Archive for January, 2010

A prize pool of 4 million euros was given to a couple in the Dordogne yesterday as the lottery winners from Montpon-Menestrol collected their prize.

The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, won the draw on the 13th of January. Yesterday they travelled to the regional headquarters of the French lotto in Perigeux to collect their winnings.

Sudouest.com spoke to the couple and reported some of their story without revealing their identity.

The winning ticket was bought by the wife, who has been playing the lotto for 24 euros per week. She quit her job immediately after seeing the amount of money she’d won. She said “I’ve dreamed of this day and I’ve kept playing”.

After the joy of seeing their numbers on television though the family had a slightly tense evening.

“We checked the dates of validity on the ticket” said the wife. “Then we called our daughter to find us the number of the French lotto games on the internet. we rang at 2120 to the Paris headquarters but we were answered by a security guard.” The wife, who says she “remained very zen” about the events and this initial obstacle, rang the Perigueux payment centre at 0815 the next morning.

The husband however said that “We had a very bad night, we just stayed awake”. According to Sudouest he prefers to think of the sum in terms of the old francs; whilst 4 million euros is a lot of money, in the original French currency he would have won 2 billion francs. The couple said they plan to “travel to please our children and their families” and “we want to enjoy it as long as possible”.

Amazingly this is not the record for lottery winnings in the Dordogne. In 2005, the Valentines Day lotto draw of 5 million euros was won by someone from Nontronnais. Other lotto winners from the department included a man from Hautefort who won 3 million euros in February 2009 just days after someone from Neuvic won 4.4 million euros. In 2007, someone from Bergerac won 1.7 million, and in 2006 a Trelissac resident won 1.2 million and someone from Saint Astier that same year won 1.6 million.

In the wake of the economic recession, stay-at-home holidays in the UK were tipped as the popular choice for holiday goers. However, the poor weather of 2009 has apparently caused a resurgence in the number of people opting for a French holiday.

Last year, France was listed by travel writing website Simonseeks.com as one of 2010′s “travel hotspots”. A survey conducted by the website said that 56% of holidaymakers planned to travel abroad for their holiday in 2010, attracted by warmer climates and a change of scenery and culture. Among the possible destinations in the survey, France was one of the most popular choices among respondents.

According to France Magazine the resurgence has already begun, with a growing number of UK holidaymakers visiting France in 2009 in comparison with the reduced levels of 2007 and 2008.

The magazine’s editor, Carolyn Boyd said: “The family holiday in France has had a resurgence. Holidaymakers have been choosing different kinds of holidays to what they may have chosen before.”

“There has been a tendency for people to revisit the holiday ideas of their parents – pile everyone into the car, take the ferry and end up on a French campsite” she said.

Mrs Boyd believes that part of the appeal is the affordability of France as a holiday destination.

“Even with the exchange rate as it is, we are making sure we get the message across that a French holiday can be the same price, if not cheaper, than a British holiday” she said. “You will eat better for the same price, and, unlike in Britain, with the likelihood of bad weather, you can spend your days doing free activities on the beach, walking, rather than paying to go into indoor attractions to keep out of the rain”

This coming week, two original and offbeat entertainment acts will visit the Dordogne offering visitors to the region a chance to introduce some of the famous national theatrical culture into their French holiday.

Sure to be a treat for lovers of dance, the Flamenco themed performance “Qu’est-ce que tu Deviens?” at the Agora in Boulazac explores the life of Stephanie Fuster, a famous French dancer who brought the South American style back from Spain. Translated literally as “What have you been”, the show retraces the dancer’s route from her discovery of Flamenco to the present day.

It will be performed on the 26th of January at 2030; tickets will cost 20 euros for adults and 10 euros for those under 18. Speaking to Sudouest.com, the director of the dance company behind “What have you been”, Aurelien Bory, said “It is the portrait of the dancer Stephanie Fuster. From Toulouse, she became a perfect dancer after eight years in Seville. [Dance] is a very strong commitment, a bit like stepping into religion.”

Another act that will visit the Dordogne next week is a revival of the 19th century English play, Garrick. The Theatre of Perigueux is the last stop on the tour of acting company Tricicle 2, a famous acting troupe from Catalan, and their performance of the popular comedy. The play is one of the earliest examples of theatre breaking the so-called ‘fourth wall’ as it is principally set in and around a theatre. It is often referred to as a ‘star vehicle’ as the script demands a powerful performance from the principal actor, who must portray the eponymous David Garrick as an actor giving a performance himself. According to Sudouest, the play was such a successful comedy that doctors treating patients for melancholy would recommend they go the show!

Perigueux is the latest stop on a tour that has already visited 22 venues across France. It  will be performed on Thursday the 28th of January at 20:30 and tickets will range from 8 to 22 euros. However, it’s not the only place you can see Garrick in the Dordogne. The next day the play will be performed in nearby Sarlat, at the town’s cultural centre. This performance will be at 2100 and prices vary from 10 to 28 euros. Both venues accept advance bookings via phone.

The Dordogne is home to one of the biggest communities of British expatriates in France. According to Sudouest.com, the French regional news site, the departement has the highest concentration in Aquitaine and is second only to Paris when compared with the rest of the nation.

A census conducted in 2006 showed that 6300 Britons now live in Dordogne. Some of these expatriates spoke to the news website and revealed what brought them to the area.

Stewart Edwards was among those who migrated to the Dordogne in the ‘last wave’ of the early 1990′s. He has been living in the area for 20 years, and says that the region offers a much better “quality of life” than he found in the UK.

“It was mainly the economic factor which drove us to come here” said Edwards. “Today it is mainly for the peace – and the space! We can’t forget that France is three times bigger than England.”

Although young people often find it difficult to find work in the peaceful but pastoral region, many British people have made a life for themselves here. Toby Brown is the manager of Toques beer in Perigueux and says that he has enjoyed his life in the Dordogne. Speaking to Sudouest Mr Brown said “I’m used to the Dordogne and I’m very happy here”. His comments were shared by Stewart Edwards, who said “Now, I have more roots here than there.”

However Charles Gilloley, county chairman of the French organisation the National Federation of Estate Agents, said that the number of British moving to permanent residences in the Dordogne had dropped in recent years. He explains that this is because of the reduced purchasing power of sterling for the past three years.

Gilloley notes however that this means that most people from Britain looking to expatriate simply want to make sure that they make the best choice before committing - taking a French holiday before deciding to buy a French house.

The small Dordogne village of Queyssac has opened a new bistro restaurant that will almost exclusively use local products in its meals.

SudOuest reports that the village, located just outside of Bergerac, will offer traditional regional dishes and is to be managed by a popular Parisian chef. Queyssac’s “Pub of the Presbytery” is located in a refurbished 17th century clerical building. The village is home to several examples of Dordogne’s preserved historic architecture, including a 17th century church, a medieval paved plaza and a traditional stone bread oven.

However until now, there has been little to draw tourism into the heart of the village. Valerie Champelos, the chef and manager of the bistro, says that she hopes that the small restaurant will offer a bucolic alternative for diners in the Bergerac area.

Champelos, a native of Queyssac, has returned to the village after years spent cheffing in Paris. During her career she has become a popular figure among many of the area’s food fairs and events, as well as those in other areas of France. Her cooking is based upon fresh, local produce and traditional rural recipes.

Aside from the modern kitchens, the “pub of the presbytery” will still retain the features that give it it’s historic charm. From the old stone rectory, grand fireplace and the exposed timbers, the building will fit many people’s ideas of the idyllic simplicity of rural life perfectly. Its menu will have both a daily selection of dishes and a list of ‘classics’ that can be ordered at any time. These include fois gras omelette with mushrooms and truffles, sweetbreads with mushrooms, gribiche (a product of French cuisine akin to mayonnaise) and the traditional French breadstuff, Millas.

The building will also host a local bakery and grocery store in the near future. As the restaurant has only 22 seats it may be best to ring ahead if you visit on 05 53 58 73 36. Some fluency in French may be necessary however.

New expansions have been announced to the Perigueux Green Lane, a cycle route that aims to connect the Dordogne with a national network of other such lanes.

Like many areas in France, the Dordogne is well suited to cycling. In fact, the area encourages visitors and tourists to see the picturesque countrysides on the back of a bike. The region has hundreds of bike tracks, lanes and planned routes that will take biking tourists to all of the major heritage spots and even across to the neighbouring areas of Bordeaux or Limoges.

The ‘Green Lane of Perigueux’ currently runs around the titular municipality and runs from Bordeaux, west of the Dordogne town, to Limoges, to the east. As well as the main stretch there are dozens of other routes that take cyclists into the heart of the Dordogne. Currently the ‘Green Lane’ is still under construction and many sections are incomplete, though enough is in place to ride the majority of the 86km on the secured bikeways.  This year the work should be finished and new routes added to this system thanks to funds from the state, départemental budgets from Dordogne, Gironde and Haute-Vinne, the EU and local municipalities.

Attracting tourism has always been the main goal of the Green Lane. Many tourist tour companies have stops along the route, and many places offer hospitalities and attractions to the passing cyclists. It’s also no coincidence that it mimics the historic Christian pilgrimage route, ”The Way of St James”, which once saw French pilgrims journey to the heart of Spain via the southwestern route from Perigueux to Bordeaux and beyond. 

The completed sections of the lane are reserved entirely for non-motorised vehicles. Disused railway lines, river banks, forest trails and rural roads have all been set aside and cleared to establish the large bike lane. Although it was designed for cyclists, the routes are also popular with skaters, wheelchair users and pedestrians because of the smooth surface, lack of traffic and idyllic scenery. All along the path information posts encourage travellers to visit remarkable sites nearby, directing them off the Green Lane and onto low traffic roads or greenways that will take them to heritage landmarks in the area.

The Aquitaine region hopes to have the Green lane finished in its entirety by 2013. The proposed route is available on the General Council’s website, and includes provisions for ensuring that lodgings are available at every step of the Green Lane. The council estimates that on average cyclists will cover 30km each day, and spend around 50 euros each day on services other than accommodation – such as bike rental, repair, food and drink.

One of the key attractions for the Green Lane is that cyclists don’t need to return to the beginning to get back home. Even if you give up halfway, you can easily make it back home or to a further destination on the continent as Bordeaux, Perigueux and Limoges boast their own airports and rail connections.

Every year a few select villages and towns in the Dordogne celebrate the black perigord truffle in their traditional ’Feast of the Truffle’. The regional delicacy is both so rare and so popular that only a few chosen areas can regularly take part in the ‘feast’. Truffles only grow for a few months every year, from late November to early February.

However this year another regional event was added to the regular annual line-up of fine food festivals. Conne-De-Labarde, a small town to the south of Bergerac, had it’s first truffle festival this year – and it was a ‘resounding success’.

Hundreds of visitors came to the town over the course of the weekend. As well as the usual market stalls offering some of the finest examples of the rare perigord truffle, often handpicked by amateur hunters throughout the Dordogne, there were exhibitions and speeches detailing the history of the delicacy and the tradition of the truffle-hunter in the Dordogne. Mr Germain of the ‘Group of the Truffle Valley Couze and Bergerac’ was on hand and gave lectures and presentations on the perigord ‘black diamond’, as well as on its lesser known relative the Green Oak Truffle.

One thing that set this fair apart from its rivals in the region was a demonstration of the abilities of the trained truffle hunting dogs of the Dordogne. Pagan, an eight year old spaniel that has been truffle hunting since the age of one, was tasked with finding buried truffles in the village square. Thanks to his keen sense of smell Pagan wasted no time and located all of the hidden treats easily.

Of course like all of the truffle exhibitions and festivals in the region, the true attraction was probably from the food on offer throughout the fair. The standard truffle brouillade or scrambled eggs and truffles was available from market vendors throughout. However the true attraction for food-lovers was the limited place gourmet meal at noon, which could only seat 80 people. According to Sudouest.com only those who reserved ahead of time had a hope of finding a seat and many who tried to book on the day were turned away.

Thanks to the popularity of the event and the success of the local truffle hunters in the face of a frozen countryside, the town’s organisers dubbed the Day of Truffles a huge success. It seems likely that this time in 2011 another regular attraction will be added to the Dordogne.

New roads are to be built in the Dordogne in 2010 and an existing bypass around Bergerac is to finally be finished.

Sudouest.com reports that roadworks and construction in the Dordogne are a source of much debate in the dèpartement. As one of the most extensive dèpartments in France and with its hilly terrain and scattered settlements, the Dordogne is more likely to have winding country roads than unobstructed dual carriageways. It took forty years of lobbying to get approval for the A89 motorway, which crosses the Dordogne from east to west.

This motorway is the only roadway which is under the responsibility of the national government. After the French government decentralised most of the regional and local planning to departement level, the Dordogne general council was placed in charge of 5,000km of roads.

In 2010, the council is said to be catching up with needed maintenance work on and improvements to the Dordogne’s roads.

“We put 45 million euros a year for the maintenance and modernisation of the network” said Bernard Cazeau, president of the General Council. “It was long overdue that we try to catch up”. Cazeau says that the Dordogne is a region with a lot of interests and roads are not the only concern for investment.

Among the work expected to be finished in 2010 is an extended bypass in the sub-prefecture of Bergerac. This long-awaited project will connect the existing Limoges-Pyrenees motorway to the rest of the country’s north-to-south motorway system. As part of the new western bypass, a new bridge over the Dordogne river will be built and 4km of connecting roads will be built to the north of Bergerac.

However, the largest piece of work for the General Council itself will be the Sarlat bypass. This dual carriageway is estimated at costing around 43 million euros, and the first portion is scheduled to open in July. This will be the southern bypass and will open 3.6km of road between Les Eyzies and the Vitrac road, to the south of Sarlat. The northern bypass will connect Les Eyzies to the Montignac road and may not finish construction by the end of this year, as it is currently during the public enquiry stages of the proposal.

Other sites which will begin work this year include the Rochebeaucourt bypass, the Terrasson crossing and construction of a road link to the Dordogne valley between Bergerac and Sarlat. The Terrasson crossing work has been delayed in the past as it involves building a new bridge over busy railway lines, whilst the Bergerac/Sarlat valley road has reportedly faced many delays due to zoning issues and property disputes.

The Dordogne general council is responsible for 870km of regional transport routes, which see an average of 3,000 vehicles per day.

Over 58kg of the Dordogne‘s most infamous delicacy was on display in Sarlat this week as the traditional Feast of the Truffle took place.

As part of the regional celebration of the rare black Perigord truffle, a mushroom beloved by gourmets throughout both history and the modern world, Sarlat played host to a dedicated truffle market. For the weekend of the 16th January truffle hunters from throughout Dordogne could be found in the town’s Fenelon Street, hawking their delicacies from stalls provided by the organisers.

Despite fears among the organisers that last weeks heavy frosts would devastate the region’s fresh produce of the black truffle, 58 kilogrammes of the finest quality truffles were brought to Fenelon street. Described as ‘the mecca of all connoisseurs” by Sud-Ouest.com, truffles ranged in price from between 600 and 900 euros per kilo.

Visitors were invited to sniff, scan and feel to find the best examples among the earthy produce. As part of Sarlat’s celebrations for the Feast of the Truffle, there were also cooking and tasting events by chef’s and producers from both the region and the rest of France.

These chefs differed in their opinion on the best way to serve the famous ‘black diamond’ – a name chosen because of the shape and colour of the truffle. Jean-Pierre Clement of the Fauchon Paris Group told Sud-ouest.com that he preferred them raw, “grated on a slice of salted butter; the essence of truffles!”. His opinion was reportedly shared by many other of the visiting gourmets, influenced away from the traditional accompanying brouillade due to the cold weather. According to the website, “truffled scrambled eggs is not a dish best served cold”.

The Dordogne is internationally famous as the home of the Perigord black truffle, one of France’s most distinctive delicacies. A new association of farmers has decided to add to the region’s culinary talents by establishing a quality brand of pork.

‘Pork Perigord’ aims to create a pipeline of consumer foodstuffs from local hog producers in the Dordogne department. Its first product went on sale in Dordogne supermarkets last summer and more are expected in the next few weeks. Speaking to Sud-Ouest.com, group president Jean Francois Renaud said that the Black Perigord Ham would be bolstered by pork products such as salamis, sausages or ‘coppa’ – a dry-cured cold cut from Corsica.

In the future, the association hopes to offer more products such as black pudding or enchaud, which will probably be unfamiliar to visitors from the UK. This is a favourite dish of the Dordogne-perigord; a slow-cooked pork tenderloin that can be served hot or cold. flavoured with oil from the perigord truffles.

“It’s a true partnership between producers and processors” says Jean Francois Renaud. He says that the association allows the region the opportunity to improve and to give the producers recognition for their work in an increasingly tough market.