Two, two, two days in one!!!

We just didn't get around to blogging yesterday. We seemed to be on the go all day; however, didn't really accomplish anything!! First of all we had great plans to visit Beaune for the entire day but it seems jet-lag had another idea and we completely overslept and didn't wake up until just after 10 a.m. So, by the time we got coffee, breakfast and the sleep out of our eyes it was just too late in the morning to set off for Beaune. As everything here (as in most parts of Europe) is closed between 1-4 pm for their lunch we would be just getting there as everything was closing. Plan B!! The nicest thing about yesterday morning was, however, receiving an email from our builder that the house will be completed for an October 15 occupancy. And he sent a couple of photos of the kitchen almost completed and the living room area. It looks pretty good. My Island friend, Lois, also sent a new photo of the exterior with the siding and stone work completed -- also looks good. So despite our oversleeping we did get a nice start to the day with that news! Plan B consisted of exploring a little more of the area by car (got bikes Wednesday). First, we went to Comblachien to check out the boulangerie we heard so much about. It was, of course, after 1pm so it was closed until 4pm. So we went over a few kms back to Nuit St George and ended up having a great lunch there again at a different cafe -- Cafe de Paris. The food was great and it was so nice sitting at n outdoor cafe sipping vin rouge with lunch. After lunch we explored the pedestrian mall with the shops before heading to heading back to Comblachien for BREAD!!! We had a few minutes to wait until 4pm and visited a lovely park in the village (it was almost as big as the whole village!). We thought it would make a great place to stop for our lunch break when we are cycling in the area. As we were sitting in the park vans and trucks came from across the motorway with their horns honking and yelling out of the vehicles. All we could figure was that their part of the grape harvest was complete (as it was the same type of vehicle we saw parked all over the vineyards) and they were beginning the celebration. We have yet to confirm this with anyone local. At 4pm we got to the Boulangerie as it was just re-opened. We got two Gougere (a typical Burgundian puff pastry with local cheese inside) and a loaf of bread. It all looked pretty good! There were gigantic macaroons of various colour and flavours. They are considerably different from what we call macaroons with coconut, etc. These are meringue cookies of different colours with filling in flavours corresponding to the colour. We didn't buy any (this time!) but I am dying to try just one!! These are the photos from Tuesday: Wednesday's Stuff: This morning (after a crazy night of no sleep for either of us!! -- that's what you get when you sleep past 10 am the previous morning!!) we had to get up early to welcome the arrival of our bikes. The woman we rented from said she would deliver them in her van, so we agreed to that. The bikes: Well, let's just say they weren't exactly what we expected. She had assured us they were "hybrids" but, by N. American standards, they really are a type of mountain bike. They aren't particularly light, they have a fatter tire (more like a comfort bike tire) and their frame is very like a mountain bike. We have cycled in many parts of the world and have rented many different types of bikes, so we thought we would just give them a try rather than compare them to what we have at home. As it turns out, after 2 hours plus of an introductory riding day, they handle very well on the roughly asphalted back roads around here, as well as on the packed gravel roads through the vineyards. They also have very good climbing gears!! It is a lot more hilly here than we thought it would be. Each village requires a climb out and then a descent to the next village. This, of course, requires another climb out. So we got a lot of practice climbing today!! We also found many intersecting back roads which lead to many villages. There is such a wide ranging selection of roads to cycle we doubt we'll get bored and it probably would be difficult to get lost easily. We are looking very much forward to spending time on the bikes, even though they aren't really hybrids and certainly aren't even close to a road bike. But, like we just said, we've certainly been of worse rentals that these! All in all, a great morning! After lunch we headed out to do a little shopping for dinner and wine. And it was also a "wash day." The laundry is in the basement here, but it is a creepy, damp basement with spiders (yes, Malcolm, I kill them!!). We both have to go down there as I'm not brave enough to go it alone yet! LOL Dinner was actually quite good for an experiment. It was my (Lois') version of a vegetarian Pot au Feu -- full of leeks, onions, carrots, savoy cabbage, celery and turnips simmered in broth with a bouquet de garnee.(sp?) I added just a handful of penne pasta to give it a bit of body and sprinkled fresh parmesan on top. It was served with the rustic bread from the Comblachien Boulangerie. I am sure the French would turn up their noses, but it was delish!! So, tomorrow is a Beaune day. We can take a tour of a recommended wine cave as well as enjoy all the rest that Beaune has to offer. It will no doubt be lunch and dinner out, so no cooking for Louisa!! Hope you enjoy the photos from our first cycling day! OH, Richard took his first "selfie" today on the road -- he has promised never to do that again!!! LOL