We decided to have a rest and a more relaxing day, in the busy town of Amboise. No cycling was planned!

Our accommodation is 5 minutes walk from the centre, so we popped in early to buy bread and croissants for breakfast.

We then spent a couple of hours exploring the shops and the large riverside market. More than any other town or city we’ve visited, Amboise is really busy. Perhaps it’s the narrow streets, but there’s a slightly claustrophobic feel to some of it, especially where cars are allowed.

But there are also pedestrianised streets close to the imposing chateau and walks along the riverside that are very attractive. It all feels as if tourism dominates, with hoards arriving in cars and coaches.

In a tree-lined car park, by the river, there was a large open market, full of the expected local produce – cheese, meat, leather goods, honey, more cheese. Apparently it opens early and when walked round, approached midday, the stall holders were winding down. The locals had been and gone (we met many of them coming away as we arrived, their shopping trollies bulging).

We therefore walked round accompanied by tourists and an enthusiastic throng of hornets, who were getting stuck into food stuff of all types. Hornets are probably more common here than their much smaller cousins, the wasps. And, on the whole, despite their size and obvious potential to sting, they seem a lot more laid back than wasps.

The rest of the day was taken up with lunch at the excellent Bigot cafe, a bike ride for Phil (over to the nearby Chenonceax chateau), and an evening drink and chat at a nearby bar.

Bird Report: a big highlight today, a flock of White Storks circling over the Loire. A first for all of us as we watched these huge birds circling overhead at close quarters.

Julie adds: I went for a solo wander to soak up the atmosphere and take a different picture of the imposing chateau. On my way back I found Phil and Olivia still happily chatting at the cafe, nearby were a party of American tourists accompanied by a guide dressed as Leonardo da Vinci.

In fact we heard many English and American accents today among the French tourists visiting Amboise.

The cafe Bigot was like a French version of Betty’s, the waitresses all dressed in black & white uniforms. Inside was a classy array of cakes. Olivia purchased a macaroon on leaving!

A culinary update. We have mixed cooking in with eating out, aiming to make the most of our accommodation while enjoying local food and wine at the restaurants and bars en-route.

The carrefour express supermarkets are well located in every place we have visited and stock a wide range of groceries. However we have been somewhat challenged by the different kitchen facilities at each stop. Some lack tea towels. Others have complicated induction hobs or lack some key cooking implements! Most tricky has been the electric coffee machines. In Amboise we had good coffee but most were disappointing or didn’t work well at all. We missed the traditional French cafetière!