France 2003 Travelogue

Thursday October 9
Heading South— Limoges and Sarlat-la-Canéda

This morning all the news channels were devoted to a single topic. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a native Austrian, had been elected governor of California. This European immigrant handily defeated a collection of child actors, porn stars, and discredited politicians to attain one of the most powerful political offices in the US. There was a tremendous amount of interest throughout Europe in this development.

We left Blois around 7:30 am, while it was still dark, and followed the small D765 highway to the Autoroute at Romorantin-Lanthenay. We filled up with gas and soon picked up the A20 Autoroute at Vierzon. After lunch at a rest area near Les Champs d'Amour, which means "the fields of love," we arrived in Limoges about 11:30 am.

Limoges and the National Porcelain Museum
Musée Adrien-Dubouché Our sole purpose for stopping in Limoges, a town whose name is literally synonymous with porcelain, was to visit the Musée National Adrien Dubouché, informally known as the National Porcelain Museum. Our assumption that directions to the museum would be signposted throughout the city was mistaken. In fact, we did not notice a single sign directing visitors to the museum and were forced to resort to the small map of Limoges in our Michelin Green Guide for the Dordogne. With Carolyn navigating from the Michelin map, we soon found the museum.

Unfortunately, we arrived at the museum about 40 minutes before the daily 90-minute lunchtime closing, so we limited our explorations to a single wing featuring late 18th and early 19th century French porcelain, which included a large number of historic Limoges pieces. It was a disappointment that we were unable to spend more time in this museum that documents the history of porcelain manufacturing throughout the world. Centuries of unsuccessful European efforts to duplicate "true porcelain," distinguished by its translucent quality, as developed in China are represented through the display of authentic period pieces. Although the many failed attempts did produce, as a by-product, such well known ceramic types as Delft and Majolica, it was not until the early 1700's that the secret of true or "hard-paste" porcelain was discovered near Meissen, in present-day Germany.

The reproduction of Chinese-type porcelain required both extremely high firing temperatures and a very pure form of clay, known as Kaolin. When this clay, which is almost pure white, is fired at elevated temperature, it is transformed into a glassy-like substance. This knowledge was closely guarded by the Meissen manufacturers for more than half a century. (Anyone interested in the history of European porcelain should consider reading The Arcanum by Janet Gleeson.) Eventually, French spies employed by Louis XV, a porcelain fanatic who resented paying the exorbitant prices demanded by the Meissen monopoly, discovered the secret of true porcelain and French manufacturers began to make their own hard-paste porcelain using Kaolin imported from Austria. When high-quality Kaolin deposits were discovered in the area just to the north of the Dordogne River, the Limoges porcelain industry was born.

In addition to extensive Kaolin deposits, the area around Limoge includes deposits of metal oxides that are a necessary ingredient in the enameling process and abundant forests that provided wood for firing kilns. By the 1830's, dozens of porcelain factories existed in Limoges. The economic vicissitudes of the European porcelain industry were closely correlated with the capricious tastes of the elite classes. Traditionally, the Limoges porcelain factories specialized in "snuff boxes" for tobacco. When pipes and cigarettes became a more popular way of ingesting tobacco, Limoges snuff boxes were simply remarketed as "Limoges boxes," a name that is immediately familiar to any modern collector of porcelain. During its peak, the Limoges porcelain industry attracted the greatest artisans of western Europe.

The Search for Porcelain
Limoges After leaving the museum, we unsuccessfully tried to find some porcelain shops, but, much to our surprise, there did not seem to be any in the vicinity. At this point, we drove to a different part of the city that the Michelin Green Guide indicated has a significant amount of historic interest. We visited the Jardins de l'Évêché and the Cathédrale St-Étienne, which includes a chancel dating from 1273 and transepts from the 14th century. Less significant components of the cathedral were added bit by bit over subsequent centuries, with completion of the present-day western portal in 1876. Descending toward the river Vienne, we crossed the 800-year-old Pont St-Étienne where I got some beautiful pictures of the ancient multi-arched bridge reflected in the stillness of the river with the cathedral in the background. One of these pictures was virtually identical to a picture in our Michelin guide.

There were a number of restaurants and shops near the bridge, so we made one final attempt to find some Limoges porcelain. The first shop we approached was exactly what we were looking for. The gentleman that owned the shop spoke no English, but he was extremely sociable and I was able to communicate with him using my limited French. Carolyn was interested in many pieces. For each one, he patiently attempted to explain the details in simple French and a little sign language. At one point, he motioned to a chess set made of Limoge porcelain and offered to play a game. Eventually, we bought several pieces, including a Limoges box with a decorative dancer for Beate, our house sitter and ballroom teacher. As we were leaving, he motioned to a collection of small boxes and invited Carolyn to choose any piece that she wanted as a gift. We felt very fortunate to have discovered this shop, and I regretted the fact that we could not communicate with him beyond the level of a four-year-old. His enthusiasm for Limoges porcelain was infectious and his knowledge no doubt extensive. We have visited ceramic and porcelain manufacturers throughout much of Europe (Delft, Hummel, Royal Doulton, etc.) and his insight and opinions on the subject would have been very informative.

Soon we were back in our car and on the Autoroute headed south into the heart of the Dordogne region of France. We arrived in Sarlat-la-Canéda, our home base for the next two nights, about 4:30 pm. A confusing array of streets, combined with considerable traffic congestion, prevented us from finding our hotel in a timely manner. Eventually, however, we pulled into a parking lot that we suspected was close to our hotel, and I found the hotel a pièd, on foot. After checking in, I moved the car to a private lot owned by the hotel. The lot was a few blocks away near a farm house. Carolyn noticed a rooster as we walked back to the hotel.


Sarlat-la-Canéda
Sarlat-la-Canéda Although modern Sarlat is a typically ugly European-style conurbation, the historic core, the Vieille Ville, aesthetically embodies more than one thousand years of history and architectural style. Old Sarlat does not possess broad boulevards and grandiose monuments typical of Napoleonic civic restructuring. Still, as we were to discover, plenty of rewards await those that successfully negotiate the maze of narrow winding medieval lanes. The traveler in search of a pristine slice of pre-Revolutionary France will not find a more promising candidate than Sarlat.

As part of the "frontier" during the Hundred Years War, Sarlat exchanged hands repeatedly between France and England. Moreover, the war and its aftermath brought economic devastation to the town, which briefly recovered in the 15th century. Most of the dwellings and commercial buildings date from this period (1450 to 1500), although many religious and government structures are significantly older.

In all probability, the medieval inhabitants of Sarlat regarded their town as quite ordinary. To the modern observer, however, Sarlat is gorgeous. The majority of its buildings are constructed from a beautiful honey-colored sandy limestone that is quarried nearby. A few moments before sunset, just before the reddish-golden sun disappears below the tree tops of the surrounding forest, the walls of Sarlat glow in the reflected light.

The more elaborate stone buildings sprout corner turrets and feature ornate window embrasures, whereas the more mundane structures are limited to colorful wooden shutters that are picturesquely crooked. Most of the roofs are constructed from small flat stones, a Dordogne Valley tradition. As if to reduce any risk of monotony, the uniformly yellowish stone buildings are interrupted in places by one or two half-timbered structures with red brick filling between the wooden beams.

The several hours that we spent wandering about the historic core of the town were among the best of the trip. My cameras loved Sarlat as much as I did. There seemed to be a great picture around every corner, sometimes several. It is worth mentioning that traffic in the old town is heavily restricted and the area is very pedestrian friendly.

Not surprisingly, Sarlat is an extremely popular tourist destination. In the summer, the town is often paralyzed by traffic. Unlike Normandy and the Loire Valley, however, the majority of tourists in this region are French. On this Fall day, the majority of the tourists were indeed French, but the old town was pleasantly uncrowded.

Sarlat-la-Canéda Like so many ancient European towns, the crooked lanes of Sarlat are as confusing as they are quaint. A street map resembles a piece of Belgian lace. Beyond sight of the unmistakable Rue Republique, literally the only straight street in the old town, you are often not quite sure of where you are— or if you are sure of your location, you are not quite sure how you got there. A modest amount of wandering in this compact old town will inevitably return you to a familiar spot, such as the old cathedral or the Place de la Liberté.

The Place de la Liberté is the heart of the old town. Lined with outdoor cafes and souvenir shops, on Saturday mornings this square is the site of a huge market that sells everything from flowers to foie gras, depending upon the season. Judging by the postcard racks, the classic view of Sarlat is from this square, with its buildings of yellow limestone and half-timbered red brick framing the nearby ancient Cathédrale St-Sacerdos, which is the oldest structure of signficance in the town. Some of the postcards include a touch of random color introduced by the umbrella-covered tables associated with the cafes along the Place de la Liberté.

Sarlat-la-Canéda Not far from the Place de la Liberté, the Place du Marché Aux Trois Oies, which means Market Place of the Three Geese, is where the buying and selling of geese has occurred for centuries. The "Trois" was added to the name more recently when a small bronze sculpture of three geese was added. The picturesque square is an architectural potpourri, full of turrets, pinnacles, dormer windows, and "pepperpots."

The most unusual tourist attraction in Sarlat is a 12th century tower known as the Lanterne des Morts, or Lantern of the Dead, located near the cathedral cemetery. Although the name of this tower has survived the centuries, the original purpose has been obscured by legend and superstition.

We discovered a photography shop that sold 50 ASA Fujichrome Velvia, so I stocked up on film. After dark, we headed to an Italian restaurant, the Pizzeria Ramone, just around the corner from our hotel, and had some spaghetti. No English spoken, but my French, along with my confidence in using it, was improving daily, so no problem. After calling Beate and Pat to check on the dogs and the house, we ventured back into the labyrinthine lanes of the old town for some night photography. Many of the town's most photogenic buildings are well illuminated after sunset.

We were fortunate to have selected the Hotel des Recollets prior to our trip. The hotel was located within the old town, no more than a three-minute walk from the Place de la Liberté. The room was, by a considerable margin, the nicest of the trip, being one of several that lined an inner courtyard where dinner is served on warm evenings. The room was unusually large by European standards, and even included a mini-refrigerator, unusual in Europe. The bathroom was recently remodeled and refurbished. The only unfortunate aspect of the room was that we spent so little time there.

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More Images of Limoges, Sarlat-la-Canéda and the Dordogne Valley