O-O-O

Erudite gag for you there. That's chess notation for castling (Queen's side to be precise) which is what I have been doing today. Admittedly I had to look that up.

Two castles, both Cathar, both taken fairly brutally by a Catholic crusade.
Queribus from below...

The view from the top

And what it looks like inside (well, a bit of it).


Peyrpetuse from the valley below:

From the other side (it really is terribly impressive isn't it?)

And from within.


And to think I was actually considering not going to these places to save time for other things. I'm nearly an idiot for a change, rather than my usual self.

Driving round the area was also an experience, taking me through valleys and passes that were quite splendid. Most impressive was the gorge. There was a wall there, partly to stop cars driving off, but also, an dpossibly more importantly, to stop people from looking: the gorge goes straight up (with many overhangs above the narrow road) and goes straight down too. The scale is impressive, as is the wee ledge that the road is built on. The region generally is so beautiful, but the gorges and castles take it to another level. What a privilege to have been here.