Lot/Garrone Valleys: Life in a medieval village and a stone house

Just north of Toulouse is the Lot Valley. The Lot river runs in a westerly fashion alongside several others such as the more better known Dordonge (to the north) and the Tarn (to the south) from the Massif central to the sea in the Bordeaux region. We ended up in the Lot per chance when we found an interesting house on AirBnB advertised as a Stone House in a Medieval Village. From my living room on Vashon Island, this seemed like close enough to the desired area so we booked it.

The Medieval village turned out to be Monsempron-Libos and the stone house that of a mosaic artist from the US and the perfect place to experience the immediate vicinity. We didn’t make it much beyond 10 K of our house, there was so much to see right here. Libos, our little village down the hill on the river, had all the basics: the 8 au Huit grocery store, pharmacy, boulangerie, charcuterie and the largest weekly market in this Lot et Garrone region.  And very few tourists stay in this area. We learned from one bar owner that most tourists head to Agen and larger areas with more infrastructure. With most of the locals on holiday, it was very quiet. The three-foot stone walls of our house added to that effect!

Our preferred method of exploration was rambling and on bike. The rambling maps were like following a scavenger hunt: “ go to the third vine and cross between two electric fences…”, that kind of thing. We wound through hedgerows that have been traveled for centuries, following paths laid out through farmlands, forests and vineyards.  The sweet bike path that followed the river for about 30 K made for delightfully easy biking just a quick downhill ride from our house.

On one ramble we walked in front of someone’s house just as they were returning, and a friendly voice asked if we were lost. Turned out to be Dolly and Werner, from the Netherlands they had bought their house about five years early and were now living here full time. “We have wine, would you like some?” was Dolly’s invitation. You don’t have to ask us twice and we enjoyed spending time with them and their family and friends at dinner a few nights later. Werner’s brother Rene had been in Seattle the year before and gave me a tour on his iPad, made me homesick! It’s truly the people who make the trip and these generous people touched us deeply.

Now we are onto Provence, the city of Orange for five nights. We are packing up our maps and memories of the Lot and hope to return for longer someday.

Rambling through sunflower fields

The Lot, a lazy river.

The yellow marks like the one on the tree to the left helped us find our way.

Monsempron-Libos, the Medieval section where our house was located.