Stage 28. Le Cergne to Briennon - 25kms, sunny and cool

At breakfast this morning our hosts, Martine and Philippe, greeted us with the news that it was 0 degrees outside. It was also crisp and clear, and although there was frost on the ground, it was a glorious morning for walking. 

We were mostly descending, though with a few uphill stretches, and the landscape gradually became more open and pastoral. Early on though, we were treated to a few more sections of forest.

This little chapel was in a bright clearing on the edge of a very dark wood.

Entering the slightly foreboding wood, we thought of Dante's words at the opening of The Divine Comedy: 'In the noontime of my life, I entered a dark wood ...'. A description of mid-life crisis, if ever there was one!!

We continued to marvel at the majesty and beauty of some of the trees we saw.

Today was the fifth day of our walk in France, and somehow we had a sense of not only being embraced by the countryside, but also of being greeted - as if we were beginning to belong. Animals came to the fence to say hello.

We came to Charlieu in time for lunch. One of the things we've discovered, perhaps to our ultimate advantage, is that in every town and village we come to, the boulangerie (bakery) is closed for that day. So it was again, but we did manage to find a beer and pizza before continuing on.

We descended to and crossed the famous Loire river, and we are now sitting by an adjacent canal filled with barges and boats.

Shortly we will be met by our host for this evening. One of the many aspects of hospitality we've received these last few days is the linguistic generosity of our hosts. We have no conversational French, so we rely on their English to enable our communication over dinner. We realise this is sometimes a stretch for them too, so our appreciation of this effort has given rise to today's haiku.

We come to their homes.

They speak in our language, 

give grace upon grace.

Bon chemin,

Sarah and Neil