You can’t visit France and not spend a significant amount of time thinking about, shopping for, preparing and eating lots of food! Such was the case for our trio. We quickly fell into a little routine which included shopping the markets by day, finding an interesting café or restaurant for lunch and then using our fresh meats, produce and cheese we had collected, to prepare dinner in our delightful farmhouse kitchen in the evenings.

The markets are in a sense, like a traveling show. They moved from the villages and towns on different days. On a Friday we headed into shop the market booths in the little village of Plazac, nearby. Several days later we met up with the same vendors in another village about 30 minutes away. On Saturdays the markets are much bigger, and expand on the regular offerings of cheese, bread, fruit and veggies, to add in clothing, handcrafted items and scarves, lots and lots of scarves!

Dining out in any part of France is an event. Not only is the food always excellent, but also the presentation of the plating is always perfect. Whether it’s a chic 5-star in the city, or a tiny café in the smallest town, your owners, managers, chefs and servers take obvious pride in their offerings.

In the evenings, we always, and I mean always, every night, began with a charcuterie tray and wine. (Remember, it’s FRANCE!) We would reminisce over the events of the day over fine reds and whites, and trays of the freshest meats and cheeses. Making dinner was a team sport, and always a win!

Yes, it may seem like we spent an extraordinary amount of time shopping for food and eating it, but at the same time we met wonderful locals, saw incredible sights on our travels and experienced the culture of the Dordogne!