Moments of reflection and gratitude: the Collegiate Church, Briancon

Collegiate Church of Briancon dating from 1703 floating above the Haute Ville

I have set a practice in place for these two months of travel through France, Italy, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. 

Between the busyness of finding a good coffee and pastry, of planning our walking, of road tripping, of sight seeing, of managing photos and blogging, of baguettes from a Boulangerie, of daily provisioning, of time with friends and family, of packing and unpacking... I will sit quietly in each church I happen upon.

The opportunities for reflection and particularly for gratitude seem to get lost in the daily hustle. 

Stepping into the quietude of a church, however grand or plain, finding a back row seat, taking in the lofty skill of the stonemasons, the floors and stone steps that are worn from centuries of footsteps, noticing the fresh flowers and the subtle lighting, loving the sunlight through the stain glassed windows, suppressing the need to tidy and declutter, feeling the gentle warmth of the wooden pew around me, I am able to breathe deeply and just sit. 

These restful moments are restorative and a keen reminder for me to pay attention to all that I am grateful for.

Route des Grande Alps: on the Col l'Izoard, Briancon

 

Arriving after a 19km drive up the Col l'Izoard

Another day of navigating the tight switchbacks and roads here in the Grande Alps, along with cyclists, motorcyclists, alpine 'skiers', the Porsche Club outing, utility vans and trucks, cars and the Kersten's. I remember hearing Ant Mccrossan on the Tour de France talk about the difference between the roads of the Alps versus the Pyrenees, the main difference is that Alps are designed for traffic. 

Gosh, nervous passenger the whole way up and over and back up and down - 60 km of incredible roads, would have loved a quieter day...

We took in the scenery and then headed out on the Clot la Cime hike, it was a narrow vertiginous path but we were away from the noise of the motorcycles and floated above the pass which was a joy. And a quite perfect picnic moment alongside the road, baguette, market bought vine tomatoes in olive oil and Italian Toma cheese from the farm near our apartment in Sestriere....

Hiking along the Clot de Cime with its magnificent views

The view from our hiking trail, another Tour de France epic mountain pass.