My network provider here will not allow pictures as email attachments so I will use this:
Most popular word in the French language. Imagine a train station being closed in Canada.
View from my gite in St Jean.
Rain
Lourdes
You can watch the story of Lourdes by watching the 1943 movie “The Song of Bernadette.” This movie received the most Academy Award nominations of that year losing the best picture nod to Casablanca. However Jennifer Jones won the award for best actress for her portrayal of Bernadette. The movie is available to watch on YouTube.
I am here and I take a crappy picture.
I did not know that Saint Margaret was the patron saint of Scotland.
Park like setting.
This is a beautiful, peaceful place.
The tacky part of Lourdes. Religious trinkets on steroids.
Lourdes’ WW1 memorial. France lost over 1 million men in that war.
Danton was a patriot and hero of the French revolution. Nevertheless he still lost his head to Madame guillotine.
The procession ceremony at Lourdes:
This has been going on since 1858, the year that the apparitions occurred. There were thousands of people there this evening. Very impressive.
A Canadian singing group covering a song written by the late Canadian poet and songwriter Leonard Cohen.
Hallelujah. What a trip. 750 kilometers in 31 days. It was great and not so great. The first 10 days from Le Puy to Conque were fantastic. The scenery was out of this world. It was very physically demanding but at the end of each grueling day you were exhausted but you felt like a million bucks psychologically. It was an international affair as you met people from all over the world. It was also very hot and humid with temps each day in the mid 30s.
End of the walk at the gate on St Jean Pied de Port.
From Conque to Cahors I sensed a real change. The scenery flattened out somewhat from low mountains and river gorge to rolling hills. The real hill climbing started as you were going up and down all day long over terrible terrain underfoot. It also started to rain – for eight days. I almost felt like quitting but persevered. It was also during this section that I met the mad Spaniard and St. Paul, who was a real inspiration to me. Paul was the disabled man who was born with one ventricle. I stayed with him in the pouring rain covering ten kilometers in five hours.
I sat at that exact same spot in September 2018 at the end of my Chemin de Vezelay walk.
The Cathedral in Condom made a huge impact on me. That alone was worth all the sweat and physical challenges. I get emotional just thinking about it. It has strengthened my faith.
The last bit was the most beautiful part of the walk, especially in Basque country. What wasn’t so nice for me were the evenings. I felt so lonely. It was all French. I was the only foreigner and I was ignored. The two French Canadian women would not speak to me or give me the time of day. Yet I was willing to talk with anyone even in my broken French. Most responses I received for by efforts were huh…huh…huh???
Le Puy is a French Camino. After Conque 95 percent of the pilgrims were French and they would not or could not speak English. It got so that I dreaded the evenings as diner would last two hours with everyone speaking French. It is their country after all but I was hoping for more of an international flavour. That was the downside of this walk and it is for that reason that I could not recommend this way. In many ways it lacked the Camino spirit. It is in truth a French walk:
The way was 750 kilometers.
It was in the mid 30s for the first 10 days.
I took the bus for 18 kilometers as it was 36C that day.
We had 10 days of rain 5 of which were heavy.
I camped two nights.
I stayed in a hotel one night.
It cost on average 50 euros a day but with food included.
German beer was by far the best. In my humble opinion.
Swam in the Lot River and two different swimming pools.
Lost two reading glasses and one pair of sunglasses.
A Concrete (baguette) roll every morning with a cereal bowl of coffee got tiring after a few days. I craved eggs.
Most of the gites were dirty.
I had 5 vegetarian meals with a woke lecture on the perils of meat whether I wanted it or not.
I did not have a single blister. Good wool socks are the key here.
My umbrella was invaluable as both a sun and rain shield.
Very few real French pilgrims. Most were part timers who booked all the rooms.
You better be fit if you ever consider doing this walk. Train for hill climbing with hard strong legs and cardio.
That is it for me. I hope you enjoyed the trip.
I have no esoteric, altruistic, existential reason for doing this. I love to walk and this is a great way to see French countryside, immerse yourself into the culture and enjoy French food and wine. Or, as one of my walking companions once said:
Sitting in paradise right now. I am sitting in a garden looking in the distance at the towering blue grey Pyrenees. In my immediate vicinity are the rolling foothills leading to the mountains themselves. Cornfields, sunflowers, stands of trees among undulating hills. Green if every shade can be seen. Some taupe as well as the golden brown shades of harvested fields. Pure heaven, except for the flies.
I have two stages left and wouldn’t you know but the wifi and internet connection is weak. I cannot get video or music files. My network plan from orange.fr is very weak. Oh well. It was an easy walk today.
Chillin out.
This usually means someone died here.
Great countryside but I cannot get any video or music as it is too slow.
I don’t know how these pics are turning out.
Two French Basques fellows singing some traditional Basque folk songs.
No music today as I don’t have a you tube connection.
Althez was a dump. A larger town yet another French town that is deader than a French corpse. I just don’t get it. Guide book says to be prepared for closures Sunday and Monday yet is doesn’t matter. This is a Tuesday night. It is a good thing the gite offers a diner and breakfast as part of the fee or I would be deader than a Canadian corpse. And to make matters worse part of the French horde showed up. At diner one woman nattered on and on for over one and a half hours. All in French. When I tried to say something in my shattered French they looked at me as if I was deader than a French corpse. Or they would shrug their shoulders at me and say huh? Huh? Huh? I gave up out of sheer frustration. You feel alone as no one can understand you. But I do have a good friend to accompany me. Have I introduced it to you? Here is a picture of it. Its name is Tongerlo:
It is a dependable compani0n. Never complains and always there to make you feel better. Never talks back. A smooth customer. Eh bai?
Yet during the day walking I feel like a million bucks. So happy. The countryside is spectacular.
I feel like I am in heaven. I sometimes lay back on the grass with my legs up on the bank. I look up to the heavens and say,Lord, my thanks. I feel so darn happy that I just want to scream. And He says Johnnie yes I know exactly what you mean. I do.
I do.
Another good Canadian band. They say this is Canada’s band but I don’t agree with that. But this is a good song by the Tragically Hip. New Orleans Is Sinking:
I am here and I take a crappy picture.
Lourdes’ WW1 memorial. France lost over 1 million men in that war.
