Our 3:30 AM phone call awakened us abruptly to a new day on Saturday, June 1. After checking out, we met our airport shuttle bus at 4 and arrived at Dublin Airport by 4:30. The airport was actually crowded but we were ahead of the game; we'd already checked in our 1 bag! The rest we carried on board. Our flight boarded at 6:30 and by 7 we were on our way to Paris.
We'd made plans to meet Bea and Tom at the Hertz rental. We made it there by 10:30 but no Sextons! We asked Hertz if there was another rental office and received a negative answer. Bea and Tom were asking the same question and getting the same answer at another terminal! After a few phone calls and some driving in circles, we finally found each other and left the airport.
We decided to stop as soon as we could and reconnoiter! After a bit, we found a small restaurant, ordered sandwiches and ate outside. It seemed like a good idea to head straight for Chartres. So we got the GPS all set up and off we went by 12:30. Whatever would we do without a GPS!! Getting from Paris to Chartres with a good map is not a problem. However getting OUT of Paris or INTO Chartres is another problem altogether--almost impossible without a GPS!
The traffic around the Periphetique of Paris was unbelievable! Then when we tried to get off the motorway at the toll....I'll just say it was difficult! If it weren't for Connie, Bea and Tom and Peter would still be there! We didn't arrive in Chartres until 3 but then easily found the Hotel Chatelet and got settled in for the night.
The sole historical attraction in Chartres is its cathedral, built in the 13th century. Hard to fathom building a massive stone Gothic structure with stained glass, spires and arches 800 years ago! It's actually the fourth church on this site. Because of a prized relic Chartres "found itself in the big time on the pilgrim circuit." A church burned to the ground in the 11th century and the new cathedral was completed in 1260. It is truly an Age of Faith church.
So we decided to explore the city of 40,000. We stopped on the way to the cathedral to inspect an outdoor car show. Bea's next car will be a Jaguar F-type! We walked around the massive cathedral, gawked at all of the people and then proceeded to wander around the old town. We window-shopped, walked through the flower market, listened to the French chatter and just enjoyed our stroll.
Back at the cathedral, we stopped at Le Serpente for beer and wine while listening to the cathedral bells on the quarter-, half- and on the hour. 3 hours later we were still talking!! We had eaten peanuts, onion soup, pâtés, fois gras and salads. We were now behind the shadow of the cathedral and it was CHILLY!!! On our way back to the hotel we stopped in a cool cafe that was narrow but had many levels. It was for the monks way back in history. We had decaf expressos with chocolate covered beans--just what we needed to warm up!!! Back at the hotel by 9 and, since we were all exhausted, to bed!!
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