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Summer in France, 2026
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  • Jenny and The French

Summer in France, 2026

Some news from time to time of our summer in south west France. Read more
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    🇫🇷 Amboise, France
    Jenny and The FrenchSummer in France, 2026Traveler

    Le 14 juillet.

    July 13 in France ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    I used to think the French celebrated Bastille Day. It was only through Domi that I discovered that the French never refer to Bastille Day.

    With le 14 juillet almost upon us, I came across this short article from Life in Rural France and Beyond:

    ‘Ask a French person about Bastille Day, and you'll likely get a blank look. They don't call it that. Never have. To anyone here, tomorrow is simply le 14 Juillet, or la Fête Nationale if you want to be formal about it.

    The name Bastille Day is an English invention. The French moved past the prison storming a long time ago. What's actually being commemorated is the Fête de la Fédération of 1790, held on the first anniversary of the fall of the Bastille, when the country came together in a moment of unity rather than violence. That's the day the Republic chose to remember.

    This year, the celebrations carry more weight than usual. The military parade down the Champs-Élysées will feature the largest Ukrainian contingent since the war began, with Ukrainian troops marching alongside French soldiers as a show of continued support.

    Macron has made Ukraine a centerpiece of the day, and the flyover will include aircraft from allied nations flying in formation. It's the most politically charged 14 Juillet in years.

    And then there's the football. Tomorrow evening, while Paris is still humming from the parade, France plays Spain in the World Cup semi-finals. Two national events on the same day, competing for the same living rooms. It's going to be a busy day.
    …

    If you're in France tomorrow, wish someone a bonne fête nationale, not a happy Bastille Day. They'll appreciate the difference.

    🇫🇷 Vive la République.’

    Viva la Belle France ❤️🇫🇷❤️    Read more

  • Jenny and The FrenchSummer in France, 2026Traveler
    Le gare de Saint-Émilion.
    An easy 2 km walk from le gare to la centre ville, passing des châteaux along the way.The Monolithic Church, bell tower above and church below ground.Charming narrow streets.And the theme is wine.Lots of cafés and restaurants.The cloisters of the Collégial Church.Beautifully decorated.From les cloîtres to l' église.Le Cloitre des Cordoliers.One of the Roman wash houses - les lavoirs - of Saint-Émilion.Walking back to the station.

    Saint-Émilion

    July 8 in France ⋅ ☀️ 38 °C

    ‘In the heart of Libournais (the area around Libourne), in a region of wine hills, Saint-Émilion is a medieval city located at the crossroads of Bordeaux, Saintonge and Périgord. The town and surrounding vineyards was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, owing to its long, living history of wine-making, Romanesque churches and ruins stretching all along steep and narrow streets.’

    Our visit to Saint-Émilion didn’t quite go according to plan. We thought there was a ‘voie verte’ - green way - cycle path we could walk for the 8kms from Libourne, and that we would arrive for the Tuesday market day. Neither of those things were true. ☺️

    The cycle path from Libourne is all on the the road, albeit not a particularly busy one. The train, a 6 minute journey, is definitely the preferred option - unless there is a problem on the track - see return journey below. Also, there is no longer a weekly market in Saint-Émilion and when there was it was on Tuesdays not Wednesdays. 😂

    As the mercury was heading to high 30s again, we planned just a few hours in Saint-Émilion before taking the 11-45 train back to Libourne. We tootled around with little plan or purpose. We didn’t get to see the underground church, though we did get a sense of the town and took some photos.

    By then it was time to walk back down to the station to take our train. The train was already there when we arrived but sadly it would remain there for some time. An electrical problem on the track - most likely due to the heat - meant our train and the one an hour later were both cancelled. SNCF announced replacement buses would be sent but we didn’t know how long that would take. It was too hot by then to consider walking the 8kms back by the road. 🥵

    As we waited outside the station with all the other passengers, seeking shade, I saw a car pull up and noticed two phones mounted on the dashboard. I think that’s a taxi, I said to The French. I assumed the driver was looking for someone who’d called. I watched intently as he circled the car park, but no one appeared. So I made my way over to ask if he could take us to Libourne, and we were on our way. I feel the fare may have had a ‘supply and demand’ surcharge … but we weren’t complaining. In no time we were back in Libourne in our air conditioned apartment.

    I’m putting our first visit down to reconnaissance. Further and better research has revealed there are popular walking paths outside the town - eg. Saint-Émilion Vineyards Loop, 4.8 km exploring historic vineyards and the Cordeliers' Cloister loop, a 7.7 km path offering views of the historic town and its surroundings. They sound perfect.

    A second visit is in order. 😎    Read more

  • Jenny and The FrenchSummer in France, 2026Traveler
    L'été. Summer.
    Rue Gambetta - our apartment is in this streetSunday morning market in full swing 😍Place Abel Surchamp.First dinner in Libourne - Le Bistrot Maritime. 👌Morning light.Place Abel Surchamp. Early Monday morning.First petit-déjeuner in Libourne. Healthier breakfasts to come ... but not today 😎❤️🇫🇷❤️

    Nous sommes à Libourne.

    July 6 in France ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    We are in Libourne in the department of Gironde in south west France.

    Libourne is a former royal bastide town established in the 13th century on the site of the Gallo Roman port of Contadis. The town sits at the confluence of two rivers - the Isle and the Dordogne - 35 kms north east of Bordeaux.

    We arrived here yesterday to the Sunday morning market in full swing. It made for a great first impression, and that has only been reinforced as we strolled around the town to get our bearings. We think we will enjoy it here … which is a relief. You see … we will be based here for two months, but neither of us have been here before so we were not sure what to expect. I, for one, was a little anxious …

    In the past when we’ve spent extended time in France, we’ve always based ourselves in the department of le Gers - in or around Lectoure, Condom, Marciac. We love it there but the towns are small, the nearest train is an hour’s bus ride away, and you definitely need a car to visit the surrounding areas. We’ve done all of that, and loved it, but this time we wanted to try something different.

    Our ideal was a larger town, but not too large, still in the south west, on a train line with good connections to other interesting towns for day or overnight visits, and to Paris. We wanted a town where we wouldn’t need a car, but could rent one if we wanted. We wanted a lively town, with both charm and modern facilities, where we could enjoy typical daily life - la vie quotidienne - for a couple of months. And a town with things to do - especially for the grandchildren coming in August - but not an obvious tourist destination which would be overcrowded in the summer holidays.

    Long story short, our search started with a Google search of ‘towns with good train connections near Bordeaux’. Google came up with 4 or 5 possibilities. From there it was a matter of a little reading and looking at images to decide which one. Libourne seemed to fit the bill … so late last year we committed to two month long stays.

    For July we have a spacious and light filled one bedroom apartment. It’s right in the centre of town on Rue Gambetta, the pedestrian street decorated with the coloured balls for the summer. The apartment is tucked away at the back of the building so it’s quiet - and we have a small courtyard. And air conditioning, a godsend with yet another heatwave upon us. 🥵

    For August, we’ve rented a larger apartment nearby - 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms- as various grandchildren will be with us during their school holidays, and my sister Julie will visit towards the end of our stay. ☺️

    As well as enjoying daily life here, these are some of the places we plan to visit over the next two months - some favourites and some new destinations.

    Saint Emilion - 8 kms, 6 mins by train
    Bordeaux - 23 mins by train
    Bergerac - 50 mins by train
    Arcachon - 90 mins by train
    Blaye - 90 mins by bus
    Bayonne / Saint Jean de Luz - under 3 hours by train .
    Paris - 3 hours by train, some direct, some change in Bordeaux.

    Our first destination, new to both of us, will be Saint Emilion on Wednesday, market day. We plan to walk there using the shared cycle route, and come back by train. With another scorcher forecast, we’ll leave around 7.30 and have petit déjeuner in Saint Emilion. 😎

    A la prochaine … until next time. ❤️🇫🇷❤️

    More about Libourne:

    https://bordeauxtravelguide.com/day-in-libourne…    Read more

    Trip start
    July 5, 2026