Kitty Ranching and Tiki-touring

Looking after dogs is a weeny bit different to Kitty Ranching...I guess that is obvious. Kitties are impervious to Alpha-isms, but dogs soon figure out who is the boss.
Our charges have figured out who feeds them, that is for sure, and who gives what kind of neck, cheek and tummy rubs, strokes and loves. We will all sort ourselves out, in the next couple of days, I'm sure.

This morning we ate a warm croissant with scrambled eggs with the addition of Lardons (ready-cut bacon pieces) that we had found at the Intermarche, yesterday. I didn't even think to take a photo!! For shame! So I was sure to photograph lunch!

We need some petrol (Gas) so went to town for that purpose, and also to take a tour of the town on foot, which really is the only way to see places, in our opinion.
I started well, taking a wrong turn, but of course there are very few wrong turns in most towns, because they either take you OUT of town, or they take you to some part that you might not otherwise have visited...usually the latter. We discover many wonderful things this way.

Our morning routine started around 7.30am. I dressed, went into the sous-sol (Basement) and retrieved the caged beasts. They were all gathered at the basement door and shot up the stairs like rats out of an aqueduct! They were literally herded outside for their morning whatever, while I saw to their food. Apart from Scruffles, who insists of getting on the tables and counters, the others were well behaved, and not particularly hungry, as it happened. I decided to feed them just outside the kitchen door on the flagstone while we had our breakfast undisturbed by having to shoo cats off the counter and table. I made sure to lock the cat door to prevent interruption. They didn't seem to care, and we could see them chasing each other around the yard.
Cup of tea in hand, we went outside onto the sunny lanai, but deemed it too cool and breezy to stay long.

Breakfast dishes done, Waz went outside to get firewood, and I ventured back to the sous-sol to clean the cat litter bins. That done, we set about planning our morning.

The breeze was cold, and I needed my scarf, this morning. Nice to be in the sun, but standing in the shade one could freeze in place.

After a round about journey into the center of the town, we parked (watch those granite curbs, they are nasty on your hub cabs!), and walked down hill and then up the other side to the Hotel de Ville, or Town Hall. What a stunning building with it's little cupola on top.

 Sun was behind the building so it looks rather cold and formidable, in this photo.

 The Chrysanthemums are there from All Saints Day, and they are planted EVERYWHERE! and I mean Everywhere. The cenotaph is in front of the Hotel de Ville, and there is also a cannon there.

 The 'mums are stunning, though past their best.

 Yes, that is crochet!

 The clock, Tricolor (French Flag) and front door. A couple of Gendarmes hurried out, got in their little car and drove off, sans siren (without Siren).

 This Gingko tree is just stunning in the morning sun.

 A wire sculpture in the forecourt of the Hotel de Ville.
 Looking back down the hill and over the rood tops.

 The Canon, and the very well groomed trees.

 We walked up the street, and then across and back down, encountering this  (what we thought was a ceramic) Pumpkin which is REAL! WOWW! I had to get Waz to stand beside it for scale. It has a Halloween decoration on it, of course.

 This is a Perigordian town. We are on the border of the HauteVienne and the Dordogne, in a small town (8,000 people or thereabouts) called Yrieix La Perche (ee rear la pairsh).

 We had in the back of our minds (yeah riiight!) to find a tabac or patisserie where we could buy a Grand Crème (our poison of choice), and look what we found! Oui! Le Croquembouche (croke em boosh) Patissier. Of course we had to try their Croissant Armande and Paris Brest pastries. I don't think either were good representations, so perhaps we wont eat those again, but the café was good, and so was the company. We heard our neighbors speaking English English  and of course struck up a conversation with them.

 The one woman had lived about 30 mins away for just on a year. We (make that *I*) quizzed her for some time about living in this area, what she thought of the locale and how they are feeling after 12 months of being French...well, relatively. All was positive, Im happy to report.

Waz discovered in Restaurant Asie - Vietnamme et Chine (You don't need my translation of that, surely?) and is standing in front of their front door. He had read that they were closed due to unusual circumstances....see...he CAN read French!:)

Further up the little alley where the Patisserie is, I spied this shoe store (Chasseurs), and fell in love with the warm felt slippers. The woman inside appeared to be giving me 'stink eye' (a very Hawaiian saying, meaning she wasn't happy I was taking photos and not buying), as I lined up for the photograph. I smiled and made 'nice', afterwards and got out of there quick smart...as you do.

 Yes, people live in these places that appear to be almost falling down, and often the insides are very modern. Often they aren't too. I was trying to show the figure of the Virgin Mary , bottom right, as you often find these on house corners like this, in the old town.

 This town is Medieval, as are so many towns across France. They are the only ones still standing, for the most part. 1300-1500 was a critical time in architecture, in France, and most of Europe. It is amazing to me that they are still standing in some fashion.
The church in the center of the old Town and its neighbor, La Tour du Po, are 800 years old. The Tour (tower) in particular is a 'ruin'. It was built by the Vicomte de Limoges who metered out justice from said tower....got any imagination? I'm sure you can figure out what happened from it's heights! And in it's dungeons.
The Eglise (church) is large but no flying buttresses for stability, so her walls are caving out. We were rather horrified, once inside, to discover HUGE cracks in her walls, around windows et all, enough to worry that one day, the whole thing will just cave in. Don't know what event might precipitate this happening, but we didn't stick around to find out if it was our lucky day.
Decorative hinges and I have a love affair going on. Arent they stunning? And when you think about it, when making hinges, why not make them pretty? Figures, right? These are the doors into the Church itself. It is the Eglise de St Yrieix La Perche.

 The signs of wear and tear are all over her facades, and you can see where successive generations have fortified her walls, inside and out. I have to tell you at this juncture, that the walls are 2 meters thick...that's more than 6 feet!

 It was colder than death, inside, and you could feel and smell the damp. You can see the damp spots on the ceiling!

 I love to walk the original flagstones inside, and imagine the generations of faithful who have trodden these same stones for so long.

 This side chapel had been cleaned, obviously...sand blasted, that is. The alter is glorious.

 The saints appeared to be waiting in line for something. I was tempted to go and pat their heads...but didn't.

 Apparently this is the original bell.

 You can see the large crack from the window all the way down the wall. It is hoped that some restoration is possible, but the cracks were so many.

 The winter light is so clear. The air is dry, which makes it so easy to get clear photos.

 One of the portals into the old town, with Plane trees sans leaves.

  We came through the portal above, and this was the scene below. It looks very manicured, doesn't it!

 These figures are all around the church, and serve as drains. You can see the face, and the drain hole is where the mouth would be.

 Doors facing east.

 One of the church bells, and the East Clock.

 The house opposite the main doors, which you can now see reflected in the windows above the door.

 East doors.

 Another Virgin Mary on the corner of a house.

 Someone's back yard and garage.

 Lunch time. Our favorite meal for this Dejeuner (lunch) is brown nut (walnut) bread with pate, blue cheese, fruit, and tomatoes. Sometimes the cheese and fruit end up on the same piece of bread. We bought some William English pears, yesterday, and they are lovely...perfect with the blue cheese, of course.

 Fortified, we set about our afternoon tasks. We are expecting some inclement weather in the next couple of days...lets see....minus 3/4C  are forecast, and some overcast days with grey skies. I guess it is winter, and we have been most fortunate for the past 7 days to enjoy glorious sunshine and still days. Waz thought it might be a good idea to rake some of the leaves off the pool cover. They are falling at a great rate, of course. Automne is almost over, here in the Dordogne.

As we didn't get Gas/Petrol on our trip out, we need to go out again and fill up for our next trip. We also need to go to the local Lidl and get some more fire starters....well, that's the excuse, anyway. We really just like supermarket snooping:)
Ciao for now.