A Church, a Ride along the Canal, and More Day Drinking

First, several friends have written asking about the protests here in France and if we feel safe. We absolutely do. It breaks my heart to see the damage and destriction in Paris and other larger cities, and I do hope that it all will be resolved soon. If things do ramp up again next weekend, we will be in a new location which is also a small town. So we are all good here.

Dijon is large enough that we are still are discovering new interesting places. Yesterday we went back to the church with all of the gargoyles, Notre-Dame Church. The inside is nice but it was the exterior that we found more interesting. Here's a picture of those gargoyles along with my favorite. Each one is different.

On the north side of the church is a small owl, the symbol of Dijon. The legend goes that if you rub it with your left hand a make a wish, it will be granted. The poor little guy has been rubbed so many times that it's hard to even recognize what it is.

Another exterior shot. Just a beautiful church with many rooflines and angles.

Behind the church is what I believe is the oldest structure in Dijon. It was built in 1464. Notice the size of the door. Random stranger used for scale.

In case anyone is wondering why G always has on a black vest.... it's because he brought two on the trip. One is lightweight, one heavier. Cold days he wears both at the same time.

Rain was predicted for several days this week so when the weather cleared in late morning, we rented some bikes and headed to the Burgundy Canal Trail. It's a beautiful trail running west of Dijon along the canals with locks along the way. We rode to Fleury-sur-Ouche, about 10 miles away. Had lunch there, and biked back. Perfect afternoon. Well, almost.

We passed a grove of these trees, and I have no idea what kind they are. Initially, I thought those greem balls were some kind of nest, but they are just some kind of foilage. Anyone recognize them?

When we picked up the bikes, we were told they didn't have any ebikes. Greg was fine riding a traditional bike but we were hoping to ride 20 miles so I said I'd prefer an ebike. Bad decision. The only one they could find was way too big/high for me and very heavy. I struggled to get on and off of it, and finally when we were just a few miles from home, I fell trying to get off. A man saw me fall and came over to help get the bike off of me, and Greg came running back to help. So darn heavy!! Fortunately, no photo of this. As I went down, I saw visions of the end of the vacation flash before my eyes. I also heard my doctor giving me my osteoporosis diagnosis. The good news, I just had a small scrape and a few bruises. A hot shower and a refreshing spritz and I was good as new! Whew!