Floyd

August 23: Things have been conspiring against me for the last few days, and I think I “hit the wall” (metaphorically speaking – thankfully) and needed a bit of down time. Five weeks of travel sounds like great fun until you pack and unpack 35 times in a row.  But I’m sure my protests fall on deaf ears.. Here’s some random stuff with the promise of something more thoughtful soon.

This is a shot of the north shore of Lac Leman just coming into Montreaux. At the right edge of the shot is Chateau Chillon where Lord Byron and Mary Shelley hung out. She wrote Frankenstein here in 1816. * Next is the main rail line from Geneva to Italy, and points south. Some vineyards, a few houses and the auto route running up the Rhone valley. The former city planner in me is amazed at the land use relationships people tolerate. There’s not a lot of room and they sure make use of every inch.

This is a shot from just west of L’Alpe d’Heuz (Alp Dooez). The Alps are used extensively by the Tour de France: long runs down the valleys and climbs over the Cols. L’Alpe d’Heuz is frequently a finishing stage because it is a ski town atop 29 switchbacks and effectively, the end of the road. It was on my “bucket list” of places to see but was strangely disappointing. Without men in spandex (OK, there were quite a few trying to prove they could ride the Tour), no crowds, and no excitement, it really is just a ski town and not a very pretty one at that.

This is St Martin Vesubie just about an hour north of Nice. This is where I stayed when I exchanged the car / bike. I left headed west and along the way went further up the mountain to a small town called Rimplas. There, I met a 91-year old man who remembered when there were no cars, no road and no electricity in the town. He went on to work for Air France and had flown on the Concorde. A much younger 82-year old told me about collecting milk and mining salt for sale in Nice. Having to haul it down the mountains and 100 or so kilometers into town was quite and ordeal. People have amazing stories if you have the patience to hear them.

And finally, this is St. Martin’s church in Donzenac where I have been for the last 2 days fighting off a case of Delhi Belly. Not fun, but then nobody said that travel was always fun. Hopefully, some potions and a couple of days and I can get “over the wall” and back to some good eating.

 

• When I was in Germany, I would frequently find myself remembering bits from Mel Brooks’ version Young Frankenstein, or his other classic Blazing Saddles. That tells you everything you need to know about my appreciation for the arts….. Frau Blucher.