And this was August

We rounded off Peg and Jim's visit with a trip to a vide grenier and a lovely lunch with friends at one of our favorite restaurants.

A week later we went on a steam train trip from Limoges to Eymoutiers to the east on an excruciatingly hot day. We met at the impressive train station in Limoges.

Where we found our train on the board, departing on time.

The train travelled on an old rail line linking Limoges and Lyon, with some lovely scenery.

In Eymoutiers the train refilled with water. Ed enjoyed the water leaking from the pipe.

That's our car on the second track.

We went off for what turned out to be an unpleasant lunch experience and had time for just a bit of sight-seeing. This is part of the Eglise Collègiale St Étienne. The nave of the church was closed off because of fallen masonry.

For the return trip to Limoges, we were pulled by an electric engine part of the way because the temperature in the cabin of the steam engine was over 60C! (It was only 40C in passenger cars.)

The next weekend we attended our commune's Fête Patronale, which happens every year on Assumption Day. We skipped the daytime activities, but enjoyed the dinner (which set a record by starting more than two hours after the advertised time) and the fireworks afterwards.

Late the following week our friends Sam and Pat arrived after a delayed start in Houston. The next day we took them to Villebois-Lavallette where we took the same guided tour we took last year, visiting the town and the old chateau. 

This is the oldest entrance to the church, on the north side, clearly related to St Jacques de Compostela. (It seems we've never posted a picture of the approach to this church, which sits high on a hill. That will be remedied at some point.)

The old chateau walls had defensive towers which were placed to allow complete coverageof the surrounding area by archers. Here are two towers whose tops have been restored. There nearer one is more recent and more authentic, with the eaves extending out over the walkway along the rampart to provide shelter from weather.

The height of the walls visible here from the inside, is only somewhat over half of what you see from the outside. When a chateau was attacked, rocks were propelled at the lower part of the wall to try to bring it down. As a defense, the interior ground level was raised to provide support of the walls.

Each tower is two floors high, but there is no connecting stairway inside. To change level, you must use the stairway on the outside of the building. It's hard to imagine negotiating these narrow stairways and walkways toting any kind of defensive gear.

For the rest of their visit, Sam and Pat got to see concerts, rock and classic, as well as walking much of the same route we followed for our dinner near Lessalles-Lavauguyn. At home, we were lucky to be able to enjoy dining al fresco most of the time with our guests.

Several days after Sam and Pat left, Kaye enjoyed a day at the first ever Charroux Literary Festival.

In August, we've had rain, we've had dry, we've had hot, we've had normal, and we finished with a big storm. We're hoping the fall will bring more normal weather and temperatures.