After our visit to the Normandy region of France our group was shuttled down south to the middle of the county to a region called the Loire Valley.  The first city we visited was the city of Tours where we saw  the Basilica of St. Martin and other old Catholic structures.  We only stayed the later half of the day in Tours ending with a Ferris wheel ride before turning in for the night.  The next day we visited the city of Chartres and toured the beautiful Chartres Cathedral.  The Cathedral is so large and beautiful it is incredibly hard to believe it was completed in 1220 .  At the time of completion it was the largest Cathedral in the world causing the city to be a site for pilgrims from across Europe and today the world.  The Cathedral also has a sacred artifact, a gift from the Byzantine Emperor as told to us, the Sancta Camisa, the supposed tunic worn by the Virgin Mary at Christ's birth.  After our tour we walked around the a portion of the city in order to look for something to eat before we left.  I was impressed by the sights found throughout the city, however one of my most fond memories of the day was going into a bakery and ordering two baguettes in perfect French, which for me was a significant landmark since my recent purchases had English mixed in at various points in which I struggled.  The first portion of our journey to this region greatly helped me to ease into the motion of the trip yet to come, helping me manage my time, and become more comfortable with the language.