Perigueux

Our next outing was a drive to Perigueux, capital of the Perigord, an hour from Sarlat, our main interests its Cathedral of St. Front and its Medieval quarter. We were impressed with Perigueux. We skipped the Roman bits since a) we were tired, and b) we saw lots of Roman bits in Rome in the spring. The drive to and from Perigueux was interesting as well, passing through some of the more scenic parts of Dordogne/Perigord.

En route, much of which is lined with these huge limestone cliffs;
the same as those containing Lascaux, other cave art; also a variety
of cave/domiciles from yester-year/yester-aeon

The Cathedral of St. Front; once a beautiful 12th century Romanesque,
re-done in the 19th by the same architect who did Montmartre, sort
of a distorted faux-Byzantine disaster; generally regarded as one of the
ugliest churches in France

Curious building on the outskirts of the old town;
watch out for that first step...

Love the curvy alleys in the Medieval warren

Great signage; and in English too; sometimes

We got into the cathedral just minutes before its
astonishingly early closing (4PM)

The tower is apparently the only Romanesque bit
to have survived the 19th century re-do

Moving right along, outside a shoe repair shop

Bon Camino!

Some Renaissance structures...

Got cutlery?

Not suitable for heavy goods vehicles, as the Brits
would say

Just outside the Medieval quarter, it looks a bit like
Paris

Until you reach the Tour Mataguerre, the last of
the 28 towers of Perigueux' 12th century ramparts

Luthier shop

Half-timbered all around too

Youngish personnes frolicking on the cathedral roof

On the drive back to Sarlat, a semi passes under a massive cliff
overhang

Passing through Les Eyzies, ground zero for paleolithic archaeology
and home of the famous museum...nous y sommes alles, nous l'avons fait...

More cliffs, more overhangs along the river highway

And chateaux

Including this apparently disused beauty

Built right onto the rock