Days 18 & 19

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Three locations today. We got up early to head to the caves at Pech Merl, then to the picturesque hill-clinging village of Saint Cirq Lapopie, and finally a walk along the Lot River at Bouzies.

Peche Merl contains some of the earliest cave art in the world -- bison, mamoths, horses, human hand outlines and a fish.l The caves are Karst topography, so contain the usual calcified formations, but also some unusual ones --including calcium pearls formed around sand particles. There are even human footprints dating to before the last ice age.

Saint Cirque Lapopie is reputed to be the most photogenic village in France and it probably is. Medieval houses, all from the 13th to 15th century cling to the steep cliff sides. We also had an excellent lunch at a terrace restaurant in the village.

Finally we walked, until the heat got the better of us, along the banks of the Lot River at the village of Bouzies, before returning to Nadillac and Malcolm & Kay's swimming pool.

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Today was a quiet day at Malcolm and Kay's. We had lunch at the village restaurant at Nadillac, a wander around the village and R&R at the house. In the evening we went off to Gourdon for a look at the medieval center of town and a visit to the night market.