Day 6: Amiens

After an early breakfast Gilles gave me a lift to the train station, which was incredibly kind and much appreciated. I caught the train without a problem, and I settled down to read (now on 3rd book of the holiday). When we were getting close to Paris there was an announcement about a delay and this meant that I missed my planned connection, but I am getting into the swing of things as I am learning that (my usual) planning to the nth degree doesn’t work in France, so I had not bought a ticket and was waiting until I knew I’d be able to catch the planned train.

I had to do the Gare St Lazare to Gare du Nord connection again, but this time I knew the best option, #26 bus, and I have to say that it was a lot quicker this time as we did not get stuck in a traffic jam. However, I was still on the bus when my original / planned train left. The trains to Amiens are pretty regular so using my trusty SNCF app (there’s an app for everything) I bought a ticket and finally was on the train en route to Amiens.

It was not the best train I have been on this trip, a bit, OK a lot on the grotty side and that should have been a bit of a heads-up for what was to come. I got off the train in Amiens and used Google Maps to get me to my hotel.

I wandered through what seemed to be a building site in an area that had seen better days. I was glad to get to the hotel. I had gone “budget” and they were not joking. No kettle, no frills, no room to swing a cat, but it was clean and warm. I arrived way too early but a room was ready so I could check in before the normal time, which was good as it meant I could leave my bags in my room and go for a wander.

By this time it was raining, so a trip to Les Hortillonnages was not on the cards, but I had come all this way to visit the grave of my grandmother’s brother who died in the WW1 and is buried in the St Pierre cemetery, so the rain was not going to interfere with that. I headed out with the intention on walking there, but I was pretty wet in single figure minutes, so I grabbed a taxi and was there in no time at all. I had all the info to hand about where he was buried, and I found his grave easily.

It, and the graves of all the other soldiers in that part of the cemetery, are looked after by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and I have to say that they have done a superb job. It was heartening to see the neatly cut grass and the small, well-tended plants which gave me a nice, warm feeling that these brave soldiers are still remembered and respected – long may that continue.

Amiens St Pierre cemetery

The rain was a bit lighter now and the next bus was in 40 minutes (more time than it would take to walk) so I decided to walk home. I think I was maybe unlucky, but it was not the most pleasant / scenic walk and I was glad that I was using the audio with Google Maps (originally to keep my phone dry in my pocket) as it meant that I could vaguely look more like a local and less like a tourist. I got back to town without incident or shortcuts and briefly saw the cathedral and walked through some old quaint streets and a newer shopping area, so there is life here after all.

By now, 4pm-ish, I was hungry, having not eaten since breakfast, but finding somewhere to sit and eat was surprisingly difficult. I found a bar and had a glass of wine and some peanuts and googled for “restaurants near me” – lots listed and lots closed on a Monday. By now I was hungry, cold and wet so thought about just grabbing a sandwich from a takeaway, but in the end I headed back to the hotel, with a vague thought of going out after 7pm when a few restaurants open for the evening. Once home I realised that I really was pretty darned wet (and cold) so hung up the soggy stuff and lay on the bed (as there was nowhere else to park my posterior) and nodded off briefly.

Now that I was warming up and drying out, the idea of going out again, seemed like a really bad one, so a couple of biscuits were my evening meal. I am not really warming to Amiens and am thinking of giving Les Hortillonages a miss tomorrow and just hopping on a train to Lille instead. I will make that decision when I waken up tomorrow – no planning being done tonight.