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Friday 15 May 2015
What a wonderful sleep. We chose this B & B for its quietness, location near to Charles de Gaulle Airport, and its welcoming atmosphere. All boxes had a tick. The next test was the breakfast. Wow! We started with the biggest cup of wonderful coffee followed by fresh pastries, locally produced yoghurt, a variety of breads and home made jams, and little cakes. Oh the waistline, but then again there will be plenty of exercise.
We enjoyed our breakfast with a couple from Limoges. One of the objectives of the trip this time was to immerse ourselves, wherever possible, in the local culture. At breakfast time it was getting a real workout. We'll be great speakers of French by day three.
Beauvais was the nearest large town to our accommodation, about 14 kilometres away. Parking was inexpensive and free between 12 noon and 2:00 pm. New paving was being laid in the town hall square and will be great when it is finished. We get the impression it could take a while.
Beauvais's gothic Cathedral has the highest arch ceiling in France. During its early years parts of it collapsed. Today strengthening work
was being undertaken to prevent it from further damage as a result of being built on soft ground. Thoughts of the Leaning Tower of Pisa come to mind.
The area around the cathedral has remnants of very early fortifications dating back to Roman times. Like many European towns and cities Beauvais suffered heavily from bombing in World War 2. Many of the historic half timbered houses were lost. Fortunately one street still has examples of these houses found in Northern France.
The industry this town was famous for was the production of tapestries. The National Tapestry Museum was a "must see" but unfortunately the exhibits were not there. Perhaps on our next trip, or on our way back to Paris in August, we might get to view them.
The weather was not that kind for our first day of sightseeing. It feels more like autumn than spring and the outlook doesn't look bright for the next few days. It must be the Atlantic Ocean influence. Time to find an Intermarche supermarket. From the experiences of our last trip we decided to set ourselves up with supplies that make us self sufficient, especially with breakfast and household chores
Beauvais
A street of half timbered houses. Only a few remain. like washing clothes. The supermarkets are great. You can buy almost anything, including the kitchen sink. This time we did not buy the toaster. We did buy the umbrellas. They are bound to get a workout.
Polly is a great companion. So far she has agreed with our every move no matter how difficult we have made it for her.
We decided to try an Italian restaurant, once owned by our hosts, for our evening meal. The dessert was quite delicious. Once back at the B & B bed was looking really good. So far jet lag has not been a problem, just the low fitness levels. Fingers crossed for some fine weather tomorrow.
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