We stopped along the way, while driving from La Rochelle to Aubeterre-sur-Dronne. We stopped in Pons, to see the 30m donjun, built in 1187. It is next to the old castle, now used as the Mairie.
We stopped in Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, to see the Chateau, started in the 11th century. The Office de Tourisme is located in the entrance of the Chateau today. The Monument du Morts on the side of the chateau was particularly sad, with a mother holding her head in sadness. Barbezieux is another village that lost so many youn men in WWI, that they didn’t have many to fight in WWII, so their losses from 1939-1945 were significantly fewer.
Along the drive, we passed millions of sunflowers, starting to open their faces to the sun. They are stunning and I expect to take many more photos in the coming weeks!
We made a return visit to Saint Emilion. It's history goes back 35,000 years to the Paleolithhic. The village was built on the hill. Romans planted vineyards around Saint Emilion, as early as the 2nd century. Saint Emilion has a monolithic church, carved in the 11th century out of a limestone cliff, 38 m long and 20 m wide. We visited the church four years ago. Saint Emilion also has a donjun, built in 1237. Saint Emilion is known for it's red wine, of the Bordeaux region.
