On our way out of Ganges we bought second breakfast and lunch, not being sure what might be available in the villages on Sunday. On the square we found a fresco based on a photo of one of the 24 silk stocking factories that were the speciality of Ganges. In the view of the local historian who wrote the plaque, ‘until 1950 Ganges was the undisputed global capital of the luxury stocking business’. So there, Paris.
Less luxurious was the marchee aux puces set up in the street. Not much silk there though there is an unfeasibly small car with a splendid paint job (and later we see two more from the Little Car Show).
After a short pause for Doris to collect a #virtualsouvenir of a locally handmade flute thingy, and armed with pies and a better sense of the source of Ganges’ prosperity we set off along the D999 toward Vigan.
Here there is more brocante and vide grenier. Very tempting to buy a kettle for fish, but Sid is already carrying an array of maps, the 2019 Logis Guide and a copy each of Midi Libere and Echappement, his favourite French car maggo. Second breakfast of cafes grand creme and pains aux raisins by the carousel reveals what might be conveyance of the day, and “S” insists that we pick up another stone for his #virtualsouvenir lucky stone collection.
We find ourselves in Engineering Land – here is a picture of an aqueduct on top of a road bridge. Not Roman, much more recent.
We have the fun of following signs to a bike path laid on the railway line. We have tunnels, stone viaducts and Eiffel style steel bridges. Best of all railway engineers do not like their tracks to keep going up and down, they climb carefully with embankments and cuttings.
At one point we use a 400 metre road tunnel, nicely lit and with fresh tarmac, to cut off some climb (the old road over the top is available for purists/masochists).There are signs that specifically forbid bicycles from using the tunnel, which Sid and Doris obviously ignore. The Danube tunnels were a bit frightening and this just isn’t.
This is turning out to be National Vide Grenier day. When we stop in Alzon they have one too, and people are taking away things that will surely end up in their attics.
Our lodgings tonight are in Nant-Comberedonde railway station on the old line. It is now called La Gare aux Anes because they have a donkey farm. Does Monterey have donkeys? Conveyance of the day I think.
