Dispatch from Champagny-sous-Uxelles: Friday May 26

This is not a low-carb culture. Our B and B breakfast consists mainly of various breads and cakes, plain yogurt, washed down with good strong French coffee, and (by my insistence) tomato juice. The Madame of the house is quite pleased to speak no English whatsoever, as is expected among the French aristocracy (this chateau has been in her family for two centuries after all).

Hence we thought it might be a good idea to do some hiking after a morning in Taize yesterday. We bought some food at a local grocery on the way back to the chateau (fruit, cheese, bread, eggs, and some fine air-cured pork sausage, and had a little picnic. Then we set out for some villages not far away recommended to us by a restaurant owner. We figured the hike to be about six or seven miles along narrow country roads. The two towns were build into steep hillsides , with fields and vineyards in checkerboard patterns on the hills around. The towns were medieval in character, and, in act, some of the buildings dated from the 11th and 12th centuries, including some Romanesque churches. Nearly every church is open, so it was fun to look inside. One was so resonant we counted 12 echoes for every sound made. We plan to attend two baroque concerts in nearby churches Saturday afternoon and evening.

At the far end of the hike we settled into a little bar across from a 12th century stone church in the town of Bissy sur Fles.
The owner sat down with us for a chat in his pretty good English. It turns out he’s a German who settled here on a whim 15 years ago when the place was in disrepair and for sale. His claim to fame in this tiny town is that he sells about 100 different beers from all over the Europe—and English tea as well, which was our choice at the moment. We were prepared to blush before the supposed French disdain of everything American. Instead we got an earful of all the woes of being under the thumb of local farmers who run the town and the French government in general. According to him he pays more in taxes than his little bar earns (how he lives I don’t know.) His ex-wife up the street doesn’t work at all and makes more than he does. Plus, he’s a great admirer of America and George Bush. Now there is a place that creates “responsibilite.” Yea, we’re all over the world taking responsibility. Not a word about Iraq, but the idea of lowering taxes seemed “tres bon.” Yet, after all his complaints he proudly showed us the new Ford van he had just bought, so it didn’t quite all add up.

Well, we’ll just take the morning off for some reading, writing, and general catching up. Maybe a hike this afternoon, plus evening prayer at Taize.

We’re having a hard time finding an internet café, or anything like it. We’ll search tonight in Cluny to see if we can get this off. Otherwise it will have to wait for Lyon on Sunday.