the noise of others woke me up again around six. But at least there was strong coffee ready for us. We walked over to the little bakery and got some croissants. We were ready to go but our host said he would walk with us for a while and show us the way out of town...ten minutes soon took over half hour...finally we called for him...and he came down..first we went back into center of town, I needed a bank machine...and as we arrived, the market was in full swing... I got some fruit and we found an interesting snack made of potatoes and cheese that was beaten a lot so that it was like string mozzarella and potato combined..quite delicious if you like your starches ...but also this meant and even later start... we had lost our host, he had another change of plans..and instead of guiding us, he just told the way...i found out the back story a little later, I had thought him a cheerful man...but apparently he is quite stressed and nervous, he is retiring soon and the money is not as much as he thought... he cant afford the renovations and the Gite is not going well... it's so interesting what a difference an impression can make when you know the language or in my case you dont..it's like night and day...Ms Ulm and I helped each other find the way out of town..the landscape went from urban to farm country quickly....but then I wanted to walk a bit slower so she went on ahead... soon enough it started raining... really raining... soon I would find Ms Ulm under shelter, she is not fond of rain... I decided to keep drudging on... because I am slow and because I knew I would get wet feet regardless..eventually she would pass me again and I would not see her again till the end of the walking day.. I really was 'not in the mood' with walking and the weather etc... I felt emotional and a good dose of self pity..... I wanted to take a nap … walking just did not seem like fun...but sleeping in puddles also not an option, so I continued on...
I met some cows and started feeling sorry for them..these were probably the luckier cows on the planet..they were outside eating grass, they even had a baby with them which is rare...but I just imagined how their life would come to an end and how little choice they really had about their fate... yup, it was one of those days...i found the trail-markings tricky twice this day but found my way without getting lost... really the worst of it was the continuing rain which always seemed to start from new again and again.... but eventually I came to the turn off, luckily there was a sign for the Abbey because I would have kept going on the St Jacques way... I arrived at a Monastery, this was a men's Benedictine monastery, it took a while to find the right building and person... I said in real bad french to a monk that I was a pilgrim...he immediately said 'you are american' I thought god lords, is it really that obvious? Then he said 'and german!... realizing that he was not guessing but must have talked to one of my pilgrim friends I waited for him to continue... he spoke eloquent and yet simply...'your friends are at the Nunnery,' I thought oh, they walked another 5kms to the next place... what should I do? Then he said 'they are waiting for you,' and I thought oh that is sweet but how much longer do I have to walk? He said “ it is just ten minutes down the road' I almost did not believe him and asked him again...the info I had gotten earlier had been different...so uncertain but happy I walked down the road to the Nunnery, I started laughing at myself and my horrible french and how I had thought the monk could read my mind at first...also I think emotions today are strong in all directions... then finally as promised ten minute or less walk... I walked into the book store cuz it was open... a nun running the cash register called for me to the gite attached to the place, and in french and english she told me where I had to go to sleep, where the dining place was and where the Vesper's were being held...i walked back down across the street..and tried several doors in a building till I found an open one... I went upstairs and found the germans..the freiburg ladies in one room and ms ulm in another... I got a third room with four beds... heat was on... I reconnected with everyone and showered and laundered.. I rested a bit and then we all went to the church again across the street to listen to the evening Vespers sung by the nuns...when I saw the nuns come in I got all teary..cuz I just thought it wonderful that in this day and age, western people would still commit them selves to such a strict path of spirituality...of course I was over romanticizing...but it was lovely...and then they began to sing the evening prayers... and I closed my eyes and let their sweet beautiful women's voices singing in harmony take me away... it was only marred by the fact that in sections we were expected to stand.. my feet were kinda done with that.... after they left for the evening we looked at the church a bit...then as is their custom, the german woman started harmonizing their hallelujah song.. and it was so beautiful I got all teary again...it was just that sort of day.... then we were lead to a small reading room while we waited for dinner... we waited for a little while and then we were bought to another room to eat... sadly not with the nuns...there were five french lay women who were here for a retreat away from the world... . The dinner to my surprise was vegetarian..very simple... vegetable soup, cheese pasta, salad, bread and yogurt for desert and wine that only the us foreigners drank... many of them wanted to go the the 8pm prayers so we did the dishes.. I went into my room and spend the evening..just writing and doing my little homework before going to bed at ten.. I heard the others chatting for a while... I think I needed some unsocial time..since the day was a bit of a drain although it ended very sweetly..
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