In which Sid and Doris see their first (close-up) Loire chateau and cross the river on the justly famous Pont Canal de Briare to stop at a workers’ Logis at Belleville.
The famous chateaux are back downstream towards Blois, so S and D are pleased to see a genwine chateau on their route. Built from 1570 to 1610 for one of Henri lV’s ministers Sully is now the home of the Duchesse de Magenta, descendant of monarchist field marshal Patrice McMahon, President of France 1873 to ‘79 at the time of the Third Republic. ( Asides: Charles de Gaulle established the Fifth Republic in 1958. And we need to check if the Duchess of Magenta was actually a Gilbert and Sullivan character, in case Sid has made this stuff up.)
Also seen at Sully are touring motorbikes, many hired, which S and D consider might make for a fine holiday too. Both have big bike licences but would need a bit of a refresher before endangering the citizenry again. These are mainly Honda TransAlps though we do see some wildly large BMWs and more sensible GS650s, then later a Royal Enfield Himalayan.
At St Firmin sur Loire Sid spots this canal bridge over the road. See the depth at the middle of the arch? This leads Doris to a swift reroute to enjoy the whole cast iron experience.
Up at canal level you can enjoy the 19c cast iron and stone aqueduct over the Loire. Regular readers will have seen similar on the Narrow Escape, but this bigger and today.
Even the lamps delight, and this view is possible because it is Monday and we are early in the season.
After that we commit to the canal which leads us down to Belleville. The hotel is struggling as their clientele are workers with modest daily subsistence allowances though the hotel costs have gone up and staff are hard to attract for the weekend Loire Velo trade. Tough business.
Sid and Doris sign off with romantic sunset of the Belleville lock.
Belleville? It’s a real place…?! And you went there on bicycles? Woah.
Just read the post again to look for references to Belleville Rendezvous, but didn’t spot any. Presumably you have watched this film? If not, I probably recommend it, though who knows what it actually means, deep down…. Anyway it is French, has bicycles, and is wacky. Yeah I do recommend it!
There are nine Bellevilles in France, but as I read the plot synopsis That Belleville is across the Atlantic. There are 18 in the USA, but all the characters speak French. Perhaps it is secretly Quebec, a big North American port where they speak French?