Hotel Mercure Chartres Barjouville

... a ltr bottloe of Vin rouge and a bottle of water. Not only excellent value but terrific quality and service. The atmosphere was friendly and relaxed and it was difficult to tell we were foreigners abroad.

Well fed and watered we got tucked for the night ready for an early morning START!!....

... playing a nighttime game of darts (Steve and Sylvie won) and sharing some American whiskey and the chocolates we brought. Finally, they led us through their beautiful home to our beds and we fell asleep quickly after what Rachel called the best meal and the most wonderful day ever.

Sylvie, Jean Mi and Helene were fun to be with. They provided us with
Champagne, an amazing meal of a Crete salad, pork ...

... well aware of the difficulty of having the stick in the wrong place, and while trying to concentrate on driving on the opposite side of the road, the last thing you need is to be looking for your gear stick. A quick car change and we ended up with a cute little Mercedes automatic, which was much more to our liking. For the rest of the day we have been wracking our brains to give it a name but yet nothing good has come to us, so for now it will remain nameless (feel free to ...

... sign. Jack was driving behind a people carrier so he didn't see the signs but the car in front had gone down a road other cars aren't allowed down so the security bollard was down for him & when we went over it it came back up onto our engine. After a whole lot of fuss & commotion (passers by called the police!) the car was towed to a nearby garage. We've since ...

... seemed to find it amusing to see on the adjacent minor road a strange apparition dressed like a huge wasp loom out of the mist. At least I assumed that was why they honked their horns!) Once again the sun broke through to present another clear blue sky and by 10:00 I rode into the historic cathedral city of Chartre. I love the architecture of cathedrals and this one certainly did not disappoint. But why did they have to build it on top of such a steep hill? Local people ...

I rode out of Rouen along my own route to Louviers, in defiance of the GPS . The morning was cool and grey and leaving at 07.30 meant traffic was light going out of the city, but grew increasingly heavy as those less fortunate than me made their way into work. Once through Louviers I picked up a route following the River Eure that must be one of the most beautiful in France. By now the sun was shining and the sky a brilliant blue. For yet ...

... in towns today The cathedral has three large rose windows: one on the west front with a theme of The Last Judgment, one on the north transept with a theme of the Glorification of the Virgin, and one on the south transept with a theme of the Glorification of Christ. Statistics length: 130 m width: 32/46 m nave: height 37 meters; width 16.4 m Ground ...

... to the room for getting ready. Jude accidentally banged the champagne into the wall of the elevator, which we had forgotten about by the time we got to our room and I opened it (which I'm quite the pro at) and it exploded all over me. Then the hair dryer broke later, and we were generally just running a little late for the 2:45 rehearsal (so the bus could leave at 3pm for the chateau). Well, we jumped in a cab and ran in at 2:50 ...

... kept our collective cools and finally reached the Rue Periphique - the Paris ring road. We got to our exit and after several almost close encounters managed to get back to the train station where we had picked up our car in the first place. Arrived home to find the main pipe in the complex had broken and we were without water. Sydney's friend Teale has been in France for the ...