Thursday, September 6, 2012
From Andorra to Carcassonne
It is less then twohundred kilometer from Andorra to Carcassonne so
I take my time for breakfast and a morning walk through the shoppng street.
The breakfast in the hotel was very good with a great variety of food to
choose from but I did not like the coffee.
Breakfast
Unfortunately, most shops do not open until 10 AM but some cafes and restaurants
where already open so I got a good cappuccino at an internet cafe in town.
At half past nine, I left the underground parking of the hotel and went to
the border with France. Riding in the Pyrenees is great. I love to ride those
mountain roads.
Wonderfull riding in the Pyrenees
At about ten o'clock, I arived at the Port D'Envalira at an altidude of 2408 meter.
I was not the only biker that liked this road.....
After some more wonderfull mountain roads I saw a sign to a restaurant on the summit
of the Col du Chioula. I parked the bike and walked to the restaurant but there was a sign
ferme, that is closed in French.
Nice spot for a coffee break but the restaurant was closed
Well, I had no problem with riding on because I really love to ride here. The roads are
so nice and there is not much traffic so I am havving a good time.
A picture tells more then a 1000 words....
At half past twelve I was getting really hungry so I stopped at a cafe in Chalabre.
I had a big coca-cola and French fries in this typical French village cafe. Nice.
Lunch in a typical French cafe
Until now, the roads had been bikers heaven with hardly more then a few hundred
meters straight road at a time (Just enough to overtake slow cars and trucks)
but from now on the roads were less spectaculair until I reached Carcassonne.
The roads were not spectaculair anymore but the view on the citadel was magnificent !
Great view
I did not go direct to the hotel but first wanted to see the citadel and get a picture of
the bike near the citadel.
In front of the main entrance of the citadel
Then I let the Tomtom show me the hotel and unlike yesterday, it was spot-on. Right
in front of the hotel entrance I parked the bike and as soon as I stopped, the lady
from the hotel came to welcome me and showed me the garage for the bike.
I will stay two nights in this hotel, Hotel Astoria on 18 rue Tourtel in Carcassonne.
Hotel Astoria in Carcassonne
Tomorrow I want to see the citadel but today I want do do some sightseeing in Carcassone.
The lady of the hotel advised about the Canal Du Midi canal tour on a boat so I went to
the harbour and bought a ticket but I had to wait until four o'clock before the boat left
so I went into the city center.
At a big square in the center I had a nice strawberry smoothy and after that, I enjoyed
the old streets of this historic town.
Strawberry smoothy
At a quarter to four I was back at the harbour but the boat was not there yet.
I was glad I had bought a bottle of cold water at the railway station nearby because it
was very hot in the sun. Before the boat could reach the harbour it had to go through
the lock so that took some time too.
Through the lock into the harbour
Finaly the boat went through the lock and entered the harbour so the passengers could
get out and i could get in, together with a lot of other people.
I was the first on the boat so I had a seat at the front with a perfect view.
I had the best seat of the ship..... right in front
A few minutes after four, the boat left on the Canal Du Midi, a channel that makes it
possible to sail from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean. It was built by Pierre-Paul
Riquet and Italian Francois Andreossy between 1667 and 1680.
Very peaceful
The captain, at work in the lock
Our charming tour guide
The Canal Du Midi is populair with tourists
Stop at a cafe to buy some refreshments
After the canal tour, I went back to the hotel to check where I could have dinner.
The hotelowner advised me an Italian restaurant, just around the corner but it did not open
until seven so I strolled the streets of Carcassonne some more.
At seven, I was going to the restaurant and had a nice pizza. Then I went back to the hotel.
On Friday, I will visit the old Citadel of Carcassonne.
Pizzeria
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