ORLÉANS arrived 2, departed 4 May

We had  a lovely morning cycling to Orleans from Chateauneuf despite the early rain. It was lucky that we had done our sightseeing of Chateauneuf the evening before as the wet morning was certainly  didn’t enhance the place. Still struck by the memorial to those who were transported during WWII after being caught as partisans – the figure of a man looking up, dressed in clothes of concentration camps; there was a wreath of flowers at his feet laid as part of the May 1 ceremonies. [Ate a dessert thing called a figue I expected would be fig but was instead a marzipan covered chocolate shaped like a fig]

Anyway, this day we only had to cycle 39km & this mainly along stopbanks, through farmland many of them newly tarsealed much like the day before. Many more freisan cows on the way & smell of silage.
At Jargeau we stopped to have a look round the old town centre & as is usual spied a teashop that needed customers so there we stayed enjoying a chocolat chaud a la maison while a passing shower played itself out. Lovey photos of traditional Loire river boats, Joan of Arc statue, the town’s steel market hall, a British phonebox which is now a book-swap, and the lovely but empty streets.  As we left the town a group of cycle tourists camped out in the Irish pub waved at us through the window.

As we wound our way alongside the Loire we began to see more and more people out running, walking or fishing so we knew we were nearing a larger centre. Were stopped to look at a sand mining complex, which was quite extensive & tried to work out how the system worked.

And, then as the sun really came out, the signs pointed us onto a bridge taking us into Orléans with cycle lanes directing us through into the old centre where we stopped for lunch in a café (Le Lutetia) opposite the cathedral. We basically camped out there for a couple of hours enjoying good tea, onion soup (V) and aubergine salad (V), and took turns investigating the inside of the cathedral. I took much longer as I am totally in awe of the splendor of the stained glass windows and the intricacies of the carvings both in stone & in wood. Too many photos taken.

 

We then spent another two hours pushing our bikes round the old town marveling at the half timbered buildings, the two arteries of the tram system, the flags and the statues that were everywhere. We bought food to share with our Warmshower host, Lauré, at the indoor market and then made our way to her part of town for our 6pm meeting. As we progressed up Rue de De Gaulle the flavour of the shops changed as did the ethnic diversity; many more were Middle Eastern and African.

Lauré was very welcoming & we soon settled in for an evening of chat about cycle touring, politics and French life generally. We also took the opportunity to do our laundry. Laure proved to be a delightful person to share time with and just the type of experience WS is designed to deliver.

The next morning we slept in & had a leisurely start knowing nothing opens before 10am. Booked our next lot of accommodation via WS & Air B&B then set off to the Museum of Fine Arts, stopping to check out Joan on her horse and the intricate carousel found in the same square as the Chamber of Commerce building. The art collection is extensive ranging from 16th C through to early 20th C artists – I was particularly taken by a work by Castiglione (1645) entitled Virgin & enfant as it a radically different style to the others of the period and by two artist I had never heard of, one Léon Cogniet and other Maurice Quentin de La Tour.

 


After nearly two hours there we went back to the apartment for lunch. Whilst there it poured so we took our repast at a leisurely pace! Had to don our raincoats anyway in the end as wanted to visit the History and Archeology museum where there was an exhibition on migrants to France ranging from Spanish and Portuguese arriving during 1930s to avoid dictatorships & Poles post WWII avoiding Soviets through to Vietnamese, Laotian,  Senagalese and other African nation that were colonised by the French. Such diversity welcomed but how things have changed in recent years, Imagine if Marine Le Pen gains the Presidency!! We also viewed the standing exhibition of pottery, stone lintels, enamelware, pewter plates & marquets of Loire boats. A very strange place & at one stage we got locked into a side room by one of the security – Caroline had to bang loudly to ensure we were let out!! Needed our tea stop after that to recover so called in at Un Piano for tea & cakes as advertised. This is a vegan lunch & afternoon tea place – very peaceful & refined.

Found a bike shop so Caroline could purchase an inner tube then it was to the open-air market to buy food for the evening meal we decided to prepare for Laure & ourselves – fresh pasta with aubergine & tomato sauce. Whilst I prepared the meal the rain hosed down so Laure arrived rather wet. Over a warming meal we again talked travels … another most enjoyable evening.
Orleans is certainly a city worth visiting.