Day 28 - Lectoure - 29 May

Rest Day 

Weather: Overcast and some rain 

Accommodation: Hotel de Bastard 

Feelings: Neil - Relaxed, Henk - Relaxed,  Di - Relaxed 

It was good to have a later breakfast for the start of our rest day. We met fellow Melbourne Aussies, Brian, Anne and Peta at breakfast. They left a day later than us from Le Puy-en-Velay on 3 May so we have kept pace with each other. They also had a rest day today.

Our first job was to go to the laundromat to wash our filthy walking clothes. Yesterday’s mud was thankfully removed. We followed our washing job with a coffee in a very French, darkish cafe then and a tour of the town. There is a very large church, the Cathedral of St Gervasis and Saint Protasius which dominates the small town was originally built in the early 1300’s. 

We met an Austrian at the Tourist Information Centre who has walked 2000kms from Vienna pulling a cart with his backpack and other luggage. He is planning on walking to Santiago de Compostela which is another 1000 kilometres. 

Lectoure is popular with English tourists and we could hear the accent as we walked around the town. Yesterday’s restaurant was fully booked for lunch so we continued down the long street of Lectoure and found a small cafe with seating outside. The food was a more simple affair from yesterday and half the price and just as tasty. Neil and I shared a cassoulet of duck, sausage and cannelloni beans with bread and wine. Henk sat in front of a Callistemon which is such an unusual site in France. 

It was a great rest day and we are eager to get going again.