Tag Archives: Lot

Timeless Monument: The Cathedral of Cahors 900 Years On

Posted on 28/07/2019 by nessafrance

2019 marks the 900th anniversary of la Cathédrale Saint-Etienne in Cahors. The cathedral is even older than the ill-fated Notre-Dame de Paris. Yesterday, 27th July, was supposed to be the official anniversary, since it was on that day in 1119 … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Places | Tagged Cahors, Cahors Cathedral 900 years, Cahors market, Cathédrale Saint-Etienne, Château de Cénevières, French Wars of Religion, Lot, Secret Gardens of Cahors, SW France | Leave a comment

Return to Cahors

Posted on 26/08/2018 by nessafrance

I do like Cahors, an ancient city and capital of the Lot Département. Why is it, then, that we visit so infrequently? It’s more appealing than our own Préfecture, Montauban, and it doesn’t take much longer to get there. The … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Places | Tagged Cahors, Cahors market, Cahors wine, Cathédrale Saint-Etienne, Léon Gambetta, Lot, Mont Saint-Cyr, River Lot, route de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle, Secret Gardens of Cahors | 22 Comments

Finding Our House in France

Posted on 26/04/2017 by nessafrance

Today is a very special one on La Lune. It’s 20 years ago to the day since we first saw our house. During our five days’ house-hunting in France, among the legion of properties we saw only two fitted the … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, French property, living in France, Lot, property-hunting in France, real estate, rural life, SW France, Tarn-et-Garonne | 23 Comments

Every Château Tells a Story #14: Le Château des Bordes, Lot

Posted on 22/09/2016 by nessafrance

When I started this series about the châteaux in our area, I had no idea that so many of them exist. There are the obvious ones – Najac, Saint-Projet, Belcastel – but also less obvious ones. Some are just … Continue reading →

Posted in Châteaux, History, Places | Tagged Château des Bordes, Châteaux, French châteaux, Gourdon family, journées du patrimoine, Lot, patrimoine, Promilhanes, SW France | 11 Comments

Calvignac, Lot: Untold Stories?

Posted on 23/08/2016 by nessafrance

I often find the smaller places in rural France more interesting than the big cities or the real tourist honeypots. They have their own intriguing histories, their hidden features, and to me these are more satisfying than the roads much … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Places | Tagged Calvignac, Château de Cénevières, Exoplanet Lot, Hundred Years War, Lot, River Lot, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, SW France | 19 Comments

Every Château Tells a Story #13: Le Château de Cénevières, Lot

Posted on 25/07/2016 by nessafrance

The Château de Cénevières towers over its village and the River Lot, which meanders far beneath. The castle commanded a formerly important strategic position and the river, which was once well-plied trade route. My local writing group went on an outing … Continue reading →

Posted in Châteaux, History, Places | Tagged Antoine de Gourdon, Cénevières, Château de Cénevières, de Braquilanges family, Lot, Parisot Writing Group, patrimoine, River Lot, SW France | 12 Comments

C’est la Fête!

Posted on 22/06/2016 by nessafrance

It’s that time of year again when every street corner (and your windscreen if you stop for long enough) bristles with posters advertising local fêtes, vide-greniers and concerts. Some of the early ones have had to contend with appalling weather … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places, Teysseroles chapel | Tagged bastide, Beauregard, chapelle de Teysseroles, Fête de la Musique, fête de Teysseroles, Lot, SW France, Teysseroles | 15 Comments

Saint-Cirq-Lapopie: A Plus Beau Village de France

Posted on 07/06/2016 by nessafrance

About a month ago, I revisited Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, to interview a writing friend, Tracey Warr, who was spending time there as a writer in residence. Saint-Cirq is a plus beau village de France, overlooking a meander of the River Lot.

Posted in History, Places | Tagged André Breton, le Cantou, Les Plus Beaux Villages de France, Lot, River Lot, Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, SW France, Tracey Warr | 10 Comments

Bach, an Ancient Village on the Causse de Limogne

Posted on 18/04/2016 by nessafrance

This was a week of excursions. Yesterday, we rehearsed and sang in the biannual scratch choir concert in Puycelsi, a hilltop fortified village in the Tarn. As always, it was an inspiring event. The concerts are held in aid of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Food/drink/recipes, Personalities, Places | Tagged Auberge Lou Bourdie, Bach, French regional cuisine, lavoir, Lot, Monique Valette, patrimoine, phosphate mines, Phosphatières du Cloup d'Aural, SW France | 6 Comments

Pastis: A Quercy Speciality

Posted on 16/12/2015 by nessafrance

Hands up everyone who thought pastis was an aniseed-flavoured apéritif. It is; but it’s not a local speciality here. The pastis I’m talking about is an apple dessert made with very fine pastry, which is particular to the Lot and … Continue reading →

Posted in Customs, Food/drink/recipes | Tagged Causse de Limogne, Limogne-en-Quercy, Lot, Pastis, Pastis Anguille de Limogne, Pastis du Quercy, Quercy, recipes, rural life, Tarn-et-Garonne, traditional French recipes | 12 Comments

Things to Do in Southwest France 2015

Posted on 06/01/2015 by nessafrance

We’ve lived here since 1997, but many things remain that we haven’t seen or done. As I have often remarked, once you get settled in a place, daily life tends to take over and you are no longer a … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, Beaumont-de-Lomagne, Cordes-sur-Ciel, Lalbenque truffle market, Lot, Rodez, SW France, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne, things to do in SW France, Toulouse Violet Festival, Villefranche de Rouergue | 6 Comments

French Regional Cuisine: L’Auberge Lou Bourdie at Bach

Posted on 04/12/2014 by nessafrance

Bach is a small village on the Causse de Limogne, in the heart of truffle country. In common with many rural French villages, it’s a quiet place nowadays. But it does have a rather good restaurant, l’Auberge Lou Bourdie.

Posted in Food/drink/recipes, Personalities, Places | Tagged Auberge Lou Bourdie, Bach, Cahors wine, French regional cuisine, French restaurants, Jamie Oliver, Limogne-en-Quercy, Lot, Monique Valette, SW France, truffles | 8 Comments

Figeac: Medieval Gem

Posted on 23/08/2014 by nessafrance

Every time we go to Figeac I ask myself why we don’t go more often. About 50 minutes’ comfortable drive from here through attractive countryside, it’s no particular hardship to get there. You often need an incentive to do these … Continue reading →

Posted in Books/writing, History, Places | Tagged Egyptian hieroglyphs, Figeac, Jean-François Champollion, Lot, medieval architecture, Musée Champollion, River Célé, Rosetta Stone, SW France | 10 Comments

Pilgrimage to Rocamadour

Posted on 24/08/2013 by nessafrance

I wouldn’t normally go there in the high season. Like our own nearby Najac or Saint-Cirq-Lapopie, Rocamadour (Lot) is a tourist honeypot during July and August. This is hardly surprising since it is such a spectacular site clinging to … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Places | Tagged Lot, patrimoine, Rocamadour, Saint-Amadour, SW France, Vierge Noire de Rocamadour | 17 Comments

More of Cahors

Posted on 21/12/2012 by nessafrance

The end of the world has been a bit of a damp squib. Presumably someone got the date wrong since it didn’t happen today – or not yet, anyway. I even had my hair done specially yesterday – well, you … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Places | Tagged Cahors, Cahors market, Lot, Pont Valentré, River Lot, Secret Gardens of Cahors, SW France | 9 Comments

Ten Things to do in 2012 in SW France

Posted on 30/12/2011 by nessafrance

Everyone’s thoughts turn to resolutions at this time of year. Last year, I suggested 10 things to do in 2011 in southwest France. All of them were things I had never done but planned to do this year. Well, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Aveyron, French life, History, Places | Tagged 10 things to do, Aveyron, Lot, Midi-Pyrenees, SW France, Tarn-et-Garonne | 12 Comments

Saffron: Quercy’s Red Gold

Posted on 26/10/2011 by nessafrance

Most people associate saffron with Middle Eastern cooking. But this exotic and highly-prized spice was successfully produced in the Quercy region of southwest France throughout the Middle Ages. After a hiatus following the French Revolution, production resumed in the Lot Valley … Continue reading →

Posted in Customs, Food/drink/recipes, Nature, Places | Tagged Cajarc, Cajarc Saffron Fair, crocus sativus Linnaeus, Les Safraniers du Quercy, Lot, Lot Valley, saffron, safran, SW France | 17 Comments

Asking for the moon: finding our house in France, part 4

Posted on 17/04/2011 by nessafrance

We had already seen La Lune, our present house, after a couple of days and following our encounters with Uncle Fester and assorted fauna of southwest France (notably snakes and fleas). However, we were committed to spending a further … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, France, French property, living in France, Lot, rural life, SW France, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne | 8 Comments

Asking for the moon: finding our house in France, part 3

Posted on 15/04/2011 by nessafrance

During our property-hunting visit to southwest France, it was rapidly becoming apparent that what looked perfect on paper was invariably flawed in reality. In part 2 (see also part 1), we spent the first of two days with an English … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, France, French property, living in France, Lot, SW France, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne | 10 Comments

Asking for the moon: finding our house in France, part 2

Posted on 11/04/2011 by nessafrance

Before you ask, this isn’t our house. At the end of Part 1, we were arriving at Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val to spend a couple of days visiting properties with an English estate agent. He ran a gîte at his house a … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, France, French property, living in France, Lot, SW France, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne | 9 Comments

Asking for the moon: finding our house in France, part 1

Posted on 07/04/2011 by nessafrance

‘Don’t let’s ask for the moon; we already have the stars.’ This is the final line in the film ‘Now, Voyager’ with Claude Rains (born in Camberwell but often played Frenchmen) and Bette Davis. I always think of it when … Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Places | Tagged Aveyron, France, French property, living in France, Lot, SW France, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne | 6 Comments

Black wine and secret gardens in Cahors

Posted on 22/07/2010 by nessafrance

We recently went on an excursion to Cahors, medieval capital of the Quercy Region and now Préfecture of the Lot Département. Friends Kate and Nigel have a house near Cahors and came with us to point out some of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Food/drink/recipes, French life, History, Places | Tagged Cahors, France, history, living in France, Lot, restaurants, SW France, wine | 7 Comments

Buying a house in France: ten top tips

Posted on 25/04/2010 by nessafrance

We leave our brains behind when we look at property in France, but a few tips will help you avoid making expensive mistakes, says A writer’s lot in France Continue reading →

Posted in French life, Top tips | Tagged 10 top tips, a vendre, Aveyron, blogs about France, France, French property, house buying, location, Lot, real estate, South West France, swimming pool | 1 Comment

Lunch with the troisième âge

Posted on 10/03/2010 by nessafrance

Lunch is alive and well in France. Nowhere is this more in evidence than in the Troisième Age (Third Age) club we belong to. It organises excursions around the region a few times a year, the highlight of which is … Continue reading →

Posted in Aveyron, Food/drink/recipes, French life, History, Places | Tagged Aveyron, blogs about France, France, Lot, Lunch, Stockfish, Troisieme age | Leave a comment