{"id":5636,"date":"2012-07-05T20:27:17","date_gmt":"2012-07-06T00:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=5636"},"modified":"2015-07-02T15:12:42","modified_gmt":"2015-07-02T19:12:42","slug":"day-40-thursday-july-5-narbonne-to-meze-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=5636","title":{"rendered":"Day 40, Thursday, July 5 – Narbonne to Meze, France"},"content":{"rendered":"

It poured last night and into the early morning, even heard rumbles of thunder, which we hoped would be done for before we checked out. \u00a0Though our tired cramping muscles did not want to leave the most comfortable bed we’ve had this whole trip, the rain had stopped so out we went. \u00a0We pulled out into very gray skies\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

and cool (not quite 70 degrees) temps, but the field of sunflowers warmed the morning.\"\"<\/a>It did not take long for the wind to join us as we rolled through towns\"\"<\/a> and vineyards\"\"<\/a> and up and down hills. \u00a0Even with the dark skies\"\"<\/a> and wind in our face, it was a lovely cool morning ride.\"\"<\/a>At the top of one of our hills we caught a glimpse of the beautiful Cathedral Saint-Nazaire\"\"<\/a> in B\u00e9ziers. \u00a0But since we were only skirting the town, this is all we saw of it.\"\"<\/a>We crossed this canal \"\"<\/a>about a half dozen times and felt we were back in northern Europe, especially with the continuous threat of rain. \u00a0As a side, we’ve found the roads in France are narrow, not in the best shape and seldom have a shoulder\"\"<\/a> and the people drive really fast, but they have been considerate.<\/p>\n

The sun made an appearance as we enjoyed our picnic lunch and the sights\u00a0\"\"<\/a>along the canal in Agde.\"\"<\/a>As we headed out of town, had a strange occurance, French people asked Us<\/strong><\/em> for directions!\"\"<\/a>Of course, no one understood what the other was saying, but at least this time <\/em>we knew where we<\/em> were going. \u00a0We continued our beautiful ride through vineyards\"\"<\/a>with vines just beginning to bare fruit\"\"<\/a>and the port town of Marseillan.\"\"<\/a>A big Semper Fi to Le Marine Bar,\"\"<\/a>where is this in Norfolk or Virginia Beach?\"\"<\/a>The town of M\u00e8ze situated on the second largest lake in France, \u00c9tang de Thau, is very much like the last port town we rode through, quaint, quite and lots of boats.\"\"<\/a>We enjoyed the wind from our terrace\"\"<\/a> overlooking the lake as we rested from the tough ride. \u00a0As we strolled back to town, artisans were setting up for the evening to sell their creations.\"\"<\/a>Luckily, the French have a much more reasonable time to open their restaurants. \u00a0By seven o’clock we were enjoying a huge bowl of seafood soup garnished with fresh cheese, a tomato and anchovy salad\"\"<\/a>as well as an incredible plate of shellfish,\"\"<\/a> raised just off the shores from where we were staying…..Outstandng. \u00a0Fat, happy and 50 miles under our (tight fitting) belts we headed to bed as the last night faded in the sky.\"\"<\/a>\n\t\t