Reprendre Contact Avec un Ancien Ami

   The title means "Making contact again with an old friend."

   Berry and I woke up late this morning but we were well rested. We were too late to eat the continental breakfast, so we packed our things quickly and headed out of Reims, to the north. As in the past couple of days, we mainly took small rural roads and passed many pretty French villages. We stopped at one of the patisseries along the way. Robert got a Patte d'ours ( a Bear Claw... ) and Berry had the Pain au chocolat ( a chocolate filled croissant... ), however that particular patisserie did not serve any coffee. We did not frown while eating them. The pastries were delicious.

   We slowly made our way down the national highway and stopped at a small pond and saw our first waterfowl of the trip. It was an Eurasian Coot (Fulica Atra). The range of the Eurasian Coot stretches from Europe to eastern Mongolia.

   In the same pond with the Eurasian Coot there was a Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax Carbo). See picture below. It had just started to rain and the Cormorant had his wings spread open, trying to dry them. Unfortunately for him, it was a wasted effort. It was raining. Yes, we bird from the car in the rain.

   We drove through a patch of sleet and snow on the way to Saint Quentin, where we had lunch. Along the sides of the road, we spotted many Wood Pigeons (Columba Palubus). As you can tell by the picture below, the Wood Pigeon is distinguished from other pigeons by a large white spot on its neck.

   We had plans to eat dinner with friends in Mons, Belgium. We traveled on one of the big expressways in France and had to pay a toll. Most of France's multi-laned highways require a toll. During the drive we saw a Common Kestrel (Falco Tinnunculus) hovering over small animals in the field. While Kestrels have the ability to hover in the air, not all birds are able to do this.

   In Mons we got a hotel room and met some friends for dinner. Berry speaks no foreign languages, so Robert warbled away in French while his long-suffering wife listened patiently by his side. As we walked on the cobblestoned streets to the restaurant from our friend's apartment, we saw the the Catholic Cathedral with its flying buttresses.

   We ate at the Michelin-rated "Ces Belges et Vous" restaurant in Mons. For dinner, Robert enjoyed the very Belgian Cotelette de porcelet ( Pork Medallions in an onion sauce ). Berry had the Vol au Vent ( chicken in a white sauce ). Small metal bowls of Belgian fried potatoes were served with the meal. After dinner and a very pleasant visit with our friends, we returned to our hotel for the night. It was a delightful day.

Robert and Berry

Photos courtesy of wikipedia, rfowler