Le Soulie to Conques

We set off after a filling breakfast, and stopped at a village to buy some food, where we discovered two members of the group of men that we kept crossing paths with. Continuing on to the next village, with its interesting church, we stopped for a cup of coffee and met another member of the group waiting for them with his car.
From there we crossed postural land with grazing buffalo in worsening weather, continuing down sunken paths through chestnut groves in heavy rain, until we arrived at the impressive medieval town of Conques with its spectacular abbey complex. The village was deserted due to the rain and the fact it was not tourist season, and we felt that we had returned to the middle ages! The Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy in Conques was a popular stop for medieval pilgrims on the Camino, to visit the remains of Saint Faith ("Sainte-Foy"), a martyred young woman from the fourth century.
We left our wet clothing at the entrance of the pilgrim accommodation, and enjoyed a hearty supper with quite a few other pilgrims, accompanied by a Friar playing the accordion! In the evening, we had even more of a treat in store - after Complain, when Sue read, the same Friar played the organ, including such hits as "The House of the Rising Sun". We could walk round the magnificent gallery at the top of the abbey and experience the sound of the organ reverberating around the building. Sue even unwittingly entertained the people below by singing in the gallery without realising how well the sound carried!
After the music, he described the details of the Tympan above the main door of the Abbey, and then we went out into the rain to watch the light show as various parts were highlighted before being displayed in full colour.