Somme Arras Fillievres

Sunday May 31
The Somme memorial
Today was another devoted to memories of the terrible sufferings of Europe and the lives lost in WW1. We began the day with a visit to an underground museum ( a former air raid shelter) which depicted life in the trenches. It was an excellent recreation. Most moving were the letters written by soldiers, many of whom never returned. Throughout the district of the Somme are reminders of the war -- notices indicating the very slow advancement of the troop lines, many cemeteries and memorials.



We drove through small rural communities, trying to find a place for morning coffee and eventually found ourself in a small bar filled with local men placing their bets on today's horse races. Later we ate coffee eclairs and orange tartelettes by the side of the road.

Arras
Our next major stop was in Arras which has two remarkable adjoining squares onto which face the distinctive Flemish buildings with their stepped roof lines. At the local fine art gallery, housed in a lovely abbey, we saw an exhibition about Napoleon in Egypt which included some superb paintings. We then visited another underground site, the Carriere Wellington -- a massive complex of tunnels excavated by New Zealand miners during WW1, linking existing limestone mines (originally started in the middle ages) used in the construction of the city. The tunnels housed 24,000 soldiers who were part of an assault plan against the Germans that went badly wrong, with the virtual destruction of Arras.



Fillievres
Our stop for the night was at the little town of Fillievres where we stayed at a Gite run by Bernadette and her husband Robert. It is an enchanting old water-powered flour mill built over a fast running river. Our pretty room was in the converted stables, overlooking the river. We walked around the gardens and through the enclosures of chickens to feed the donkeys who kicked up a terrible racket (like rusty gate hinges) when we stopped feeding them fists full of grass.





























At dinner we met several other guests, a young couple of teachers (French) and a group of four enthusiastic cyclists (Belgian). As luck would have it, the Belgians spoke some English, so we had a lively night speaking in two languages, with people occasionally stepping in to translate. I was firing well, and my French improved as the night progressed. The meal was simple rural French food -- nettle soup, some type of meat in a delicious sauce with potatoes and lettuce and a custard tart. We had aperitifs and a good red wine. With the Belgians being particularly good-humoured and our host keeping the conversation lively and entertaining, it was a great night.


ps David: Bigger photos while we have free WiFi