Rather than make a separate blog post for each or our trips out and about, I have combined them into one post.
18th April – The Grand Etang La Jemaye
About 20 minutes drive from our house is La Jemaye, an area of woodland through which there are a number of walks. There are also several man-made lakes, with the largest having a sandy beach, a cafe, a childrens playground and in the high season there is a lifeguard on duty as a portion of the lake is cordoned-off for swimming.
We enjoy walking in this area, taking a route around the largest of the lakes and passing by others.
19th April – Montpon-Ménestérol
Shortly after returning to England last November, I had been notified by letter, that the house in France had been given a formal address. Previously, the La Poste had been able to find us merely by our name, the road and the locality, but now it seems we need a proper road name and number. Furthermore, we had been provided with a number plaque which we could place somewhere obvious (no not there!). This needed to be collected from the Hotel de Ville, so we went to see if it was still available. It was, and judging by the number of plaques piled up on a desk and still to be collected by other residents, this is not a universally embraced change.
Brocantes
We visited the French equivalent of the British car boot sale, on three occasions during our stay. The first two times were with our friends Jeeves and Michelle, who had been buying up the French national stock of baby and toddler related goods.
Our own purchases were much more limited, consisting of a couple of ceramic pieces which Alison was unable to resist:
23rd April – Sainte-Foy-la-Grande
With the weather a bit miserable, we accompanied Jeeves and Michelle to the town of Sainte-Foy-la-Grande to have a wander around the market.
French markets are quite expensive places to shop, but the produce always seems to be of the highest quality.
24th April – Jeeves and Michelle’s
After visiting a couple of brocantes with Jeeves and Michelle, we helped him bring down a tree which was threatening to fall into his outbuilding, across the entrance.
28th April – Saint-Méard-de-Gurçon
We needed to replenish our supply of red wine and after tasting quite a few (hic!), we have found a vineyard which supplies good quality Bergerac wines at a reasonable price for everyday drinking, Chateau Raz, near Saint-Méard-de-Gurçon, a little way south of Montpon. The journey there passes through some beautiful countryside with many old properties.
In France, mistletoe seems very common, with some trees almost covered. They bear green leaves even when brances are normally bare.
28th April – Périgueux
The town of Périgueux is around an hour’s drive away from Montpon, but well worth the journey. There has been a settlement there for many centuries with many of the buildings dating from Roman times.
And many from medieval times:
Vesunna
Vesunna is the excavated site of a very large and impressive Roman Town House which had been altered and extended over a period of many years. The whole site is now housed under-cover in a purpose-built modern building:
The excavations have revealed many beautiful and intricate finds, as well as detailed stone carvings and everyday household items.
Cathédrale Saint-Front de Périgueux
Périgueux is famous for its cathedral, which is exceptional in terms of its architecture, in particular its domed roof:
The Town Centre
There are many fine shops in Périgueux and the whole town centre has a lively atmosphere:
3rd May – Pomerol
After a trip to another vineyard, to pick up some better-quality wine, we explored the wine producing area of Pomerol, part of the Bordeaux wine area.
"See-u-Later" 
Thanks for another interesting tour Peter.
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