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You are here: Home / ADVENTURE / If you love Instagram THIS is the place you need to visit

If you love Instagram THIS is the place you need to visit

August 18, 2017 by Molly 4 Comments

Bergerac

Hello! I’ve taken an accidental, unplanned blog break due to having barely any internet in the second place we stayed in in France. Anyway, I’m back and want to share with you today a little (photo-heavy) post about a lovely day out we had in Bergerac during our first week. There’s also a video so if vlogs are your thing then scroll to the end to watch.

So it’s not the 90s TV show set in Jersey starring John Nettles, but the French town that I’m talking about today. (Side note: does anyone else remember that show? And if so, does anyone now have the theme tune stuck in their head?!) Anyway, Bergerac is in the south west corner of the Dordogne region which, if you’re unfamiliar with the geography of France, is about halfway down on the map.

It’s a historic town, set on the northern bank of the Dordogne river, with a beautiful “old town” area full of windy streets, colourful cafes and beautiful old shuttered houses. Instagram cat-nip, basically. 

I’m not going to go all Judith Chalmers on you because you can quite easily Google “Bergerac” for yourself and find out more about this beautiful French town, but if you’re after some tips for family things to do there then I can highly recommend a little wander around the Old Town, and a picnic by the river. If we’d have been there longer we’d have got a boat along the river too probably, but we arrived just before lunch and after a tootle around we were ready to find a cafe to refuel in.

The Old Town is bursting with cafes, restaurants, bars and creperies and I imagine it’s a got a fun and lively atmosphere in the evening. As we were there during the day we just opted for one of the cafes in the square which had a spare table. The menus were all pretty similar – salads, crepes, pizzas and the occasional burger – and all were very kid-friendly, although some were fancier than others. Fancy restaurants and hangry toddlers don’t really mix so we avoided the cafes with posh table clothes and long wine lists and went for the one serving the most decadent looking crepes. Standard.

The girls ate crepes laden down with melted chocolate, chantilly cream and icecream, while I tucked into an amazing goats’ cheese salad. The NLM wasn’t hungry so he ate our leftovers and had a cold beer instead. Yeah, I know, I don’t get it either. (Watch the video below to see the food in action but be warned, it might make you hungry!)

Sightseeing with kids is never easy but, because there was lots to look at and we allowed both kids a go at taking their own photos, they were entertained for a good couple of hours. If we’d have been without the children then the day would have taken on a whole different shape and we’d probably have had time to visit the famous Tobacco Museum (Bergerac was a major Tobacco exporter) and done a bit of a cafe crawl around the Old Town.

Frog’s favourite spot was this beautiful toy shop in the Old Town. It was full of colourful windmills, handmade wooden toys and nostalgic style games. We had to literally drag her out of it – not before I’d taken some photos, obviously.

My favourite thing about the day was people-watching, as it always is on holiday. I LOVE a good people watch, you know? We play a game called Guess the Nationality, which is exactly what you’d think it was (man, we’re SO rock and roll) and Bergerac is a real melting pot of nationalities, especially during the height of tourist season. It’s one of those rare places that is equally family and couples friendly, which made people watching even more interesting. I swear there were Instagrammers galore too, as I spotted quite a few people doing casual Instagram style poses in doorways, much to the amusement of my IG-phobic husband.

Here’s the video of our time in Bergerac if you fancy watching – I’m now salivating over that amazing goats’ cheese salad…

Filed Under: ADVENTURE Tagged With: Bergerac, Family holidays, family travel, family travel to France, France

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Comments

  1. Katie Albury says

    August 20, 2017 at 10:08 pm

    What a beautiful town, such gorgeous photographs. My friend’s parents have a place in the Dordogne region…can’t remember where just remember how beautiful it was and how the taxis don’t run past 10pm- we were stranded and had to get a police escort to a local hostel for the night until the taxis were up and running again! Ah! x

    Reply
    • Molly says

      September 4, 2017 at 2:58 pm

      Oh that sounds like a right pain! It’s a gorgeous region – really idyllic. x

      Reply
    • Molly says

      September 4, 2017 at 2:58 pm

      Oh that sounds like a right pain! It’s a gorgeous region – really idyllic. x

      Reply
  2. Slummy single mummy says

    August 18, 2017 at 3:05 pm

    It looks beautiful – I love all the different colours. And I’m only mildly jealous of the crepes 🙂

    Reply

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Hello and welcome! I'm Molly Forbes - podcaster, presenter and blogger with a passion for positivity, confidence and body image chat. Regularly writing and vlogging about empowering female issues from a motherhood angle, I also cover lifestyle and fashion topics for like-minded mums who want to rediscover themselves after having children. Thanks for stopping by! Read More…

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My body is good and excellent and my body only bel My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me ✨ (Words by Effie May, age 6 💕) #BodyHappyMum
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Image description: A close up of Molly’s bare skin as she hugs herself. It’s dark and part of her body is illuminated by light. She has her eyes closed and is smiling.
“Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. “Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. And my heart swelled. Maybe I’m doing an OK job after all 🤞❤️💕 #BodyHappyKids 
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I could leave this caption here but I need to make something clear: if you think it’s great that my daughter - a thin, white, nondisabled, cisgender kid - feels good in her body but you’re not here for the self-love of any kid who doesn’t look like her.... then you’ve missed the point.
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ALL bodies are good bodies, and without this important piece of the puzzle ALL children will be at risk of doubting their body. And what happens when they doubt their body? Well... hating our body doesn’t make us treat it with love, and the same is true of kids. 
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Great, now we’ve cleared that up, can we take a moment to appreciate the incredible phonetic spelling on show here?! 
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Image description: Effie, age 6, stands against a white wardrobe holding up a letter she has written to herself. It is spelled phonetically and reads “My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me.”
I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I ha I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I had any spare cash - not just treats, but basics like pants and tights that fit properly. I’d tell myself I didn’t need it, didn’t deserve it, couldn’t justify the expense. There’s still that little voice (the habit of putting everyone else’s needs first and my own last dies hard it seems) but I’m leaning into exploring why it still sometimes rears its head, instead of always listening to it. 
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I’m trying to buy as much as I can from pre-loved places or small businesses these days, which is why I’m very happy to share with you some of my latest finds: a star dress from Depop (£5), earrings from @kelzojewellery by @ourtransitionallife (£12) and the comfiest tights I’ve ever owned in Raspberry Pie by @snagtights (£6.99) 💕💕💕
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Image description: Molly is smiling and sticking out her tongue to the camera. Her hair is freshly dyed a light shade of pink. She’s wearing a pink t’shirt underneath a black and white star patterned slip dress, with bright pink tights and black and pink earrings decorated with a boob design.
This is what teaching kids to idolise thinness and This is what teaching kids to idolise thinness and fear fatness looks like and it hurts my heart 💔
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This is what happens when we only give children a very narrow representation of what health / beauty / success / happiness looks like, and when we don’t incorporate mental health into conversations about health. The body image, self-esteem and wellbeing of children suffers. And it IS suffering.
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Last week @Childline_official launched their #NobodyIsNormal campaign and released figures showing they’ve run 43,000 counselling sessions for children since the first UK lockdown earlier this year. These are quotes from children they spoke to, showing that low self-esteem is a major issue for many of the kids they’ve been in touch with. 
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Head to their page for more information and resources, and to see their fantastic video. It’s a great way to open up a conversation about mental health and self-esteem with the children in your care. 
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If you’re a teacher or youth leader looking for ways to create body happy settings so the kids in your care can thrive then we’ve opened up booking on the final two #BodyHappyKids workshops of 2020. I’ll be leading these myself and you can book via the link in my bio. 
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It really doesn’t have to be this way ✨
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Image description: a series of slides showing quotes from ChildLine. Full text can be found in Alt Text.
I was at my desk all weekend so here’s a throwba I was at my desk all weekend so here’s a throwback to September when we hiked along part of the South West coast path and discovered three new beaches. I miss the outside. 
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This post is dedicated to anyone who says opting out of diet culture and a weight-focused health narrative means you automatically won’t move your body. Actually, the opposite is true. 
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Research shows exercising for intrinsic reasons (how we feel) is more likely to lead to consistent movement than if we do it for extrinsic reasons (how we look). 
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There’s so much research on this subject and about why diet culture and weight stigma is harmful. Suffice to say if you’ve not read the research, or any books, or listened to any podcasts, or even read the captions of some of the amazing people educating about this subject then you won’t know it all... despite what you learned at school or what your own unexamined internalised bias is telling you, or what the newspaper headlines say. 
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If you’re interested in learning more about this stuff there are lots of resources in the link in my bio, but for fitness specifically I recommend following @emmafitnessphd @tallyrye @thephitcoach & @amysnellingpt for starters and also check out @drjoshuawolrich recent post on this subject too ✨ #JoyfulMovement #BodyHappyKids
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Image Description: Molly and her two daughters on a beach, smiling. They wear hiking boots and Molly is wearing purple leopard print leggings and a neon yellow jumper. The sky is blue and the sun is shining.
Did you know the same area of the brain lights up Did you know the same area of the brain lights up when we experience the pain of social rejection as when we experience physical pain? True fact. Which is why I think 
it’s wild we spend so much energy in kids’ health education on nutrition (or “good food and bad food” as is so often the case) and so little on prepping them with the skills to navigate social media in a positive way. 🧐
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Social media can be a great thing, but it can also be a scary and anxiety-inducing place too (watch The Social Dilemma on Netflix for more on this!). We’re having conversations with children about the dangers of sugar but not even touching on the dangers of social media and the impact it can have on health (because mental health is health too FYI). 
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I’m a 37 year old woman and social media still messes with my head. What chance has a tween got? 
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I could lie and say that I always take the “other people’s opinion of me is none of my business” approach but the truth is I’m a sensitive people-pleaser so when I experience negativity online it stings. 
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I don’t read hate forums and am quick to block trolls, but that doesn’t mean this stuff has no impact. 
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I had a conversation with my pal @jskychat that helped me through a difficult phase recently, and I’ve shared the tweets that started it off in case they’re helpful for you too. I think Jsky should be brought in by the government to help design a PSHE social media lesson for the curriculum to be honest, but that’s a fight for another day. ❤️
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In the meantime, I’m teaching my kids the affirmation that “Their opinion is not my truth”, which works well in all life but seems particularly apt when it comes to social media.
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[Image description: Molly’s hand covers her face. On her hand are written the words “Their opinion isn’t my truth.” She is smiling. Full description of second slide in Alt Text.]
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