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August 19. Back in the car and back to Reims.
One last view of the Canal de Nivernais. We hope to come back. 
Tannay…so many of these towers attached to houses in this region. 
The Roches de Basseville. If we had continued up the canal we would have seen many of these limestone cliffs. 
Bunger found an old bird nest on the ground which had been made with a lot of lichen. 
Nap time. 
No one will steal this picnic table! 
Ken checking out this electric bike where one person sits on the front. 
Ken thought he was already in Misery as his navigator stopped navigating due to snarky comments from the driver. 
But we decided to go to Merry instead. 
Cliffs along the canal. 
Hard to make them out but we caught up to the German couple with the 2 person bike, moving right along on the paved canal tow path. France has wonderful cycle routes and this couple goes on long distance rides every year. 
Fields and fields of 🌻 
Love how France plants trees beside the roads. No 100 m right of ways like back home. Land is at a premium here. 
Found vineyards for all of Peter’s buddies…he was worried with our coming home early we would miss out. But Reims is champagne country. Teensy. 
Hamtaro. 
Cheery. 
Bunger. 
Strabbie (pronounced Strawby). 
Drove off route to visit this monument to the first big battle of WW1 at the Marne in August 1914. Paris was being threatened. Legend is that all the taxis in Paris were commandeered and they were able to bring 6000 troops to the front line very quickly. And apparently the cabbies were a paid their regular fare! The Allies pushed the Germans back to Reims, it was considered the most decisive battles of the war and costly…lost almost 200,000 men. Truly too hard to conceive. 
Um…perhaps not a design I would have chosen…and this thing is huge…it dwarfs the chateau beside it. Completed in 1939…bombed by the Luftwaffe in WW2 but they missed. Apparently the design was based on the local Celtic menhirs – giant stones (think Stonehenge) that dot the countryside. Even the words carved in the stone look Celtic. 
Made out of concrete mixed with rose granite…but the details were carved by hand. 
Unlike Canada’s Vimy Ridge, whose monument is a thing of beauty, awe-inspiring and a testament to the sadness of war (which is why Hitler did not destroy it) 
Beside the monument. The poor thing’s eyes were covered in flies. 
Not sure these horses appreciated the view…or the sign that said do not feed them 
Ken meets technology. You had to order your meal using your phone. Drinks were delivered by a waitress but the actual food was delivered by…well, see for yourself below! Ken tries to steal someone else’s food! Ha ha! 
Okay. Yeah. That’s ours. Check out that look of determination on Ken’s face. No little robot is going to get the best of him even when she sends him hearts when he pats the top of her head to say he’s taken all the food off. 
Look, Scott. I actually ordered zucchini…and it wasn’t an accident! That’s it for today.
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August 22. Homeward Bound. Our last post…until we return to continue our Via Francigena.
We fly home on August 23rd, rather than October 21st as originally planned, somewhat bruised, a little saddened, but generally in good spirits and looking forward to returning next year.
Rested the foot for a couple days in Reims but was determined to get to the Cathedral as I had not yet seen it for myself plus I had a candle to light.
We hope you have enjoyed following our travels, our pilgrimage, our triumphs and our trials, and laughed with us as well!
The Flag Pole of Doom! Accident happened here and I baked in the hot sun while Ken tried to get help. 
Please don’t yell at me for leaving graffiti. I have always been impatient with those who spray paint their names on rock walls on highways and was really frustrated with “Niki M” who defiled every single Camino sign (and there were many) with her name in big black letters for a 40 km stretch from Ages past Burgos in Spain. But I could not resist leaving a discrete little initial at the base of this flag pole, which is not near any walkway and is not likely to be seen by anyone. Will see if it is waiting for us next year. 
Poor rendition of the Camino shell. 
Bittersweet to see this. It might be a reminder that we could not finish but instead I choose to see it as a symbol of the adventures we had, the wonderful people we met whose lives touched ours, and how much we actually accomplished…and a reminder that we must return to finish what we started! We will get our pilgrim stamp here when we begin again, but will start walking from that infamous flag pole in Champfleury. 
The start of the Via Francigena in Reims in front of the Cathedral. 
This candle is for Ron Langel, father of a dear friend of mine and who recently passed away. A good family man who tried to bring positivity into the lives of many young people. 
Stopped at the “pilgrim help desk” and left a note. 
Peter, there are clam shell fossils in the bases of these statues…close up below. 
Clam shell fossils in the base of the church. 
We spent our last few days in downtown Reims…hotel along yet another canal. France can thank Napoleon for their wonderful canal system! We had to change our Rome flight to go home from Paris (the difference in price between a last minute August flight and a low season October flight was shocking!) And arrange a ride home. Thanks, Vern, for agreeing to come pick us up in Calgary! 
Cormorants are not just a northeastern Alberta bird! 
Lots of veg growing and the water is fairly clear…lots of people fishing. 
While I had slowly hobbled my way to the Cathedral, Ken made his way to the French automobile museum (he is a Yackimec, after all!). He could not understand why this Chev was there – a little out of place. 
A 3 wheeled car for one person. I could have this! 
A Panhard. This is one of the taxis I mentioned in an earlier post which conveyed soldiers to the WW1 front on the Marne. 
Would love to explore this house. 
A forest growing on their balcony. 
Our room was right over the outdoor patio. Did Ken think I wouldn’t notice him and his Scotch? And his beer? And his more beer? 😁 
Ate in a ittle Asian restaurant beside our hotel. Very good and close for someone with a gimpy leg..but also almost all restaurants (about 20 of them) in the neighborhood are closed. Because, you know, it is August. I am going to try to make “nems de bananes” when I get home. Best.Dessert.Ever! 
Rawley the Trolley has been disassembled and his parts are in three bags…and, yep, that’s an IKEA bag, only thing long enough to handle the trekking poles and Trolley handles. We travel in style! 
Goodbye, France. Going home to boys and cats and gecko. 
From London’s Southwark Cathedral to Canterbury Cathedral in England to Cathedral de Notre Dames in Reims, France. About 600 km. Au revoir until next year. Song for today! Alberta Bound by good old Gordon Lightfoot.
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August 19. Back in the car and back to Reims.
One last view of the Canal de Nivernais. We hope to come back. Tannay…so many of these towers attached to houses in this region. The Roches de Basseville. If we had continued up the canal we would have seen many of these limestone cliffs. Bunger found an old bird nest on the ground which had been made with a lot of lichen. Nap time. No one will steal this picnic table! Ken checking out this electric bike where one person sits on the front. Ken thought he was already in Misery as his navigator stopped navigating due to snarky comments from the driver. But we decided to go to Merry instead. Cliffs along the canal. Hard to make them out but we caught up to the German couple with the 2 person bike, moving right along on the paved canal tow path. France has wonderful cycle routes and this couple goes on long distance rides every year. Fields and fields of 🌻 Love how France plants trees beside the roads. No 100 m right of ways like back home. Land is at a premium here. Found vineyards for all of Peter’s buddies…he was worried with our coming home early we would miss out. But Reims is champagne country. Teensy. Hamtaro. Cheery. Bunger. Strabbie (pronounced Strawby). Drove off route to visit this monument to the first big battle of WW1 at the Marne in August 1914. Paris was being threatened. Legend is that all the taxis in Paris were commandeered and they were able to bring 6000 troops to the front line very quickly. And apparently the cabbies were a paid their regular fare! The Allies pushed the Germans back to Reims, it was considered the most decisive battles of the war and costly…lost almost 200,000 men. Truly too hard to conceive. Um…perhaps not a design I would have chosen…and this thing is huge…it dwarfs the chateau beside it. Completed in 1939…bombed by the Luftwaffe in WW2 but they missed. Apparently the design was based on the local Celtic menhirs – giant stones (think Stonehenge) that dot the countryside. Even the words carved in the stone look Celtic. Made out of concrete mixed with rose granite…but the details were carved by hand. Unlike Canada’s Vimy Ridge, whose monument is a thing of beauty, awe-inspiring and a testament to the sadness of war (which is why Hitler did not destroy it) Beside the monument. The poor thing’s eyes were covered in flies. Not sure these horses appreciated the view…or the sign that said do not feed them Ken meets technology. You had to order your meal using your phone. Drinks were delivered by a waitress but the actual food was delivered by…well, see for yourself below! Ken tries to steal someone else’s food! Ha ha! Okay. Yeah. That’s ours. Check out that look of determination on Ken’s face. No little robot is going to get the best of him even when she sends him hearts when he pats the top of her head to say he’s taken all the food off. Look, Scott. I actually ordered zucchini…and it wasn’t an accident! That’s it for today.
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August 18. Last day on the boat, a soaking and the Camino de Santiago.
Thought I would share photos from our last day on the boat as we powered our way up 8 locks to return to our base. We love these canal trips…and I think this is the nicest canal we’ve done…not too many locks little villages to explore and not too over whelmed with boats.
As you know, it was disheartening to not be able to finish our Via Francigena. But my fellow Camigas will understand when I say “the Camino provides” and it did!
I bought a topographical map for our canal trip. We started our cruise in Tannay and what did I spy on the map but the very familiar yellow shell symbol of the Camino de Santiago! This route starts in Vezelay and goes to St Jean Pied de Port at the south of France to join the Camino Frances, which we walked in 2019. How exciting to see that the Camino not only went through Tannay but that we also cruised beside it for a while. It brought me comfort in a strange way, that even though the Via Francigena was over for us this year, we were still “on the Camino”! 
We saw these British people/boat again the next day once we were back in the car…and followed the canal for a bit. 
Old and empty between two occupied homes. Would live to know the history. 
Dont mess with the Captain! He’s a meanie if you are slow with ropes…and only gives you half portions of gruel for your supper. 
The original living walls. Not sure how these plants survive being drowned multiple times a day. 
There is no killing a dandelion! Growing out of the lock wall. 
The whole tribe on the rock. 
The only breed of cows we see… 
We were waiting to be spat upon…they were making the noises! But they were just taunting us…I think. 
Sky is starting to look a little scary! 
The last lock (went through 8 in total), only a few minutes from base, and the skies literally opened up and the deluge began. Ken had a shelter and an umbrella. I had a t-shirt. And no where to go. 
Drowned rat. 
Dry(ish) rat. 
Ken did the most amazing job of mooring the boat…backed in without a single bump or mis-step or unnecessary move. A++ -
August 18. Floating along and some decisions made.
We have made the decision to go home…my foot is only slightly better and walking the remaining 1400 km of the Via Francigena is not possible. We have regrouped and plan to return next year to finish what we started a month ago.
While disappointing on one hand, we look at what we accomplished….walking from London to Dover, cycling from Calais to past Reims, 500 or so km?, meeting some wonderful Camino angels, crashing an English garden party and being called “mad” by the local priest 🤣), and of course a private blessing in Canterbury Cathedral at the normally closed to the public candle for Thomas A Becket. Ken would also add his daily (and mostly) nag-free beers.
In the meantime, I will continue to post a few photos and will let you know when yhe last one appears. Although, much like the Via, I will pick up where we left off on this blog when we begin again, a year from now.
So peaceful. 
View from our mooring. 
The neighbours…from Germany, Italy, England 
Ken bringing home supper from Kebab Instanbul. A little hole in the wall restaurant but packed with people so we figured it must be good…and it was! Chicken donairs. 
The whole crew is out, trying to drive the boat…if only they could see over the windshield. 
Thinking purple loosestrife? Highly invasive in Canada and labeled a noxious weed. On the other hand, it could be a completely innocent purple flower and I will now be sued for scurrilous slander. 
Woot woot! I was actually able to get off the boat for the 1st time on Wednesday and walk through town a bit. 
Hamtaro and the Snax getting some sun by the weirs. 
Confluence of the river Yonne and its lateral Canal de Nivernais. 
Clamecy, France 
Memorial to the “floteurs” of Clamecy…I wonder if they have heard the song “the Log Drivers Waltz”? Note his cant hook…I had the pole of one in my office for years. They called it my “management staff”. 
Our hotel the night before the boat. 
A permanent bicycle repair station, as the tow path along thus canal is a national long distance cycling path. We could have used these tools, although by this point I would have been ready to throw my bike in the canal (but wouldn’t because that would be littering – a sledge hammer would work just as well!) 
Ken was so proud of his really stale baguette French toast…made without milk…but still pretty tasty, especially since I didn’t have to make breakfast! 
This bush was literally covered in these butterflies. 
Yes, Ken. The Deuxchaveux (2 horses) is adorable. No, Ken. You can’t have one. But…I can!!! 
A mistletoe ball landed by our boat so I could get a closeup. So considerate of this tree killer. 
Ken went to the beauty salon. Not sure it helped??? 😆 Ken wants to know why his wife doesn’t do that for him? Wife: Eeeew! Cooties! Song of the day: Trains and Boats and Planes…by Dionne Warwick.
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Aug 11 to 14…apologies for the delay in posts. We have not had good wifi connections for several days.
With our Via Francigena postponed for a couple of weeks due to injury, we rented a vehicle and booked a canal boat, so rather than walking / cycling adventure photos, we will make do with boating ones.
Very strange corn. 
The country is so dry. Heat wave. Crops going to dust. Large wildfires with 6000 people evacuated. Many towns in the south with no water. 
French grain elevators. 
Sunflowers soon to be harvested. 
Fountain is barely damp but then again it’s from the 11th century. Our home town is one of the oldest in Alberta (an old Hudson Bay post) and our claim to fame is a mission that is only 150 years old. The houses here are older than our country! 
This is what you get when you point the camera and click without looking at what you are photographing! 
So many buildings covered in ivy. 
Ken tries crepes suzette. 
Wins the award for best looking bank machine. 
For my fellow foresters…this small town of Clamecy is known as the “log drivers” town. Logs were brought here from the local forests and driven down river to Paris…from the 1600s to as late as the 1920s. 
Zucchini Cup of Soup. This did NOT go in my shopping cart. I grew 2 huge zucchini last year (why? The plants were on sale) and left them for the wildlife…deer nor skunk nor porcupine would touch them. I take my cue from them! Although admittedly some tiny rodent had a few nibbles. 
Stocking the boat. I buy vegetables, Ken buys treats. But how can I eat such a smiley happy face? 
Our boat is Ziggy. 
The big boats…we needed one that could be handled in the locks by only 1 1/2 people as I can’t step off the boat to handle the ropes. 
Fascinated by the mistletoe balls…but the trees are all infected and are being slowly killed. 
Lift bridge. Ken is so strong. Well, okay, strong enough to push a button. 
So sad. We took our first canal trip in 2005. These lock houses were lived in and cared for, with beautiful flowers. Now for the most part they are used only as shelters. The locks are still manned but the lock keepers live elsewhere. 
Traffic jam. 
Which way do we go??? Um…Ken? It’s a canal. Go straight. 
Each lock has 4 gates. Boat goes in the lock. Lock keeper closes gates behind you. Water is lowered through sluices while you hold the boat steady with ropes on the bollards. Once you are at the level of the water in front of you, the lock keeper opens the gates and out you go. 
Cows woke me up from my afternoon nap. Such a different mindset from when we were walking and cycling the Via, where you needed both mental determination and physical stamina to go from Point A to Point B every day. I stole my favourite line from SpongeBob Square Pants! Song of the Day: Since we are pretty much going nowhere right now, it seems appropriate to have Joel Plaskett and his lively number Nowhere With You as the song of the last couple of days. I must say it is livelier than we are presently.
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Day…um…I don’t know! Stardates August 9 and 10. Situation update.
Despite turning a myriad of colours that rival the socks knitted by my darling sister, the swelling on my foot has decreased substantially and I am able to walk /limp short distances. After the usual stages of denial, disappointment and acceptance, we’ve assessed and here’s the plan: we rented a car on the 9th and drove from Reims to Besancon (booked 2 nights there), which was the section of the Via Francigena we were meant to cycle. Today we drove along the VF to the Swiss border, just to scope out what we might be facing when we start walking. From Aug 12 to 19 we have booked a self drive canal boat to give me some foot recovery time. We hope to start walking the Via again around August 21st or 22nd…I just haven’t figured out where our starting point will be given this 2 week hiatus. In the meantime I will get back into posting but it won’t be Via stuff for a while.
Strabbie: Pourquoi sommes nous ici? Cheery: Je ne sais pas. Bunger: parce que l”autre bicyclette est aussi merde. 
The Avis guy was kind enough to let me stay in his office while Ken went off to the Cathedral for our VF stamp. This is the one cathedral I had hoped to see. Ah, well. 
We legitimately earned this stamp riding from Laon to Reims. 
Aw, Ken even lit my 3 candles for me… 
Heavy sigh… 
Funky blue penguin statue in front of Reims train station…because I am fairly certain penguins are native to France? 
Ken says the penguin was very cool…it looks solid blue from a distance but…it is made of layers of plywood (or similar) and only the edges were painted blue…so it changed colour as you walked around it. Now Ken is the one getting ideas! 
Can I have this, Ken? 
Reims is champagne country. Every village had 2 or 3 champagne “houses”. We stopped at none because champagne is over-rated…says the beer swiller. 🍾 versus 🍺 
Vineyards as far as the eye could see. 
Bachelor buttons growing wild. 
Proof of life! 
Fields of Marijuana right by the road. 
Memorial to Charles de Gaulle. Huge! 
Langres 
Official Via Francigena pilgrim symbol in Champlitte. There are a few towns in France that are embracing it…but not enough! 
Ken can find old vehicles anywhere! 
Ancient wash houses with flowing water. The local laundromat of old. 
Not sure you want to see this but… 
And again…I chose to do this trip with Ken…why? Nest day…August 10
Took advantage of the post office across the street to send a big parcel home…bicycle parts and helmets, the bike hitch, etc…stuff we wouldn’t need for walking. Dumped almost 10 kg. Quite the process to send, went through 3 people to do customs online and took more than an hour. But so good to lighten the load. 
Trout country now! 
The river Loue. Complete with fish and… 
Rules for swimming and canoeing …good to see attention to conservation. 
First little tunnel. 
We climbed from the river level up to the cliff tops…photos do not show the depth of this canyon. Which we might have to walk through. 
Wildlife! 
Not so wild life! 
Random chapel on a hill top. Found out that this is directly on the VF. 
Three candles for Ryder and the parents. 
See below. 
1000 year old citadel guarding both sides of the pass. 
Ken: Let’s go across the border into Switzerland just to say we did. Also Ken: Why is there a line up of over
2 miles of cars waiting to go back into France? Terry: Says nothing and just gives Ken “the incredibly superior look” (as apparently patented by Terry according to Ken) Ken: Just mumbles to himself.Absolutely gorgeous country and I hope our schedule will allow us to walk parts of this when we come back to the Via Francigena.
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DAY 20 AND 21…I pedaled all the way to Reims and all I got was this cheap plastic bracelet…
Much needed rain showers ended just before we left on what was planned to be a short 38 km day. Plus we decided to avoid staying in big cities with scary roads. 
Luckily there was a cycling trail beside the very busy divided highway Googlemaplady wanted to take us on. 
The Bugsnax meet a new friend…he was huge! I helped him over a rock. Too bad Cinnasnail wasn’t with us. 
Parked in the appropriate velo parking area while Ken hunted down a morning espresso.
It seemed to take forever to get out of Reims…over 10 km and we were still in suburbs. Ken made us go off route to go to McDonalds…which made me don my cranky face for just a wee minute. But in retrospect it turned out to be an important landmark. Finally back on the road and in order to avoid yet another really busy 4 lane highway, Googlemaplady took us on a parallel path which ended in the parking lot of big box stores. And sadly this is where our cycling ended. As I was turning right into an intersection, Ken yelled stop and as I was stopping on my none too stable bike I noticed a car coming at me on the wrong side of the road. I turned my front tire too sharply and crashed it into my foot. Which in turn swelled up like an egg. I couldn’t walk much less ride.
Taxi took Ken, Rawley the Trolley and me to a motel type place less than 3 km away beside good old McDonalds, dropped me off, and taxi took Ken back so he could walk the two bikes to the hotel. Taxi driver had arranged with the garage beside the incident to look after the bikes until Ken returned.
Meanwhile a lovely young lady got me settled, brought me ice for my foot and a drink and then helped me get to our ground floor room as close as she could get us to the reception. When Ken returned with the bikes, she met him at the door with a cold Perrier. Her name is Skurta and she is our Camino angel.
Just a wee bump…wasn’t able to walk. 
Ken listened to music on his old flip phone. 
The next morning Skurta insisted on calling the doctor, an ambulance was dispatched and the EMTs predicted a broken ankle. 
So off to the hospital I go. Heavy sigh. 
If you have been very curious as to what the view looks like from a French Ambulance, here ya go! 
Ken finally spotted an actual Parisienne in the waiting room of the hospital. Up till now he has had to be content with his ugly old 60s cars that bore the same name. 
The titular plastic bracelet…3 hours at hospital. XRays. Ankle twisted but not broken (yay). Prescription for a brace, crutches and pain killers (but I have no pain unless I walk too much). And I am apparently too klutz for crutches. Our taxi driver took us to four pharmacies before finding one that was open and had the brace I needed. August…so many places in France simply close. 
We had always planned to donate the bikes when we arrived in Besancon to begin walking but have to leave them here. We talked to our two young receptionists about where to donate and we ended up giving the bikes to them. Neither owns a car or a bike and they were so sweetly ecstatic to receive them. It felt good to be the Camino angels for once to Lisa and Skurta. And they named the bikes Terry and Ken. It is fulfilling to think these will be a small token back for the many kindnesses they and many others have shown us so far in France and England. A very good day, really. Ken and I are assessing our plans…we will take a bit of a hiatus for a week or two, but hope to still complete at least the Italian section of the Via Francigena. It all depends on the foot. So stay tuned.
Song of the day is about looking for the good aspects of what happens to you. As Ken says if life gives you lemons, have a beer instead. Keep on the sunny side by Alison Krauss and the nitty gritty dirt band. Terry prefers “Always look on the bright side of life” by Monty Python.
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Day 19. Laon to Reims. 60 km. 36°C. But forget the temp. Please get me off this highway!
Ken’s doing the writing today so this should be way better than normal.
Early in the day we ran across a rusty old 3 speed bike. It must have predated derailleurs as it looked as though you’d have to loosen the wing nuts on the wheel and move the chain by hand to the desired gear. Pretty cool. 
Shortly after we turned onto a very busy highway with semis whooshing by us 3 feet away every minute or so, the sky about to rain looked quite a bit like Terry’s expression. Would not have wanted to be in a plane up there! 
Site of another huge battle. Couldn’t help but wonder exactly when we blithely crossed where the ⁸Trenches would have been. 
Thinking of hooking this up to Terry’s bike so she can feel my pain. 
Finally off the scary road and into Corbeny. As with many, the 12th century church was rubble after the great war, so it was rebuilt. 
One of the few bits they could salvage. A gargoyle for Ruth. 
The new way of doing things as you enter a church. No holy water but a bottle of hand sanitizer. 
A very popular boulangerie with giant radpberry macaroons that I didn’t let Terry buy as her new biking shorts were too tight already.
Terry’s thought: why did I promise not to change anything he wrote.
As for me, a very small pizza did the trick. 
Another deceptively flat looking accursed long hill. 
Water supply bladder for fires. Cool. 
Make a nice water bed too. 
A short stop at our Lady of the Ears shrine. Mostly because it had a bench in the shade of a tree. 
Some rather nice art work on the back that I noticed while having a pee by a tree. 
Canal with no tow path. Bummer. Love that flat stuff. 
Kenny the mule. The real reason she brought me along. Most of what is in those bags is Terry’s makeup and hair dryer. Terry’s thought: I am not allowed to comment on this but…please note that Ken lies! 
The sun was out so we had a rest stop and a spot of lunch in a bike shelter. Worked. 
Blueberries? Didnt dare try. 
Terry takes pictures of weird flowers while Ken stands by patiently and sighs. 
Fancy schmancey champagne country stuff. Eh. 
On the other hand, this mistletoe was really impressive to a couple of old foresters. 
After navigating the multiple roundabouts and overpasses in the baking sun finally into Reims, a man has to get a beer wherever he can find one. Beer was great but the popcorn sucked. Terry’s thought: Really, Ken? A bowling alley? 
Terry says I don’t get enough veggies so I thought I’d drink my salad. What a good boy! Terry’s thought? Good boy? That mojito cost €8…almost 12 bucks! Just for that, I am going to the big Jardin center next door and bringing a plant home. Song of the day. The old song by Guy Clark called “LA Freeway” seems to fit as there were Frenchmen going everywhere today in their little cars and big trucks. Go figure.
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Day 18. 38°C and a rest day in Laon. 0.0 km.
We were due for a rest day and didn’t want to battle temps in the high 30s. Plus…hey…a laundromat.
There is a saying that “the Camino provides”. We needed to pick up some bike repair supplies and this shop was literally across the street from our Ibis Hotel (chosen for its location, cheap price and mostly air conditioning). 
Found a German military cemetery from WW1, hidden away. So spartan. Metal crosses with four soldiers to a cross. Only name, rank and date of death. Not a flower in sight. Just sad. 
One lonely wreath in a cemetery of 2653 soldiers. 
This raised different emotions. There were a few Jewish headstones scattered amongst the crosses. They gave their lives for a country that later turned on them in the most horrendous fashion. 
What a contrast. Dropped Ken off to do the laundry (yes, you read that correctly) while I went into the medieval city to visit the Cathedral. I just love these balloons. They are so cheerful. 
The Cathedral sits on a very small square and they had all kinds of games set out. 
Giant lampshades? 
I have been to many cathedrals in my lifetime but this is the first that actually took my breath away when I stepped inside. It is very austere and is known for its luminosity…the interior is all white stone and when the light pours in through its many windows the effect is stunning. 
Laon cathedral. Gothic. Completed in 1235. 
Candles for the folks and Ryder in front of St Theresa 
So many side chapels dedicated to saints. 
Putting new pedals on Ken’s bike. 
Proof of life. And a big pile of green beans. 
Teensy and the Bugsnax enjoying a tarte aux pommes. 
Ken wondering if he is going to get any. And no there is no photographic evidence of Ken doing laundry all by himself!
Song of the day: Mad Dogs and English Men, by Noel Coward. About going out in the mid-day sun.
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TerryandKenViaFrancigena2022 