Chartres is a lovely city, with a beautiful cathedral famous for its blue stained glass, a color that nobody has ever been able to recreate. The day we were there was slightly cloudy, so we didn't get the full effect, but it's still quite breathtaking. We were there on market day & were sorry we did not have a kitchen because the food was so tempting. Although Halloween is a very American holiday, even in Chartres there was evidence that it is a small world.
Our next stop was the small town of Issoire, which is about half-way between Paris & our winter home in Pézenas. As is the case in most French towns, it was beautiful & very medieval. We were there on a Sunday & just about everything in town was closed (more on French closures in a future blog post), except for the church, which was our main reason for selecting Issoire as our stopover. The church is very, very old -- 9th century -- & has the most amazingly painted Romanesque interior. Painted interiors were the norm at that time, but this one was unlike anything we've ever seen before.
We were beginning to fully realize that we were no longer in the US, & that people in small towns are different. When we were leaving Issoire we needed to put gas in the car, the cost of which is huge compared to the cost in the US. A tank of gas is around €80 - 90 (depending on your car), or $100 - 120. It was a Sunday, there was no gas station attendant & our credit card did not work in the machine, so the man at the next pump offered to use his credit card & we gave him cash & we were on our way.
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