18km
Our Gite called Le Baladin was quite the place. The building had hallways and verandas leading to all kinds of rooms filled with kitch. There were pianos and pool tables and cocktail tables and chairs nailed to the ceiling upside down. It was a bit like being in a fun house or a wacky shop on Route 66. The owners were very sweet and fun. They used to run a restaurant there as well but now just want to do a chambre d'hotes and Gite. I think there was room for quite a lot of people, but she kept it to 15 (people or rooms) because more than that requires a lot of additional paperwork. I would have loved to explore the whole house and garden more, but I wasn't sure what was off limits.
Breakfast was served in a room with a great bar set up and the upside down pool table nailed to the ceiling. She had fresh warm bread, homemade yogurt and homemade jams and chocolate spread that was incredible. I wanted to take the whole pot of chocolate with me!
At 8.5 km we came to San Antoine where we stopped for coffee at a cafe with little tables in the street. About 12 pilgrims took a break while we were there and it felt like the convivial cafes along the Camino in Spain. The casual walkers seem to be gone now and it is mostly pilgrims left, many doing their 4th- 16th Camino. There are some serious walkers out there who love doing Caminos all over Europe.
San Antoine was a darling town with beautiful flowers and quaint stone houses in addition to the impressive church. Knowing we weren't doing as many km today we took our time there and had a really nice break.
We stopped for a picnic lunch by the ruins of the church in Flamarens. There was restoration work in progress, but there was a long way to go. Another hour and change brought us to the little town of Miradoux where we are staying tonight. The Gite has some interesting pieces which look like they came from a church as well as an indoor swing and a large garden for us to relax in. I'm enjoying the shade of a tree and a recliner chair right now!
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