Yes, it was small. Yes, it was surrounded by vineyards, but quiet, absolutely not. Many towns and villages in rural France seem completely deserted, with just barking dogs and the occasional car driver breaking the silence.
We rolled into Chablis looking for somewhere to get a drink as it was hot on the bike and the morning ride had been a long one. It was Sunday and an important day in France. Many of the war memorials throughout much of France were decorated with the Tricolour, the French flag, as part of the celebration of VE day. In Chablis we saw the end of a formal celebration, with a brass band playing and the mayor dress in his best suit. A crowd had gathered and we cut the engine of the bike as early as possible to not disturb the proceedings, but the service ended just as we got off the bike. By the time I grabbed the camera the people were dispersing, so I took a picture of the memorial instead....
Suspecting the town would be quiet, the huge Sunday market came as a complete surprise. It was a bustling, seething mass of stalls selling everything the rural French might want or need. There was lots of cheese. We found a bar and gulped our drinks pretty quickly a chatted to some English people who had a house close by, with their two dogs. One of the dogs had a passion for eating bread and the other, a Labradoodle, was very cute (Jackie's words).
The vineyards are plentiful and stretch as far as the eye can see. Long low strands of wire, with ancient vines clinging row after row on the slopes. These are some of the most famous grapes in the world and go to produce some of the best wines...
Overall, the countryside is green and lush. White Charolais cattle lie under the trees to keep cool while their calf’s enjoy the sunshine. The back roads are winding and sometimes narrow with few cars. Every biker waves to every other biker, irrespective of make or style of bike. Some of the roads are spectacular....
How about this for a spiral staircase....
Sometimes, you look at something and just cannot work it out. Faced with part of a wall, arches and high columns, with a road running through it, this one had Jackie and I stumped....
We saw a menu this evening that just led us to believe something got lost in translation. We have no idea what Frog Cream is, but some images come to mind that are not great....
We have two more days on the road before we get to St Tropez. Vive La France!
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