This explains why Gascony, for example, spreads over three départements (the Gers, the Landes and the Lot-et-Garonne) and why residents of the Lotet-Garonne who live north of the Garonne river will usually say they live in Guyenne, not Gascony.

The Garonne crosses the département from south-east to north-west. From the neighbouring Tarn-et-Garonne just after Valence d’Agen, it flows by Agen, Port-Sainte-Marie, Aiguillon (where it is joined by the Lot), Tonneins, Marmande and
Meilhan-sur-Garonne. It then flows on into the Gironde on its way to Bordeaux and the Atlantic.

The Lot enters the département at Fumel, in the east, and passes Penne d’Agenais, Villeneuve-sur-Lot, Castelmoron and Clairac before joining the Garonne at Aiguillon.

A significant tributary from the south is the Baïse, which emerges from the Gers near Moncrabeau and joins the Garonne just upstream from Aiguillon via Nérac, Lavardac and Buzet-sur-Baïse.

For many centuries these three rivers provided the best way of travelling about the area: speciallybuilt boats (gabares) enabled people and goods to get around when roads were rough at best and impassable in bad weather. But even the rivers were subject to drought and floods, which is why a canal was eventually built from Bordeaux to the Mediterranean, following the Garonne as far as Toulouse. The canal is now a prominent feature, providing pleasure-boating and attractive walks for holidaymakers. There are also a number of locks on some of the rivers.

Farming
Agriculture is one of the Lot-et-Garonne’s main activities. There are some sheep and cattle, but the land is mainly devoted to food crops. Cereals, particularly maize, figure prominently, alongside plums, tomatoes, melons, kiwis and hazelnuts. Of these the best known is the plum, used for making the famous Agen prunes. Note that prune in French means plum, the French for prune being pruneau. The local product bears little relationship to the prunes of traditional British school dinners, which have put many people off for life.

Based on a graft (prune d’ente), the date-plum was probably brought back from the Middle East by Crusaders. Dried by a special process, it is delicious in many local recipes. Some recipes recommend preliminary soaking in tea.

In July, the Lot-et-Garonne is a mass of bright yellow as the sunflower crop, grown for vegetable oil, matures. The region also produces a large amount of tobacco, much of which was until recently processed locally at Tonneins. Finally, on the left and right bank of the Garonne, many acres are devoted to vineyards, producing excellent AOC wines as well as Vins de Pays.

Architecture
A natural extension of the Périgord, the département boasts a rich architectural heritage. With the outstanding medieval Château de Bonaguil, and other fine châteaux such as Duras, Poudenas and Gavaudun, more than 40 surviving bastide towns, often with Romanesque churches, arcades and timber-framed houses, exceptional examples of fortified watermills, numerous windmills, pigeonniers (dovecotes), substantial farmhouses with wooden tobacco drying sheds, there is no shortage of rural architecture to be admired. In areas poor in stone, red brick and timber are used instead, giving an attractive southern feel.

In this country environment, you are hard pressed to find everything on your back doorstep but what is on offer is certainly eclectic. Traditiona agricultural festivals, generall around a gastronomic theme, are being infiltrated by the arts. A number of musicians and artists from French and foreign cities have ‘gone out to grass’ here and have certainly enriched the cultural scene. Quality theatre and circus acts come to the street festivals in the bastides, classical and theatrical events are held in the châteaux, jazz happens in Aiguillon, blues in Tournon and more traditional festive musette and French chanson all over the area.

Horse racing and trotting tracks are popular venues. Agen, but also the small bastide towns in the Lot and Dropt valleys have busy agendas so why not spend a day at the races, have a picnic and a few bets?

Three great masters are linked to the area: don’t miss the five works by Goya in the Musée des Beaux Arts in Agen, Rembrandt’s ‘Christ en Croix’ tucked away in the church in the Mas d’Agenais or the Latour Marliac gardens in the Temple sur Lot where Monet got his supplies of waterlilies for Giverny.

The Lot-et-Garonne is full of such surprises but, above all, it is a place where simple pleasures are paramount. Here you can mingle with the friendly people at markets and festivities, enjoy excellent locally grown food, laze by a river or lake, relax and recharge your batteries. After all, isn’t that what holidays are all about?