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SOUTH WEST FRANCE
From the rich, rolling farmland of Gascony in the west, to the dramatic river gorges, bastide villages and rose-red towns of the east, this region offers a spectacular choice of scenery.
To the north lies Quercy country where the rivers have formed dramatic limestone cliffs and caves like the impressive Gouffre de Padirac. At Pech-Merle, these house prehistoric paintings. Here you'll also find pretty villages like Autoire and St Cirq-Lapopie with their turreted, steep-roofed houses and dovecotes. Most dramatic of all is medieval Rocamadour, clinging to the cliff face. The main town, Cahors, is famous for its wine and fortified bridge spanning the River Lot. To the south-east the empty heathland of the Causse de Limogne descends to the Aveyron Gorges, where villages like Najac perch on rocky outcrops. Here, the hill-top town of Cordes, with its ramparts, steep cobbled streets and Gothic houses, has been well restored. The Tarn towns of Montauban and Albi are notable for their art collections and striking, red architecture, as is the regional capital, Toulouse, to the south, with its two cathedrals, bustling Old Town and the modern planetarium. Where the Tarn joins the Garonne lies Moissac with its Romanesque abbey and nearby, pretty Auvillar. Downstream to the west are the plum orchards of Agen, Condom and its Armagnac vineyards and the rich, rolling farmland of Gascony, where fields of sunflowers and shady woods form a patchwork landscape dotted with sleepy hamlets. The bastide village of Fources has a lovely main square and at Auch a statue pays tribute to one of the area's most famous fictional characters the musketeer d'Artagnan, who was based on a real-life local figure.
main pic Cahors
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