Arrival, no one to meet...did she make it?? Hey, let's ask the car rental people...she asks, 'We're looking for a small town with a miller's home..name of the town is "A bey a bay or A bay a bey"...it's near e-per-nay', she sez in almost a Texas drawl. They look to me, 'I don’t know; she wants to be in charge, fine'....'Her name's Donna Dell', she continues

'Sorry, your client isn't in our files...no one by that name picked up a car'...we rent the car that's on hold for us...we get map of Reims/Epernay area...town we’re looking for is just off the western side of the map...all things against us...head out from Paris aeroport

Chart a course...hiway system quite easy and in fact very easy and informative, lots of directional signs...reach Reims at about 730p...on to Epernay... drive around 'centre' of city confident we will find Best Western and we do....approx $70/nite... free park across street, enjoy in-room bar...pay up in the morn, whoops...and the parking lot is now gated after 7a, no way out...gee, I guess we have to pay toll...well, go across street to the bank ATM...humm out of order...oh well the bank...no it’s closed on Monday...we get in our car... as car in front of us pays toll, automatic gate arm swings up...we rush in behind... and OUT...outlaws on the run...!!!

Try to sleep while sister drives...jet laaagggggggg. Continue southwest to Sens and another hotel right down the street from the cathedral and everything...and then FINALLY that evening make contact with client...will meet her tomorrow in the town if Montmarte and then on to the Moulin Minette (miller’s house) in the village of Orbais l'Abbaye

View facing Northwest	View facing Southeast

Enter thru here to hear a short clip of the Bells of L’église Saint Pierre-Saint Paul d'Orbais l'Abbaye (a Monday morning 'bout 8:30am)

Gas on a sundaay afternoon…when everything is closed… Drive to Epernay with an eighth of a tank. We’ll use credit card. Arrive at 24hr petro station; nope, their Master Card system is not the same…we have 40f on us in change…I start asking people in French if they speak English - we will give them the 40f for use of their gas card - even if they do understand they won’t assist. I spot a family in a van. Ask the husband for assistance, but then excuse myself, I figure he’s got enough problems talking thru his throat due to cancer

What to do?? Maybe stay the nite get $$/gas in morning. About to drive off and this same man knocks on our car window…’Car problems?’ he asks…’No, petro’, I tell him… looks at the gauge, ‘Oui, you got problems’, he sez…actually we mostly pantomined the entire exchange…him and his wife actually knew what we wanted to do…as we put all our money into their hands…explaining the situ with the credit card. We got 6ltr., enough to get us home and back for a full tank, on Monday. These people were angels sent to us…and we told them so…the husband just waved us off…as to say, this is what people do for each other; just doing my job ma’am

Avril 9th Mon 2p, after one wk of work and continual drizzle, head south to see the Sun… south of France – head southwest to Sezanne, stop at sidewalk café across from buttressed cathedral, Church Saint-Denis...pipe organ/fountain w/ Charles Laughton’s face…really, look close, weird huh?

Pyrennes – even more majestic and breathe-taking as expected. As we head south blown by the cool wind into warmer regions…and Spain

Tossa Del Mar - we figure that meant ‘the sea is rough and you throw up’, especially if you order the seafood…but beautiful castle overlooking the sea, harkens back to Spanish lords/governors and early city/states. We also found excellent Chinese food and a little bar & terrace, the 'el Tortuga' where one can sit and look out over the Mediterranean.

And then, the next morning...

On to Barcelona for a quick jaw-dropping look at the work of the Master of Gaudism... Senor Gaudi himself and Barcelona's El Templo de La Sagrada Família. Disgusting isn't it? Not so much the design -inverted icea creama cones- but that the city pollution has been allowed to continue, impact such damage. Shows what a 100 yrs of acid rain'll do.

Narbonne, France – 12th C. Basilica, proudly juts up from the promotory; a cathedral, unfinished being restored. Dedicated to St Juste and St Pasteur

Just awesome, as we walked down one side street, we saw corner tower w/ different style stone looking like ‘rook’ with little vertical slits up top from which to shoots arrows, at those in the open countryside...

Café spot is within castle walls

Lyon and then northwest to…
Sens-on-the-Seine – organ pipes, transept Rosette

Outside within middle courtyard/horse stables. And...

This is the Cathedral to Saint Columbi, just off the main road north of Sens. Interior was being refurbished. Also on the grounds was a nunnery, a parochial school and many well-attended gardens. Lori was all concerned we'd get caught trespassing. I told her, "We get caught, just pretend we're Japanese".

Reims- Good Friday…we have outside front views and close-ups of architecture

We leave before it’s finished, Lori runs off to find bathroom – she could write a book just on the ‘Joys and Smells of Wayside Relief’ – I watch the worshipers exit church…one very bent frail old women with sweet face…all alone, walks near our car. I think, ‘If he was here today, this is truly someone Christ would heal’, she steps off curb…oh shit too high, and down she goes. Just lies there, oh shit; get out of car. Others come to help, her glasses have cut her near her temple, there’s blood…oh shit. Young man uses his cell phone. Lori arrives, attempts to take charge… everyone in French trying to help, get the woman to sit down…but she doesn’t want a doctor or ambulance just her glasses - broken - and to walk home. Meds arrive, talk her into letting them check her over and take her home… whew, another example of these kind people…

Paris- Norte Dame Cathedral -what can be said…

line's too long... so we say heck with it, head for the Louvre…

long line there too…and we figure, huge crowd inside…keep walking

And then, voila! In the distance…the Eiffel tower...
and a loooong walk…windy/cold…

But -once we arrive- oh so grand…

and all the people... ...from everywhere.

But wait, there's even more....