I mean, something about this photo just says rural France to me. It’s the color, the blue of the sky mixing nicely with the greens and browns of the grasses. The presence of horses adds to it, as does the bike. Then there is the beautiful girl, always an important component of a classic French photo.

Yes, Melinda & Ella returned last night with a camera full of photos. Indeed, as Melinda had been reporting to me by text and phone, the Île de Ré looks beautiful. As the picture provides testimony and as I mentioned earlier, they rented a couple of bikes and rode all over the island. It’s reputed to be extremely flat, making bike-riding a breeze. I caught Melinda hard at work earlier today, busy counting on her fingers and toes. I think she was doing what Jethro Bodine called cipherin’.

When she was done she announced that she thinks they biked over 61 miles in the two days they were on the island. That’s something!