Day 5 - Tournus to Chalon sur Saone

Overnight it was raining a lot and the water was a little wavy.  We could feel the boat pulling out and then getting snapped back by the lines tied to the shore.  At one point, it jerked so hard that I thought we’d both fall out of bed.  David looked out the window and saw that a big barge had gone by and created a large wake which shook our boat so hard.  It was 6 AM. We had planned to get up early and leave by 8.  I woke up first and looked at my phone for the time – it was already 9:10!  We had to forego the planned French toast and settle for cereal, croissants, bread and cheese, and of course, coffee and juice.  We were on the move by 9:30!

This is where we docked in Tournus.  We were just to the left of the large blue (on the bottom) barge

Within a half hour of leaving our port, we came upon a lock.  It was open and two boats going in the opposite direction from us were coming out.  We noticed that all the people on these boats were wearing life preservers.  Sure enough, there was a big sign that they were mandatory in this lock.  Unlike the locks of the past two days, this was a huge one operated by a lockmaster high in a tower above us.  We pulled in and looped our lines around a cleat and another boat pulled in behind us.  The captain of that boat was shouting at his “crew” in (I think) German.  “He’s a yeller” David said.  Well, this lock provided a change in water height of about 10 feet, and the water came in very fast.  The speed and turbulence of this water explained the requirement for life jackets!  The trip for the rest of today was kind of boring – just trees and fields and the weather was overcast and damp.  However, as we approached Chalon sur Saone, it got a bit sunnier.

Entering Chalon

Just outside of Chalon - The large white boat on the left is a river cruise ship 

We easily found the only marina in Chalon and there was plenty of room for us.  This marina also included water and electric and has bathrooms and showers available as well.  We quickly checked in and found out what there was to do in this town.  There was a small street market which was just getting ready to close as we got there, but David bought some olives.  Then we found a lovely restaurant on one of the small town squares which mostly only served pizza and salad, so we had a pizza and a salad to share!  We already knew about the Photography Museum, which is a tribute to a man, who's name escapes me, who worked with Daguerre to invent photography and he came from this town.  We went to the museum next.  Then we’d heard about a wine store where we went but it was closed (it is Sunday, after all).  Next to the wine store was a beautiful park and aviary, so we walked around the park for a while.  At this point, David went back to the boat and I decided to go in and out of the local stores,  but I found they were all closed so I went back to the boat as well.  It was not even 4:00 PM, so we went over to the local supermarket – closed, but found a store that was kind of like K Mart.  They sold clothes, toiletries, chairs, shoes, etc very inexpensively.  We wandered around and then came back to the boat.    

Back at the marina, we met a Swiss family who had rented a boat from another company, Locaboat, that we’d used on a prior trip.  Then, I went to the bathroom at the marina and met a woman there who was Scottish.  Later, two large boats pulled in filled with kids.  I thought they were college age, but they were all 14 or 15 and on a religious trip.  They were also Swiss. 

Our boat (left of dock) 

The bridge over the River Saone from the area where we docked to the main part of town 

Church in Chalon

Pizza and salad for lunch

Inside the photography museum

This and the next three pictures were taken in the park we walked through 

Square in Chalon

Typical street in Chalon

Our boat in the Chalon marina (blue bottom in center)

We went out to find a restaurant for dinner.  Oddly, many of the restaurants only serve drinks in the evening. 

In the evening, around 7:00 we headed out for dinner.  We had heard that most of the cafes have free wifi, but we had passed a bar that had a sign out front saying so.  We looked in many restaurants but the ones that were open had only one or two people inside.  We found one restaurant that seemed busy and sat down outside.  When the waitress came by she rudely informed us that they didn’t serve food then.  So, we went back to the bar with the wifi we’d seen earlier and went inside.  The pass for the wifi was about 30 numbers/letters long and it took me a couple of tries to get it right.  But I was able to check email, write this blog and skype with our daughter and speak to our son while we drank delicious red wine.

Next, we found a restaurant that looked pretty crowded and went in.  The waitress there was friendly but didn’t speak a word of English.  I selected a green salad and Dorade fish.  I had no idea what the fish might come with or if it was filet or bone in.  David pointed to a salad that he wanted and also pointed to an entrée but he had no idea what it was.  Could have been fish, chicken or steak!  We got a hint it was steak when the waitress came back to ask how he’d like it done.  I found the answer to that question in my book of French phrases and showed it to the waitress.  Both of our meals were terrific!  Now, sitting near the door was a British couple and they had a dog under the table.  Next to us was a young couple.  Shortly after their dinners, the waitress brought them both big sundaes for dessert, but they waved her away.  They said something in French and a few minutes later she brought two bowls of what we thought were ice cream, which they ate, only after dumping tons of sugar in and stirring it a lot.  After they ate that, then she brought the sundaes back and they ate those!!  Dining here is truly an adventure for us!