Day 3 – Licques to Wisques

Total immersion in a place of great beauty

Tuesday 3/4/18

Distance 26.6km Total distance from Canterbury 89.5km

A really nice breakfast at the campsite brasserie set me up for the day. It included yoghurt which declared itself to be onctueux. Mmmm. For today’s walk I followed the directions of Alison Raju’s Cicerone guide exactly, using Kindle on my phone. The directions were very clear. The church in Bouvelinghem was open, with nice windows and a prayer intentions book. The bar and shop/restaurant were, not surprisingly, closed. The fine church in Acquin-Westbécourt was open as was Bar Nathalie opposite, but no food.

After coffee I proceeded on the main road through the village, passing a wayside chapel which was mentioned in the book. And here I learned a useful lesson. On the Camino del Santiago, the road passes through virtually every village it comes too. The local shopkeepers and bar owners make sure of that. But here, no. So I was going the wrong way – the road skirts around the village. So I had to backtrack a little. The same could be said for Shepherdswell on Sunday – the path does not go past the pub! And I then today  found a different wayside chapel – they are very common.

The road thereafter is unremarkable on very quiet paths and roads. After 25km I came upon my first sign board of the day. Which, as you can see, was not all that helpful. Yes I know that the VF runs in both directions and as originally described was from Rome to Canterbury. But I came at this sign at right angles and it told me nothing other than I was sort of in the right place….which I already knew. So another useful lesson. You can reach Santiago, certainly from within Spain, without needing a guidebook: you cannot navigate, at least through this part of France, without a guidebook of some kind.

Another 2km brought me to the manicured village of Wisques, passing a male monastery on the left and continuing up to the ladies monastery. You pass a cemetery on the way where the male monks have a plot (monks – monial(e)s are both male and female in French). Simple and striking.

The Abbaye de Nôtre Dame is huge and imposing. I was directed from the main gate to a lovely little cottage in the grounds where guests are accommodated and where a bed is always reserved for pilgrims. I was warmly welcomed by Soeur Lucie, brimming with good cheer, and by no means a youngster. She sat me down in the kitchen for a cup of coffee. We chatted a bit in French and she asked me if I wanted to see a video about the work of the Sisters. If I am honest, I have seen all the videos of the work of Sisters, Brothers and priests that I need, but of course I told her I would love to. She carefully positioned me by the window, sat opposite me and from the deep folds of her habit brought out a small and sophisticated looking camera and proceeded to make a video in which she interviewed me about my life and work. Totally in French. Well it is one way to boost your language skills.

The abbey is a foundation of the Benedictine monastery at Solesmes which is world famous for its expertise in Gregorian chant, the ancient music of the prayers of the liturgy sung in Latin. It dates from at least the 10th century. I sorted out my washing and proceeded to Vespers (Evensong) at 1630. In a monastic church, the Sisters or priests and Brothers are in the choir (the nave) while visitors are accommodated in a small side chapel with a view of the altar, but without being able to see the Sisters, who are technically ‘enclosed’. And so as the clock chimed a quite ethereal sound came from ‘around the corner’ of strong pure voices in unison singing the Psalms and hymns, in Latin throughout. The gulf between that, and the rugby scrum atmosphere of Canterbury Cathedral, was vast. I think if you knew nothing about the prayers or about monastic life you would still known that you were in the presence of extraordinary beauty, which, for the believer, gains from its purpose.

Dinner for guests was served a 7pm in the monastery and I had the chance to meet my fellow guests. There was M Le Général (retired) and his wife, and two ladies from nearby Belgium who had come for a few days of peace and quiet. And also seven French teenagers whom had come for a study week before a university entrance exam. The conversation around the table was animated. There was a good bit of discussion about the menu. Vegetable soup to start, followed by something which looked like a large slab of Madeira cake, but with an unidentified herbal/spicy flavour. After this came pureed potatoes. Served entirely alone. Then a choice of cheeses. Then a very sweet concoction of cake and caramel. The Belgian ladies were a bit nonplussed and the French teenagers were not able to explain the menu choices. But everyone agreed it was perfectly nice.

Compline, which is night prayer, in the chapel at 8pm, brought the day to a close, though not really for the Sisters who would make two more long visits to the chapel for sung prayers before breakfast time.