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    • Fietstocht naar Frankrijk
      2
      Day 10

      Etappe 9 - Bourges, wij zijn op koers

      August 1, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      Vandaag een kleine tussen-etappe voor de vluchters. En die vluchters waren wij!! Vandaag bijna alleen op asfalt mogen rijden wat de rit iets saaier maakte maar wel veel sneller. Deze overwinning mogen wij bijschrijven. 💪Nu genieten van een rustdag met een pastisje. Inmiddels zitten wij al 3 uur uit te blussen op hetzelfde terras. Het is niet dat wij weg willen maar wij kunnen niet. 🤪 Morgen weer lekker uitslapen en dan voor de 2e keer de welverdiende massage ontvangen. Wat een weelde!!Read more

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    • Fietstocht naar Frankrijk
      Day 11

      Rustdag #2 - stilstaan is puffen

      August 2, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      De laatste rustdag is alweer een feit. En wat hebben wij het lekker gehad. Ondanks de hitte (34 graden) hebben wij Bourges middels de guilty en nerdy pleasure van Jelle verder ontdekt. Geocaching! Bij iedere 2 gevonden caches moest er een dopje Pastis worden weggetikt. We hebben uiteindelijk maar liefs 10 caches gevonden (gotta catch them all 😋). De 299 is bereikt!! In de middag zijn wij het topplan van mister Tomahawk uit gaan werken door naar een strandje iets buiten de stad te gaan. Afkoelen en relaxen; wat een goede combinatie! Ondanks een klein mankement met het cijferslot konden wij door de magische vingers mister T weer thuiswaards keren. 'S-avonds hebben wij uiteindelijk in een kroeg de wedstrijd der wedstrijden gezien Monaco-PSV. Het was lastig maar wij hebben ons in de kroeg in Frankrijk tussen alleen maar Monaco fans staande weten houden. 💪Helaas (maar misschien ook wel goed ook) was de cocktail bar dicht, want we hebben morgen een superzware etappe in het vooruitzicht. Bijna 100 kilometer in een temperatuur van 36 graden. Oh lord help us!! 😵Read more

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    • TravelerFrance 2022
      Day 5

      Chartres and Bourges

      October 5, 2022 in France ⋅ 🌙 59 °F

      Elizabeth had a quiet morning at our quaint little apartment while I took off early to explore and wander the cobblestone streets in the old city one more time. I stopped off at the cathedral, wandered through the outside market, and stopped off at a patisserie/boulangerie for a delicious croissant breakfast.

      I wasn’t looking forward to the bus ride to Orleans to catch the train to Bourges, but I really enjoyed it. We drove through the countryside and passed through little villages. I’d travel this way again!

      We reached Bourges where Elizabeth stayed last year. She was so excited to show this charming town to me. Everywhere I go in France is my favorite place. Now, Bourges is my favorite! We took a short walk around the cathedral and stopped for a snack and some wine and cheese to have later.

      I understand why Elizabeth loves Bourges…a lovely town in the Loire Valley. It is built on a hill overlooking swampy plains. And, yes, it too has a spectacular cathedral and a timbered old town! Cathédrale St Étienne (12-13th century) has 2 towers. The North Tower (Butter Tower) was financed by taxing anyone eating butter during Lent! It must have been a popular idea because they did the same thing at the cathedral in Rouen. I know I would be paying a lot of taxes.

      Our accommodation dates back to 1567! I am so impressed, and I have a view of the cathedral from my window! I’ve had it with carrying luggage up 3 flights of winding narrow stairs. I asked a young couple walking by if they would do it! Yes, I rewarded them with some mad money!

      Elizabeth and I laugh about how we take care of each other. She goes to the wine store for a treat, and I go to the patisserie or chocolatier for a treat! And we are both very happy laughing all the way! I am sampling some the regional wines, though.

      Bourges is beautiful at night, too, and we walked down the narrow cobblestone streets all lit up. We ended up at an Italian restaurant which pleased me! The waiters were so personable, and we enjoyed conversation with them. Even the chef/owner came out to talk to us.

      I have all the beautiful shutter windows open, and I’m listening to the pleasant chatter of people at the little cafe restaurant outside our windows and to the bells of the cathedral ringing out right now. This is a magical place. Notice the night view of the cathedral from my window!      Read more

    • TravelerFrance 2022
      Day 6

      Bourges

      October 6, 2022 in France ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

      We started the day like many of the French…stopping at the neighborhood boulangerie/patisserie for a quick breakfast which was a quiche Lorraine for me. We couldn’t resist buying a macaron for later. We’ll, we each bought 3 macarons that didn’t make it to lunch! Hands down the best I have ever had in France.

      We decided to take petit train tour here in Bourges which was a great way to get a look at the old town. We stopped at a crêperie restaurant for an authentic Brittany savory galette complèt which is a buckwheat crêpe with ham, cheese, and an egg on top. I had to finish it off with a sweet butter sugar crêpe! Ok, I’m not feeling too guilty because I’m walking over 5 miles a day!

      Of course, a trip to Bourges has to include a visit to thé Cathédrale St Étienne. The exterior of this Gothic cathedral is so majestic, and the interior with all the stained glass panels and rose windows is spectacular. Photos never truly capture the vibrant colors. We took a walk through the gardens next to the cathedral, too.

      We covered a lot of distance walking the old city, and we did some shopping by visiting a few brocantes which are like vintage shops. Elizabeth found a few souvenirs and discovered that the owner of the apartment that she rented last year owns the store. What a great reunion she had! I always look for a little art and especially love watercolors. But I found a beautiful original oil painting by Dupin Dominique that I loved. They had the perfect frame for it, too! It is being shipped home for me.

      A man looked at Elizabeth and she smiled. Well, that started a conversation between them. The problem is that he latched on and kept trying to walk and talk with us. We couldn’t lose him, so we went into the artist shop (where I bought my painting). He hung around outside and we thought he had gone. About 25 minutes later we were walking in the opposite direction to lose him, and he appeared out of nowhere…creepy to say the least. We were then quite adamant about him leaving us alone, and we walked away from him. We didn’t see him again.

      Elizabeth says that she’s saved my life many times. I am so bad about wandering in streets. The problem is that the cobblestone streets are narrow and at times there’s no defined sidewalk…or the sidewalks are so narrow one tends to walk in the street. Which is what I usually end up doing. I’m going to try to focus more, so she can relax and not freak out!

      So tired that we went across the street to a highly recommended restaurant Ça te dit which roughly means “Do you feel like it?” The only thing I understood on the chalk menu was the word poulet, which is chicken. It was Thai food with curry. If you know me, you know that’s a real adventure for me. Well, it wasn’t bad, and I did eat some of it.

      It’s our last night here, and it’s hard to leave. I loved the apartment, the neighborhood, the people…everything here in Bourges. Tomorrow it’s a train ride to La Charité for a 5 day cooking adventure which should be very interesting for me!      Read more

    • TravelerFrance2024
      Day 3

      Bourges Day 2

      April 16 in France ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

      Having a little snack after a very late morning. Still pretty tired. The weather is uncooperative with wind and cloudy skies, but what we've seen, this medieval city is pretty cool. The cheese is French and tasty, but just from the store, so we don't know where specifically it's from. After a jaunt out to the tourist information office, we toured the inside of the Bourges Cathedral. Impressively large, but not decorated. Heard a trumpet player rehearsing with the organist. Both were good players, and the organ sounded very nice.Read more

    • TravelerFrance 2022
      Day 4

      Chartres

      October 4, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

      Today started a little crazy. We had to take the train from Rouen back to Paris and then transfer to another train for Chartres. Everything was going smoothly. We checked the schedule board and headed to track 24. We boarded, but I kept wondering where all the passengers were. After 30 minutes sitting alone, we discovered that the track had been changed, so we had to wait for the next one. Anyway, today ended up being a whirlwind visit of Chartres since we’re only here one day.

      I don’t think any cathedrals can compete with Rouen’s…on the exterior. But I was in complete awe of the interior of Cathédrale Nôtre Dame of Chartres which dates to 1260. The legendary stained glass windows are around 700 years old, and the colors are unbelievably bright and colorful especially all the blues. I was completely speechless…no words to describe the beauty. The windows, many statues and the architecture are like a picture book that tell the whole Christian story from birth to the end of time, and they were used to tell the stories to the illiterate. Pilgrims started coming here in 876 because the town acquired the torn veil (birthing gown) which was supposedly worn by Mary at the birth of Christ. The relic is still there but not currently for public view. There was also a labyrinth inside that provides a 900 foot “journey” to Jerusalem where one hopes to meet God in the middle.

      We did a short walk in the old city which was very charming and ate at a great place called The Serpent. What a treat, and the French onion soup was superb! For the evening we watched “Chartres en Lumières” which was an interactive laser light show with a kaleidoscope of brilliant colors on the cathedral, many with told stories. Then, we hopped on a mini train around town to see this spectacle continued on about 20 different sites throughout the old town. Amazing and mesmerizing!      Read more

    • TravelerFrankreich mal anders
      Day 13

      La Scaleta in Bourges

      July 21, 2023 in France ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

      Wir haben die Normandie und Marie hinter uns gelassen und sind nun Richtung Süden unterwegs. Auf der Reise nach Nizza machen wir in Bourges halt. Eine schöne Altstadt mit vielen Fachwerkhäusern wie in Tortuga, die Kathedrale die wir antrafen war gewaltig und mit ihren vielen Buntglasfenstern, die alle eine eigene Geschichte erzählen atemberauben schön. Bei La Scaleta in der Altstadt waren wir zum Abschluss noch fein Italienisch essen.Read more

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    • Sommerurlaub 2023
      Day 18

      Kurzer Stop in Bourges

      June 27, 2023 in France ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

      Eigentlich wollten wir ja jetzt weiter nach Guedelon, hier entsteht seit einigen Jahren ein Projekt, das wir 2011 schon Mal besucht hatten: ein mittelalterliches Schloss wird mit Techniken des Mittelalters gebaut.

      Eigentlich sehr interessant und unbedingt einen Besuch wert.

      Perfekt vorbereitet wie wir sind merken wir jetzt erst, daß die Baustelle Dienstag und Mittwoch geschlossen hat.

      Schade eigentlich...

      Als Alternative machen wir einen Stop in Bourges und schauen uns die (ebenfalls sehr sehenswerte) Altstadt incl. Kathedrale an.

      Bei der Ausfahrt aus dem Stellplatz merkten wir, wie eng das wirklich war ... wäre mit dem Setra vermutlich spannend geworden.      Read more

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    • TravelerEscape to USA, France and UK
      4
      2
      Day 38

      At Bourges for 2 days

      September 5, 2021 in France ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

      Thank god for Marie-Solange, our last night’s hostess! After our long walk yesterday as promised she drove us this morning, whizzing along these country roads which she obviously knows like the back of her hand, and we didn’t have a clue where we were going till she stopped in the middle of nowhere and said this is the chemin, it is 10 kms to Bourges and there is the cathedral in the distance! So we found in our notes where we were, and walked on through fields and then the suburban outskirts of Bourges and arrived. It again was SO hot, after 10.30 we were wiping drops of sweat from our brows, so the 10 kms that we didn’t have to walk were magic! It was 31° when we arrived, and now at 8.45pm it is still 26°…

      Anyway, I must relate the details of last night. First, the accommodation…our room was very small, and opposite was the Dutchman, Edwin (presume that’s his name - Marie-S called him Edwina)…normally we would have shared a bathroom with him, but she said we could use another one where people weren’t staying. So we discovered the complicated arrangement of rooms upstairs! The family had 2 rooms with lots of beds and an allocated bathroom. Then we went along to an area with a kitchen area, with a shower stall about the size of a telephone booth (Amr could just manage without waving his arms widely), which led to a bedroom with 2 big wooden double beds, end on end, on one side and on the other side a big antique wooden wardrobe, a toilet and a wash basin!! We said that was just fine, and let Edwin have his own space, but have to admit it was weird to sit on a toilet in the middle of a bedroom…and while there I noticed a door in the wall next to one of the beds. Goodness knows where it led - thought it was the end of the house!! So it was a fun and slightly weird night. All the cupboards were full of chaotic pillows, blankets etc, and the “kitchen” was equally disorganised, but did have a fridge which was handy.

      So dinner was lovely, except too much food as usual. Beautiful salad with the usual delicious home grown tomatoes, a veg quiche/frittata (which would have been quite enough) and a dish of chicken and potatoes. M-S had a little wine with us, and a bit of food, but said she had her main meal in the middle of the day…but we had a lovely time chatting to Edwin who is now wending his way home to Amsterdam…and amazingly, we helped him with the French - usually Dutch are so multilingual- but French was not his forte and we interpreted for him a bit!!! And M-S chatted solely in French - no English at all. This morning a breakfast laid for all, but we three were appointed at 8, and at about 8.30 children appeared from the family who obviously wanted to have breakfast, but wanted us to finish first (? Covid?)…so we did…

      Started walking at about 9.45 and for a short while it was pleasant, before the heat. But we were so happy that we didn’t worry…the distant huge cathedral gradually came closer, and we arrived here about 1.30. Came across a market which we wandered into - fruit and veg…Amr is drawn to markets - yesterday when we were hot and bothered and not yet at Brécy he wanted to explore a junk market in Villabon and I would rather have had my teeth pulled…but today it was ok because we were at Bourges..but we didn’t stay long, and instead looked for a bar! A beer was very necessary and being Sunday, and a bigger town, lots of bars were open. At that point, being so hot and sweaty, we decided to go straight to the hotel before we looked around at all. So Amr used his Google maps to guide us there - this town is just a network of little cobbled streets, not long distances, but I would get lost very quickly. Anyway, successfully found our hotel Christina, bags here and room ready! Perfect.

      So after showering and relaxing we set off again - still in the heat - and found our way to the famous, enormous and beautiful St Étienne cathedral and marvelled. Impossible to get good photos as it is too massive, but you can get the idea. Looking at restaurants we passed we realised that most do not do dinner on Sunday, so finally found one in the square near the cathedral which did and ate there…it was doing a roaring trade as think it was one of the few places available, and like Vézelay, Bourges is a popular place to visit…we saw quite a few French tourists with maps. So now back at hotel, Amr pretending to read but falling asleep and all is well. Rest day tomorrow…      Read more

    • TravelerEscape to USA, France and UK
      12
      Day 39

      Quiet rest day in Bourges

      September 6, 2021 in France ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

      We really have had a quiet day, as it is too hot in the afternoon to do anything! I so hope this Indian summer ends soon…. It was lovely getting up this morning with no time constraints, had the usual satisfying breakfast, and went out on the town again. Pleasantly cool till the sun is overhead, and we found our way up to the cathedral again, and are learning the maze of streets. Even though this is quite a big town, it was very quiet on a Monday morning. We don’t know if it’s covid, but certainly the lack of tourists would be. In some ways it is lovely to be free of groups being guided round, but that means that lots of places are closed. After a coffee break we sat on a shaded seat in a park near the cathedral and read kindles.

      Then back to our room to blob and have baguette and cheese and relax even more. It is nice to intersperse days in guest houses where you are very involved with the hosts, and feel responsible for being a good guest, with impersonal hotel days where you come and go and no one cares!

      So we roused ourselves again and found another shady seat in another spot near the cathedral for more kindle moments, and listening to podcasts in Amr’s case. While there I actually did see a group of retiree tourists being taken in a little train to see the sights, but not foreign tourists. Maybe we are the only ones!! Then we went at 5 o’clock to have a beer, much needed, despite not even having walked much, and found that they will be open for dinner tonight - they were closed yesterday…we had spied some nice salads on their menu…so we will return there soon.

      Yesterday we lit a candle for Ira in the cathedral - specially for heaven-sent wishes for operation on her wrist and nose today, and she is back and sounds on email as chirpy as ever, so we think it worked. And another personal mention is we are very proud of Liv who did really well in the HSC trials…and those poor kids still have to cope with the very uncertain details of the actual HSC. Anyway, good on Liv!

      So off to dinner soon, and tomorrow we walk about 15 kms to a guest house, so will see what new experience that brings! Will try and get most of the walking done before the heat sets in.      Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Bourges, ቡርዥ, بورجيز, Горад Бурж, Бурж, Μπουρζ, بورژ, בורז, BOU, ブールジュ, 부르주, Avaricum Biturigum, Buržas, Burža, Borges, 18000, 布尔日

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