IN THE MIDDLE AGES THEY COULD CURE CRIPPLES

THIS WAS WEDNESDAY APRIL 18 AND ORIGINALLY WENT TO BLOG HELL

Still, as expected, with the sore shin. But I have gotten the correct pronunciation of glacon (ice) down and do not get those annoying blank stares. But that could also be because I go to the same coffee shops and tip kinda big too. I have been having dinner in the gite to keep from walking to shop...and my paltry dinners will not start (when I get back on the trail, probably alone) until the memories of our earlier feasts fade from my mind.

Weather report is good for the next 4 days so I am getting anxious.I am only 3 days walk from Condom (though I may have to do it in 4 averaging 12 miles a day) which promises to be a tacky postcard paradise.

This is Daniel on one of the fabulous Romanesque capitals in the cloister at Moissac. The cathedral itself is a kind of a mishmash with this incredible late 12th century south door with a wild tympanum and sinuous figures holding it up. I have yet to do mass and vespers and such there but may resort to it soon if my shin does not get better....

Tour Gourmandaise

Yes, the Dutch banker. His favorite word in English is exquisite. As in, let's have an exquisite appertive, followed by an exquisite little piece of sausage, then an exquisite piece of meat ( "I wish I had my Turk butcher here."), then an exquisite cheese.... Well you get the idea. And he does all the really wonderful cooking in the meagre confines of tiny crowded kitchens infested with hordes of other pilgrims. I never ate so well. Not as much fun as Anne Marie but what the heck.

Well I finally figured out how to do pictures. The above is me in a field of something. I got leaf cuts on my ankles by such antics.

here is the gite we stayed in the other night. it is in the the former presbytery of the church. The priest washed all the pigrims' feet prior to the service. I thankfully missed out on it due to the fact that I was in the shower washing my own feet among other things.



Weather has been overcast and humid lately. I think once I get on the way I will be using the poncho a lot. And I will get a prelude to the infamous Navarra mud. Hope to get back soon.

Busted Flat in Moissac

Busted Flat in Moissac
Waiting for a Train
I was feeling bout as faded as my pack....

History DOES have a way of repeating itself. Two weeks into my trip last year I got crippling left shin splint that put me off the road for 6 days. Yesterday the right one started. Lots of ice and rest did nothing to help it. And now it looks like I will be in Moissac for at least 2 more days.

Moissac, at least, is a hot spot. Well, it was. I missed its heyday by about 850 years. I am staying in some sort of semi-religious gite or hostel that may or may not be affiliated with Carmelites. It is cheap at least.

Life without Anne Marie is just not the same. Three days alone with the Dutch banker were not too bad. He is the gourmand.

F----? I was supposed to get 30 minutes on this card and only got about 10. I have to publish this now or lose it. More later.

Friday the 13th Deep Merde

Still going on strong. Yesterday was a bit of a downer. We took a wrong turn out of Vivaire and went 6-7 miles out of our way. Everyone was in really FOUL moods. Evard blamed Anne Marie and kept up an incessant rant for the rest of the time I was with him. ("French women. They wont' admit when they are wrong. Never trust them. Never trust any women. I blame myself. I knew better but let myself be talked out of it." On so on.) I saw this most wonderful chateau which I must have whenever I get the 4 or 5 million euros to buy it. I wonder if they have a lottery.

Then rain in the afternoon which did not really do anything for the horrid humidity. All in all it was a bruising 24 or more miles. The last one is downhill at a 60 degree incline. Prior to that was about 4 miles of dry shrub land with nothing around.

The youth hostel in Cahors where I am is a smelly ratty affair but actually a nice change of pace. Today we do an easy 12 miles and sleep with sisters in a Carmelite convent. [Turns out it was a FORMER Carmelite convent.]

Anne Marie and Pierre left us today. I still may meet her in Spain. She is taking a train to Condom, doing the last part of the French route then coming back to Cahors to walk a bit with her friend to Condom, then going back to St. Jean and walking Spain all the way to Santiago.

Weather holding up, just the drizzles. Still a lot of heat and humidity but as you can see, lots of spring flowers.

The Academy Award for Supporting Role in Pilgrim Benediction Goes to.....

YES, YES, YES. ME !!!!!!!

First I would like to thank all the little people who helped me......

Sunday we did a lot of church stuff seeing as how Conques is pretty much the church and the abbey. We had high mass in the morning, a short pilgrimage to Chapel of St: Foy outside of city (1/2 mile downhill, 1/2 uphill, 1/2 downhill, 1/2 up)? vespers at 6:30, dinner in the abbey at 7, followed by the pilgrim benediction in the cathedral. They needed someone to do a reading in English. While I was a bit miffed that I was not first choice (what with my pilgrim emeritus status and all) but THIRD? I accepted none the less. I got to sit up by the altar under the crossing dome while the other pilgrims were in the choir. I did Revelations 22, 4-5. And I boomed it out like Jennifer Houston in Dreamgirls. This was followed by an immediate 10 minutes of silence....I thought I left the padres speechless but it was probably just a prayer moment.

I was so enthralled I decided to sing out loud in my flat voice in fractured French the rest of the songs. Karaoke Camino (Chemin, I should say) indeed. The service ended with a piano and organ concert. Quite nice.

Going out of Conques, I revisited the Chapel of St. Foy (which was on the way--down 200 meters and up 200 meters) in order to light a candle for my friend Mark who has a special regard for either the chapel or the saint....or both. The chapel is pictured to the left in the morning fog. St. Foy, a biggie on the chemin, was a local saint and cures eye diseases. They have a big procession from Conques to the chapel every fall.

I have been having a bit of trouble with a blocked tear duct and figured that my two trips to the chapel (as well as toting a candle from the cathedral for Mark and another for the son of a friend of Anne Marie who had some serious head trauma in a motorcycle accident in Paris recently) might qualify me for just a tiny little miraclette. And I vowed that, while I wouldn't pray for it, I would consider the whole church thing again if the eye thing cleared up. [Note: it didn't.]

The tough terrain of the Central Massiff has given way to more undulating hills. We made it to Figeac today. Annie leaves us. I only have three more days with Anne Marie. Have to get in another group....supposedly there are more hikers after Easter. There were two burly guys yesterday I would not have minded joining. But they were roughing it and sleeping outside. Then there is the guy doing it on horseback. I can see myself getting in the saddle with him.

Today we bought some local cevre from a farm we passed up on the hill and had an alfresco lunch on the trail. They had about 40 dogs of various breeds, goats, pigs; and a donkey. One of the dogs was a big bloodhound that was howling like a banshee. A little puffy thing was screwing a much much larger hairy dog. It looked like a Heironymus Bosch painting. Luckily we saw the spotless chesse facilities and house before the owners came back (with 4 more baying dogs). Otherwise I for one would not have eaten anything from that place.

The Aubrac brown cows who have really stolen my heart have given way to Gurnseys and Jerseys with huge udders. We are on the rout de la lait. So I guess I will be having a lot more cheese.

Weather is still fantastic--sunny and mild. But it has got to rain soon.

Conques-ered

Arrived in Conques this morning in time for high mass on Easter. This entailed the 5 of us getting up at 5:30 and leaving gite at 6:30. The girls had head lamps but we really did not need them as there was a waning half moon to light the way. It was up, up, up then down, down, down.
We had a huge argument last night about the distance. Three separate guidebooks put it at 11, 13, and 16 km (as if that make a whole lot of difference--well, that is at least an hour walking from least to most). And each of us insisted ours was correct. So we got in 1 1/2 hours early and nearly missed a good seat in the cathedral because we went our separate ways in town once we got here. The mass was great--all incense, robes, and singing. None of us took communion.

Anne Marie and Evart are in constant battles. First is how we dine apres hike. E thinks it should be 4 courses, superbly prepared and AnneMarie thinks we should just throw things together (though she sets standards). Each tries to enlist me on his or side. And of course I agree with each one but always give in to Anne Marie.

Then they fight about the window at night. E wants it open; AM closed. The fights are in English (I think for my benefit) and go like this: "I cannot sleep in a sarchophagus!" and "I cannot sleep in a refrigerator. Then they both look at me.

Our other two companions are Annie the abused divorced housewife from the north of France. She is 40 something and in total fear of both E and AM and, like me, agrees to both of their ideas. Then there is Pierre a 60 something bachelor retiree from the French Alps who is going all the way to Santiago. He looks like a French leprechaun and even wears a pointed felt hat. He is too wise to even get into an argument. Neither of them speak any English.

OTHER THAN THAT everything is splendid. We dine with the monks tonight in the abbey and get a special blessing after. Then ups and downs tomorrow. If the weather holds that won't be a problem.

Anne Marie and the Aubrac

I promised to tell you all about my savior, Anne Marie: I met her in the cathedral at Le Puy and have been with her since: She is a 64 yr old French retired businesswoman from Paris: I thought I hit the jackpot--that we would be having long leisurely lunches and fancy dinners on a regular basis. Then she started telling me about all her exploits like 6 day ultramarathon runs. She told me about climbing Mont Blanc in August and passing out on top and almost losing both toes to frostbite and having to be helicoptered off. Turns out she likes to have things relatively austere so we have been cooking all our own food and taking it very easy on the wine.

UNTIL we met Evart the retired Dutch banker who loves the good life. He has us making 4 course meals in the gites every night regardless of facilities. We did lamb roast one night and a nice pasta dish last night. I contributed sliced tomato with onion and tuna. But A M is rebelling and we are only having soup and bread and cheese tonight: Somehow I am losing weight AND eating the lion's share of the food so what is there to complain about?

Two days ago we had snow flurries all day: Yesterday it was fog in the morning and glorious sun in PM. Today it was all sun and fantastic: The flowers birds; and tress are all going wild: The way is still very hilly but just a delight: We did 18 miles today with a lot of uphill: Tomorrow is worse--we are doing a push to get to Conques for Easter high mass.