Sunday, June 28, 2009

TOURS—June 17-18, 2009

I arrived in Tours late in the afternoon and I was so tired that I splurged for a taxi to the hostel. I’m glad that I did because it’s a good mile and a half to two miles from the train station. On the way there, we passed a whole slew of media trucks. I asked the taxi driver what was going on and he told me that they were trying a very famous case in tours. A mother killed 3 of her children shortly after birth: she burned one and put the other two in the freezer. The verdict was to be announce the next day. I watched the news… she was found guilty and sentenced to 8 more years in jail.
I arrived at the hostel, signed in and got my room key. The hostel also serves as a dorm for the universities across the street. My room is on the 4th floor and is pretty standard: bed, dresser, closet, desk, chair. The restrooms and showers are down the hall, but I have my own room. I called my parents as I do every night to let them know that I’m safe. Then I was soooooo tired that I went to bed @ 8pm and slept until 7 the next morning. My room is across from the kitchen which is a pretty hopping place
In the evening, so I had to wear my earplugs to sleep. Fortunately, they lock the kitchen at 11pm.
The next morning I woke up @ 7am and went downstairs for my typical free hostel breakfast. Then, I asked about a washeteria. I had worn the same pair of pants 3 days in a row and was desperately in need of a Laundromat. Afterwards, I felt like singing “CLEAN CLOTHES, CLEAN CLOTHES, I HAVE CLEAN CLOTHES!” I returned to the dorm, took a shower, and put on my nice clean clothes. I addressed a few postcards, then headed out to see the world.

A COMEDY OF ERRORS (though not very funny at the time)

Whenever you ask someone how long it takes to walk somewhere in France, the answer is always the same…. “un petit quart d’heure” (a short 15 minutes). That’s how long I was told it would take to walk to the train station. I wanted totake a tour of 3 chateaux that left @ 1:45. So, I gave myself a half hour to get there. I left the dorm @ 1:15 and arrived at the train station @ 1:50 (15 min., eh?). I missed the bus (error #1). I was walking so fast to get there that I missed the curb and twisted my ankle (error #2). I did have a plan B. I could take a train to Chinon to see the chateau, which was not included on any of the tours. I waited in line to buy a ticket, and by the time I got, I had only 9 minutes to board the train. (Plenty of time...lol.) As I’m approaching the train, the conductor blows the whistle and closes the doors. WHAT!?! I still have 7 minutes. I wave my arms and shout “ATTENDEZ!” Then I rush forward….my ankle gives way again, and you guessed it….I fell flat on my face (error #3). A female conductor asked if I was OK. I said “Oui, mais c’est mon train!’ She asked again if I was OK. I again answered “Yes, but that’s my train!” I picked myself up (luckily, I wasn’t wearing my big backpack) and found a button to open the train door. I found a place to sit, checked myself over, no major damage. Then, you know what… that darn train didn’t leave for another 5 minutes and several people boarded after I did (error #4).
Chinon is a sweet little town and the chateau is located on a cliff, high above the city (and, of course, about as far away from the train station as you can get.) I walk about 1 1/2 miles to a giant elevator which takes you up the side of the cliff, then another 3/4 mile to the chateau. The chateau of Chinon is where Jeanne d’Arc met with Charles VII to petition an army to fight in Orleans. Because the chateau was under construction ( to restore it to its former beauty), I had to enter the chateau through an underground passage (through the moat) that kings used to leave discreetly to visit their mistresses. Shame, shame, shame! (but COOL!) From the secret passage you enter one of the towers of the outer wall, then you climb the stairs to reach the upper level and the royal residence itself. Unfortunately, the royal residence was inaccessible because of construction. Still, it was surreal to know that I was walking in the footsteps of Jeanne d’Arc.
On the way back to the train station, I passed an outdoor market with clothes, jewelry, plants, etc. I bought a new shirt and a pair of pants. I needed a new pair of pants, because that morning, I had mistakenly put a pair of pants in the super hot laundromat dryers that should be line dried. They are still wearable, but the lining is kind of “crunchy” now (error #5).
Across from the train station in Chinon was a farmer’s market—VEGETABLES! I took advantage of the opportunity. I bought 6 tomatoes, 1 cucumber, 2 big carrots, 4 bananas, strawberries, cheese, and a mixture of dried fruits and nuts—NO BREAD! I couldn’t wait to get back to the hostel and eat a bread free, nutritious meal. I must say—it was absolutely delicious. BON APPETIT!

1 comment:

  1. I like the stories and photo's. Looks like the weight loss is going well. Keep on walking!

    ReplyDelete