Last night after posting the blog, I returned to the Cathedral with Tim to check out the annual - lucky timing for us - light show, this year featuring the Museum of Chartres, and the front and side of the Cathedral. It was about 11pm, freezing cold, but I would not have missed it for anything. Its difficult to tell from still photos, but it changed themes and scenes about 4 times. Our favourite was a depiction of workmen abseiling from the top of the spires and walls, and building the cathedral from the ground up, finishing with a splash of colour. Ive never seen anything like it.
Today is easy. We have to be out of our apartment by 11am, well have croissants and a few coffees for breakfast - thats me anyway - and drive to the cathedral for a look, crepes for lunch, and well hit the road.
Most places you rent have a pod coffee machine with the pods supplied, so after a walk downhill to the local patisserie, we had the makings of a sweet, decadent breakfast.
the old town, and our building was Chapel, of the former Hospice of the Twentysix Blind People, started elsewhere in 1291 by Renaud Barbou, an adviser to Philippe the Beautiful . It was transferred to this place after its destruction in the Siege of 1566.
Most of Chartres old town narrow cobblestone streets are definitely one way, and any vehicle bigger than todays smallest would have to choose their route carefully.
The Cathedral is a short, steep walk up the hill, and sits at the highest point of the town. Surrounding it are medieval residential buildings and a retail district buildings, restaurants, and cafs. A prestigious stained glass school is located nearby, as Chartres is a centre for fine glasswork in France.
The Cathedral is a mixture of gothic and renaissance architecture, and features, naturally enough, intricate stained glass windows, and a series of sculptured scenes, circling the back of the alter, created by various artists from the 15th and 16th centuries. They depict important moments in the life of Christ and are a delicate, white collage of beautiful art.
when Jesus was born, and while it has been recognised as original cloth from the period and type worn in the times, I am sceptical . Either way, I thought the Cathedral was one of those places that was peaceful and had a spiritual feel to it. Im not a church goer at home, but I in joining fellow pilgrims at mass on the Camino, and often you were given a special mention and singled out for recognition.
Chartres is an important Camino destination in France, and the symbols and the direction markers always lead you to the church or cathedral, and continue on from there.
I had a long chat with a French Parisian lady who had started in Paris and was going all the way to Santiago. She was a management consultant who works to manage staff effectively. She said in her experience, the biggest problem was convincing managers that their staff were their greatest asset, and deserve respect. She hasnt invented the wheel there; news,
Its 1625 kilometres to Santiago from Chartres, about double anything Ive ever done. She had walked various other Caminos and assisted as a
helper in Alburgues on some of her walks. She was a gracious lady, and unexpectedly planted the French two cheek kiss as we parted. Oo la la !
Lunch was a Normande crepe, which was ham, cheeses, and apple sorbet, topped with a lightly marinaded single leaf salad. It was made with buckwheat and was gluten free, not that it matters to me. Its the taste that counts; ten out of ten.
Once we were on the road again, a plan hatched to visit the Gardens of the Chateau Villandry. It was near Tours, our home for the next 5 days, and has some of the best gardens in France. After visiting, it could be said that they are a more intricate, better version of Versailles. It was built around 1536, and serves just one of many castles in the Loire Region.
