October 31. La Reole to Bordeaux to Mont-de-Marsen (by train)

We spent the morning exploring the market/ fair and then headed to the train station for a ride to our next pilgrim town. We had to go to Bordeaux, then had 10 minutes to switch trains to Mont-de-Marsen, about an hour for each ride.

The view from the apartment.

If you trample me, we will trample you! Respect me!   Thought this both funny and sad because there were hardly any plants growing in that spot.

So many things we could say about this…I’m not sure where to start… or even if I should start.

How sad is it to go to the biggest outdoor market you’ve ever seen, knowing you can’t buy anything? Waaah! 😭

Oysters? We are only an hour away from the ocean.

Oh oh. Ken sees another maple leaf 🍁 . Methinks he is a tad homesick.  Poor boy.

Only 7900 Euros (about $13000 Csn) for this futuristic looking quad.

And only 500 Euros for that olive tree. About $800.

Persimmons and yellow pomegranates.

What a strange delightful market. Everything from cheap sunglasses and cheesy junk to cars and quads, to fresh produce, oysters and cheeses, to hot tubs and camping gear…so many things to explore and only one small backpack to carry it all.

I think Ken lost.

Fruit trees for only 15 euros…about $24 cdn.

Ken wanted to cross the bridge over the river Garonne (one of France’s largest) as that was the pilgrim route we were supposed to be taking if we had the time.

And look. We could have walked with a cat.

The cheese seller spoke English and was giving us all kinds of cheese to taste. He tried to get Scott to buy a 2 kilo wheel of cheese, said he could roll if it was too heavy. We declined the wheel – too bad as it was sooo good – but we did but some smelly cheese for the road. It went in Ken’s pack because his pack was already stinky and he wouldn’t notice a new smell.

Buying Turkish treats.

I had to buy chichis. Basically a sugar churro without the cinnamon.  He gave us an extra one as a gift.

I gave a chichi to Monsieur Fred who was selling candles and a few odds and ends. I couldn’t buy anything but he sure was happy to get a chichi. I also offered one to the sad lady working in the tourist office where we stored our bags for the morning. She looked like she would rather be at the fair but her face lit up at the sight of the chichi and she said she loved them. It felt good to bring smiles to two faces with such a small gesture as the offer of a chichi.

This is a very interesting town architecturally – this is one of two art deco style buildings. It’s still a theater as originally intended but it no longer has the glass dome on top.

In one of the town squares, when they need electricity for an event, the plugs pop up and when they no longer need it, it flips down to just become cobblestone pavement again. Ingenious idea.

Waiting at the train station. The station closes at lunch (as do most things in France) and the station master takes off. But there is no bathroom (what train station doesn’t have a bathroom?!?!?) And I had to walk back into town and buy a drink from the closest café so I could use their toilet. The boys found their own local solution.

A Camino shell on the train?

I was trying to capture all the egrets in the field. Those would be the tiny white dots on the right. You can see them, right?

This sweet baby came to visit me.

Sleepy Ken.

Our first bull fighting ring of the trip. Can’t say we approve.

How does the tree survive with that big of a hole in it?

Sheep across the road from the train station.

Right beside the sheep was a needle dispenser and a needle disposal unit. Inner city versus pastoral country within feet of each other.

We are staying at another pilgrim refuge. This one was much older than the last and there was no resident hospitalero so we were all by ourselves. A lady came to settle us in and stamp our credentials but she didn’t stay. It was also freezing and the radiators weren’t working except in one room, so she told us to use all the blankets. In this place, the beds and pillows were covered in plastic to prevent bedbugs and had disposable sheets and pillow cases.

To get in, we had to walk down the street to get the key from the Asian supermarket.  A little strange but we got into the building, which used to be the old town baths.

How much is that little doggie in the window?! Because he is real.  And of course he tried to attack Ken through the glass…sadly no photo of that little exchange. The store / dog owner was outside assessing her display at the time.

Halloween night. Only a few trick or treaters and they all carried very small candy collectors (the usual pumpkins and skulls). I couldn’t help but compare to some older kids at home who come around with pillow cases.

This pilgrim refuge is what is a “donativo”, meaning there is no set price, and you pay what you can, based on the facility and whether you get a meal or not. It’s very helpful for pilgrims travelling on a budget. Unfortunately, there are a few who assume it means “free.”  The going rate without a meal would be 13 to 18 euros on this section of the route, but we give more because we appreciate that these places need maintenance and have power bills and the like.

Too cold for us to take showers but it wasn’t a hard walking day and we look forward to getting back to walking tomorrow. Always something new to discover around every corner!