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I have divided the history information into 3
categories: Aquitaine, Dordogne, St. Emilion, Bordeaux
and Castillon.
The Aquitaine region of France, which can be referred to
as the Southwest, encapsulates 5 departments of France:
the Gironde, the Dordogne, the Lot et Garonne, the
Landes and the Pyrenees Atlantiques. The Chateau de
Pitray literally lies on the shared border of the
departments of the Gironde and Dordogne. This is also
slightly east of where the Dordogne River meets the
Garonne River to form the Gironde River or estuary,
which travels alongside the city of Bordeaux and
eventually empties into the Atlantic Ocean.
 The
Dordogne River is close to 300 miles long and the
Chateau de Pitray is near its western end, otherwise
referred to as the western end of the Dordogne Valley,
an area that is well known for its wine production. If
you come to cycle or vacation in France you will see
that the landscape is varied and compact, that is to say
you don't need to travel far for the landscape to
change. This is one of the features that I most enjoy
about cycling and traveling in France, a lot of
different terrain within a small radius. We will take
advantage of the changing terrain to cycle and vacation
on roads that meander through vineyards, fields and
woods. |
