used to it. I live and work in athe same city and so use public transportation almost exclusively. We found ourselves oohing and ahhhing our way through the lower Haute Vienne (an oxymoron?) and the Perigord Vert. It doesn’t take much, people.

Consequently, it took us about twice as long to reach Hautefort as I had anticipated. No big deal, really, except we sort of had to give short shrift to the gardens. This was one of those ill-planned starvation-vacation days. No lunch, itsy bitsy breakfast. We arrived in Sarlat right aound 6 p.m. on market day. Parking wasn’t a huge issue, but let’s just say I got to know that ring road intimately. And by the end of the trip I felt as if I were married to it.

Villa des Consuls is wonderful. More on this in the hotels section, but this was a great choice for us. We rented the Fenelon studio.

While basing ourselves in Sarlat was a good choice for us, primarily because I was both the main driver and the wine-lover, I can imagine that traffic and parking into and out of the city during high season would be a drag. Also, after driving to Rocamadour, Carennac, Chateau Castelnau Bretonoux, through Martel, and some other places in one day, I didn’t really feel like driving much the next day. I can see why people might split their time up, although nothing was too far to reach in a day trip.

Speaking of Rocamadour and Carennac and Castelnau Bretonoux, WOW is that part of the Lot stunning. I might even give it the edge over the Dordogne. But then I think about some of the lovely spots in the Dordogne and I simply can’t choose. The longer we stayed, the less we did

My favorites

• Castelnau Bretonoux. Do not miss, although knowledge of French would certainly enhance the tour.
• Cadouin’s Abbey and the cloister
• Carennac. So pretty. Met some great dogs and old people there. Nearly had a panic attack driving across that long, very narrow, “is this for cars?” bridge leaving town.
• Chateau des Milandes, Josephine Baker’s chateau.
• Sarlat. Do the self-guided walking tour even if you don’t stay in town.
• Domme surprised me. We sat around in the park watching the men play boules from a discreet distance. Enjoyed driving and parking here because it challenged me. Had my third and final, “Is this for cars?” moment in this lovely town. (I drove on what may have been a hiking/riding trail but that’s another story.)
• All roads lead to Beynac. At least the way I end up understanding the maps.
• Chateau Castelnaud. Video games in the medieval weaponry exhibit. Very cool.
• Meeting Fodorite Mariarosa and her husband for drinks in Sarlat. They’re both charming, witty and glamorous.

We didn’t canoe, choosing instead to enjoy the river on a gabare. We cruised with Gabares Norbert because I remembered reading that StuDudley had used that company. We were the only people on the boat who didn’t speak French, and although we had the audioguides in English, the guy translated his spiel to us every few minutes anyway. Everyone on the boat would then turn and look at us and nod as he did so. Sly dog.

I can’t say there was anything that truly disappointed me, but I’m one of those people who LOVES vacation. We could have stayed much longer.

Another aside--At Castelnaud we picked up a book in English that appears to be aimed at 5th graders. Maybe 3rd graders. It’s called Chronology of the Kings of France. I probably should be ashamed to admit that reading this greatly enhanced my visit. I would go someplace and some French inscription would have the word Chlotar or Clovis or something on it, and I would get that smug flash of recognition: “Oh, Chlotar! I know all about Chlotar.” Try it!

(Important!: Clovis and Chlotar and Chlodomir and the rest of that crew have nothing to do with the Aquitaine. I just love their names, especially Chlotar.)

Next up: restaurants, hotels, and Easter in Paris.

Leely,

You also missed a major porcelain museum and an enamel museum, the latter in the former bishop's palace. There is also a showroom of the master works of the compagnons du travail.

Hi Leely, I am really enjoying your report. Keep it coming!! Also, I would love the ISBN # from the book you mentioned if you still have it and would pass it on. I have been looking for a simple layout of that information and haven't been able to track anything down.

A history book by Alistar Horne comes close and is very well written but it is a 600 plus page book and I was hoping for a timeline sort of layout. thanks....lynda

Lynda, I have to admit this is much more of a booklet than a book. I bought it in the same section I picked up something for my toddler niece.

Correct title is Chronology of the History of France, and yes, they manage to cover it in around 30 pages.

ISBN: 2.7373.2503.X
Author is Claude Bebedel, published by Editions Ouest-France.

Susanna, glad that I was able to help you with your safari, though I find that very hard to believe. You will love this part of France.

Enjoying your trip report Leely!! We're leaving on May 15th for the Lot and Dordogne. We're spending our 1st night near Grotte de Peche Merle and 2 nights in Loubressac. We're then renting a gite in Cenac for a week. We're visiting most of the spots you've been to so it's really exciting to hear first hand how much you enjoyed them.

Looking forward to hearing about the restaurants in the area. We've had many good suggestions so far but have a few opening to fill.

hi, leely,

loving the report. I'm impressed that you managed to stop your friend turning round and going home in limoges. you muat have a very positive attitide.

my stock [for gravy to have with chicken, turkey, etc.,] always has the gizzards in it, but i remove them and the other bits before making the gravy. i hadn't thought of saving them to add to a salad, but why not?

keep it coming,

regards, ann

Thanks again for the kind comments. I appreciate them. Also, I'm sorry about typos and strange glitches in my report. The other day the Fodor's gods didn't seem to want to take my edits.

The friend who traveled with me has read this and cannot believe...

that I forgot Font de Gaume

Yes, we both loved it. We didn't make a reservation, just drove over to Les Eyzies one morning. The woman at the desk told us that the next opening was at noon. Seasoned Fodorite that I am, I knew the English tour is/was at 11:30 so it must have been booked. We headed into Les Eyzies and bought some much-needed pain au chocolat.

After trawling the (cute) village for a bit, including a stop at the tourist office, we headed back to the Font de Gaume office. By the way, don't panic: there are toilettes near where you meet your guide before entering the cave.

There was a group of young Spaniards on our tour who told the guide their French wasn't that great (although it was FAR better than ours), so she spoke very slowly and emphatically as she led us through the cave. That helped, and so did the Spanish guy translating into Spanish for those in his party who weren't catching everything. My Spanish, while nothing to brag about, is better than "my French."

I was feeling a little cave-crazy after Font de Gaume, and suggested hitting both the Museum of Prehistory and even Lascaux, but my friend gave me the thumbs down. Instead we had a pique-nique on the banks of the Vezere, adjacent to a trailer park.

She was also surprised that I forgot about

The leek flan served with our Limousin beef filets when we dined at Milord Restaurant in Oradour. And she's right. That flan was one of the highpoints of the meal!

I will try to wrap all this up and get photos done by tomorrow or the next day.

Here's the photo link. I put hotels in a sub-gallery.

I was as ruthless editing as I could be, but what do you you do when you have many, many crappy photos?

http://www.pbase.com/leelygoes/root

You under estimate yourself. They ae wonderful, thank you.

Leely, those are wonderful. Thank you for giving us the link.

I'm looking forward to hearing about the Hotel de la Place des Vosges. And you went to Cluny, my favourite museum in Paris!

By the way, your comment about "the longer we stayed, the less we did" made Margriet and I look at each other and say "Leely is becoming a slow traveller." Next thing you know you'll be renting a house for a week or two and really slowing down.

Anselm

Great job Leely! Thank you.

Leely, your photos are beautiful, very artistic. Thanks for sharing!

Leely, this was all so wonderful. I'm so glad you enjoyed my corner of paradise. Thank you! I am SO homesick for the Dordogne right now - I haven't been back to my home for more than a year--wahhhh!

P.S. I once posted a bunch of pix taken with one of those throw-away cameras, and even though ThinGorjus noticed the total absence of professionalism, they were enjoyed by more than a few, so not to worry

Your photos are lovely Leely...I would take quality over quantity any day and you have some beautiful shots there.

Sorry this is taking so long; I think I'm reliving the trip by doing this report. Thus, I really want to milk it.

Cue the music. It’s April in Paris.

We regretfully left the Dordogne in the wee hours on Good Friday, thinking rather blasphemously, What's so good about it, anyway?

Aside—
It took me twice as long as everyone else in the world to drive from Sarlat to Brive and we had little-to-no traffic. I got pretty turned around in Montignac and wasted about 15 minutes there. I also think I took one of the little tiny, windy, wavy roads when there was probably a more direct route. I had been doing that all week, but we needed to return the car and catch a 9:30 train.

Also for some reason I had thrown away the one piece of paper with the street address of National Citer in Brive and could only remember that it’s “at 400 yards from the gare.” We evntually found it, dumped the car and hustled to station. Lesson here is: leave yourself plenty of time.

We arrived at Gare d’Austerlitz on Friday afternoon and the place was PACKED. Was there a strike? Everyone was just standing around and the trains didn’t seem to be going anywhere. We both felt a bit crowded and uncomfortable.

In my desire to “just get out of here,” I decided we should walk to our hotel, which was, after all, just at Place des Vosges. Fine for me, an easy walk, pulling my rolling bag with another slung over my shoulder. My friend didn’t fare as well. She had packed all our travel books as well as two chunky novels of her own into her shoulder bag that’s missing its shoulder strap. Too heavy and hard to carry.

What a difference a week makes! We had left a wintry Paris in late March and came back to find a city in full bloom. My friend, unfortunately, wasn’t feeling the love, as she struggled with all her bulky luggage, a coat and scarf, etc., etc. I’ll admit it took me a while to notice she was lagging so far behind. She insisted we should just soldier on, I shouldn’t attempt to take any of her stuff, all the usual things people say when offered help only after they’ve been struggling for a good 5-10 minutes. Oops.

On we went. At one point I turned around to see an elderly, well-dressed lady walk on the coat my friend had just dropped. Then two other pedestrians followed suit. We laughed about it. But not until much, much later.

Tip: This is an easy, pleasant walk but luggage can make or break the experience for a person. Think about it before you decide to hoof it.

We then spent a semi-grumpy afternoon at the Picasso museum. We had both been before and weren’t really all that excited about it. Decided maybe I should check my email only to discover we had an 8pm reservation at L’Avant Gout and we had stopped for jambon sandwiches and a glass of wine at 3. Oh well. Had to really force myself to ingest an entire dinner and bottle of wine. But somehow I managed.

The rest of Easter weekend in Paris involved lots of wandering in the lovely sunshine, happening upon places neither of us had been to before, and some we had, and just enjoying the city. It was truly glorious, the weather was perfect, and the tourists were out in droves. I don’t think there was anyone in Spain or Italy because all the Spaniards and Italians were in Paris.

Paris highlights

• Crypts under Notre Dame. The line into the tower was outrageous, so we bypassed it. Walked by the entrance to the crypt. No line. Neither of us had been before so we said “why not?” We enjoyed it.

• Petit Palais.* The Sargent-Sorolla show was beautiful. I had never been to this museum before and was extremely impressed. We had a coffee in the café—a very pleasant way to rest our feet. This museum is free, by the way. Special exhibits, such as the Sargent-Sorolla are not.

• Seine boat cruise. Again, something I had never done. We used Bateaux Mouches. 9E pp, I believe. I had always thought this kind of thing was hokey, but after the gabare on the Dordogne and this, I am fully sold on the idea. Relahhhhhhxing. There was an impressively gorgeous family sitting directly in front of us, so I gawked them quite a bit as well. Three generations of well-heeled, thin, well-dressed beauty. Fascinating.

• Cluny Museum. WOW. Get the audioguide; it’s free with admission. The only downer was that the first few rooms were closed because they were preparing for a special exhibition, so we had to do the whole tour backwards. I want to go back and do it “forward” next time.

• Picnic in Luxembourg Gardens on Easter Sunday after the Cluny. Every bit as great as one might imagine.

• Paris Walks “Jefferson’s Paris.” This was initially a little disappointing. Too many people, nearly 30. I kept thinking, “Why am I here again?” Still, I learned a few things and on the whole enjoyed it.

*If ever there were a time for hyperbole--and really, when isn’t there?—the Petit Palais , the Sargent-Sorolla show, the permanent collection, the café in the garden, those English college kids I eavesdropped on having a very heated debate about Anglican vs. Catholic use/misuse of iconography, etc., etc., would call for it. A+++++++++ ten thousand times over. I had a blast! Thank you, terrific museum.

Hi Barbara! We finally installed the nursery closet (non-handy people take note - stuff like this should be left to the pros, unless you like doing things twice) and can finally sit down and feed my Fodors addiction.

I don't think I'll be posting our pictures after seeing yours. Ours are so goofy, not a shadow of the artistry seen in yours. DH made a science out of propping the camera, so we could both be in the picture. In the worst cases, he didn't reach me on time, and the picture shows him running in a freeze-frame. In the best cases, I got a little bumped off by him, so we just look silly.

We arrived in Sarlat right aound 6 p.m. on market day. Parking wasn’t a huge issue, but let’s just say I got to know that ring road intimately. LOL, we got to know that ring road pretty well too! It became our "Parliament, Big Ben" for the trip, as we kept circling around it the first day.

And I'm not sure the Marling Menu master would have helped very much in this area of France. Innards were simply unavoidable! Even with my college knowledge of French and a menu translator, I managed to steer DH into ordering Radishes a l'Albigeois salad. I figured it sounded pretty innocuous. Well, they did have gizzards. Tons of them. DH wasn't a fan of organ meats, but did manage to eat the entire dish.

Nearly had a panic attack driving across that long, very narrow, “is this for cars?” bridge leaving town. I actually took a picture of our rental passing through that bridge. And after our small Mercedes A 180 made it through, a TRUCK passed through it (he had to wait until I got off the bridge since I had stayed behind so I could take the picture; He was probably thinking, "another touriste taking a picture of that bridge").

It was fun reading your list of highlights. I agree wholeheartedly with it!

In the end, I take it la France redeemed itself for your friend?

P.S. - I like the name Chlotar. Too bad I'm having a girl j/k.

By the way, thanks for calling us charming and witty! We're so flattered! I don't know about the glamorous part, though. Obviously, you must have seen us at our best (without being covered in crumbs of Goldfish crackers).

Maria, I hope you saw the photo of me exiting the Toilette Publique in Monpazier. Kari thought she was so very clever catching me unawares. "Just like your internet friends." Ha. Ha.

You must share your photos, especially those in that genre.

A girl! How exciting. You know Chlotar's mother was Clothilda...

Hotel du Danube, Paris
www.hoteldanube.fr/

Well-located on a lively-but-not-loud street. The room, while not spacious by “American standards,” whatever those are, was a nice size for Paris. Two twin beds, a few antique or nice repros, including a dresser, decent closet, small but efficient marble bathroom, and a table and two chairs.

Jody and others on this forum have recommended this hotel and I can see why. I had read reviews on tripadvisor saying the staff is cold or unfriendly/unhelpful, but I actually found the opposite. I guess some people are expecting hugs and kisses?

I had booked a superior twin for my friend and myself at 170E. I think we were still at a low-season rate.

Hotel La Glane, Oradour sur Glane

Quite basic and not exactly oozing charm, but hey, it was cheap. Clean, but maybe a little mold on some (not much) of the grout in the shower. Nothing major. Good water pressure, strong hairdryer. It was peaceful, quiet and the staff was gracious, but I think we were the only guests that night, so don’t take my word for it.

45E for a twin. We spent more on dinner.

http://tinyurl.com/38ygwg

http://preview.tinyurl.com/38ygwg


Villa des Consuls, Sarlat
http://www.villaconsuls.com/

Impeccable service, immaculate hotel.

We stayed in the Fenelon studio. This is up a small, winding staircase. There are a number of ground-floor rooms and apartments, but I’m not sure they’re wheelchair accessible.

My only quibbles are minor: the bedspread and curtains are not to my taste. No dresser or bureau or armoire. I used the shelves by the safe for some stuff I didn’t want to hang.

But really, this is a convenient, quiet, incredibly clean clean clean place to stay. I’m forever in David’s debt because he recommended Les Quatre Saisons for dinner. I’d go back in a heartbeat. We hated to leave.

80E/night.

Hotel de la Place des Vosges, Paris
http://hotelplacedesvosges.com/

I can’t imagine a better location but would have a hard time recommending this hotel. I’ll put it this way: My mother would walk right out. We stayed three nights and it kind of grew on us.

The staff is helpful and accommodating. The lobby has character and a certain medieval charm. On the other hand, our room, 41, was plain, tiny and worn. Fabric walls, not a great choice for a very old hotel in my opinion. We felt the linens and carpet were clean; the walls…maybe not so much.

But what a view!

I would probably stay there again, but I suspect 80-95% of people reading this message board would not.

120E/ night for a twin.

Restaurant highlights

After all my research, I got to France and we quickly decided we didn’t want to be tied down to a reservation a few days out. Also, I can’t/couldn’t really eat a big meal every day. Every other day was about right for us, so I’m especially indebted to the poster who asked about Dordogne restaurants for their kids. Made good use of those.

• Milord, on main road in Oradour sur Glane.
I mentioned the meal in my notes on staying in Oradour. All in all, a good meal at a reasonable price.

The total was 80E (including wine, water, coffee, and our trying-to-not-be-too-American-about-tipping tip).

• Pizzeria Romane, Sarlat
3 côte de Toulouse

I think this was a StCirq recommendation for a casual meal.

We walked in around 8 and were seated right away. When we left they were full and people were waiting. Good pizza. I had the Margherita and my friend had one with ham and an egg (verrrry tasty) and we both had simple green salads. These arrived the same time as the pizzas and my friend and I just stared at each other. We were totally unprepared for that one!

45E. Two pizzas, two salads, two aperitifs and a demi-bottle of Chianti.

• Les Quatre Saisons, on côte de Toulouse across the “street” from Pizzeria Romane

David at Villa des Consuls made reservations for us on the same day both times we ate there. If you are travelling in a the on season you might want to call a day or so ahead of time if it’s a weekend.

There’s a photo of the (seasonal, as the name might suggest) menu on my pbase gallery. See Mariaroasa’s babymoon trip report for a great description of the restaurant and food, and, coincidentally, what we had too.
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2&tid=34978200

My friend had the scallops starter both times (she’s a sucker for scallops) and the veal over parsnip sauce with some carefully placed peas with a test-tube of “chorizo” sauce the first time we dined there. The second time she tried the special, pork with mushrooms and some other stuff. I had langoustine ravioles, the lamb which was absolutely fantastic. It was so good, I ordered it again. I honestly can’t remember but everything ate but it was delicious. The amuse bouches, the entrees, the plats, the desserts, the coffees, the cookies with the coffees.

Our bill the first dinner was about 112E and the second 88E. The second time we just got a demi-bottle of wine and a small bottle of Vittel.

• Le Bastide de Monpazier

We ate lunch here on the only dreary day of our time in the Dordogne.

I had salmon in a light butter/lemon/chives sauce, followed by the daily special, leg of lamb served with white beans with rosemary. My friend had petit friture de Dordogne—not what she was expecting but I had some idea. She wasn’t thrilled with the head, guts and tails but made a valiant effort. She also had the lamb. Then we had cheese, one was a blue, one was a chevre and the third I couldn’t place.

There was a French family ahead of us by a course. When we saw that the parents agreed to let their sons order a second chocolate mousse each, that’s we went for. Crusty, almost cakey and crispy top with a delectable, smooth center. Great, powerful chocolate flavor. I wanted a second as well.

With half a carafe of wine, a bottle of wine and two coffees, the total was around 70E.

• L’Avant Gout, rue Bobillot, Paris
phone: 01 53 80 24 00

The day before we left Sarlat, I realized it was Easter weekend in Paris and I hadn’t bothered to make any reservations. I emailed the Place des Vosges and asked for L’Avant Gout, Ze Kitchen and/or Astier. We got L’Avant Gout.

I know some people just “don’t get” this bistro, but I surely do. This is the third time I’ve been and I’ve never been disappointed. It reminds me of a Parisian version of the type of restaurants I like to frequent at home: low-key, neighborhood-y places with a youngish, slightly Bohemian ambience and a market menu with dashes of innovation.

That said, they were training a busboy to be a server while we were there and service was about 15 degrees off all evening. (Example: she ordered fish and I ordered meat, yet she was brought a steak knife and I was not.)

I had a veloute of artichoke with some kind of whitefish scoop that was spiced with something and even a bit piquant. Came with a cheese cracker, or maybe a thin sheet of baked parmesan. My friend, very full from our sandwiches that day, started with a salade verte. Simple, fresh and tasty she said.

I had roasted veal served with a “pesto” of some type of green. It was accompanied by a puff pastry stuffed with a cheese/potato mixture. There was something else on the plate as well, but I can’t recall what it was. I do know my plat was incredible and I ate ever single bite.

My friend, on the other hand, had the “Cajun” salmon and found that while it was perfectly cooked, it was a bit bland and to her mind underspiced. It came with a housemade pita stuffed with ratatouille; she liked this very much, better than the salmon itself.

For dessert, she was quite pleased by her chocolate over a raspberry juice/sauce, topped with fresh raspberries; yes, I did manage to get a taste and would have been envious if I hadn’t been struck dumb by my own choice. It was kind of a nest of non-wheat Shredded Wheat, topped with spiced crème fraiche topped with sliced strawberries, strawberry sauce and nuts. This is something I wouldn’t think I would like“too sweet, too rich” but it was neither. Again, we managed to suck back every crumb, drip, etc., of our desserts. Skipped cheese.

120E, including a 38E bottle of wine, coffees, etc.

• L’Ecume, 25 bd henri iv, Paris
phone: 01 42 72 39 85

After reading about this restaurant in one of Anselm and Margriet’s reports, I decided to give it a try when we were told L’Enoteca was complet and I knew it was nearby.

Casual, old-timey both in décor and food, it was perfect. We both had the steak with three sauces followed by salad with pine nuts and an emormous wedge of Brie. If I had to choose, I’d pick the oil/shallot sauce as my favorite but it’s nice to get all three. We very much enjoyed this dinner; it was exactly as I expected and exactly what I was in the mood for.

Madame demonstrated something quite beyond charity when she complimented us on our French. Oh, I’ll definitely be back!

With wine and coffee, under 70E for two.

• Gli Angeli , 5 rue saint-gilles, Paris
phone: 01 42 71 05 80

And for our last night, something completely different. Easter in Paris and you’ve had lamb, veal, beef, duck and goose galore? Go have some pasta. We walked by Chez Janou and it was packed (looked good, though), continued on and found Gli Angeli. It was just 8, we walked in and they seated us; then we watched them turn most people away all night.

Not fabulous, but good Italian-in-France food. Casual atmosphere. You’ll feel more as if you’re in Rome than Paris here. This would be a good place if you have children.

Around 65E. Two entrees, two plats (of pasta), a bottle of Montepulciano, a bottle of Vittel, a shared dessert and two coffees.
CASH only.

• We ended up eating saucisson, cheese, bread, wine and fruit in our apartment in Sarlat a couple of times just because we’d had such big lunches. Also, we needed an excuse to buy things on market day.

Ta-da and au revoir

We estimate we spent about $2300 each all in—what a deal. While I look for bargains in terms of hotels and car rental, I don’t budget while we’re there. It’ easy for me to avoid spending tons of money because I’m not a shopper, and while I love great food, I prefer casual places and my appetite is easily sated. For those of you planning a budget trip, it wouldn’t be difficult to do this trip spending less.

Well, we gave France and chance and were utterly charmed. My friend calls me every few days and says, “I miss France. Why was our trip so short?” I honestly don’t know.

Oh, I may be able to squeeze in a brief trip to Paris in September but won't know for a while, so might have lots of questions about how to get a decent apartment or hotel in the high season at short notice. Sorry in advance, guys.

Thanks for bearing with me, and to those of you headed to Perigord, you're in for a real treat.

Great report. Thanks for mentioning Cadouin - often overlooked and worth the visit.

These photos include some of Cadouin:

http://tinyurl.com/yrqqk8