French Impressions: The Dordogne River

The Dordogne weather, culture and landscape have come to represent an almost stereotypical image of France and its people.This ancient and magical kingdom even has an iconic river of the same name running through it. The Dordogne river constantly changes direction, size, shape and mood as it traverses six departments and five regions.

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The Dordogne is the most popular French connection for British visitors, holiday - home owners and settlers. The weather, culture and landscape have come to represent an almost stereotypical image of the country and its people. This ancient and magical kingdom even has a great and iconic river of the same name running through it. The Dordogne emerges as a trickle from the slopes of a (hopefully) dead volcano in the Auvergne, then makes its meandering way westwards to where it empties into the sea to the north of Bordeaux. On its nearly 500 kilometre/300mile journey through the heart of France, the Dordogne constantly changes direction, size, shape and mood as it traverses six departments and five regions. In so doing, it also passes through an ever-changing landscape of surprisingly diverse climates, cuisine and even language. It was alongside the Dordogne that the Hundred Years War came to its bloody climax. In the Black Perigord are said to live the finest truffles in all France. Then there's the variety and cornucopia of grapes and their produce, with Bordeaux being the biggest wine 'capital' in the world.
The most ancient cave paintings are here, and legends abound of fire-breathing dragons guarding hoards of underground treasure. It is here that the residents of Sarlat taught the world how to make cat litter from walnut shells.In all, this feast of history, food, drink and culture offered more than enough of an excuse for travel writer, humorist and plain man's bon vivant George East and his wife Donella to follow the Dordogne from start to finish. They managed to spin out nearly a year of exploring the river, the towns along its banks - and the food and drink of each area. Look inside and you will find some truly remarkable recipes.In all, you can be sure this is not anything like your average travel book. You'll find French Impressions: The Dordogne crammed cover to cover with fascinating historical facts, reviews and recipes. Above all, you'll find it filled with George's sometimes quirky but always affectionate and certainly unique observations on a much-loved area of a great country.