Aromas of the day were broom and honeysuckle. Maybe the humidity brought out their perfume.

Nice and easy today, in terms of miles, about 12.5, with full packs. There were 3 significant uphills, the first right out of Cahors. It was super steep, but not too long and thus, not too bad really. Here’s a view of Cahors from a lookout point we climbed the day before.

We spent 3 nights in Cahors, expecting to spend just one. Again, finding an auberge or a Gîte where we wanted to stop was proving a challenge.  We are going for shorter stages. I rather liked wandering around Cahors and seeing the historic sites, happening upon hidden gardens, and finding unusual or odd bits.

After two days off, I was looking forward to the Chemin! Today did not disappoint. And! My body is getting used to this. Still pretty tired at day’s end, but not in pain.

Where to begin? It feels like days since I posted, though it was only  the night b4 last. That should give you an idea of what yesterday was like.

We left Figeac around 9. The guidebook stated that the 19.25 mile hike would take about 8.5 hours. 10 hours and closer to 23 miles later, we arrived. Has to be an error. Part of the problem was that the Gîte was another 1.5 miles out of town, which we didn’t realize when we booked it. So we didn’t get to see Cajarc.

There was some harsh going with ascents, descents, mud, and rocky terrain. I was a wreck after 15 miles and wanted to hitch a ride. Better judgment and support from Ed prevailed and helped a lot.  I also kept thinking of people on long, tough marches with greater loads to bear and not nearly so well fed.  And though I was in a sour mood some of the time, I also found the strength to muscle through.

Then the Gîte wasn’t so comfortable, and I was annoyed with the French people at dinner for a variety of reasons, none of which made sense in reality, but that’s the mood I was in.

Now for some photos from that days walk, Figeac to Cajarc.

Somewhere along the way on the day, I stopped to take a pebble from my shoe in the middle of a paved country lane. Sometime later, not too long grace a Dieu, I reached for my phone. I just knew it had slipped from my pocket. Running back, I prayed that another had found it, that a car wouldn’t come by. An approaching pilgrim recognized my panic, and before I could say anything, pulled it from her fanny pack. Two seconds later, a car came by. The Camino knows how to play games with you.

Here’s another Camino episode of salvation. After that strenuous day, and being so so tired, we decided to take two days in Cahors, after one easy day to Varaires from Cajarc, and one more long arduous trek, Varaires to Cahors. In our zombie state of mind, we booked an apartment in Cahors,  then realized Malle Postale could not deliver there since no-one would be there to accept them. No way did I want to carry my pack on another 20 mile route, even if it was a relatively easy day, length and terrain-wise. Divine intervention stepped in again when I received confirmation from the apartment and saw that the owners also had a hotel! I called and asked if our host if our packs could be delivered there. Bless the man, he agreed and even said he’d deliver them to the apartment! And thanks be, because somehow we got off route and onto a variant. Our 20 mile day became 23 miles.

I was so bone tired. Ed too. We had dinner at the closest place we could find, even though all it served was charcuterie boards. I was thrilled when olives were delivered to the table.

Now for photos, Cajarc to Varaires, May 27:

That’s all for now. Will get caught up on Varaire to Cahors tomorrow!

We had the opportunity to visit Eglise deSaint Sauveur à Figeac.  As is my custom, I spent some time examining the Stations of the Cross.  I appreciate the varying interpretations of a story that spans continents and centuries.  

Usually,  the stations are  variations of standard images conforming to Catholic orthodoxy.  Occasionally, a unique artistic interpretation provokes my interest.   Within limits,  of course.

In this church I found the most inspiring and disturbing set of images that I had previously encountered.   I am not yet able to articulate fully how these images affect me.   I sense a postmodern influence that not only undercuts some of the basic preconceptions of the story of the passion of Christ.  At the same time, I sense a deep critique of the post-modern viewpoint and the impact of that world view on society. 

In this presentation,  the passion continues to this day, and we are each  acting in the ongoing drama.  We have our roles,  sometimes as victims, but more commonly as tormentors.  Who are the others who are condemned with no hope of redemption in this world?  Who is it that we cast aside by our indifference and our hostility?

Bear with me as I present the fourteen Stations with a brief narrative on some of them.

Station 1: Jesus is condemned to death

Jesus stands alone, scourged and beaten,  the crown of thorns on of head.   There is no Pontius Pilate overseeing the event.   There are no centurions standing ready to enforce the order for execution.  Rather, there is a young man dressed in denims and tee shirt with a small gathering of associates.    He appears disinterested,  distracted.  

The condemnation seems less an action than an outcome of passivity.

Station 2: Jesus takes up his Cross

He is assisted,  perhaps enthusiastically,  by young men who appear to enjoy the task, possibly a bit too much.

Station 3: Jesus falls the first time

And he is well punished for it.   The burden of his life (or death) is too much to bear.  Perhaps a sound beating will make it easier.  Is that how we respond to those whom we believe failed in some critical task or obligation?

Station 4: Jesus meets his Mother

A heartbreaking scene.   A mother’s love in the midst of tragedy.  Her son,  broken by life and forced to play an active role in his own murder,  collapsed before her.  She reaches out to soothe him.

Station 5: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the Cross

While Simon takes a share of the burden,  a tormentor can’t help but add to the difficulty,  placing his own weight for good measure.

Station 6: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

Literally wipes his face onto the cloth

Station 7: Jesus falls for the second time

Perhaps he took a photo,  or maybe a selfie, to post on Facebook. Or maybe just texting a friend, making plans for dinner,  hardly conscious of the events unfolding before him.

Station 8: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem

Station 9: Jesus falls for the third time

Station 10: Jesus is stripped of his garments

Such a momentous occasion.   Let’s get it documented.  Everybody say “cheese.”

Station 11: Jesus is nailed to the Cross

Station 12: Jesus dies on the Cross

Of incidental or passive interest to some.  

Station 13: Jesus is taken down from the Cross

Typically, the central figure in the 13th Station is Mary.   It is the source of most interpretations of La Pieta, featuring Mary,  grief striken, holding the body of her son, in some cases accompanied and in others solitary in her grief.

In this version, the focus is on the body of Christ, being removed from the cross as a mechanical undertaking,  a task to be performed as it is when recovering any victim .   Emotional attachment is lost in the “doingness” of the event.

Here is an example of a more traditional 13th station from Eglise Sainte Radegonde, St. Felix, France.

HereStation 14: Jesus is laid in the tomb

What do you think of these images?  I am interested to know.  

I will touch on the Stations and their relation to some other icons that I find of particular interest in a future post.

Hi!

I think I wrote about having to carry our packs for 2 days due to a Gîte not allowing baggage transport. So. That meant 2 hard days of walking – 17 and 18 miles days. The stages were Conques to Livinhac-le-Haut and then to Figeac. Each night after arrival,  shower, dinner, and planning the next day, plus looking ahead to where to stay, which now involves checking with La Malle Postale (the baggage transport company) to ensure that they deliver where we want to stay and THEN ensuring where we want to stay has availability – it was time for ibuprofen and bed! Right now we have the next 2 stays set. Walking lots of miles,  but just with a day pack. Yahoo!

I’ll simply post some photos to give you an idea of the route and places.

Conques to Livinhac-le-Haut

We had quite a bit of rain off and on throughout the day, but not pounding and not windy. It was beautiful! And we had some breaks, like during lunch:

Livinhac-le-Haut to Figeac

I’m going to start with a few photos of mud – la boue. We hiked through plenty, including the day before,  which was really worse  than on this stage. Thanks be for poles!

We took today (Thursday the 23rd mai) off and spent the day in Figeac. Changed from our Gîte of the night before to a hotel. Ed says we didn’t train enough for this journey. I reckon he’s right. Not that I want to admit it. But there sure is a difference between last fall walking and these first two days.

Here are a few photos from today.

Et voilà. I’ve been writing this in a place called Hop Hop Hop, a beer joint with great music. We met Caroline here for a beer. We’d met her and hubster Paul in the laundromat earlier.

Lastly, we had a wonderfully French dinner at La Terrasse, by the Celè River. Ed had a salad with a delightful assortment of delicacies: gésiers, thinly sliced duck breast (it resembled prosciutto,  but darker and smoky), foie gras, and those crisp and thin French green beans. Mine was straightforward: cuisse a canard confit and pepparade. Here’s a photo.

Oh, dang! Next time, the photo first!

I guess that’s all, folks! It’s been great so far, and we’re confident it will get better!

Bonsoir!

This post is by Charlie

Tomorrow we leave Conques for part 2 of our Chemin de Saint Jacques.  When I look at the elevation profile for our morning walk, I see this:

After fretting about it for a bit I realized that the scales on the graph create a misleading impression.   Although we will climb about 350 meters in the first 5 kilometers it won’t be the near vertical trek as it appears in the diagram.

Retrieving some basic trigonometry from the dust bin of my brain,  I determined that the horizontal axis can be considered the measure of a hypotenuse, and the slope of the ascent can be determined using a sine function.   The steepest part accordingly will average about 8° with an overall average for the initial climb of about 5°.  (I used a different map to get a more accurate estimate of distance and elevation)

Looks like we won’t be needing pitons and rope after all.

2 days running, we haven’t left the apartment til noon. However, we still manage to walk 11-12miles. Warming up for the Chemin. Speaking of, it already thre2 us our first curve ball. For some unexplained reason,  Malle Postale informed me that they couldn’t deliver our packs to the Gîte we selected. I’d call them, but they’re closed on Sunday. Too late to try and coordinate another Gîte and Malle Postale. So. We’ll take it slow and easy.

Lovely weather yesterday as we began our day in the Parc Butte Chaumont again. The aroma of mock orange flowers perfumed the air.

If I were to live in Paris, it would have to be near a park such as this. Preferably in a building such as this:

Or a park like La Villette, along the Quai Marne (which yesterday I mis-identified as the Seine).

Paris can be surprisingly quiet. A turn off the main drag and down a few side streets and voilà! Even though you’re surrounded by huge apartment complexes. Some seem stylish and quite nice. Others are huge blocks and scary to contemplate living in.

Made it to Père Lachaise Cementary for the first time. At 110 acres, it’s both the largest park and largest cemetery in Paris. There are thousands of gravesites. Some of which date back to 1804 when it opened. So many trees still standing, some over 100 years old.

We found the tombs of Isadora Duncan, Jim Morrison,  Marcel Proust, and Edith Piaf. Someone had placed a small stuffed sparrow on her tomb,  as her nickname was the Little Sparrow. Couldn’t find Collette. Should have looked for Chopin. Oh, and as we happened upon a group standing around a grave. Much laughter. Turns out it was a journalist, Victor Noir. He had been challenged to a duel by Napoleon’s cousin, who killed him. Riots ensued. A famous sculpture was commissioned and elected to fashion him lying down, as though just shot.

What really made him famous was the prominent bulge (you know where) the sculptor included. Thus, an urban legend arose. Expand the photo, if necessary, to see shiny bulge, shiny toe tips, and shiny lips. It’s said that for enhanced fertility, rub the bulge; for a perfect lover, kiss the lips; to get pregnant, touch the tight toes; and if you want (!?) twins, the left foot. At one time a fence was placed around the site to stop the “indecent rubbing”, but the hew and cry forced its removal!

Enfin, the much anticipated Nuit des Musées was a bust. Figuring that museums closer to the heart of Paris and tourists would be packed, we decided to go to La Cité des Sciences et l’industrie. As we approached,  throngs of people could be seen. But closer, we saw a short line. I asked a guard if it were special. He said no, the same. So we got into the museum in about 15 minutes! It seems that most people were coming to the museum from the other side and didn’t realize there was more than one line, so it stretched so far!

Why a bust, then? It wasn’t a very good museum. Lots of wasted space. Uninspired exhibits. Maybe we were tiring by then. Nothing compared to the one in Chicago, though. But it is in La Villette park and I’d return there!

Lots of brass scallop shells along the Quai du Marne. You can begin the Chemin here in Paris.

Today we are going to Figeac, making our way to Conques. It’s a trek. Tomorrow we take the Malle Postale van to Conques and begin the Chemin on Tuesday!

À bientôt!

The plus is for beginning with a few anecdotes prior to day 1 abroad.

A surprising and fortuitous synchronicity occurred in Atlanta. I texted Ashley  (my niece) in the Atlanta area, “So close and yet so far. We’re at the airport. ” She wrote back that she was at the airport,  headed to Denver for work. We had time to meet for about 40 minutes!

On the airplane we learned that our seats had been changed. We were up against a bulkhead and it looked like we didn’t have a screen for watching movies. The attendant had no idea why that would have happened. “Maybe a plane change…) But that wasn’t the case. I said, “We shouldn’t have to pay the same as others if we don’t have a screen!” “Oh, but you do have one,” came the reply. “It’s folded down between the seats.” Sure enough. Felt a little silly. I got yo watch Anatomy of a Fall – highly recommended! Intelligent writing. Complex relationships. Enigmatic ending.

No line to speak of getting into the country.  Easy passage. Our apartment for 3 nights is roomy and in a good location. 19th arrondisment, right across the street from Parc des Buttes-Chaument, and right next to one of the 5 celebrated Poilane boulangerie!

So. I left my earbuds on the plane. Grrrr!!! As we were meandering around Paris yesterday, we’d stop in several of the many tiny shops selling such items. None had the kind I was looking for with the loop over the ears. I felt bad as the proprietors always looked so crestfallen when I didn’t purchase their wares. Tant pis.

So today we determined the need to find a place that would. Stopped in a tourist office for info on la Nuit des Musées (more tomorrow on this) and also asked about a store for ecouteurs (earbuds). A 15 minute walk to Boulanger (not to be confused with boulangerie) and I had a new set.

Seen throughout our wandering today:

And, finally, we did stop in some churches. I’ll only share from one, Notre Dame de Travail. It’s near a rail station and was built for those who worked there.

And that’s it. Oh, we were in bed and asleep by 8:30 last night and slept til 8am! Only got about 3 hours of sleep before our early flight to Atlanta. Today was a good day. Beaux rêves.