Mark K spent his early childhood living in Montreal before moving to southern Ontario. Mark’s rusty French speaking was much better than either Mark D or mine. By default, Mark K became our spokesperson. Our traditional French dinner last night at the Gite lasted two hours and Mark K spoke through most of it. Our hostess, Rachelle, spoke slowly and asked lots of questions. I tried to explain that my wife Kelly spoke much better French than me by calling her “mon mari” (my husband). She smiled and said that is good, but I think you mean “ma femme” (my wife). We laughed a lot last night.
Rachelle, the host of the Gite, prepared a lovely meal including charcuterie meats she cured, salad greens she grew, sausages she stuffed with potatoes, local cheeses, and chocolate mousse she made. Rachelle and her husband renovated their original barn into a residence for for elderly father. When he died, they turned the residence into a B&B, and Gite for pilgrims. She enjoys meeting people from around the world.
For the second day in a row we walked just over 30 kms. We spent most of our time high on hills winding through pastures and pine forests, descending briefly into small villages only to climb out again. This pace feels comfortable and it gets us to our destination by around 2 pm. We check in, shower, and rest. Dinner is always served at 7 pm.
Frederick operates Gite “Le Saint Pas” in La Estrets. Gites are normally closed from 9 am until 2 pm so hosts can prepare for the next group of pilgrims. Frederick, however, offers simple lunches and cafe drinks throughout the day to passing pilgrims. We ate a tasty lunch of tortilla, the first tortilla of this Camino. Tortilla is like a quiche made with eggs, potatoes, olive oil, and salt. It is a breakfast and lunch staple for pilgrims in Spain.
Tonight we are in Aumont Aubrac, at the highly recommended Gite D’Etape Ferme du Barry, a restaurant and accommodation. We were served a soup of greens, aligot (mashed potatoes mixed with fresh cream and soft cheese), roast beef, and bread pudding with apricot compote. It was delicious!
The three of us have often called our wilderness adventures “Fat Camp” because we would return home lighter. This French food may spoil our plans.