Bike: Macon to Cluny, 19 miles, 1230 feet of climb
Accommodation: Les Florales (Airbnb); hosts Patricia and Nathalie. Studio apartment with wifi, kitchenette, no washer. Includes shared terrace, courtyard or garage for bike storage. Newly refurbished, spotless, very nice.
Lunch(es): picnic(s) on trail
Dinner: pasta in apartment
Twenty-one years ago today, we were cycling on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland, on our first trip to Europe together, celebrating the week of our 25th anniversary. We were in a pottery shop when we heard a news report that a plane had hit one of the World Trade Towers. We were horrified but didn't think too much about it. We couldn't have imagined that it was more than a tragic accident. It wasn't until we stopped at a fort site later in the afternoon that we met up with a group of Americans and learned what was really happening. A frightening time. We didn't know whether our friends and families were safe, or whether we would get back to the US, or whether we would ever be able to travel outside the US again. So much has taken place since that sad day, both wonderful and terrible, for us and for our country. Sobering.
We are grateful for the chance to travel now. We love meeting people and seeing new places and experiencimg history and culture up close.
Knowing it would be a short, pretty easy ride today, we took our time. The weather was beautiful. We had a long, easy climb through the middle of the route, supposedly leading to a tunnel and then a long downhill. But the tunnel was closed, and we were routed onto a small highway and around the top of the hill, then down the other side. The views were lovely; we didn't really mind the detour.
Just a few miles before we got to Cluny, we came upon a huge old castle on a hill, and we stopped at some picnic tables to eat our second lunch. We joined two other couples who were on ebikes, halfway through a weeklong tour before a son got married in Geneva. The four were from Australia and were great fun to talk to. The daughter of one couple is married to the son of the other, and they hit it off and like to travel together. The son in Geneva is marrying the daughter of a designer who makes multimillion-dollar watches for the rich and famous.
After waving good-bye to them, we finished our lunch and rode on into Cluny.
Our host let us drop off bikes and bags when we arrived, but we could not officially check in until 17:00, so we walked around the city for a couple hours. When 17:00 rolled around, Patricia gave us a very thorough introduction to the house, showing us absolutely everything, including how all the doors (and the toilet seat) close themselves with just a little push--not a slam. It was clear that she is very proud of her newly redecorated apartment, and eager to keep it clean and new. We will try our best!
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| Our route information said we would go by one of the most beautiful natural features in France, the Solutre Vergisson, in the middle of a fast vineyard. There it is: the rock outcropping in the far distance. |
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| We stopped for lunch at a picnic table in front of a huge vineyard on the Voire Verte. When I turned around, I saw a caveau (wine shop) across the street. I crossed on over, and a kind English-speaking salesperson helped me find a local, single-source chardonnay for me and fresh pear juice for Ken. We will have good beverages for dinner tonight! |
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| We don't know the name of this chateau, but it made a lovely backdrop for our meeting with four people from Australia in the middle of the day. |
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| Old stone chateaus are everywhere in this area. |
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| La Tour des Fromage (Cheese Tower) in Cluny. We never did find out why it is called the Cheese Tower. But we did climb it on our second day in town. |
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| View of the Cluny Abbey. |
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| Cluny was just so picturesque. |
