A Monday drive

This morning was the weekly market in Duras. We toddled down to the market square to provision for the final few days of the trip. A couple of fresh goat cheeses from Stephanie, a beautiful head of Batavia lettuce, some carrots, turnips and a leek went into the bag. I will use those as a bed for my stuffed pork roast, which we'll cook tomorrow night. Our butcher is closed on Tuesdays so we have to think ahead and buy it today.

After the market we took a ride to the Roman-era town of La Réole, about 25 minutes west of here. It's a lovely town along the Garonne river that was formed around an ancient Benedictine abbey and cathedral. We walked through both and enjoyed the ornate metal work, ceilings and pretty plantings. The stained glass in the vast cathedral is exquisite, but I couldn't get a good shot of it with the sun streaming in. 

After La Réole, we drove to Sauveterre de Guyenne, a pretty little bastide town in the midst of the Entre deux Mers wine region. The town is adorable and there were lots of little shops around the arcaded square. Unfortunately, many were closed on Monday. We were getting hungry so popped into a casual restaurant called Tosca, wher we split a pizza and a salad. We loved the way the dishes came to us--already split on two big pizza plates--ready to eat. The pizza was topped with creme fraiche, mushrooms, duck breast and ham--fantastique!

On the route home we spotted a tourist sign for a medeival village and turned in to see what was there. Well, the tiny village of Castelmoron d'Albret was dripping with wisteria, roses about to burst forth, and so many wildflowers like borage, which is one of my favorites, but Joe gets mad when I grow it as it's very invasive. So what?

A couple of cute boys were playing in the square--no adults in sight. They wanted to show us around. We didn't understand them, but the littler one took us to the bumper of an old car where a nest of baby birds was peeping. We watched and clapped for their bicycle and scooter stunts.

We spotted a pottery in the village--the only commerce in town--but it was closed with so many beautiful pieces in the window. Nuts! There was a rack outside of canning funnels in perky colors. I have a yellow plastic one that I've used for years and thought I'd replace it with a new ceramic one. There was a slot in the door so I took the funnel and left the money on the honor system.