Monday, August 31, 2015

Day 4: Le Rouget to Aumont-Aubrac 19.5K

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Today was a shorter walk with nice tracks and we passed through a few small villages. The first was only 3K and very good as Ed was able to get an espresso which he didn't get yesterday. We arrived at our destination at 12:30 in time to purchase a few things to eat for lunch before all the shops closed until 2 or 3 in the afternoon. The bar did remain open so more espresso. We went to the tourist office to try and get a reservation 6K further but all was full. We did not book yesterday for tonight which has been our custom so we feel fortunate to have a place for tonight...very nice place with a lovely garden and dinner.
We saw Jule and she has decided to take a train to the Sea so we bid her farewell. And later we saw Peter and Anna from Hungary. The Canadians are staying here....such a small community that moves along.  Dinner was quite an event tonight. It was Tim, the Canadian's, birthday so their group was ready to celebrate and the couple who own the Gite put on a wonderful dinner with many local foods. 

Gite Les Sentiers Fleuris.....very good, clean, no bunk beds, great dinner.


Day 3: Sagues to Le Rouget 29 kilometers

Long distance with some nice views.  Got some cold, fresh water from the Fountain of St. Roch and visited the chapel of the same name.  Found our gite. It's the upper level of a barn.  Interesting.  Shared our rural flat with two young people, Peter and Anna, from Hungary.  They knew English quite well so we spent the evening conversing with them about our cultures and our journeys.  A  lovely time.

Gite d'etape a la Ferme La Croix du Plo at Le Rouget. Rooms above a barn with 2 bedrooms, bathroom and kitchen. Very nice and very good dinner. Very quiet.  

 
Not our actual beds

Saturday, August 29, 2015

Day 2 Montbonnet to Saugues 28K



The day of hills. Much climbing on this hot day. After our bread and jam breakfast we left the gite with 19 year old Jule. A young girl from Germany who spent a year as an exchange student in Bridgewater VA. She walked with us all day, but has gone to another gite tonight. 
The way was beautiful as always and we stopped for a picnic lunch of dried meat, cheese we bought from a fromagerie, and a piece of French bread. And a bit of chocolate to finish!  Made a couple of cool stops along the way.  Went up into this tiny chapel perched atop a high hill that was dedicated to St. James.  We also stopped in a chapel (Chappelle De La Madeline) that was basically a cavern that was faced in stone in the 17th century.  Both places were so fascinating.  Finally arrived in town and were met with more great hospitality.  Our gite is nice...not a lot of character, but clean.

Gite: Centre d'accueil La Margeride. Clean with a nice dinner...made better with our company of one French man, an Englishman who lives in France and 4 fun Canadians, who walked the French Camino (That's the Camino that crosses Spain).

Day 1: Le Puy to Montbonnet 17K

Today we woke early to attend the 7am Mass and it was very nice with a special blessing for pilgrims at the end. It was all in French so we didn't understand much.
We started our walk around 9:30 on a sunny warm day and met several pilgrims along the way most were walking about 7k more than us, but we have 6 in our gite tonight. Two German ladies, two French men and us, except for all the other are traveling alone. 
Our walk took us past beautiful countryside and some old churches and through a few small villages (you've probably read that from us before). We passed several "barn blocs" which are very large stone buildings that serve as home and barn for animals and hay...we are staying in one tonight renovated as a gite. It's called "L'escola". Dinner was wonderful, both the food and company. Marie, our hostess, prepared a local potato dish smothered in cheese with dried meats and a large fresh salad with wonderful fresh fruit for dessert. We're hoping for good sleep tonight as our plan for tomorrow is supposed to take us on a very challenging route.  It's approximately 28 kilometers.  



Gite: d'etape prove l'Escole. We loved it, very clean and great dinner and Marie was so sweet. Good place to wash and hang clothes and no bunk beds. Simple breakfast of bread and jam, and coffee, tea and orange juice, and fresh fruit.

After notes..things I forgot to remembers:
I got a new Opinel pocketknife within an hour of arriving in Le Puy. 
I would have loved to buy some lace for gifts..made in Le Puy, but I just couldn't carry it for 5 weeks.
Very good, but different was the lentil jam served with bread for breakfast.

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Our Day in LePuy en Velay

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Today we took an intentional rest day before we begin our trek across France.  We are staying at L'epicurium Chambre d'hotes.  Basically, it's a type of bed and breakfast.  Sort of rustic yet well restored in a quiet side street in the historic district.  We awoke to a traditional French breakfast of bread and jam and a bowl of coffee.  We enjoyed a very chill morning exploring the town but spent the bulk of our time at two of the most interesting places built atop volcanic eruptions.  The first was the Notre Dame de France, a giant statue of Mary and Jesus.  It's very much like the Statue of Liberty as we were able to climb to the top and look out of the crown of stars and see the incredible views.  Next we explored St. Michel d'Aiguile. (Pictured below) It was built in 961 thanks to Gothescalk, bishop of le Puy en Velay after returning from his pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. 

                        
    
It was such a treat to see these sights on a sunny warm day. We enjoyed lunch down the stairs from the cathedral Nortre-Dame....yes there is more than one cathedral by that name. We ate some delicious local cuisine.  After lunch we took in the Catherdal which was built during the 11th and 12th centuries. We continued our walking around town looking at shops and admiring the lace work that has a long history here. We stopped for a coffee  and  then back to our room for a nap as we are trying to catch up on our rest. In the evening we attended a pilgrims gathering sponsored by a local group. Dinner was difficult to find as the dinner hour here is after 8pm and we wanted to eat and get to bed as Mass is at 7am tomorrow and we plan to attend. 

Le Puy is a larger town and it was possible to find some who speak a little English, but as we walk to smaller villages, we will be having to communicate with mostly French and hand gestures.  Although we are not prepared as well to communicate as we were in Spain, we have found the people to be extremely friendly and hospitable.  It has been comforting.  It helped make today an extremely relaxed and enjoyable day.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Charlotte to Paris to LePuy.....That's a long way!

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                                           Joan's "sac a dos" almost ready to go

                         A marker we found declaring the beginning of the Chemin 

21 hours later we have made it to our starting point.  Tired is putting it mildly. We flew to Paris and then three trains to arrive in Le Puy en Velay. Time to find dinner and then off to bed so we are ready to explore tomorrow.  

Friday, August 21, 2015

It's That Time Again

Bon jour! Bienvenue sur notre blog.  (Enough of that).  Welcome to our blog.  We don't profess to believe that anyone really cares what we have to say about our travels but we keep this online journal for several reasons.  First, it is a journal.  It helps us when we try to remember certain things about our time on the Camino (Chemin).  Second, it is a way for our family to check on us to know if we are still alive.  Since we never carry phones when we are on our journeys, we use the internet when we get a chance.  And rather than email or iMessage all our "peeps", we simply make blog posts so they can check on us.  Lastly, we hope that through the blog we can provide some useful information for other pilgrims (pelerins).  We do not have all the answers nor do we think we know the best way to do things.  All we know is what we experience and hope that others can learn from us.

This year we have chosen to walk yet another route on the Camino de Santiago but this time we will be walking in France on a route that begins in LePuy en Velay and leads to the town of St. Jean Pied de Port (the point at which the popular Camino Frances begins).  It is also called the Via Podiensis.  We hope to then continue over the Pyrenees mountains and eventually end up in Pamplona.

There are those that would ask, "Why go again?".  That's a valid question.  We find that people become enamored with walking the Camino for a number of reasons, many of which have nothing to do with why the paths were created in the first place.  It is, first and foremost, a pilgrimage route.  So are we on a pilgrimage?  Let me give a noncommittal answer:  yes and no.  When we first traversed Spain in 2012, we simply wanted to see Europe and this seemed like a good and fun way to do it.  But as we experienced many things on the Camino, we came to realize that we were indeed on a pilgrimage and we had a higher purpose for walking and encountering life there.  But we have also found that we enjoy the way of living when we go on these journeys.  Living life simply with just the few belongings we have on our backs is a very freeing experience.  We also love meeting the people, both the locals and the folks who have come to trek from around the world.  Then of course there is the beautiful countryside.  It lends itself to being a great environment to not only enjoy the beauty but spend time reflecting upon life.  It's definitely a number of things that make the adventure one that draws us back. 

This year's journey through France promises to be a bit different than our walks through Spain.  It appears we will have to book ahead in the Gites although we will only have to do it a day ahead.  We also have a new language to use. We have spent quite a bit of time trying to learn using a variety of methods but have found french to be quite a bit more difficult than spanish.  This is causing us a little anxiety but hopefully our fears will be quelled once we get there and start conversing on a daily basis.  There are other cultural or logistical things with which we will have to become acclimated but I'm sure we will persevere.  

So please return to our space here and hopefully you will find stories and info that are interesting, amusing and maybe even useful.  A bientot! -Ed