Orges to Villiers-sur-Suize and then to Saint-Ciergues

It was primarily open country between Orges and Villiers-sur-Suize, and it was quite hot with a high of 89 degrees, at least 15 degrees higher than normal. I found myself crossing the road or the trail numerous times during the day to catch as much shade as I could even if it only lasted a few yards. Sunset here isn’t until well after 9:00 p.m., so there hasn’t been a big rush to hit the trail in the mornings, but I’ll have to adjust that timing if the heat doesn’t abate soon.

Entire Novels on a Gravestone

I stopped in the cemetery in Richebourg for water and a little break, where I was drawn to an unusual grave enclosure that looked more like a greenhouse than a tomb.

What caused Yvonne’s early death at the age of 27? Was she Albert’s daughter by a second wife after Anna died in 1920? If so, where is Yvonne’s mother buried? If not, what is her relationship to Anna and Albert since she was born after Anna died? Who was motivated to erect such an ornate grave cover and gravestone after Yvonne’s death? I’m sure every cemetery is filled with dozens of similar mysteries.

Villiers-sur-Suize

This stage of the Via Francigena actually stops in Leffonds, but there were no accommodations in Leffonds, so I had to go cross-country a couple of additional miles to Villiers-sur-Suize. Even though I arrived hot and exhausted, though, it ended up being well worth the extra walking.

l’Auberge de la Fontaine – A classic, small French hotel

Villiers-sur-Suize is a pretty little village on the Suize river, and my room for the night was in l’Auberge de la Fontaine, a quaint 8-room hotel with a small bar/restaurant. The hotel opened at 5:30 for check-in, and I was at the door at 5:30. I was met by Séverine, who serves as the hotel receptionist-bartender-chef-housekeeper. Despite wearing all those hats, she was a ray of sunshine and positivity with everyone she met. She was one of the few French speakers I’ve met who would patiently deal with my horrible attempt at French while using enough English to make sure we finally reached a conclusion in our conversations.

While enjoying a cold beverage at the bar before going to my room, an outgoing couple also sat at the bar and interacted with Séverine as though they were regulars, although I later learned it was their first time at the hotel. I asked if they spoke English, and, of course, since they were Dutch, they did. Theo and Micheline live in a village near Amsterdam, but they have a home near Cannes, which they visit several times each year. It’s a long drive back home, so they stopped in Villiers-sur-Suize to break up the trip. We immediately became fast friends, and they invited me to join them for dinner, which I did and thoroughly enjoyed. We all left dinner feeling as though we could have continued talking well into the night.

Theo started a very successful software development firm before selling it at the age of 50 in 2003. He even had a story about getting invited to attend a conference in Houston in 1993, where he was then invited to join a meeting with Bill Gates at which Gates and his team demonstrated the power of AI. Theo said that was his only interaction with Gates, but he left impressed by Gates and blown away by the power of AI, even at that early stage.

We also had breakfast together, and Becca and I have a standing invitation to visit them in the Netherlands or Cannes. And while we were having breakfast, Séverine stopped by and asked if I wanted her to make me a sandwich for my lunch. I did, and she brought back a pâté sandwich along with some meringue cookies “for energy” and a slice of delicious chocolate cake – all at no charge. If you have a significant business you need someone to run, please reach out to Séverine at the l’Auberge de la Fontaine. She will crush it for you.

On to Saint-Ciergues

Saint-Ciergues

Saint-Ciergues sits just above the dam for Lac de la Moche, which opened in 1890. My gîte hosts, Pierre and Josee, are from the Netherlands, but they have owned their home in Saint-Ciergues for 34 years and have lived there full-time for 10 years. Their terrace has a beautiful view to the southeast over the dam and Lac de la Moche, and it made an amazing setting for dinner and breakfast.

Josee and Pierre were terrific hosts who made me feel completely at home. There was a photo of Pierre in their common room of him running the Paris marathon in 1982, which gave us a chance to talk about running and marathons. At breakfast, we all had a fascinating conversation about the realities of being a foreigner in a small French village of 190 people. Three large families make up the majority of the population, which means that every interaction you have is effectively with at least a third of the population. Pierre is on the city council, but even then, he and Josee remain outsiders to a large degree.

A Short Walk to Langres

The walk from Saint-Ciergues to Langres was only a civilized 10kms, although it included a high hill in between and the high hill on which Langres sits, but still, it was only 10kms!

About halfway up the first hill, I met Wolgang from Cologne, Germany, from where he had started walking the Camino to Santiago, Spain shortly after retiring on April 1. Of course, that gave us both plenty to talk about as we shared life and pilgrimage notes. Again, I was grateful that most Europeans speak some English even if they try to dismiss their language skills. Within a 15-minute conversation, I had made another friend. Wolfgang is carrying a small guitar since “he plays and sings a little”.

Next stop: Langres