It’s not very important me mentioning “in Chateaumeillant” in today’s title because this village has only 2000 inhabitants. That is still 10-fold more than Neret. I reached, again by many detours, at the end of the road a barn in a cottage. The barn is called a house. Actually the barn was a big spacy room , with a pair of beds surrounded by curtains that resemble musquito nets however. Nice for privacy! Furthermore, a so-called kitchen. I.e. A hot plate, a few pans, a tap and a sink of a few square decimeters, not even one good knife, a lamp in the kitchen corner. But who gives a damn? I want shelter. My lovely sister in law Lilian, living in France, who increasingly grows in importance, each day looks for chambres d’hotes for me, while the day passes with me pulling and pushing my beasts. This teaches me to improvise. She is worth gold. As soon as I get a chance I’ll buy her a goldfish (to start with).
How was today? Nice weather, little wind. Coffee in the beautiful town of La Chatre. Landlady with son want to pet the horse. Photo. Proudly she demonstrates to me her three months old son. Deformated by my profession I complimented her on the achievements of a baby of 3 months old: handsome, he allready keeps his head straight up, already discovered his hands. Achievements that we had to check during my time as nursery- and child development doctor. Mom loved it.
Picnic lunch on the church lawn of the extraordinarily beautiful mini town: photos. In this region I see neglected castles and estates, often walled. Just leave your home. The castles are for sale for a (relative) pittance for the more fortunate persons among us. Lands price around 8 E / m2. A short chat with an aged lady jogging. Her husband passed me jogging 1 min. earlier. Probably she didn’t feel much like talking. Bon courage is the standard remark.
My “rume”, cq. cold, is creeping down towards the airways. Not too good. An elderly man, walking nearly 25 km. a day in all kinds of weather, always fighting with his fanciful aggravating factors ( dog Tosca and horse Leon), always in a different bed, always different nutrition. All this is not very good for my resistance. Tonight I got worried, because Leon’s shoulder skin is chaved by a backpack. Do I have to invent something against it? The days are so short I don’t have much time for inventions. Once I’ll be home maybe I should leave him in the NL. I’ll get there in February, though going ahead without horse is against the principle. Moreover my journey is rather lonely. Time for a change, waiting for a companion. So I can write something more funny again instead of boring you with the weather, horse, dog, landscape and number of km.
Leftover pasta was cooked in a pan. It burnt a little, but only a grumbler cares. Mixing some pieces of cheese in the pasta. A few slices of very hard sausage, that I can hardly cut, because the only knife is not sharp enough. I also had some leftover mash. Some puddings. And as a starter I nhad of course a cup of soup for 2 pers. In addition, some bread, and in my backpack a broken, cracked, boilt egg and thus I will make it till tomorrow.
the cafe with the baby. Boy wants to pet Leon . Mama wants nothing!
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