March 4, 1554
The Inn of the Two Ducks near the
Rochereau Forest

This has been so exciting. Diane and I have travelled in disguise with none of the royal standards or emblems. Yes, we have our guards, but to people in the villages and the countryside, we just appear as French noblewomen out for a day’s ride. They do not know how far we go – perhaps to visit relatives in a nearby château – for we travel light. Our porte-bagages without clothes can easily be carried on the backs of horses. Here at the Inn of the Two Ducks, which indeed is by a pond with many more than two ducks, we ate the simple fare of country folk: a thick, hearty soup that tasted wonderful after the chill of riding all day, crusty bread, and sausage cut in thick slices. The sausage was the best and I commented to Diane. She said the country folk are very thrifty and use nearly every part of the pig. And then she said the most amusing thing I think I have ever heard. She said that after they have made all their hams and sausages, there is nothing left of the pig but the squeal.