Today was much less hilly and windy, and I'm getting used to the weight. Averaged 14 mph, and felt great the whole time.
French biking tip: breakfast at the hotel usually includes 4 types of bread (croissant, chocolate croissant, baguette, and roll), spread (jam, nutella, butter), yogurt, coffee, and juice. Take the leftover bread (who eats that much bread?), throw some jam in it, and pack it for the ride for some quick sugar and carbo loading.
Today's route was rolling countryside with cows and horses, huge fields of wheat,
and sunflower fields. All of the sunflowers seem to face East -- natural compass!
The countryside is also dotted with old stone farming houses, apple orchards, and wildflowers. Why is France so beautiful?
Riding was great, still figuring out a few things about my GPS. Michelin guide said it was a 54 mile trip, GPS said 62. In an effort to merge the two I created my own route. Some bikers approached me while I was eating my jam croissant. They asked where I was going, and though they spoke no English we had a great conversation that resulted in them telling me I was about to climb a great hill and that my thighs would soon be very large. The hill was gorgeous -- a popular biking, running, hiking mountain-- and the thighs a nonissue. My one outfit for the month is a dress.
It seems that no one does anything in France on Sundays. Not a single food place was open until mile 30 where I stopped at a boulangerie. I got a double eclair, one chocolate and one coffee, glued together with icing, about the size of my face.
Ate the whole thing and finished the ride like a champ. Leo used to tell me the cyclists on the Tour eat Belgium cakes. I will recommend the double eclair when I see them in Montpellier.
I used their restroom and checked out the baguette-making facility. Wow it smelled great!
I am now in Les Man. The wall around the old city was built by the Romans around 280 AD.
The cathedral is gothic from 1100, and the houses are Norman-style half-timbered from Renaissance time. Very cool place, but the gothic is getting a little creepy. Ready for the Loire Valley.
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