Thursday, September 5, 2013

Exploring Dombes region

Today, because of Swiss holiday, we had a day off to use. Although it is September, the weather was like in July, so we decided to make a trip outside the city. Destination: Dombes region, France. The area is well known for its ponds and water-soaked grounds. Our plan for the day: les jardins aquatiques (water gardens), Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne village, Le Parc des Oiseaux (bird park), a medieval village of Pérouges. Looks like an action-paked day for us.

We started from a small but beautiful water garden, nurtured by a company selling water-garden stuff (like fish, pumps and plants). They really know their ropes - the garden was marvelous. It's best known for koi carps - very colourful little fellows swiming in their ponds. I really enjoyed this short walk - it was a nice start of our day.





Next, we headed to a lovely village - Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne. There was nothing special to see or do there, so we just walked around narrow allays, visited the hill with a castle, sat down in a cafe and enjoyed the sunny day and the charm and idleness of the place.





Then, we drove to Le Parc des Oiseaux - but this is a place that deserves a separate post, so I will skip it here. A visit in the park took us almost four hours, so when we were actually free it was already late afternoon. Last in our plan: a medieval village of Pérouges. It's listed among 'les plus beaux villages de France' (the most beautiful villages of France). I would personally compare it to Yvoire, although I liked Yvoire more. When we arrived, the village looked... deserted. There were few people, restaurants were closed... It felt a bit strange. We had a fast stroll through the cobblestoned streets, tasted la galette de Pérouges - a local delicacy and went back to car.




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