There is also a short cut that avoids all the curves, but it has been closed to vehicular traffic. Some know it as hangman's alley. Folklore says that's where hangings happened after the revolution.
When we arrived in Paray-le-Monial, Elisabeth dropped me off at a cafe near the Basilica while she went off for her appointment.
We planned to meet there later...I didn't have a watch and she wasn't sure of how much time she needed, so meeting at a cafe meant I could relax over a cup of tea or whatever.
Around the corner I passed a blooming rhododendron that reminded me of the one at home that I work so hard to protect from snow. There was another rhododendron with more blooms in a deeper purple, but it hid the house and I liked the white shutters and white railing, typically French.
My first stop was to wander around the cloisters and enjoy the garden which had a sweet aroma. Look carefully and you can see an iron gate in the foundation...it leads to a passageway beneath the church.
Though obviously not used, the well in the center of the garden has water in it. Small ferns grow inside it between the rocks. There was a large clump of pink hardy geranium and also rue, both of which are in my gardens at home.
Then I wandered into the Basilica itself. It was originally built in the late 900s. (That's a 3 digit number...not a mistake!)
There was a man with a disfigured face and cup with change in it resting on the steps...not a common sight since France has traditionally taken care of its people.
When I opened the door, there was another door right behind it. That was a surprise, but I'd seen other people disappear through this entry...no screams...so I opened the second door...
Because it takes so long to build churches like this, and sections that get destroyed may be rebuilt in a different century, parts of the building illustrate architecture at different time periods. Looking at the pair of towers...the single tower at the other end of the building is much older...can you tell which tower was built in an earlier period?
I walked around the church, enjoying the music. A young fellow was carefully placing pamphlets on the seats so I stopped to read one...a wedding was soon to take place.
There were no decorations or flowers, though they might have arrived later. On the other hand, in that beautiful church they weren't needed.
The musicians were obviously practicing for the wedding. I figured that if people began to congregate it would indicate that the wedding was about to start and I could disappear. Meanwhile, this was a free concert...I sat down to listen.
The tower on the right was built during an earlier period than the one on the left. Outside I took pictures of the canal.
There were steps leading to the water...the bride could arrive by boat if she so chose! Then I headed back to the cafe, ordered a tea and sat down to wait for Elisabeth who drove up within a couple of minutes.
As we drove out of town she pointed out the small chapel dedicated to a nun who saw apparitions and is one reason this town is famous.
Because it was a Monday, most stores were closed. There was no reason to hang around...
...until we reached Charolles, and then I couldn't resist taking more pictures!
I don't remember any garden in the middle of a canal, certainly not at the edge of a waterfall, but the vivid blue was the same.
Granted, in Holland the crown imperials were usually growing in large clumps and here (see below) they are single stalks, but there are a number of them blooming and that's better than I've been able to do at home. The crown imperials have a bunch of leaves at the top of their stem with yellow flowers hanging down below that "crown."
I loved the graceful willow by the short waterfall. I'm not sure if this is two canals or a river and canal side by side.
We stopped at a restaurant that is also a museum about the famous Charolais cows.
The ones I took pictures of will never be eaten, but these white cows dot the countryside which is divided up by hedgerows.
Around Cluny stone walls divide the fields, but stone and hedges don't exist around vineyards because the machinery needs space to turn around.
There would be a lot more pictures of our trip home, but my camera decided it had worked hard enough! The battery has a mind of its own. One of these days I will get into Macon and see if the camera store has a battery that would work in my camera so I won't get cut off in the middle of a great day.
We visited one of Elisabeth's friends and her neighbor, another American living in France, dropped by while we were there. Lee was from NYC. Her husband is French.
That evening I developed chills...crawled into bed with 2 wool blankets AND the comforter. By early morning I was able to stop shivering and toss off the comforter.
It was Tuesday, May 8th. I found my way to Sologny by noon to join the dinner party I'd been invited to at chez Godon. Ernie and Cheryl, an American couple who are renting in Aze, and Sylvie were also there. It was a delightful meal, but by 5 PM I was tired and headed back to Blanot. I was supposed to go to Beaune with Elisabeth for the evening, but I wasn't up to it. After a nap I went over to Anne's and enjoyed chatting with her for awhile. No pictures for Tuesday. On Wednesday Anne took me to her favorite hardware store that caters to farmers and I bought a long sleeve flannel shirt. Back in Blanot Mirelle loaned me one of Noel's sweatshirts. I feel well cared for by friendly and loving people.
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