Advertisement
Published: December 22nd 2019
I love Sedan - well that is what the large sign said on the market place . Actually I do love Sedan . It is the second stop on this our Christmas trip away . Gabby reached another milestone this morning . We have had her for a little over 2 years and she clocked up 20,000 miles today .
Did you sleep well last night ? Before I tell you about our quiet and peaceful night hold this thought " Do not say it is just morning and dismiss it with the name of yesterday . See it for the first time as a newborn child that has no name " Rabindranath Tagore wrote that and it is so easy to just say I slept well last night and this morning came around quickly . Instead I intend to look at today as a new day in Sedan and my brain has pages waiting to be written on about the experience . We woke up to a quiet aire just a few dog walkers out and a few runners doing a circuit of the walls . It rained last night stopping us going up into town to investigate it
at night, We were worrying about the weather but we need not have worried . So far it is warm enough in the day and any coolness just comes around at night. We are cosy in our duvets and have the heating to rely on if it becomes chilly. In addition a blanket to throw over us or an extra duvet under the bed.
Over a breakfast of croissants the subject of the inverter came up again . Against it I had put up every arguement under the sun . Now I realised I needed electricity to charge up toothbrushes, shaver and computers. Toast in a morning - the list started to go on and on and seemed to push me into thinking the inverter was perhaps a good idea . We contacted the company who fitted the battery and are awaiting a cost and a date to fit it .
We felt a little sad leaving our copper beeched edged plots all ready for the drive to Sedan . We put the world to rights on the way . Boris and the large majority he recieved in the recent general election , thoughts that we would be
leaving the EU finally on the 31st January . Another year of transition - trade agreements - new passports - our reciprocal arangements for health care would no longer be available . Would our insurance for health go up? So many questions and so many disagreements still going on. We were glad to be aware from the TV and the news. We just gave a big thankyou to Rockroi for welcoming us .
Glenn had sourced out free parking at Sedan beneath the fort /chateau. Plenty of room for Gabby, It was free and we could have stayed all night if we had wanted to. The car park was empty . Go on you want to know about the battery . Did it charge up? Yes it did everything the fitter said it would . We are so scared that it wont that we still dont believe it will make us self sufficient . Let us see what tonight brings .
Sedan was founded in 1424 and became an asylum for Protestant refugees during the Wars of Religion. It was until 1651 the set of the La Tour d'Auvergne family . During the Franco Prussian War Napoleon III
was imprisoned here . During WW1 Sedan was occupied by the Germans for four years. Again during the Second World War the Germans invaded the town crossing the Meuse river . A river we were coming to both love and hate this trip . Sedan was certainly a town with a big history . We locked Gabby up and headed into the fort for a piece of that history . The fort has the title of being the largest in Europe .We walked through the Princes Gate into an inner courtyard with a hotel restuarant at its heart , We paid 8 euros 50 each reduced rate for seniors and were told that today there would be a fire drill. The drill was lost in translation somewhere along the line .Should we stay in and ignore it or leave the building? we never quite worked that one out . The fort was massive but easy to find a way round . Green arrows showed us the way. Onto the ramparts , into empty rooms . Shells of that they once must have looked like . The cellars were used to play games in the past and we saw the rooms
where the soldiers lived , slept and ate. Lifelike models made up scenes in each room. The chapel was fulled with armour and weapons of war. . Through the windows we saw the town below us . We thought we might have seen some sign of the chairs that Sedan was famous for . But no - not one sedan chair in sight . OUr last stop in the castle was for a coffee . The cafe was prettily decorated for Christmas with a large tree in the fireplace and lights hanging from the ceiling . It felt Christmassy , This is what we have come to France for . A touch of Christmas cheer . We sat for a while just taking in the fact that we had made it and the holiday so far was living up to expectations. Glenn had to use a spoon to eat his coffee - the cream was so thick on the top.
So what else is there to say about Sedan . The church was disappointing. Rather drab inside with modern stained glass . A Crib stood in the corner . Outside there were signs of a Christmas market - Had
it been open the chestnuts would have been on a list of must buys . A huge market was covering the streets selling wicker baskets , clothings, fruit and vegetables , shoes and handbags . There was a bustling feeling to the heart of Sedan . A visit to the nearest cake shop found me buying Tartellate aux framboises , tarte au citron , more croissants for tomorrows breakfast and an obligatory baguette.
Sedan had an unpretentious feel . It was an energetic little town in the North East of France lying just some 10 kms from the Belgian border . It had a french feel and many pretty streets but equally there was that Belgian feel about it , A clean town , very neat and tidy.
Yes it is fair to say I love Sedan .
Advertisement
Tot: 0.094s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 13; qc: 31; dbt: 0.0594s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Jackie Harrison
non-member comment
France
Glad you have got away for Christmas and the battery is working ok! We had an inverter in our Campervan and used it a lot when we were in Aires and didn't have electricity. Just useful for charging toothbrushes, phones, camera. laptops and we also managed to run a TV off of it! Merry Christmas! x