Thones, France

Our friends Cisca and Pete suggested that we stop in Thones, and Manigod in eastern France. At the time, we were in Lyon, France to visit a few of Leah’s sorority sisters, so the locations worked out perfectly. We found a campsite on the edge of town, but still walking distance from the city square. We absolutely loved it here. We ended up staying in one spot for 3 or 4 nights. On our first night there, we stumbled upon the cities summer festival. We had to ask around to get the details, but apparently, most cities in France, big and small, celebrate the start of summer by setting up lots of stages and having a big party. Thones is a very small place, and they held their party a week before everyone else because they’re afraid their local musicians will play in the bigger cities instead. We wandered from street to street to listen to each band, which ranged from screamo to solo acoustic to karaoke. The residents were out and about, dancing, drinking, and enjoying the start of summer. Then it rained for 3 days and we did a lot of trail running. Thones is so great that the rainy days didn’t bother us one bit.