Teens help step up our summer

This summer, we hosted two special guests: The first was my almost 12-year-old great nephew who came from North Carolina to visit his grandparents in France. The second was a 14-year-old student from the outskirts of Paris, who stayed with us to improve his English skills. It's been nearly 20 years since our own sons were that age, so we were worried we'd be a little rusty. But, as it turned out, our time with les ados was surprisingly fun and really stepped up our summer.

It appears my great nephew enjoyed his visit to Lascaux IV.

I had only met my great nephew once when he was just a little guy. Now, at nearly 12, he's attached to his Nintendo Switch and cell phone, but can be enticed to turn off the screens for a little cultural exploration. 

I make a few wrong turns and come across a downed tree blocking the road on our way to Lascaux IV. Luckily we arrive just in time for my sister and her grandson's reserved English-language tour. Phew! 

Maison Forte de Reignac in the Périgord is an unusual
and fascinating look back through time.

After lunch in Montignac, we head to a site I had visited a few years ago, Maison Forte de Reignac. The cliff-side castle is even more impressive than I remembered. We all enjoy our stroll through the unusual château, whose history goes back 20,000 years and continues through the Middle Ages and beyond. Each room contains fascinating displays, although we aren't particularly interested in the torture exhibition at the end of our self-guided tour. 

Exhibits of every kind, from fossils to furnished rooms
are featured at Maison Forte de Reignac.

The views from Maison Forte de Reignac are different
from those usually found in North Carolina .

We rarely pass up the opportunity to introduce the sport
of Pickleball to anyone willing to play with us.

In July, our student from Paris arrives by train. He visited this part of France last summer, but we still manage to find a few new experiences to share with him. Naturally, we introduce him to Pickleball, a game he takes to very quickly. He and my husband return to the court a few times to give our guest the chance to win a match, which he eventually does. 

Without all the usual bells and whistles, this miniature
golf course has a countryside charm.

One afternoon we put away the lessons and head out for a game of miniature golf at Mini-Golf d'Eva, located in a rural setting near Sérignac-Péboudou. The display of farm equipment, rustic snack shack, and warm welcome signals this charming course doesn't contain the usual mini-golf kitch. Yeah, our visitor manages to beat us at mini-golf too.

Traditional gabarres are moored along the Dordogne in Bergerac.

Our guest told us about his love of playing escape games, so our day in Bergerac includes an adventure at Escapia. My husband and I would have been totally lost had it not been for our guest, who turns out to be quite the talented amateur sleuth. Despite just minimal help from the oldsters, we manage to successfully complete the mystery. Bravo us!

One can't visit Bergerac without saying salut to Cyrano.

A half-day on the river is the perfect summertime activity in these parts.

Another day, I stay home while the boys head to Limeuil for a day on the river where they rent a couple of kayaks. They return home alive and without a hint of sunburn, and my husband is only sore for the next two days. Our guest proclaims the adventure to be one of the highlights of his stay.

Gaudi and Dali are 'delightfully' featured at Les Bassins des Lumières
in Bordeaux.

Our most ambitious adventure with our guest is a trip to Bordeaux on the train. We have unintentionally picked the day the Tour de France is concluding a stage there, so the city is all decked out for the Tour. We arrive an hour before our reservation time at Les Bassins des Lumières, but are welcomed in early. The current exhibition features Dali and Gaudi, two artists perfectly suited for the amazing light show venue. After a quick nap in The Cube — well, I believe at least one of us fell asleep — we head back to the train station. 

It's tempting to join this fellow splashing about
in Miroir d'Eau in Bordeaux.

At lunchtime, we have Château de Duras practically to ourselves,
although a small crowd shows up for the musketeer and
falconry shows later in the afternoon.

As our student's visit winds down, we stay close to home for a visit to Château de Duras. It's been several years since my last visit, and I'm impressed with how well arranged the rooms are with good signage in both French and English. Medieval games are scattered about providing some fun diversions. Our guest is a fencer, so we plan our visit to include the musketeer show ("not very realistic, but fun") and stay for the falconry demonstration. Despite the hot weather, the seats on the back lawn are shady and there's a nice breeze. And of course, the birds are cool too.

The musketeer show at Château de Duras features
swords and brave damsels.

Not only are they handy with swords, the troupe at
Château de Duras knows how to handle the big birds.

As we've thoroughly explored the area in the 11 years we've lived here, my husband and I usually choose to stay at home in the summer. But this year, our young visitors have reminded us how much fun it can be to get out and explore, especially when we have the chance to re-discover sites through the eyes of teenagers. It's been good practice for when, in a few years, our own grandchildren come to visit. 

Want more information?

Lascaux IV: lascaux.fr/en
Maison Forte de Reinac: maison-forte-reignac.com/
Mini Golf d'Eva, Sérignac-Péboudou: 06.74.66.65.49
Escapia Escape Game, Bergerac: escapia.fr/bergerac
Canoës Limeuil: canoes-limeuil.fr/
Les Bassins des Lumières: bassins-lumieres.com/en
Château de Duras: chateau-de-duras.com/en/

Explore prehistory in a dazzling new setting

Thousands of prehistoric paintings such as this can be seen at the new
Lascaux International Centre of Cave Art in the Périgord region.

The accidental discovery of the Lascaux cave in the Périgord region of southwest France can be credited to a dog named Robot. It was 77 years to the day I am publishing this blog post (Sept. 8, 1940) that 18-year-old Marcel Ravidat was walking with his dog through the hills near Montignac-sur-Vézère. Here’s how the event is recounted on the Lascaux IV website:

“When the dog disappeared down a hole in the ground, left by an uprooted tree some years earlier, the young mechanic’s apprentice began throwing stones into it. They rolled and rolled deep down into the earth. Marcel could feel it: he had just found something extraordinary. Could it be the local legend, an underground passage leading to Lascaux Manor? He returned only four days later with a few friends to discover one of the greatest archaeological works of art of the 20th century.”

That discovery — Lascaux cave — contains a treasure trove of prehistoric art, created 20,000 years ago by Cro-Magnum Man. Thousands of paintings of large animals and fauna adorn the walls, providing clues to life in the Upper Paleolithic period. Lascaux was opened to the public, but in 1963 when it became apparent that the artwork was deteriorating due to the carbon dioxide, heat, humidity and germs brought in by visitors, the decision was made to close the cave. Today, only scientists are allowed to visit the original Lascaux cave. Even Mick Jagger’s yearly request for a visit is denied.

Visitors to the workshop at Laxcaux International Centre of Cave Art
examine reproductions of the famous Lascaux paintings.

In 1983, Lascaux II opened nearby, allowing visitors to see exact replicas of Lascaux’s Great Hall of Bulls and the Painted Gallery. A touring replica, Lascaux III, hit the road in 2012, offering visitors across the globe the chance to experience the cave. In addition to Bordeaux and Paris, the exhibition has traveled to the U.S., Canada, Belgium, Switzerland and Asia, and it may be heading to Australia next.

Lascaux International Centre of Cave Art opened in Dec. 2016.

Late last year (on Dec. 15, 2016) the new International Centre for Cave Art (Lascaux IV) opened in Montignac. Half-buried in the Lascaux hillside, the center is more than a mere replica. Combining art, history, science and technology, Lascaux IV is an incredible learning experience.

I had been looking for an excuse to visit, and our visiting French student, who had never visited this prehistoric area of the Dordogne, provides my chance. We booked online a few days in advance (highly recommended, although some slots are saved for visitors who arrive in person at 8:30 a.m.). Tours leave every 20 minutes, although only two are offered each day in English. We arrive about a half-hour before our tour starts and unwind from our drive in the huge reception lobby. When our tour is called, we meet our guide and are given headsets and tablets. At points along the tour, the tablets enhance what we’re seeing and are a personalized high-tech guide for our visit to the discovery workshop. The tablets also can serve as cameras, and you can arrange to have the photos emailed to you later.

Although no one knows for sure what the Lascaux artists were trying
to tell us, theories are presented in the Lascaux IV workshop.

Our guide takes our group of around 20 to Le Belvédère, where we hear about the cave’s discovery and are given a preview of what we’ll see inside. Inside the grotte, which is kept at 13C degrees (the same constant temperature of the original cave), we are guided through a complete reproduction of Lascaux. After the guided tour, we spend an hour or so on our own exploring L’Atelier de Lascauxwhere we delve into various aspects of the cave’s art, geology, climate and history. Then it’s on to a 3D film and a browse in the gift shop. We skip the café because we’re stopping for lunch in Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil on the way home.

How body heat affects the Lascaux cave paintings is explained at the
Lascaux International Centre of Cave Art.

Lascaux Centre International de L’Art Parietal is open year-round. The area surrounding Montignac is rich with prehistoric sites, so a full day can include stops at the nearby Parc du Thot, the National Museum of Prehistory in Les Ezyies, and a number of other caves, rock shelters, and prehistoric villages. Visit the Lascaux website here for hours and tickets.

A visit to Lascaux International Centre of Cave Art ends at the gift shop.