Orléans

After leaving Chartres we had a day driving to reach the Orléans area.

So, the city of Joan of Arc. I think the whole city trades on Joan, Maid of Orléans. As a tourist coming into the city, every shop, space, lamp post and cobbled street tells the story of Joan.You can have your picture taken as Joan, buy Joan soap, sweets, etc, etc. However, there is much more to Orléans than Joan. Although the city was heavily damaged in WW2, the Cathedral escaped virtually unscathed, and as other cathedrals we have seen in France, is very impressive architecturally, with hugely high windows, mostly clear glass, making the inside full of light and atmosphere. In contrast to the cathedral, but very close by, one church had been damaged so that only the front and back walls of the original remained: the rebuilding has married what remained with a modern nave, incorporating coloured glass into the roof area, making it really light, so that the ancient mosaics in the sanctuary are displayed in all their glory. 

PS.  Internet cafes are proving harder to find than we anticipated, but we will endeavour to update as regularly as we can.

PPS.  Wall to wall sunshine: have avoided sunburn up to now.