Fired as a trip planner

After spending three weekends in the city, we wanted to get out and see the countryside. Lyle, claustrophobia setting in, asked me to plan a trip "anywhere outside of the city....and let's rent a car!" So, armed with travel books and websites, I decided an overnight trip south of Paris towards the Loire Valley would be a good idea. This is an area filled with farmland, old villages, chateaus, and the city of Chartes, where the largest cathedral in Europe is located. Idyllic, right?
Well, the first mistake was renting a car.

We took the metro to the Montparnasse train station, not too far from our flat, where we reserved a small car. (With gasoline costing over $6.00 a gallon equivalent, we wanted something economical.) It is huge and busy with travelers heading in and out of the city to points all over Europe. We just wanted to find a rental car desk. Looking at maps, we finally discovered it to be on the opposite end of the station. We hiked there with suitcases following behind and finally located the small office. The agent spoke very little English, handed us the keys and told us where to find the car.....in one of many parking ramps, somewhere! Seeing our bewildered faces, another agent walked us to the correct ramp, but he couldn't find the car either. He left us standing in a huge garage, and, ten minutes later, drove up in our car. We were off. The problem was, our ticket to get out of the parking garage didn't work! After 100 attempts to put the ticket and credit card in, plus a call to someone who did not speak English, Lyle decided there was only one way out.......follow another car when the wooden arm went up. Which we did, and the arm came crashing down on our back bumper of our deisel-run Fiat.

Now we were off......we just needed to find a street to get us out of Paris. With three maps in my lap, I couldn't match Rue names with maps, didn't know which direction we were going, and I felt we were a couple on the Great Race. Lyle: "Where is Rue du Le Clerc?!"
Me: "I can't see it on the map!"
Lyle: "Forget the map, then, just tell me where to go!"
Me: "Why didn't we just take a train!!???"

About an hour later, we were on the road, heading south to Chartres, calmed down and glad to see the wide open spaces, reminding us very much of southern Minnesota. Vast green fields were planted with grains, potatoes, and who knows what else (Lyle couldn't even figure it out). We pulled into Chartres, just about 88 Km from Paris (an hour away). As we entered the city, the famous Notre-Dame Cathedral, built in the 11th century, and completed around 1230 after a fire destroyed part of it in 1194. It's two very-different-style spires can be seen for miles around, calling many who make pilgrimages there every year.

Inside, there are 176 stained glass windows that make up the finest collection in Europe. They are the work of master stained glass makers from the twelfth and thirteenth century, making Chartres a capital for stained glass and known for the blue color which was rare. It was an amazing sight to see these windows telling Bible stories and also those of medieval life. Also, inlaid in the floor, is the famous Labyrinth that hasn't changed since the year 1200. This is a maze of stone and marble where pilgrms would walk the maze, sometimes on their knees.....over 261 meters long if stretched out end to end. We missed the tour, given each day, but maybe someday we will come back and see the church at night when it is bathed in colored lights.

I thought the day had been salvaged after viewing this inspiring church, but driving in the steady drizzle to the next small village to spend the night in a lovely chateau proved to be our next challenge. More on that in the next post.....