Day 21 : Nemours to Moret-Sur-Loing

Saturday 28th July 2007


Day's Progress: 18 kms : 6 locks (Total 446 kms : 207 locks)

We stopped in Episy for lunch – a great restaurant. I had a square of fish tightly wrapped in filo pastry and backed. It was served with an onion sauce , baked baby aubergine and beans – lovely!

Later in the afternoon we moored at Moret-Sur-Loing which dates back to the 11th c, the time of Louis VII. The town boasts the oldest bridge in the Paris region. They apparently also have the most famous butterscotch in the world which is made by the nuns in the convent here. This town is a fortress town and has old walls and battlements – and beautifully kept gardens along side the river. The other oldest bridge has 8 spans and goes into the town – this was famously painted by Sisley

There are lots of old houses, buildings and beautiful cobbled roads – very narrow roads! We took our bikes into the town and chained them up near one of the roads leading into the walled section. The town itself is buzzing – this is Saturday afternoon and there are heaps of people around, locals and tourists. A wedding was in progress and this involves the wedding cars driving around and around hooting and making lots of noise…. We saw the entire wedding party and it looked like they were going to have a fabulous party. The old cathedral is huge. They are doing renovations so there is scaffolding along one side of it. The gargoyles are wonderful – they stick out really far. Must confess that sometimes my cat reminds me of them – it is the way she makes her body go looooong sometimes!!!

I found the ancient little shop near the cathedral and bought some barely sugar – they didn’t have butterscotch! There were lots of little tasting dishes and sweets were beautifully packaged in tins.

Along the streets there were ceramic saints (?) plaques inserted into the walls – they were very attractive. We found the Sisley shop and bought a few prints. Outside the shop in the square is a large statue to the man. There are framed prints in most of the shops and restaurants.

We had dinner in a buzzing restaurant near the fortress gate entrance. It was a help yourself buffet and had a marvellous selection including tripe which didn’t last very long. There were great salads, thick slices of roast beef, chicken casserole and beef stews. There was a dish of potato which was baked with a little bit of bacon, caramelised onion and butter – very, very delicious.

The wind comes down the river and rattles the leaves on the large trees – it sounds amazing all the time. The water along the river bank is so clear you can see down to the bottom. This river front is really lovely, willow trees and a gentle place to be – no wonder it was painted so frequently.