The Lure of the Dordogne
We're not alone in having experienced the almost physical tug of the Dordogne. Thousands of expats now live here all year round, while thousands more have holiday homes.
We can all explain, to some extent, the reasons that brought us here. A quieter lifestyle, a better climate, sometimes better healthcare.
French academics, equally puzzled by the influx of Brits into the Dordogne, have engaged in a number of studies to find out why people come here. What has emerged as a common factor is a massive rejection of the urban lifestyle in the UK. Many UK inhabitants hanker after a dream landscape, mistily remembered: a Garden of Eden that they may never have experienced in fact, but which is embedded in the national psyche: Pop Larkin in an eternal Camelot.
This dream environment is seen as a place for self-fulfilment without the pressures of urban life: a place to expand in harmony with nature.
Enter the Dordogne, with its unspoilt landscapes reminiscient of 18th century English paintings, an architectural heritage that is often domestic in scale, and a temperate climate. The department's slogan - "Le pays de l'homme" - intended to act as a reminder of the cavedwellers who came here 17,000 years ago, also summarises the human scale, the approachability, of the environment.
If it's rural you want, you can certainly find it in the Dordogne. The department is the third largest in France, but has a mere 400,000 inhabitants. The towns are usually small, and the population density averages 43 people per square kilometre, against 354 in England (176 if you take the UK and Ireland together).
But it's not just about peace and quiet. The local French welcome their new foreign neighbours, and are tolerant of their eccentricities. The food is locally produced, and fresher than most of us have experienced in the UK. Vineyards are just down the road, around Bergerac and over towards Bordeaux. The long, sunny summers are full of cultural events, ranging from the international mime festival in Périgueux to local village festivities.
Nowhere will be paradise. But if the pressures of urban life in the UK are getting you down, a home in the Dordogne could be a solution. If you visit the region, you'll see why so many of us have settled here.