Les Jardins Suspendus de Marqueyssac

On Friday, during our holiday here in South West France, we ventured into the Dordorgne region to visit the medieval town of Sarlat and the beautiful gardens the title of this post refers to.

I just had to make a post of our visit, as they were very beautiful and well worth a visit, with something for everyone.

Our first stop was the Chateau which is 'an early 19th century luxury residence' of very simple construction.  The roof fascinated OH as it was made of limestone slabs or tiles and weighed more than 500 tons!

There were a few rooms open to the public that were interesting to view.

From here we ventured along some of the garden's walkways.  Thankfully the walkways were largely shaded by beautiful trees, which provided relief from the heat of the sun.

At the end of this one sat the Poets hut which marked the furthest point of the garden.

The Cliff walk and Belvedere (a viewing point) allowed beautiful views of the surrounding countryside of the Dordogne Valley.

There were playgrounds for younger family members and a netted path suspended from the trees called the Aire de Jeux, which is over 100 metres long.  It looked fun but we didn't  tackle it, as it was very busy at the time of our visit.

Probably one of the most interesting aspects of the garden were the boxwoods which were pruned into 'complicated vegetal forms' and are cut using hand shears twice a year.  They were spectacular.

A fantastic garden to visit and very reasonably priced at 9 euros for adults and 4 euros 50 cents for children aged 10-17.  Children under 10 go free.