Puy de Sancy and Rocamadour

Puy de Sancy is the highest volcano in the range, so we had to go and see it. We took a gondola ride part of the way and then walked up the 829 steps to the summit. We know that there are 829 steps because the kids counted each and every one on the way down.




Yesterday we went to Rocamadour, which is an amazing town built into the side of a mountain, and the Gouffre de Padirac caves.

The caves are some of the biggest in France and we got to travel by gondola into the heart of them. Unfortunately you are not able to take pictures, but we did get some shots from the first section of cave (shown here).



Rocamadour has three different levels. On the top is the castle, which dates back to the tenth century. Below that, carved right into the side of the mountain is the church, which predates the castle. The stone masons carved blocks into the face of the gorge, so that you can't tell where the blocks end and the mountain begins. Below that is the old town, which sits just above a beautiful valley.
We stayed and had dinner and then took a trolley ride in the dark to get a wonderful view of the city with the lights shining. Unfortunately the Roc is 3 hours from the house, so we got back very late this morning and are taking a 'down' day, playing pingpong, going to the market, and generally getting geared up for later this week, when we plan to hit the mediterranean sea.

See you all soon ... The Browns

Clermont-Ferrand

Well, here we are in France ... oh la la! The house we are staying in is a beautiful old, very large, house in a charming cite ancien ... with 5 bedrooms so the kids, for the first time in their lives, each have their own room.
We are staying in the town of Ceyrat, which is similar to a suburb. There is an old church just a bit further up the hill, with bells that ring on the hour. We havent been in the church yet, but it is on our to-do list.
On Sunday there was a reenactment of one of the old battles between the Romans and the Gauls, in which, if course, the gauls won. The Romans later returned and beat them, but that little detail is left out around here). The men seemed to be having a great time in their short skirts, waving their zooden swords around and pretending to kill each other.
Yesterday we went to the tallest volcano in the region ... le Pui de Dome. It is 1465 metres high. Although we did take the bus up, we managed to walk down. The views from the top were stunning. The kids slept very well last night.
The hardest part of travelling around France is the language. The people get this look on their face when we try to speak french ... and then we get a look of panic when they answer us speaking at full speed. Steve has been studying his phrase book and is optimistic that he will be able to speak French by the time we leave. I find that we know just barely enough to make ourselves intelligible, and that is fine with me.
Well I must go to the boulangerie and get some groceries ... Steve goes to the patisserie every morning for fresh bread so we have been eating well. Miss you all at home. The Browns