When the courageous citizens of Brive-la-Gaillarde (breeve-lah-gay-yahrd; pop. 50,000) repelled English forces during the Hundred Years’ War, they earned their town the nickname “la Gaillarde” (“the Bold”), an appellation reaffirmed in 1944 when Brive—the seat of many secret information networks during WWII—became the first French town to liberate itself from the Germans. Today, Brive’s residents maintain their fighting spirit through their support of the town’s First Division rugby team, whose jerseys, flags, and bumper stickers dominate almost every street. Relatively tourist-free, Brive has a vibrant atmosphere and peaceful centre-ville; the town also provides an inexpensive base for exploring the ancient villages of Limousin.
Brive’s open-air markets at place Tassigny and place du 14 Juillet offer clothing, shoes, jewelry, and local produce. (Tu, Th, Sa 8am-noon; Sa smaller market.) Four times a year from December to February, the streets of Brive host La Fois Grasses, a market with the delicacies that make Brive famous: geese, ducks, champignons (mushrooms), truffles, chocolate, and foie gras.
Musée Labenche. Housed in the 16th-century Hôtel de Labenche, the museum’s galleries house an impressively varied collection, featuring human skeletons, ancient coins, 17th-century English tapestries, prehistoric artifacts, old accordions, contemporary art, and medieval weapons. All signs are in French. (26 bis bd. Jules Ferry. ☎05 55 18 17 70; www.musee-labenche.com. Open M and W-Su Apr.-Oct. 10am-6:30pm; Nov.-Mar. 1:30-6pm. Temporary exhibits open Apr.-Oct. 10am-noon and 1:30-6:30pm; Nov.-Mar. 10am-noon and 1:30-6pm. €4.70, students and war veterans €2.50, under 16 free; last Su of month free. Temporary exhibits free. Free English audio tours available.)
Maison Denoix. The oldest liquor distillery in France, this maison is most famous for “La Suprême Denoix” eau de noix (walnut liqueur). Since 1839, four generations of the Denoix family have produced this famous drink using an unchanged recipe and time-honored methods. Today, free 1hr. tours give an explanation of artisanal methods and a history of the distillery, ending with a fabulous dégustation. (9 bd. du Maréchal Lyautey. ☎05 55 74 34 27; www.denoix.com. Open July-Aug. and Dec. M-Sa 9am-noon and 2:30-7pm; Sept.-Nov. and Jan.-June Tu-Sa 9am-noon and 2:30-7pm. Guided tours July-Aug. Tu and Th 2:30pm.)
Centre National De La Résistance Et De La Déportation Edmond Michelet. Located in its namesake’s former home, this museum is dedicated to the Brive native and Resistance leader Edmond Michelet, who survived internment at the Dachau concentration camp for over a year. The museum also displays photographs of women and children on their way to the gas chambers, heartbreaking last letters to loved ones, and mementos displaying Brive’s role in the Resistance effort. (4 rue Champanatier. ☎05 55 74 06 08; www.centremichelet.org. Open M-Sa 10am-noon and 2-6pm. Free. Free audio tours available in English and French.)
Église Collégiale Saint-Martin. This church’s namesake was an iconoclastic Spaniard who introduced Christianity to the largely pagan Brive in the fourth century. Unreceptive town members beheaded Martin in AD 407, but, when the following years saw devastating plagues and foreign invasions, citizens agreed to honor him with a local procession. According to legend, a great light followed, and suffering ceased. The church, whose crypt now houses Martin’s tomb, honors the saint. (Pl. Charles de Gaulle.)
After dinner, the streets of Brive’s centre-ville become relatively deserted, but pockets of nightlife can be found in tucked-away bars and brasseries.
Buses run from Brive 2 or 3 times per day; ask at the CFTA office, pl. du 14 Juillet, or at the tourist office for schedules. Buses also stop at Collonges-la-Rouge, but the best option for those hoping to see both villages is to stop 1st in Turenne. The 8km trip from Turenne to Collonges can easily be made on a bike rented from in Turenne. Buses are the best way to get to Turenne, but driving and biking are possible as well. From Brive, take av. Alsace-Lorraine (D38), and after 10km, at the roundabout, bear right onto D8, which leads to Turenne. Taxis run between Turenne and Collonges. (☎05 55 25 30 30. €19.)
Built dramatically into a steep hillside 15km south of Brive, Turenne (tuh-rehnn) carries a long legacy of power. In the 13th and 14th centuries, it served as the fortified seat of the region’s viscount, who controlled more than 1200 villages. In the 17th century, with the Wars of Religion ravaging the country, Turenne became a bastion of Protestantism. However, the town was not invincible; in 1738 Louis XV bought the château and, in an assertion of royal power, had the castle dismantled. Today, Turenne remains virtually untouched by modernization, retaining many vestiges of its considerable heyday. Perhaps the best part of Turenne is the wonderful uphill walk to the château, full of narrow medieval streets cutting between flower-draped houses. On the way to the summit, be sure to stop at La Collegiale Notre Dame, a modest church with a touching war memorial and elaborate gold tabernacle. At the château, visitors can tour the keep, ascend the watchtower for an unparalleled view of the region, or explore the small garden. (Open July-Aug. daily 10am-7pm; Sept.-Oct. and Apr.-June daily 10am-noon and 2-6pm; Nov.-Mar. Su 2-5pm. Guide available in English. €3.50, ages 10-18 €2.30, under 10 free.) For a drink or homemade dessert, stop by the château’s restaurant, Le Jardin Perche . (☎05 55 85 90 66. Open July-Aug. daily 11:30am-6pm; May-June and Sept. by reservation.)
At the base of town, Turenne’s tourist office offers maps (€1-3.40), guided city tours in French (June-Sept. W and F 10:30am, 5pm; €4; reservations recommended), bike rental (€10 per day), and English audio tours. (☎05 55 85 94 38. Open July-Aug. daily 9:30am-12:30pm and 2:30-6:30pm; Sept. and Apr.-June Tu-Su 10am-12:30pm and 3-6pm.)
CFTA runs infrequent buses to the village on line #4 from Brive (M-F 2-3 per day, Sa 2 per day; fewer buses July-Aug.). From the main road, signs point to the town’s tourist office (☎05 55 25 47 57 or 25 32 25), which provides maps (€1), extensive hiking guides (€1), and city tours in English and French. French tours July-Aug. 4 per day. English tours by reservation. Open July-Aug. daily 10am-1pm and 2-7pm; Sept.-Oct. and Apr.-June daily 10am-noon and 2-6pm; Nov.-Mar. M-Sa 10am-noon and 2-5pm.
Twenty kilometers southeast of Brive, Collonges-la-Rouge (koh-lonjh-lah-roojh) seems too good to be true: red sandstone buildings are covered with green vines, trellises brim with blooming flowers, and overhanging archways provide refreshing shade from the sun. There’s little to do here besides appreciate what has been called France’s most beautiful village. Stop into the 12th-century Église Saint-Pierre; inside, dull red bricks contrast with the bold green and gold altar. Medieval figurines depicting Odysseus and a young siren are sculpted on the exterior of the Maison de la Sirène, which houses a museum.
While Rocamadour is in the Lot Valley, it is most easily accessible from Brive. Trains from Brive stop at the Rocamadour station, 4km from town on N140 (40min.; M-Sa 6 per day 8:30am-6:25pm, Su 3 per day; last return train 7:50pm; €12). The Brive train station provides schedules and tickets. From the Rocamadour station, a flat, winding road leads into town (45min.). A hiking trail provides a more direct route: with your back to the station, head left down the street for 2min. until you see a wood sign on the right side of the road indicating the trailhead. For a taxi, call ☎05 65 50 14 82. €10.
Tiny Rocamadour (roh-kah-mah-door), a stunning three-layered city carved into large chalk cliffs, overlooks a deep valley. The town was named for St-Amadour, whose perfectly preserved body was unearthed near the chapel in the 12th century. The saint was reputed to have been the biblical Zacchaeus, a thieving tax collector who mended his ways after dining with Jesus. A stop on the road to Santiago de Compostela, Rocamadour continues to host faithful pilgrims come to pray in its chapels, but the town’s holy sites and stunning views attract more tourists than religious devotees.
At the top of the city sits the 12th-century château, home to the chaplains of Rocamadour and closed to the public. Walk along the ramparts for great views. (€2; coins only.) Zigzagging up a steep pathway to the château is the Chemin de Croix, which depicts the 14 Stations of the Cross. The middle section of the cliff is dominated by the Cité Religieuse, an enclosed courtyard that encompasses seven chapels, two of which can be visited without a guide. Its nucleus is the Chapelle Notre Dame, a silent place of prayer containing a model ship honoring shipwreck victims. Outside the entrance to the chapel is a fading—but nevertheless haunting—fresco depicting death personified, while high up on the cliff to the left of the entrance, wedged into a rock, is the legendary sword in the stone —which was allegedly wielded by Hector of Troy and used by Roland, an epic hero who served under Charlemagne. La Basilique Saint-Sauveur, adjacent to the chapel, attracts visitors to its gilt altar. (☎05 65 33 23 30. Open Apr.-Oct. M-Sa 9am-noon and 2-6pm.) Under Notre Dame and St-Sauveur lies the Crypte Saint-Amadour, where the saint’s body rested undisturbed until a Protestant tried to set it ablaze during the Wars of Religion. Though apparently immune to the flames, the saint’s body could not withstand the assailant’s backup plan: an axe. The old medieval town —whose streets now host tourist-friendly ice-cream and sandwich shops—occupies the lower level of the city. Your best bet is to start from the château and move downward. The two elevators that connect the city’s three levels are not worth the steep prices for those able to ascend on their own. (☎05 65 33 62 44. Elevators operate daily July-Aug. 8am-8pm; Sept.-June 9am-6pm. €2, round-trip €3.)
Rocamadour’s surrounding areas offer appealing, family-oriented attractions. The Grotte des Merveilles, beside the upper tourist office, is a cave of stalactites and remnants of prehistoric paintings. Guided tours (40min.) in English and French provide more information about the cave art. (☎05 65 33 67 92; www.grotte-des-merveilles.com. Open daily July-Aug. 9:30am-7pm; Sept.-Nov. and Apr.-June 10am-noon and 2-6pm. €6, ages 5-11 €4.) Signs from the upper tourist office point the way (300m) to La Féerie, a fantastic model world, complete with realistic trains, cars, and people. Every detail, down to the last doorknob, was constructed by one man over 60,000hr. The 1hr. show in French (with English subtitles) constructs a story highlighting the models’ bells and whistles. While the show may be a bit bizarre, the amazing feat of La Féerie is well worth a visit. (☎05 65 33 71 06; www.la-feerie.com. Tickets sold daily from mid-July to late Aug. 9am-noon and 2-7pm; from late Aug. to early Nov. and from Easter to mid-July 10am-noon and 2-6pm. Apr.-Sept. 4-8 shows per day; Oct. 2 per day. €8, under 12 €5.) The Rocher des Aigles —home to over 400 birds of 60 different species—shares the plateau with the castle and hosts a 1hr. show with trained birds of prey. (☎05 65 33 65 45; www.rocherdesaigles.com. Open from early to mid-July and from mid- to late Aug. daily 1-7pm, 4 shows; from mid-July to mid-Aug. daily 11am-7pm, 5 shows; Sept. and Apr.-June Tu-Su 1-6pm, 3 shows; Oct.-Nov. Th-F and Su 2-5pm, 1 show. €8, ages 5-14 €4.50.)
Separate tourist offices (☎05 65 33 22 00; www.rocamadour.com) serve the cliff’s top and bottom layers. Both have guides, accommodations booking, maps (€1), and currency exchange at undesirable rates. The upper office is in l’Hospitalet, on route de Lacave, and the lower is in the old Hôtel de Ville. (Neither has consistent hours, but one of the two is open July-Aug. daily 10am-12:30pm and 1:30-6pm; Sept.-Oct. and Apr.-June daily 10am-noon and 2-6pm; Nov.-Mar. M-Sa 10am-noon and 2-5:30pm, Su 2-5:30pm.) A tour on the town’s petit train, which leaves from Porte du Figuier, provides interesting historical commentary. (☎05 65 33 67 84. Open daily 10am-7:30pm. Tours 30min. Night tours from 7:30pm. Call tourist office for schedule. €5, under 18 €2.50.) Other services include an ATM inside the post office near the lower tourist office. (☎05 65 33 62 21. Open July-Aug. M-F 10am-noon and 1:30-4:30pm, Sa 10am-noon; Sept.-June M-F 1:30-4:30pm.)
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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