With dinner out tonight we opted for a mellow ride to Carsac and some meandering along the cycleway. Approaching the town we were passed by a line of riders decked out in their Backroads packs. They are everywhere so I am sure they will be offering a cycling on Mars option in the near future. Turns out that the tour leader was from Ottawa now living in Montreal. We exchanged some background before we parted ways. You really do meet the nicest people on a bike.
Our coffee stop was in La Roque before covering the last two miles home.
Dinners in France start late and end late. Tonight Thom Salisbury who we met some days ago was joined by his wife Mel who just returned from a family meeting in Paris. Thom hails from Burbank but Mel traces her heritage to England. They met at a kid's park when she was an au pair for a family in the area. Thom was there with his kids so getting acquainted came naturally.
We were so engrossed in the food and conversation that we almost forgot to take a group photo. Darlene on the left, then Thom, Mel, Shaun, Kim and me. We have now perfected our timer photos and with the help of Darlene's tripod Kim was able to take her seat before the shutter clicked.
After emptying a bottle of Ackerman bubbly the group moved on to more traditional French fare. Taking a photo of the label is helpful when cruising the aisles at the market. Never know when a familiar label will catch your eye.
The conversation bounced around from topic to topic including each diner voting for their favorite Robert Redford film. We dazzled the crowd when we declared that we first saw him on Broadway in "Barefoot in the Park" back in 1967. My favorite was and always will be "Jeremiah Johnson", but we got a vote for "The Way We Were" and an all time favorite "Butch Cassidy".
The party broke up when we realized that getting to bed by midnight would be a challenge. Kim was the designated driver (my night driving is limited) and negotiated the windy five miles home ending with a safe arrival. Often we cajole friends to do the night driving or we settle on a restaurant a short walk way.
Spending time with our Dordogne friend group brings our enjoyment in France to a new level.
