When forced to stay in France longer than planned, this photo journalist lollygagged his way from Lourdes to the Loire and has the images to show for it. When the Icelandic volcano, Eyjafjallajökull, closed European airports, we found ourselves among thousands of stranded travellers elbowing for a spot in line to get out of Europe. Our travel money largely spent, we could ill-afford a week or two in a Paris hotel waiting for De Gaulle to rebook. So, we found a better way to spend our time... Recalculating Route We made a hard left turn after leaving friends in Aix-en-Provence and headed for the French Pyrenees. Each day, we woke to beautiful crisp mornings, bright skies and sumptuous colors as we drove casually from the shrine at Lourdes through a modern St. Emilion. We casually encountered the Romanesque XII century Abbye de La Suave-Majeure and made way to the Loire’s playground chateaux as well as Chartres gothic cathedral. By the time we got to Paris, the travelers’ backlog had dissipated. We were late getting home, but the serendipity of ­Eyjafjallajökull had given us a delightful week, a feast for the eyes and the best antidote imaginable to the stresses of a schedule.