Tour de Grand Est - Weather and reminders of war

Breakfast in the tent once again, but I must say we are getting good at it. 

Another cyclist had pitched while we were sleeping so we met him this morning as the rain cleared. He was very chatty. He was cycling from his parents home in Germany, to the Spanish coast, taking his bike over to the Canary Islands where he lives now. Sebastian. 

Good bye Montmedy, hello open roads. 

Where we cycled today was definitely quiet. There were even kilometers when we couldn't see the next steeple. 

But of course we did see many churches. 

There are many reminders of both WWI and WWII in all these small villages. 

The bridges along the Muese were all destroyed during the wars. Most were rebuilt, some were mot. 

The countryside is green and lush. We saw one pea farm that went on and on, and lots of forest too.

The roads don't have any shoulder, but they are very good about keeping the sides mowed.  Good to have a way out if needed. But we haven't had any need. 

Birds were all around us today. We had one beautiful hawk sail along the road with us for quite some time. He would soar and catch a draft and then cruise around high above us, and then swoop down alongside us once again. As my dad would saw, "Hawk". ♥️

There were more storks as well, lovely black and white ones, as well as a blue heron along a river. 

We also had a little chat with a bull. It was all good until he got tired of having his photo taken and snorted a little too loud, and we hopped on our bikes and left quickly. I just love how all the other cows were just transfixed by us, staring the whole time. 

We are in Dun-sur-Meuse for tonight. There is an upper fortified town, we are not staying up high tonight. We are at a cute little campground "Kity Camping" with a stocked pond and several fisherman. 

We are still dealing with rain. But the campground has offered us the restaurant patio, because the restaurant is closed. So we have tabkes and chairs, electrical outlets and even a friendly dog for some company. 

Wishing you a good night with bunch of daisies in a field 🌸💕...

Tour de Grand Est - small villages and big hills back in France

Cold morning. Too cold to eat breakfast outside so we decided to have breakfast in bed.

Thankfully we got the water boiled and the bathroom run completed before the rain started. And then it really started. 

So we had to wait out the weather. We didn't get going until almost 11. But once we packed up (a very wet tent) and left the campsite, we mostly were rain free. 

Today was a small village tour. 

Leaving Virton we headed for the first big climb of the day, to 1. Torgny. 

Torgny is the southernmost village in Belgium, and enjoys a privileged microclimate that allows for vine cultivation, giving it a distinct charm reminiscent of the South of France. 

The Provençal atmosphere is boosted by the vineyards, red-tiled roofs of 18th and 19th-century houses, a traditional communal wash-house, and a series of roadside crosses around the village.  The ochre and golden stone facades are genuinely unusual for this part of Belgium.

The church was small but lovely.

And the view from the church front door was stunning. 

The series of road side crosses. 

The ochre stone houses were uniquely beautiful, and this little town was so well kept. 

We took the high road out so we could see the Raymond Mayné nature reserve — one of the oldest in Belgium. We had a little fox cross the road right in front of us 💗

Our view was both Belgium and France.  

The next huge climb was to 2. Montquintin.  You know it is going to be a tough climb when the name of the road you take is Chemin des Morts. 

At about three quarters of the way there was a little table and look out. Pretty, if you had the energy to see it 😳

The inhabitants of Montquintin are called "Les Montquintins". 

At the top of a remote hill at an altitude of 324m, live about forty inhabitants in an exceptional location. The village is characterized by a monumental grouping unusual in our region, the convergence point of four winding roads coming up from the valleys.

At the summit stand the ruins of a feudal castle where Monseigneur de Hontheim retired in 1760. He was a suffragan bishop of Trier and was condemned by Rome following the publication of a work questioning the Pope's absolute power over local churches.

This medieval building, trapezoidal in shape, was flanked by four corner towers, of which only two remain.  

As we came down down down the other side we found ourselves on some rocky rough road, and in the rain, so we paused under a tree canopy for shelter and coat change. 

But the rain didn't last and soon we had climbed back into France and to our next stop 3. Avioth. 

Originally a simple hamlet, the village of Avioth owes its development to the miraculous discovery of a wooden statue of the Virgin and Child during the 12 century.  A pilgrimage quickly developed  there , and the ecclesiastical and feudal authorities soon supported the construction of a church worthy of this pilgrimage: the great church of Avioth was born!

The famous virgin and baby statue was heavily damaged, but a new version (middle photo below) was recreated in the 18th century using the original image / head as a guide. 

The village was again small but mighty, with less than 200 inhabitants. 

Next and final stop (and final climb), 4 Montmedy. 

The Basilica on the top of the hill is definitely impressive, from near and far. 

And the view from our campsite demonstrates the climb we made to get here. 

We actually set up our tent and went for groceries. Wouldn't you know it, the grocery store was at the bottom of the hill so we got to climb it twice today (2 climbs at #4).

We have not ventured all the way up to the Basilica this evening. Our legs are tired and the rain has returned. So we are snuggled into our tent.

Good night.