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Much cooler morning but still sunny. We leave Pradelles at 11:15 heading for LePuy en Velay. After yesterday's challenging roads this morning is a relaxed drive through rolling landscapes with stone walls and small clumps of trees. Grete radios to say it reminds her of the Scottish lowlands. We reach Le Puy at midday and find free parking in the centre.
Le Puy is an old city dominated by the hilltop cathedral with its huge red statue of Madonna. It is also the centre for the region that produces Puy lentils to AOC commendation, and we have come intent on sampling some for lunch. We find the restaurant La Table du Plot [mentioned in Lonely Planet] and sit in the sunshine. We are served Maurin, a local cherry aperitif, and choose a charcuterie platter to share for starters the we all opt for cabrillard [cod] wrapped in smoked bacon, served with tomato sauce and a bowl of lentils with apple, walnut and cream sauce. A bottle of cote d'auvergne completes the local theme and all is delicious. Nick and Grete insist this is their treat before we go our separate ways tomorrow and our protests are in vain.
After lunch we venture into the old town with its tall narrow buildings accented with shutters, railings and carved wood mouldings. The streets get steeper and Nick is abandoned halfway to the 11th century cathedral, now a Unesco listed building. There are many steps to climb to get into the Cathedral but it truly is awe inspiring inside with soaring pillars, Romanesque archways and Byzantine domes, multi-coloured spires and always in sight the rust red statue of Madonna cast from 213 cannons captured in the Crimean War - she stands on a 757 metre high pillar of rock!
The city's other tradition is handmade lace and there are plenty of shops with lace on display.
The lower part of Le Puy is laid out with large squares, wide streets and Napoleonic building giving it the feel of a laid-back, small scale Paris.
We have a short drive to our site this evening at La Rochelambert. We spend our last night with Nick and Grete munching on leftovers and drinking wine. We all agree it has been great travelling together for so many days.
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