Jougne

It's my last night in France, and my guidebook says that I am 1026 km from Canterbury. Over the past 46 days, I have followed the GR145 (Grande Randonnée) from beginning to end: Calais to Jougne. I have had the privilege to see and touch structures from the ancient Roman civilisation; I have taken the exact same routes as those used by Joan of Arc, King Henry IV, and the Knights Templar; I have passed through Napoleonic battlefields; I have gained a deeper appreciation of the unbelievable sacrifice made by the soldiers in WWI; and I've glimpsed the tragedy of the loss of Commonwealth flyers in WWII; I have crossed and walked beside streams, creeks, rivers, lakes and canals; I have walked through mile after mile of cultivated fields, seen more agricultural machinery than ever before, and walked through woodland and forests of all descriptions, with birds hopping, flying and calling all around me; I have seen more animals, domestic and wild, than I could have imagined; I have walked through hamlets, villages, towns and cities. I have seen countless churches and been lucky enough to get inside quite a few. The French people have been kind and friendly (sometimes calling out bon courage, "good luck" as I've passed by) and far more tolerant of my limited French and appalling pronunciation than I could ever have expected. Every pilgrim and traveller I have encountered have been the same. Have I managed this without complaint? Of course not. But I have done it, mindful of my circumstances, and how lucky I am to be here. P.S. the animal is a chamois. My host says they are no longer afraid of humans.Read more