thej

October 08, 2014

aveyron | villefranche-de-rouergue food market

On Thursday morning we were up and out of the hotel bright and early (8.30am in fact) to be sure that we could join all of the locals in enjoying the traditional market packed with cheeses, bread, mushrooms and every kind of vegetable and fruit possible to be grown in the area. With it being so early in the morning the mist was falling over all of the medieval buildings dotted around the town square, I instantly became rather jealous of all of the locals who get to buy their groceries in such an incredible setting in comparison to myself who only has the local supermarket. Apart from our group there wasn't a tourist in sight so if you're ever near the area or want to visit a truly traditional French food market than this is definitely one to put on your list, though you will probably end up wanting to take a truck load of food back home with you as I did.

October 07, 2014

aveyron | belcastel village and castle

Towards the end of last week I jetted out to Aveyron in the South of France for a few days as part of a press trip, there were so many exciting things packed into the itinerary and so many photos taken as a result that I've stretched them out into a total of five blog posts.

Once our plane had landed in Rodez we set straight off for a spot of lunch and then took a trip through the winding French countryside to the first stop on the list which was the tiny and almost deserted village of Belcastel. It was the most perfect location for a late Summer evening and was one of the most sleepy yet beautiful villages I've ever been to, it was hard to believe that our group were pretty much the only people around to be able to enjoy it. It would be the perfect location to crack out some brie with a fresh baguette sat next to the river.  


The castle is a short walk up from the village and gives incredible views over the hills, for that reason it's especially beautiful at late evening around sunset time. It started life as a 9th century chapel, was then expanded into an 11th century fortress, refurbished into a chateau in the 15th century, left to fall to ruin in the 19th century and eventually resurrected brick by brick during the 1970's. Wandering around the inside of the castle you really get a sense of the merging timelines, one side of the castle even has a modern swimming pool attached to a room that can be rented. Our group were lucky enough to have a private tour of the castle which made the place feel even more special.



Check back tomorrow for my post all about an incredible French food market!

www.tourisme-aveyron.com