Well, it was a late start to the day built on mishaps.
First, we discovered that one of Mary Ellen’s new sandals, that we bought yesterday at M Chausseur in the village, had a problem. One of the straps was not attached properly. The next mishap happened when the kettle fell and landed squarely on Barry’s glasses while he was making coffee this morning.
The owner of the shoe store literally ran with my sandals to the cobbler, and she asked us to wait until noon to pick them up. The optician spent alot of time on Barry’s glasses and fixed them brilliantly. So what to do until noon? Today is market day, so problem solved.
We were very happy with the hotel that we stayed in. We had a large beautifully renovated room with screens on the windows and air conditioning. Both are necessities here as mosquitoes are big and not friendly.
Sophie spent a long time working on Barry’s glasses. She is from the Alsace region and we enjoyed chatting with her. Barry and her dog kept watch of the village life outside.
We are very happy with our purchases. Barry got a pair of Reiker sandals and Mary Ellen’s are from Spain. The owner pictured here gave excellent service and she knows shoes and how to fit them. Merci.
The Netto grocery store has specials honouring the month long Ramadan period where Muslim during which adults fast from dawn to dusk. This recognition reflects the multicultural reality here.
We had a huge surprise when we stopped for lunch on the canal outside of Gallician to have lunch. The couple from Frankfurt whom we have met a few times along the way appeared. They had been riding along the canal and had to turn back due to a detour. What an incredible bit of serendipity as the odds of us meeting like this again are incredibly low. Ulli and Karola have also been having a great trip. They will be heading home soon. We hope to see them again one day.
Uli SeelbachIndeed quite a twist of fate. I love the word "serendipity"...
Please do drop us a quick email so we can remain in contact. Looking forward to seeing you next year at Spezi!
... and of course, have a wonderful and safe trip! Reply to this comment 5 years ago
Humidity seems to be a reality for us on this part of our trip. It saps our energy and motivation as well. Plus it doesn’t help to start riding at noon when the temperatures are in the 30’s with humidity.
Our ride today cut across country on secondary roads to Gallician, a small village and then went directly south to connect with the Mediterranean cycleroute, EV (Eurovelo) via some spectacular medieval towns and finally the Mediterranean.
The ride was most impressive through mostly flat ranch land with white horses and Camargue cattle. As well, we are seeing more and more cacti along the road, and they are blooming. The poppies are gradually giving way to cactiand other succulents.
Knowing little about the upcoming towns, we were greatly surprised to come upon the beautiful medieval town of Aigues Mortes. The fortified wall and towers of the castle drew us in and we were surrounded by 100’s of tourists in large groups. From relative solitude on the trail to this huge press of humanity was overwhelming. But we carried on to explore what we could. The wall completely surrounds the town and you can walk the ramparts. We elected to ride the perimeter instead. Despite the crowds, Aigue Mortes is worthy of time and effort. It is a most beautiful place.
As often happens, one of us stays with the bike while the other visits an attraction. Barry was in the unique 12th century church with unusual modern stained glass, and these residents of the town with visitors were more interested in our bike and travels. Mary Ellen had a great visit with them. The longer we are in France, Mary Ellen can understand what is being said but struggles to respond. We are getting pretty good at “Frenglish”with many gestures and miming.
One of the highlights of the day came when we were approaching our destination, Le Grau du Roi. The cycle path was lovely, paved and with water on both sides. At this point, the flamingoes appeared. We were overwhelmed by the number of them. We stayed and watched them for some time. What a treat....and then we saw the Mediterranean! It feels like this is one of the landmark moments of our trip as reaching this has been a goal for us, plus it means that Barcelona is getting closer....and that means Italy as well.
On that note, we are ready to call it a day. It is still hot, we are tired, it feels like we have had more stops than starts so we’ll see stay here in a small 2star hotel 2 blocks from the sea.
Magnificent creatures with a fascinating way of walking. How do those legs bend in such a way? I’m sure they would think the same of us if they had a chance to study us.
This little guy was most entertaining. He obsessively and with great determination attempted to dominate the incoming waves. Back and forth at breakneck speed until it was time to go home. He lives nearby and his owner needs only a short walk to the beach and the dog does the rest.
