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You have just arrived and don't want to do anything too ambitious on
the first day or two. On the other hand you need to get to the shops.
Here are a few suggestions for places of interest within 20 minutes'
drive. With the exception of Jarnac, your guide books aren't going to
be much use. Buy or borrow the IGN Niort-Angoulême (Série
Verte) map for local sightseeing. Dolmens, castles etc. are clearly
marked. The
Série Bleue 1631 E Rouillac (available from local 'Presse' newsagents)
is handy if you intend to go walking or cycling off-road.
Attractions
further afield (towns, coast, islands)
Hamlet
of la Bréchoire and the nearest shops at Verdille
MAIN
PICTURE ABOVE: The 12th-century abbey church at
Marcillac-Lanville has been the subject of major restoration
works, and is open to visitors. The massive structure is easily seen
from the D939 Périguex to La Rochelle road and is only a few
minutes from La Bréchoire. It's a great space inside too, with
leaning columns and traces of medieval fresco. Concerts are occasionally held.
Click
on the small images below to enlarge.
| Weather
permitting, take a walk into the Forêt d'Anville.
Turn right out of the house (D75) and walk past the end of the village
before taking the second track on your right. This will take you
into the woods, with great views, wild orchids, strawberries, sloe
and walnut trees, beehives, birds etc. Follow blue-marked path (map
from tourist offices) Or you can do a 45 mins circular to Anville
and back. |
| Visit
the Logis de la Logerie near Bonneville,
open from 11.00 to 19.00 most days. Run and inhabited by Mme Nicole
Bordier plus dogs, this ancient manor house and barn are given over to arts
and crafts. Many objects for sale at reasonable prices
- all hand-made. Probably
most easily found if you drive or cycle to Saint-Médard
and pick up the signs from there.
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| Talk
about the Fallen Madonna with the big boobies! Other attractions
in Aigre, less than 15 mins away by car, are a
weekly market and a couple of restaurants. Nice quiet town for shops,
banks, tourist info etc. Boasts, for some reason, two huge ironmongers
(try asking for mirror plates or spring toggles). |
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| Free
places to swim include the natural lake at Les Gours,
15-20 mins' drive to the north on the D75 by car. There are also quiet
waymarked walks through the fields and woods, and a mysterious
buvette in a hangar-like shed. |
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Neuvicq
le Château is a small village with, predictably,
a 15th-century castle, now owned by the local council. In its
day, this was an important town. Now it is not. The castle holds
free exhibitions. There's an excellent cognac producer nearby
(Balladour). |
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Ah,
the fleshpots of Rouillac...! Super U is open all day, every day, which is almost unheard of in Charente.
There is a large and new arts centre where we once saw John Mayall, but it isn't the Barbican.
Also outdoor swimming pool, banks, PMU bar, DIY stores. |
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There
is a huge Gallo-Roman theatre at Les Bouchauds
(close to Rouillac, above) on a wooded hill in the middle of nowhere.
Admire that Roman brickwork, and the sanctuary behind the theatre
itself. Occasionally used for summer festivities (known as Les
Sarabandes), it's as big as the theatre at Orange, so where did
the audience of 30,000 come from? |
| Some
gentle tourism can be undertaken at Jarnac, 20
mins away to the south. Lovely shops, Mittérand museum, restaurants,
indoor market, banks and supermarkets, Courvoisier headquarters
and long riverside walks to Bourg-Charente or round the locks. |
Copyright
© 2001-2010 Colin Wight & Anne Young
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