Rest Day #7 April 19

St Francisville reminds me of a Hallmark movie town. The locals are very friendly, the mayor has a reserved parking spot at the local bistro and everything is within walking distance.

The St. Francisville Inn was purchased by Jim Johnston and Brandon Branch in 2019. It was renovated and decorated by Brandon Branch, a former assistant to Paula Dean. The main house was built sometime between 1878 and 1881. It was used as a residence for various owners until the 1950s or 60s. It sat abandoned until 1981. It has been a Bed and Breakfast since then under various owners.

This morning, I enjoyed our complementary breakfast. Scrambled eggs, bacon, cheese grits, and a biscuit. Very southern. A quantum leap above the breakfast quality of the typical hotel breakfast we’ve been having!

Only 12 of us stayed at the Inn. The others stayed at the Butler-Greenwood Bed and Breakfast, 3 miles down the road. We all had dinner there last night. We met Anne Butler, the owner and author of Weep For The Living. From the book jacket: It is an "autobiographical narrative of her husband's attempt to murder her after seven years of marriage..." He shot her 6 times, left her for dead. The story includes the breakup of their marriage, his job as a warden at Angola Prison (the largest maximum security prison in the US), and her journey to recovery, and forgiveness. Ann has been very gracious to WomanTours each year by allowing us to stay on the property, which is mostly closed to the public except for special occasions.

It wouldn’t be a rest day without a walk to the Post Office with Cathy. She wanted to mail several bags of locally made flavored popcorn to her mother. She grabbed a packing box labeled “priority” by mistake, addressed it and sealed it. $52.00. 🤦‍♀️ She argued it’s just popcorn! And it doesn’t need to be delivered overnight! So, just like a Hallmark movie Post Office, the clerk helped her repackage the popcorn in a different box. Happy ending. Hallmark.🙂

Tomorrow we ride through Baton Rouge along the levee bike path.

Enjoy some pics from St Francisville…