Lavoûte-Chilhac, my return 23 years later – Road Trip in France #10
When I was little, I won several singing and electronic keyboard competitions in Vietnam. The rewards were not huge, except in 1997. This one was organized by the French Embassy in Vietnam, on the occasion of the Francophonie Summit in 1997. The prize was a one-month trip to France.
Note: this blog article is part of the “Road Trip in France” made in August 2020. To read the previous parts, click here : #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8 and #9
Part 1: Travel Diary
Part 2: Practical Tips
Part 1: Travel Diary
Of course, I participated… and won! We were about twenty of us, including 6 minors, to be sent to France for a month’s vacation. It was my second time in France, I was 12 years old and spoke a bit of French. A person from the embassy was in charge of planning the whole trip for us, while a French teacher (Vietnamese) was assigned to supervise the 6 minors.
We spent 2 weeks learning French at the business school in La Rochelle, attended the Francofolies, visited the Futuroscope, before spending 1 week in Auvergne and then 1 week in Paris. This trip made a big impression on me because I ended up buying an apartment with JB in La Rochelle (it was a huge coincidence but there’s no such thing as coincidence in life, is there?).
So, during this week in Auvergne, we went to a small village called Lavoûte-Chilhac. After the trip, I was able to meet the person who had planned the whole trip for us at the embassy and I asked her how she had found this village in the depths of the Auvergne. She answered that it was her childhood village.
I promised myself that I would go back one day. But when I opened, years later, Google Maps to locate Lavoûte-Chilhac, I was very disappointed: too far from everything, you need a car. That’s why even though I came back to France four years later, it took me 23 years to return to this village I loved so much.
This year, I reopened the map of France, I found Lavoûte-Chilhac, always “to be visited”. Looking at the pictures of this village, the memories came back to me, I had tears in my eyes. This time, I had to go there. Hence this huge road trip, just to come here. Without this village, we would have clearly traced another route.
How did I remember the name of this village after so many years? (which was still quite complicated to remember for a young Vietnamese girl). Well, it was thanks to an egg cup bought in the village. On this egg cup, the bridge of the village & the name were engraved on it. This egg cup remained on my desk during all my childhood, to remind me beautiful memories of this summer 1997.
To come to Lavoûte-Chilhac, we passed not very far from Langeac, it is a village which I also visited, but which did not leave me a memorable memory.
On the other hand, I can never forget this beautiful bridge.
It was a bit difficult for me to find the exact locations. I remember a swing where I spent hours with my girlfriends on the shore. Behind this swing, there was a kind of cupboard full of toys for children. JB and I spent some time looking for the swing because I wasn’t really sure which side of the bank I was on.
After searching everywhere, the swing, unfortunately, has really disappeared. Without the swing, it was very difficult for me to find the place, just with childhood memories.
Luckily, my dad scanned a lot of old photos and sent them to me a few years ago. These photos are stored on my Drive and I was able to find them easily and check them out with the 2020 version.
From there, it was very easy to find my old hotel, which is now the town hall. I remember this facade very well because one of the Vietnamese, because there was no dry cleaner in the village, had to hand wash his clothes and dry them on the window sill. We laughed at him because he was making a mess of the hotel’s front. It was the window on the left, on the 1st floor that you see on the picture. My room was on the other side, overlooking the bridge. One night, while looking out the window, my girlfriends and I saw the swing move by itself and it scared us too much ahahah
The restaurant Le Prieuré, where we dined many times, is still there. So it was with great emotion that JB and I had lunch there. The interior has completely changed, as well as the menu, of course.
The person from the embassy was able to organize the whole trip from Vietnam, calling left to right to make reservations. She was able to find us unusual activities, which are no longer offered in the village today. For example, here, we were able to participate in a small gold digging workshop. The idea is to take stones from the river, get rid of the big stones and then search for gold. As soon as I saw something shiny, I was all excited “sir, sir!!!” and every time it was something that was worthless. I finally found a stone that looked like ruby, he gave me some tape to keep it (I’ve probably thrown it away since). Another vietnamese girl found gold though, but it was thinner than gold leaf and it was only 3mm wide
I also learned how to fish (without catching anything).
Then, we made a first experience of canoeing near the village. The Allier river goes around the village, creating a meander, and we pass under the bridge, it’s really the ideal place to canoe. After having noticed that we did not manage too badly in canoe (small test of 1h30 with an instructor), we were asked to put all our things in a bus the next day. The things are transferred to the hotel by bus, while we travel 28km, mostly by canoe to finish by bike. Being the smallest one, I was accompanied by an instructor, who did all the work, while I paddle symbolically in the front.
I wanted JB and I to do this trip again, but after consulting the weather forecast, this trip couldn’t be compatible with the heat wave.
I took pictures of the village and uploaded them to Facebook so that the Vietnamese in the group could have access to the 2020 version photos. It touched them a lot and some of them sent me their photos taken in 1997, saying “look, the tower remains the same” or “even the street lamp hasn’t changed”. I think it touched them as much as it touched me to relive, even virtually, this beautiful trip.
Huge disappointment that my hotel no longer exists, that the swing has disappeared… but I am very happy that I was able to keep my promise to return there. I am very lucky to be able to relive my childhood many times, between the relaxed Hanoi style atmosphere of the 90’s, found in Cuba, and this village almost frozen since the summer of 1997, very lucky and grateful.
Our next article, it’s this way
Part 2: Practical Tips
Useful links
- 4 weeks Road Trip in France by car: program & detailed plans here
- These points of interest are part of the +800 tourist places in France that we recommend. To access free Google Maps of the 800 places in question, click here
- More info about our car rental at Leclerc here
Budget
- Restaurant Le Prieuré : count 20 euros/person
