We decided yesterday to stay put in Reims. It was a good decision. Reims is beautiful!!

We packed up our bags and headed out by 9:00 am to run some errands. We started by heading to the post office. We had a gift for Noël’s grandson who will turn 1 on 14 February. And we had a gift for Lindsay as well as some stuff we just decided we didn’t need. Cutting back on weight. Unfortunately the post office didn’t open until 10. Okay next steps.

We wanted to go to the Cathedral Notre Dame in Reims. And on our way we wanted to stop by the Mairie (city hall) to get a stamp. However google maps took us to a school instead. Very nice man tried to point us the way to go. And said to try the church Saint Tomas. I somehow got no photos.

We were able to walk in, literally the first church along the Via Francigena since leaving Saint Quentin. There was obviously some sort of service going to happen the front seats had bulletins on them. A sweet woman greeted us. Noël spoke with her about possibly getting a stamp for our credential. She encouraged us to come back they were about to have a funeral. Noël told her this was the first church that has been opened since Saint Quentin. She asked for our credentials and took them to stamp. 🥹

The priest came to the door. We explained what we were doing. He then engaged us in conversation. Very relaxed. The funeral services were bringing in the flowers and even preparing for the coffin. The priest continued to talk with us in a calm matter. Having done my share of funerals I do not think I would ever be so calm and engaging. I learned so much this morning about being present. And we got our stamps.

Afterwards we headed back to the post office. It was busy but relaxed. The post office officials were very helpful and took people as they came in. It was amazingly efficient and pleasant. We also got a stamp here.

From there we headed back to our accommodation to grab our stuff and walk around. Our next accommodation was going to let us know when we could drop our bags off. So we headed to Notre Dame. Wow. What an amazing church. We got our first Camino stamp. The woman asked if we needed Via Francigena or Chemin St Jacques.

We got to drop our bags at our accommodation and then went to the Cathedral of St Remy. he was the bishop in this area in 437??? And lived to be 96 years old. Amazing!!!

We had lunch and were able to get into our accommodation by 2:00 and have been relaxing. Time for coaching.

Cheers. Hope you are well and being good to yourself.

We had a lovely stay in Hermonville, France. The accommodation is run by a Dutch couple and they have a tea shop next door. We ate dinner at a local restaurant with another couple staying at the same accommodation, they were from England.

We started out a little late after a delicious breakfast at our place.

Today we walked through the woods/forest for a lot of the day. It was beautiful. Truly a winter wonderland again. Also today we met so many other people, cyclists, joggers, walkers, hikers, dogs. It was really fun. We got the occasional “Saint Jacques?” as a runner passed by as well as several groups engaging us in conversation and clearly impressed at our plans.

There were no places to stop today so after halfway we found a bus stop and sat down for 10 minutes to eat pizza leftover from Aux Rempart Gourmand. It was delicious!!

We both commented that today was a good day. One of our best. But honestly the no stops caught up with us and we got very tired and were ready to stop. Noël was very grumpy, not at me but just weary. This can happen with long days.

We are safely in our accommodation after making a brief stop at a cafe just to rest for a few minutes. And you can see that he is doing much better.

Hope you all are well. Thank you for following us and walking with us. If you feel inclined to contribute here is the link.

https://gofund.me/e25bbc66

I love that song but honestly I don’t think I’ve ever actually appreciated it like I do now. After four days of walking through snow and ice I get it. 😂 I mean even our hair froze.

We had a really great day. It started out very foggy and mysterious. And we walked out of Berry au Bac into the countryside and didn’t see a car for 6 kms. We walked into the village of Cormicy and we were hoping that a restaurant was open. But we were not counting on it considering our luck plus the icy conditions.

Voila it was open. The owner said he almost didn’t but came and opened it anyway out of habit. Thank God for good habits. We, of course were his only customers. So we ordered a chicken sandwich and fries to share and took a pizza away. After all he was open and probably not getting a lot of customers. He makes his own buns for sandwiches and his own fries. Delicious!!!

We thought we only had 4-5 kms to go. Nope. It was more like 8. Of course. We walked through vineyards and forest until we reached our destination. We were warmly welcomed by our hostess, who happens to be Dutch ( Noël was so happy to be speaking Dutch for a change) 😂 oh and we had our towel in the shape of a shell.

And now it’s almost time for dinner!! Hope you are well.

We had a nice stay at a lovely hotel last night but a bit expensive. However there was no where else to stay. So first i’m grateful for a good night’s sleep, a nice shower, and for the energetic and happy staff at the hotel. They made the stay even better. Oh also for beautiful views.

When we left the hotel this morning google sent us a way that led to a closed gate. We looked around and tried to go around only to find more fences. We saw a grounds worker and Noël engaged him in conversation to ask if there was a way to get through. He kindly said we had to go back to the hotel. Noël let him know we were already walking 24 kms if there was any way he could help…please? He smiled put his hand up and then went and collected what I finally recognized as a mutilated swan. 🥹 and took us to the gate and opened it for us.

As we walked along this path close to a CentreParcs the maintenance man showed up again and while driving his four wheeled vehicle which we moved out of the way of he cleared a path for us to walk on. And so we walked. Then we realized we had to cross the road. And suddenly behind us here he came again. Clearing a path.

When we got to the next town he had gone another way. We decided it was time to to sit down. We found a little park near the city hall (Mairie) and stared clearing a park bench. A man asked if we wanted something to cover it so we could sit. He brought two feed sacks so we could sit. But he proceeded to talk to Noël from behind the bench, Noël couldn’t sit. We spent 15 minutes talking with the man. He was clearly lonely. His wife had died as well as his dog. 🥹 still another angel. Thankful for his hospitality.

Our path came to a juncture that said “Route barree. That was the path we needed to take. We both decided it was worth the risk. I’m grateful for a partner in adventure!! And it was worth it.

We finally reached our first stop and thankfully they were open and we could sit. We had a lovely Italian meal and the hosts were wonderful.

The last 9 kms turned into 13 kms. I got a bit grumpy. But I’m grateful that clients are gracious, my partner is long suffering and that I can find my good attitude again.