Arrondissement de Tournon

August 30, Friday
One is NOT the loneliest number.
Day 10 Revel-Tourdan to Assieu, 24 km.
But ending up in Chavanay.

It is a long, confusing, and complicated story. You may need a map😁😅

The last two day's uncertainty was all brought to an end by Isabelle and Catherine. As I walked towards the
‎Église Notre-Dame de Surieu, for a look at ‎Saint-Romain-de-Surieu, the two ladies came out after prayers. We struck up a conversation as Isabelle spoke a bit of English. As I explained my walk and situation, they decided to help. Let's back up to Wednesday...

As I was walking the 26 km in the heat to La Cote St Andre on Wednesday and passing a house where Gilbert was cutting grass for his elderly friend, he paused and came out to chat in English. The retiree spent a few years in his childhood near Philadelphia, where his father was posted in the U.S. He told me that there was a big concert that night in La Cote St Andre during the French composer Berlioz music festival. I told him I would stay at Berlioz's old family barn that had been restored to a gite and gave him a Canadian Pin.

Yesterday morning, I decided not to walk due to the right foot swelling. Herve, the gite owner, would drive me to Revel-Tourdan, a 24 km distance. When I was having breakfast at the gite dining room, Gilbert came in looking for me.

'I was looking for you at the concert but could not see you. I thought you must have been very tired yesterday.
"Please, sit down and join me for a coffee."

We chatted for an hour - he was divorced from his wife and looking after his 93 years old father. The 68 years old is also renovating his house, which was bought by his mother years ago. We exchanged life stories, and he paused and looked at my eyes directly.

"Your Canadian Pin is a precious gift. I need to see you to say thanks again as I didn't see you at the concert. You mentioned you were staying here, so I took a chance to see if you are still here."

It confirms my belief that you take gratitude graciously and spread yours selflessly. Gil took the initiative, looking for and thanking me. I took the time to listen to his interesting stories and tell mine. Random meet up in life may not repeat itself. A rare opportunity, by design or by luck. Your instinct will place where your trust should go. A leap of faith as we do not know what the future would unfold.

When I arrived at Revel-Tourdan auberge on Thursday, where there was NO one inside---I had the whole house, a weird design but clean and tidy. I pondered if I should walk the whole 24 km in 30C to Assieu the next day (i.e., today, Friday). According to plan, Natalie would pick me up at the Church and drove me to her home in Les Cote d'Arey to stay overnight, which is about eight kilometers north of Assieu. Then she would dropped me back in Assieu on Saturday so I would continue my walk to my next stop, Bessey, which is 22 km from Assieu.

The next surprise came when Natalie texted me that she could not pick me up until 8 pm! If and when I arrived at Assieu, I had to wait at the Church until 8pm. I would have arrived at Assieu by 3pm if I walked the entire 24km from Revel-Tourdan to Assieu. My foot swelling was still there, albeit it was better after taking ibuprofen. I decided that when I reached Assieu, instead of waiting for Natalie, I would find a place to sleep over, which was closer to Bessey, so my walk to there would be shorter. But, I could not find anything on Booking.com and all the places listed on Google Map. To complicate things, there are only two bridges crossing River Rhone. Bessey is on the other side. Thus, I would prefer to stay overnight near one of the bridges.

Today's walk from Revel-Tourdan to Assieu was not difficult, crossing farmlands and passing through some shaded forests. The stony paths do not bother me much anymore. I was making good progress. The temperature had already gone from the morning 20C to the mid-20. It would climb to a maximum of 33C by 2pm. Since I repacked my 8 kg backpack by placing more weight on the top, it seemed not as heavy. I was still thinking where I would find a new place to stay over.

Isabelle and Catherine said," Let's get help at the Sport center not far away from the church." Martine of the Sports center listened to Isabelle explaining my predicament. I wish I could speak French. I'm placing my trust and faith in these three ladies' conversations. We tried to call a few places, and they were full. Martine then found the communal gite in Chavanay, which is on the other side of Rhone. She called, and there was space. We all were excited. I never thought of staying in Chavanay in the first place and did not think of staying over on the other side of Rhone tonight. Isabelle and Catherine were so pleased to solve the puzzle since they had never walked a Camino before. We jumped into Catherine's car, leaving Isabelle's at the sports center. With Isabelle's navigation, Catherine drove about 15km in 20 minutes to reach the Chavanay communal gite. Evelyne, the gite hospitallier, was so happy waiting for us.

I am so grateful to Isabelle, Catherine, and Martine's assistance. I texted Natalie not to pick me up in Assieu anymore and thanked her for offering to stay at her home. Farewell to the two kind ladies and hello to an energetic gite hospitallier.

It was Evelyn's one week volunteering at the gite. As a hospitallier, she maintained the upkeep of the gite and served the pilgrims, including preparing for dinner and breakfast. This lady from Lyon had done this twice and walked to Santiago from home once. Again, if I could speak French as she had so much to tell me. My Google Translate was non-stop, even though she spoke some English. She gestured there had been ZERO pilgrim coming through since she started three days ago. She was so ecstatic for my arrival that she could lift me up. A tour of the gite followed, and so were the rules with a delightful treat of coffee and snacks. I then settled down at the best bed on the first floor, as Evelyne had pointed out. An hour later, she rushed to tell me that two women pilgrims would arrive soon. You should have seen her face, a little girl getting her wish of candy or something! They would stay upstairs so I would not be disturbed.

Well, enough for now, as this episode ended happily. The twists and turns, the expected and the unexpected, the ups and downs, all make life interesting. I learned sometimes ago that it's not what happens to you. It's what you do about it. I literally walked to a fork today on the path and remembered Robert Frost's famous quote:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference."

Buen cheminBaca lagi