0307 Chartres Cathedral and Paris

19^th July 2015

Heavy rain and thunderstorms last night – Fortunately Troopie continues to be waterproof so there were no problems.  As with any camping though,  (or even living on a yacht) !) the secret is to make sure that everything is put away properly (stowed ?) before you go to bed so that if it does rain or blow during the night you are not running round like a chicken with it’s head cut off !!

Set off through the French countryside , just enjoying the scenery.  Staying off the Peages and just enjoying passing through the little villages and the fields where the harvest is mostly cropped and in.   Before long I came to Chartres, and I remembered visiting there on one of our family holidays many years ago and being taken to see the rose windows – So I decided a visit was worthwhile.  Followed the signs into “Centre Ville” and then saw the spires – Now I just needed a parking space ! Unfortunately Troopie is 2.02 m high so many of the underground car parks are “out of bounds” - if I wish to keep my roof attached to the car, anyway !  Having passed to unusable car parks, I had almost given up and was wandering round ever narrower streets round the back of the cathedral, when the car in front suddenly turned into a sizable gravel car park – With lots of space !  Being a Sunday, nothing much was happening there, so I parked only a 5 minute walk from the cathedral and wandered back.

There are MAJOR renovations going on both inside and outside the cathedral, as well as in the surrounding streets.  Because the building is some 900 years old, I guess it deserves a bit of TLC, and looking at the parts they have done, it will be magnificent when it is finished – Virtually returned to its former glory.  It was originally built prior to 1194, but was burnt down in that year, and then rebuilt in its current design.  (Between the Bayeux Tapestry, Richard the Lionheart’s castle, and Chartres cathedral, there is just so much history around here). 

I wandered round the outside, past the Museum of Fine Arts, admiring the amazing flying buttresses supporting the whole east end of the cathedral. Having recently read some books by Ken Follett about life in England during the 12^th century, and particularly how cathedrals were built in those days (a lot of guesswork !), I can really appreciate how this was all done.  I then walked through the surrounding shops beside the cathedral and then entered through the west door.  Mass was in progress, but inside much of the main aisle of the church was blocked off with plastic sheeting to the ceiling anyway due to the repairs. So little was visible, especially the main rose window over the west door and the Gallery of Kings.  However the North and South rose windows were visible, and the contrast between the whiter (cleaner) renovated sections and the darker original stonework was amazing to see.

Once back outside I  wandered down a couple of little side streets, and found the old Marche Aux Legumes – the old Vegetable Market.  And on the corner opposite was a little boulangerie – so I popped in to get a fresh baguette for my lunch. A delightful couple – obviously the baker and his wife – served me, and he caught me looking at all the other tasty pastries he had on the shelves of his little shop – And tried to interest me in buying some !  We had a good laugh together for a few minutes, and I am proud (but sad) to  admit that I was strong, and left with only my baguette tucked under my arm !  They did look rather good though……Perhaps I should have ?.........

From there I wandered back around the cathedral and back to my car, and set off toward Paris. I did not intend to stop in Paris, but the roads to the NE of France all pass through or around Paris, so I had no choice – I

was hoping that being Sunday the traffic wouldn’t be too bad, but since Bastille Day holiday last week on the 14^th July, many things had been closed with people on vacation, so I wasn’t sure.  In the end it was very busy, with nose to tail traffic for an hour or more, but it all flowed quite well, and before too long I was back out in the countryside where I stopped in a forest to have my lunch with what remained of my baguette after I had been munching on it as I traversed Paris – It was SO tasty just on its own !!  (Maybe I should have bought some of those pastries !)

I was getting quite tired in the afternoon, so I stopped quite early, at about 4 pm, when I saw a sign to a camp site.  Unfortunately it wasn’t a very nice one but I was able to have an afternoon nap that I needed, and then cook some steak for supper before turning in.

Tomorrow I head towards the Belgian border………. 

Pics here :-   https://picasaweb.google.com/110185357936043625130/0307ChartresAndParis?authkey=Gv1sRgCOS66PPB9a2VIg