Sunday 4th November: Paris to Sens (145km)

I knew it had been a mistake to have that last beer, but at least I had said no to the nightclub . A quiet dinner the night before ended up in a hostel bar called the three ducks where we had stayed too late. I was very glad that I had at the last minute turned down the option of "the best night ever" as it had been sold and skipped the club part of the night. After saying my goodbyes to Roberta and Ethienne, I headed off.
Although I had been staying in the south of the city I decided to cycle through the centre to get some photos in the morning sun. It was a lovely quiet morning and I stuck on the Ipod and drifted past the Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysee etc with The Frames "Star Star" as a soundtrack. Paris is a big city, after 30km I still had not hit the countryside.
Eventually the buildings gave way to trees and fields and with the wind in my favour I was making good progress. About 15km north of Fountainbleu I entered the famous forest that I was to enjoy for the next 30km. At this time of the year the trees were beautiful, all golden brown. I was surprosed to see a number of prostitutes standing along the side of the road at one section, a very rural red light district. These were quickly replaced by hikers and families on a day out. The town of Fountainblue has a fantastic chateax and although not warm many people were sitting outside having lunch.

My target for tonight had been Sens and I had expected it be about 25km further. I was prety disappointed to see a sign saying 54km. It was now 3pm and I was tiring but with no town of any great size inbetween I had to put the head down. By the time I got there it was 6pm and I had cycled 145km the longest day so far. My arms were shaking from the vibrations of the handlebars. I could only find one open hotel in town and it seemed to double as a home for old nutters, but it would have to do.