Always a little bit of a challenge to provide a wrap up of a month long trip. This particular trip divided into two distinct parts, the first being the Via Podiensis hiking part and the second being the Paris and environs part. So, I’ll summarize them a little bit separately. The hiking part was physically very demanding, and, maybe I’m getting older or it’s just my pack getting heavier, but this trip was more of a strain than previous ones. Part of it was that the arrangers had scheduled me for very long stages consistently. One thing to understand about the French countryside, much more noticeable this time than last, is that they obey their own rhythms and rules and they really don’t care about, logic, customers, making money or anything else. As such if you are going to be out in the countryside of France, you need to know that lunch is between 12:00pm-2:00pm and dinner is between 7:00pm-9:00pm. You will find it impossible to get anything to eat whatsoever outside of these times. With luck, you may find a grocery store, but it will be closed from 12:00pm-3:00pm. Also, while most people expect a hotel to be open, that would be unreasonable in France, the earliest you might find a hotel open would be 3:00pm but sometimes 5:00pm is the norm. Expect that almost everything will be closed on Sunday and also on Monday, even in a fairly large town. Moving on to Paris, be very careful of your stuff at all times. Pickpockets and petty theft is a definite industry. Expect that no one is wearing masks. Crowds are everywhere and the weekends are much worse. While CDG is a complete disaster, French trains are fantastic, generally fairly punctual and easy to use. The metro and buses in Paris are great, but you will still end up walking a lot more than you are used to, be sure to wear shoes that work for this. I can not emphasize enough that you need a fully functioning cell phone if you are going to be traveling in France. You’ll need it to navigate, show tickets, buy tickets, find out if things are open and a host of other things. Apple Pay works almost everywhere, so if you have an Apple Watch get that set up and learn how to use it. Remember that when you have had enough rich French food, you can get Asian food in all kinds of places and it is generally fairly good. Most French restaurants will have boringly similar menus in most regions, but the food will generally be good, just work your way through different items as you go. House wine is generally fine and very cheap, drink that. Your best meals are most likely to be at middle of the road places and rarely at the super fancy Michelin star joints, so, unless you are really into it, skip the super pricey places. Bathrooms: The French don’t really believe in them and so many places like large train stations will have one bathroom for the whole station. And, you will be expected to pay a euro to use it! Develop your bathroom strategy, always use the bathroom before leaving a cafe or restaurant, use the bathroom 15 minutes or so before your train arrives, it is free on the train. Use the bathroom as soon as you get off the plane, you’ll be waiting for an hour or more to get your passport stamped. As much as many things about France make me crazy, I’m already looking forward to going back. For some general travel tips that I’ve put together for Pilgrims, but apply to almost everyone, see this site: https://caminotips.wordpress.com/