2005 Letter from CAHORS: Bright and early, we arrived in the town of Cahors, a medieval town in the Dordogne area of France. We looked for parking spaces but decided that was never going to be possible, so we drove to a campground on the opposite side of the river. At the reception desk, we asked if there was a public bus near the camp that goes to the city. No, but there is a free bus nearby. It goes to center city from the athletic fields just down the road and there is no problem with parking at the fields. So off we went. The electric mini-bus ran every 11 minutes right to the tourist information office. This alone was enough to endear Cahors (a name which we cannot quite pronounce) to us. But there was more. Here was a beautiful medieval city without tourist shops. People actually live here. The shops were those needed by the population. It was not as stunning from the outside as either Aigues Mortes or Carcassone, but the buildings were just as beautiful and the entire atmosphere much more pleasant. Cahors has lots of wonderful medieval buildings, as well as the oldest (13th century) fortified, medieval bridge in France. The bridge has three towers and Roman arches. (Picture 3 is of the fortified Cahors Bridge, but the third tower was behind some trees.) We loved being there. To add to its charm, it also had an internet shop which enabled us to send out a letter. At the end of a long day, we caught the bus back to the sports complex, drove to the campground and collapsed.
