A wet day with cool temps and low clouds! A definitive taste of autumn. After breakfast in the old cellar of Saint-Martin we were introduced to our "new" e-bikes. I was unfortunate to get one that soon turned out to have a problem with the motor. Thus, we have proceeded cautiously and are now in the Hôtel Le Coulier in the tiny village of Laval where we are awaiting a visit by the bike mechanic.
En route to here, we did pass through very friendly landscapes, ...
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| There is always a château to be seen somewhere in the landscape! |
... met some very good-looking veteran cars, ...
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| 7 x Citroën 2 CV = 14 CV (:-) |
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| The Citroën flagship: the DS model. An executive car with hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension and representing the essence of Italian design and French aeronautical engineering. |
... and saw some interesting stone roof houses.
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| The roof is a thick layer of rock slabs. They weigh around 1000 kg pr sq.meter ... |
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| ... and to support this great load, the pitch of the roof needs to be /\ steep. |
We biked through several large plantations of Sweet Chestnuts (Castanea sativa) and checked out this important food source for the local habitants; – humans as well as animals.
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| The edible seeds (nuts) of the tree are enclosed in a spiky sheath that deters 'predators'. |
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| Chestnuts are traditionally roasted in their tough brown husks. After removing the husks, the hot chestnuts are dipped in salt before eating them. Roasted chestnuts are often sold by streets or markets vendors. |
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| Once cooked, chestnuts acquire a sweet flavour and a floury texture similar to the sweet potato. The cooked nuts can be used for stuffing poultry, as a vegetable, or be used in confections, puddings, desserts and cakes. They can also be used for flour, bread-making, a cereal substitute, coffee substitute, a thickener in soups and other cookery uses, as well as for fattening farm animals. |
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| Cattle grazing in a chestnut plantation. |
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| Dordogne – the land of plenty ! |
Le Coulier is a very small hotel in the countryside but its cuisine is absolutely excellent! We've just come back from dinner in the restaurant and have thoroughly enjoyed the following menu: Tomato gazpacho, foie gras slices on raisin bread, tournedos with spinach, cassoulet, local cheeses, and crème brûlé. All accompanied by a local vin rouge from Bergerac.
We are definitely going to sleep well !!
