No more grasse matinees. Lovely though they seem, it is more exhausting arriving later at our destination so the alarm is re-set back to 6.30am in true boot camp style. The skies are grey once more and once the rain starts morale begins to ebb. However we manage to get provisions for our picnic with relative ease today, so all is not bad. We have learned never to pass an open boulangerie, as the others will always be closed. The rule of Sod dictates that throughout the morning we will pass idyllic picnic spots, tables and benches whereas come lunchtime when you want somewhere there is nothing for miles. So it is today! Never dispair however as today we do find the perfect coffee spot: facing the impressive double towered cathedral in Orleans and the sun comes out and we are able to bask in the warmth again. Orleans seems a very chic and lively place with a major Joan of Arc theme, of course. The route takes us through rural farming communities with lovely old tiled roofed buildings. We see a colony of terns on the banks of the Loire. We arrive in Beaugency with the oldest medieval bridge of the region, an abbey, several towers and more Joan of Arc memorabilia. Lovely little hotel in the old square and we are now reviving old memories with a bottle of Chinon Cabernet Franc from our local wine supplier (Spar!) (Sully-sur-Loire to Beaugency - 52 miles)
You are getting very close now! Izzie tells me you are planning to cycle back from Plymouth. Do you have an ETA so we can line the streets and throw ticker tape over you??
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