Beautiful shot!

We found Barcelona to be very expensive also but hotels in Spain were generally fairly moderately priced. French hotels were pricier and generally smaller, shabbier rooms. French breakfasts seem too weak for us. In general we eat sandwiches from bakeries or salads, fruit, veggies from grocery stores rather than eating in restaurants. We still prefer cycling anywhere in Europe to North America. Our next trip, in the planning stages, will be from Germany to Spain, hopefully along river routes which are flatter and more easily done by our aged bodies. Love seeing some of our favourite parts of Europe through your fresh eyes.

This is only our second Europe trip. I'm still swayed by castles/chateaus/roman bridges/aquaducts - basically anything that you don't find in the American West.

This is the second coat of armor that I've taken a photo of my bike standing next to. That gives me extraordinary pleasure. I'm sure at some point all of the normal old things over here will start to feel normal to me also.
The most expensive room we've had this trip was the $250. per night place in Barcelona. It was nice, but nothing special. We chose it only because it was literally next door to Espacibici - a touring specialty bike shop.

Wow, what a swanky place. Looks to be way beyond our usual room.

We’ve had luck with the word “takeaway” for leftovers on the rare occasions we’ve had any.

As for menu items, Google translate isn’t always useful. Searching the name of the dish will often get you a photo or a recipe.

We have "cycled" the Canal du Midi several times over the past 10 to 15 years. Every time has been awful, with mud, tree roots, bumps, etc and we have bailed to a nearby D road each and every time. Never again!

Nah, you guys are not that scary.

Isn't this an amazing place? I don't know which way you plan on leaving town tomorrow you should really try to go over the 14th century Pont-Vieux (the old bridge), one of the most important medieval bridges in France. The bridge itself is fantastic, but it also gives you a wonderful look back at the fortified city. Really, not to be missed.
https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/sete2017/in-carcassonne-canal-du-midi/#4398_3183953_P1110683

From what I read, they are quite fragrant. Here is one website.

https://www.carrementbelle.com/blog/en/broom/#:~:text=The%20broom%20is%20a%20small,deliciously%20bitter%20and%20honeyed%20notes.

Yea, I considered that. I have different rules for bicycle touring. The five second rule is totally gone, time limits have been greatly extended.

I've positioned myself in similar ways to get WiFi. Other times I stand on a picnic table or hike up to the top of a hill.

Aside from that, I get your frustration at those strange European dinner hours--especially after Jacinto called in advance, only to find a closed restaurant.

Kind of weird, even by my standards. I don't care for bananas any time, but probably even less when they've been stored in shoes.

That article says it’s an invasive plant. It certainly is everywhere. But, I didn’t see it said fragrant.

Broom

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/48538-Cytisus-scoparius

Those are edible! A solution to closed food establishments?
:-)
https://dearjuneberry.com/escargot-at-home/