Breakfast in Sarlat, Lunch in Albi, Dinner in Carcassonne

We got a good start on the morning in Sarlat and got down to the local market (which was pretty much everywhere in the city) and strolled through booths of people selling fresh produce, sausages, cheese, breads, nuts, pate, and wine. We sampled some fantastic cheeses, a bit of pate, some local wine, and a bit of sausage. They have these fantastic little strawberries bursting with an amazing aroma and flavor so we grabbed a tub of those, bought some sandwiches, and packed up for the morning to head down further South. On the way out we stopped at a grocery store to grab some water (and a biere de garde for me). At the grocery store, you had to pay 1€ for a grocery cart. They had these little grocery carts which I found out you can’t bring past the checkout line without setting off an alarm. Everywhere in Europe they are well beyond the concept of charging people for plastic grocery bags. They simply don’t give you any (people bring their own) but you can buy hefty grocery bags at the checkout for reuse.

After a few hours drive, we took a quick detour to Albi which since it was a bit off the beaten path, it was a nice relatively quiet city. We ate our lunch in the shadow of the overbearing church (St. Cecile’s Cathedral) that was there, created after they exterminated the Cathars, an almost Buddhist like religion, as a tribute to Roman Catholicism’s dominance. We toured the church, strolled another local church and cloister, grabbed some ice cream for Emily, and headed back on the road to Carcassonne.

We arrived in Carcassonne, checked in to our B&B, and jumped into the hot tub to relax. At this point, I do need to notice, the temperatures have started to rise a bit. We are well into the 90’s now.

After our soak, we headed into the heavily fortified/walled city of Carcassonne. We found a nice little restaurant for dinner and meandered through the streets which were fortunately a bit less crowded at night. I can’t imagine what it would be like during the day. As the sun set and the lights of the town began to light the massive structures, we took a walk between the massive inner and outer walls and got some great shots. We’ll hopefully be getting them posted soon! Tomorrow, on to Provence!