(D) Chambéry 🇫🇷

(D) Chambéry 🇫🇷

Mileage today : 202 miles

Total mileage : 877 miles

Packed up the tent, in the rain, again. The 70 mile ride out of the forest area was not without it's problems. The storm during the night had washed a lot of loose material from the hillsides down onto the roads. Mud, small stones, branches, every bend was taken with caution. Eventually the road joined up with the motorway , the sun came out and then it became a 'in and out' game overtaking wagons as wagons overtook other wagons. About 30 miles from Chambéry the motorway went up a long gentle rise, then, as you went over the top, it all became worth while. There, in the distance, across almost all of the horizon were the snow capped Alps. I silently kicked myself for not fitting some sort of video camera to either the bike or my helmet. It was a glorious view

The temperature was creeping towards 30degC so it was time to get into the town as fast as possible.

Chambéry is a typical European medieval, fairytail city with picturesque narrow  streets, neat little houses with cute signs and shops. The sort of place people still think it's inhabited by princes and princesses. The old town is cozy and compact, filled with little cafes and bars. You can walk around it in 2hrs.

I'd booked to stay in Chambéry for 3 days for several reasons. Originally it was to take a break from camping and visit a friend of mine I'd worked with back in 2012 in Brazil during the start up of a chemical plant. Back then she was a young instrument technician, now she is a consultant, jetting all around the world. Unfortunately her dynamic lifestyle ment she wouldn't be at home but I kept the hotel booking anyway as it was a good deal with underground parking and the bad weather was still following me.   

The Hotel Kyriad is 5 floors of little apartments  each with it's own kitchen. There is no bar but they serve a 'help yourself ' breakfast, there is a lounge area, a spar and a fitness room. Located in the centre of the city it is surrounded by bars and cafes. The local supermarket is 3min walk away. Once I was unpacked and the bike locked up I wandered off to the supermarket, stocked up with some food and a couple of bottles of local, 6% beer. I was knackered, sleeping on stoney ground had taken its toll so after eating I stretched out on my nice soft  double bed and fell fast asleep.

Next day it was time to have a wander around the town. Built in Romans time, the city had developed as a sort of cross roads between France, Italy and Switzerland. The cathedral, unfortunately closed, was built in the 15th century on very soft, marshy ground. It is supported by 30,000 poles sunk into the ground. The famous fountain with it's life size elephants was built to honour the city patron for all his service to India's Kings and Maharaja's back in the day. Being close to both Switzerland and Italy, both easily accessible via train as well as motorways, the city has become a tourist trap.

The streets are a maze of little alleyways which then open up onto various squares. It would have been interesting to see a birds eye view of the city.

By now it was lunch time so I headed to a bar, recommended for it's beer,  O'Cardinalls, located just across from the cathedral. I treated myself to some local beer and smoked sausage paté, smothered on warm fresh bread , coffee and Rum Baba, watching the world go by. The weather forecast was heavy rain by 2pm and it was bang on time. By then I had retreated to my hotel room and listened to the thunder roll in and the lights flicker with every lightening strike. The rain was in for the night and so was I.

Friday arrived and I had decisions to make. Do I stay in Chambéry , on my own and do what? Or do I cut it short and carry on to meet up with Paul a day early. The forecast was good so I decided to move on.