We passed through a 39-foot lock soon after, and I was surprised how fast the water lowered us. That was true of every lock we passed through. About 11:00 we sailed through Vienne, a city that rivals Lyon in its Roman ruins. Jane took a galley tour at 3:30 and saw a demonstration of how crepes were made. There was another port talk and a French lesson before the ship arrived in Tournon at 5:30. The Chateau of Tournon dominated the skyline of this little town (pop. 2000).

 

Dinner with the Giordanas

 

Every passenger on the ship was invited to a home-hosted dinner this evening. Our hosts started picking people up at 6:30, but it took quite a while. Although a few hosts lived within walking distance of the ship, most had to use their cars. Our host, Daniel, had a total of ten guests and had to make three trips to get all of us to his house. He and Joelle lived in Hermitage-Tain, across the river from Tournon. Daniel spoke fluent English and we managed to communicate with Joelle with a mixture of Italian, broken French, and gestures.

The Chateau of Tournon

 

They served a wonderful meal including Lyonnaise potatoes and a delicious, hot, fruit tart that was baked while we ate the main course.

Jane and I were in the middle group driven back to the ship and got there about 10:00. We had driven by the illuminated chateau on the way, and I walked a block back to it to take a picture of it.