We woke up, packed, had breakfast and tidied up. After handing the barge back we walked to the hotel for an espresso, but they were closed! We then walked to where the bus will pick us up, and waited. Seriously glad we did this yesterday as if we had arrived in Tannay this morning we would have stood at the train station like lemons. We caught the bus to the station and then got on the train to Auxerre with no problem. Auxerre is amazing with quite a large old city. We dropped the suitcases off at the hotel and then went for a walk, bought a baguette and Terrine du Chef at Marc Colin butchery. We ate this on a bench on the banks of the river before walking through the old city. You can tell we are in a bigger place as some of the shops are open through the afternoon and there are people begging! Dave had a crepe and then we checked into the hotel. The decor and exterior are not great but the room is more than adequate. There is also free WiFi, a bonus for when we are travelling. After checking emails and Dave had done some work we went for a walk to Saint-Etienne Cathedral. It’s huge and has the most impressive stained glass windows. We carried on walking around the newer part of the city. As we got back into the old city we saw a car rolling down the street. Dave yanked on the handle to stop it and the door opened and caught on a wall. The owner jumped in and put on the handbrake. She drove it forward a bit and Dave did a bit of hand panel beating so she could close the door. She was most grateful and Dave prevented quite an accident. We bought an apricot flan to share, stopped for coffee and after a short walk went to a pub for a Leffe beer. We then came back to the hotel to relax before dinner. Tonight we are going to the 1 star Michelin restaurant L’asperule.

with love from France
Tandy and Dave