A Morning Walk into Town

Dear Friends and Family, For us, it is late in the day. After an overcast Tuesday and the prediction of more rain today, it was a wonderful surprise to wake this morning to blue sky and wispy, sun-streaked skies. While it was cool, it was also invigorating. So as I left for my morning constitutional, I grabbed the camera to record the beginning of the day. Ann’s place, which is called Poujoulou is located about two and half miles from the village of Puy L’Eveque, a village that I find myself falling in love with more and more each day. As I headed off I took two looks back at Ann’s house (on the right), the barn (center), and what is called the “bakery,” as it was the place that the surrounding villager came each morning to use the community oven to bake their bread. This first shot is from the gravel driveway that leads to a small road

And the second farther out, on the small road that leads up to the main road into town.

At Ann’s suggestion, I took a different way into the village this morning, taking me off the road and onto dirt paths cut through the forest. As it was new to me, there was the occasional wrong turn or dead-end, but it was a glorious new journey. And the morning light and mist made for some spectacular moments along the way. Here I rounded a bend and came upon a field with a couple of horses quietly grazing

This is a path that has a number of wonderful houses on it. They are stone and many of them have large lawns leading up to the homes. This one I just caught as the sun was coming over the horizon

Another half mile down the path, I begin to see the tops of building in the town. As you make your way down, you see the steeple of the village church

And for a little while I was not quite sure where I was. However, as I came to the end of the path, a city street emerged and with a quick left hand turn, I was close to the church itself

Finally, I made my way down to the main road that leads to other villages east and west and, finally, to the town of Cahors, about 30 kilometers to the east. I walked along the main road, passed a number of business, boucheries, boulangeries, the pharmacie and a bank. In to town square, the sight of yesterday’s marché, I was able to look down over the village and the river.

Again, the light was amazing. Each day here is unique and there is a great deal to enjoy early in the morning. Of course, the one part of this wonderful downhill romp, is the uphill grind, It is a quite steep 2 ½ mile journey back up to Ann’s but you feel that you have accomplished something, so early in the day, and that what you have seen is yours, as nearly everyone else is just coming to consciousness. A great day in Puy L’Eveque.