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Castelnaud castle
Our next stop was a
castle on the
Dordogne river: Castelnaud. There were actors and catapults outside, where we ate an icecream as it was a choking hot day. On the
inside we admired
small cannon and a
knight on horseback. Piet was by far the most interested; Emma was still a bit too young. The next day was hot again. Piet and Emma insisted on wearing the
woolly hats mum had knitted them this holiday.
With Tiem we climbed the tree in our back garden and ran around as fighter planes. In Australia, it is quite rare to see a fighter jet. In France, they often came flying over our cottage at very low altitudes.
We read more in Pluk, Piet's favourite, and the search book, Emma's favourite. Mum and dad had lunch in Monpazier and visited the local wooden toys shop. We bought some toys in this and a neighbouring shop, including some swords and shields that Piet and Emma put to good use, mimicking the actors in the castle.
Lasting impression
Tiem and Elisabeth went back to the Netherlands. Elisabeth made a lasting impression on Piet and especially his parents. As part of our 21st-century-parenting, we allow him and his sister to not eat the crusts on their sandwiches. But Elisabeth had told Piet that: "the crusts make you strong". Ever since, Piet has been eating his crusts!
Piet and Emma played on the gate to the farm house courtyard. Mum managed to get a good shot of both Emma and Piet. Oma Bep showed the kids how to paint with water paint. In return, we took oma to a small Zadkine museum in nearby Les Arques. The Russian/French painter, who is well known in the Netherlands, lived and worked part of his life in this village. We admired the three museum rooms, the church and the rest of the very picturesque village. On our way back home, we had lunch in Cazals. The next morning we did some more reading in the search book. Piet played rhinoceros in our back garden until mum and dad got tired of replacing his horns made of rose thorns. We had two horses in the paddock across the road and a few more with foals down the road. Piet and Emma pressed oma to keep telling stories about other Tiem and Elisabeth (travelling with oma in the train, sleeping over at oma's place, experiencing snowfall, building a snowman, etc.
