Day 7 – Rest day in Arras

I plan where practical to have one day off each week. This may or may not be on Sunday. But in a gentle way it will be honouring the Sabbath, and giving time for rest and recuperation, catching up on things that need doing, washing probably, and possibly a celebratory meal, something a fraction less frugal than what may occur on other days.

So this was the first rest day. An important rule of rest days is not to try to do too much. I am not in Arras as a weekend tourist. I am relaxing. I had a lazy start – well breakfast at 8:30. Then I went into the city centre. I had a list of things I wanted to do. Two things on the list. The first was to send a couple of items home – two British phone adapters. I am operating a strict one in one out policy with luggage from here on in. And I plan to buy a piece of kit today. So I have got rid of a large bar of soap and went to the post office to send the adapters home.

The post office is open and is full of the kind of people who are amazed to find they have to stand in a loooooong queue to do what they want to do on a Saturday morning. A lot of tut tutting. And perhaps a bit of Zut alors! I put on my helpless face and a nice lady summoned me out of the queue to ask me what I needed. Who am I to argue with a bit of help? I noted that she was responsible for people with special needs. Hmmmm. I was in Brazil a couple of years ago and discovered that everyone over 60 gets priority for everything – the bus, the metro, ATMs, the Post Office, and everything to do with all aeroplanes. There’s a country!! After quite an amount of filling in forms, all was done and my adapters are on their way home.

So then into the city again for my next item. I was looking for a small Bluetooth keyboard for my tablet. Here is a bit of advice: if you plan to start blogging for the first time, don’t start two nights before you leave home. So much more relaxed if you practise everything at home. I have a new small tablet, which is super, but I miss a keyboard. I miss my Blackberry enormously, still after many years. I think they have just closed down.

In Arras it was summer, the pavements thronged with people having coffee and cake and basking in the sunshine and the two major squares, Place des Héros Square and Grand’Place on a Saturday morning are taken over with many dozens of market stalls selling pretty well everything you could want (except as I found what I wanted). I asked at the first of half a dozen stalls selling accessories for mobile phones and at least found out that what I wanted was a clavier Bluetooth. Everyone I met sent me on to his ‘brother’ further down the square. But most told me that they had not seen one recently. Most of the sellers were African and when I enquired they told me they were from Côte d’Ivoire. After visiting 5 or 6 and one or two shops I gave up and proceeded to the Cathedral, which was closed, but promised to open in the afternoon so it was time for lunch.

I will eat anything – once – and always like to try something new. So I had potjevleesch which I imagine you can guess is a Flemish speciality. Arras is very near Belgium and has quite a Flemish appearance in the style of the houses. It is like cold potted meat, although the one I had was fish based – salmon and white fish and large prawns and leeks and carrots set in aspic. Served cold with chips and salad and very nice too.

I then headed to the cathedral which by now had opened. The temperature in the street was now 23. The temperature in the cathedral felt about 6. Really remarkably cold. It is a huge building. I was surprised to find that it is not open every day and that it does not have Mass every day – it appeared to have Mass once every 6 or 8 days, rotating with several other churches in the parish. There was nothing especially striking in the church. It replaces an older Gothic model destroyed in Napoleonic times. But the most extraordinary thing of all was a notice by the door. I have I would say been in an uncountable number of cathedrals, but have never seen a notice telling me what to do if I find myself locked in! In short the answer was Pas de panique! And a couple of phone numbers. Mercifully I did not need them.

The day was progressing and I was needing to rest so I made my way back and saw a third example of a shop called CA$H. I had been to two already. They are a sort of a cross between a computer  gaming shop and a pawn (note the spelling please) shop. I asked again for a clavier Bluetooth. Mais oui!  he said, €9.99. A bargain. (I am using it now and it makes a huge differece.)

Delighted with my success I headed ‘home’. The place had filled up with a variety of groups of lay people doing weekend courses. Including a large group of scouts, male and female. French scouts wear, quite unironically, those splendid hats which the park ranger in Yogi Bear used to wear. Always brings a smile, as it did when I went to a national park first in USA and found out it was true.

And my phone plan, which has a very generous data allowance, does not allow ‘tethering’ – another thing worth sorting out before you leave home. So I sat in the orbit of the Tourist Office, sipping a nightcap, using a bit of free wifi that was leaking through the door at 10pm. But quite an effort. On the road again tomorrow, so time for bed.

I have been walking for a week and have met two other pilgrims (in UK) on their way to Santiago de Compostela. I have heard of a total of six, three pairs, who are a day or two ahead of me.