Great first day on the bikes. After our hour long TGV train ride from Paris at speeds well over 100 mph, we arrived in Tours. From there we took a bus ride to a winery in Chinon, which is our home for the next two days. After a nice tasting of Rose and Cab Franc, we had a catered lunch with various cheeses and meats and breads.








Then it was time for a safety talk and to start riding! It was quite cool and overcast to start but within several miles we all warmed up just fine. Poppies are in bloom here right now and the crickets and birds are chirping constantly on the narrow back roads, some barely wider than one car. Some beautiful views along the way. We did not stop enough along the route but we will rectify that in the coming days!








The big site along this route was a visit to the castle that supposedly inspired the writing of Sleeping Beauty.














We ended the ride at the Hotel Diderot where we will stay for 2 nights. Chinon is a neat old town where Joan of Arc came as a teenager to convince Charles VII (a future king) to allow her to lead troops into battle. Crazy story.

Last night we had a wonderful 5-course dinner that lasted 3 hours, the norm here in France. Here are some photos taken on our walk to the restaurant.








And lastly I took a photo of a map showing our rides for the first 3 days:




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Location:Bike trip Day 1