Bank Holiday Weekend

Saturday
Taking the 2.00pm Easyjet from Gatwick is a very civilised way of getting to La Rochelle. Travelling with no luggage means a pleasant walk to the Tram, train from East Croyden a door to door journey of just over the hour at a totla cost of £9.00.

We were joined at the airport by Elaine who had accepted an invite for a weekend of golf. The flight ran a few minutes late but with a flight time of an hour we were still parking the rented Renault Grand Scenic (hmm bigger than I had thought) outside number 8 about 5.00pm local time.

Moules at Viviers was the highlight of the evening and we enjoyed a spectacular sunset at we finished our meal. It was pretty much full and we needed to have booked. The MKAY sign sat on the same table we used when last visiting with M&A.

Sunday
There was a competition on at the golf club and so we booked a tee time for 15.20, an hour after the last of the competiton went out and so we set of mid morning to go into La Rochelle itself. Our plan was Le petit dejeuner at Cafe de la Paix and a walkabout, showing Elaine the essence of the town. So, after picking up the making s of Sunday dinner in the Casino,parking in Place Verdun was our first destination - no problem. Hmmmm the Cafe was closed. Ah well there are the two very buzzy spots in the square by the Hotel de ville. Did you see it coming? Yes, both closed - in fact very closed.

It began to look like the season had ended and how, or was it just Sunday? Fortunatley all the cafes by the Old Port were open and we had a delightfull LPD watcing the world go by in bright warm sunshine. We strolled by the Old Port and ice creamed on the small beach just beyond the sailing school and then toured around to the Marina before heading back to Nantilly to prepare for golf.

Playing conditions were perfect although the breeze that served to cool us was a bit strong on a couple of the holes. A good time was had by all and we finished the last six holes in the company of a member who was playing by herself. She quickly became Elaine's best friend as she deceded that chattering away in freanch to either Anika or Peter was a waste fo time. It was uncanny she played every shot (except putting) in exactly the same way - a five wood plonking it forward 20 to 80 yards and merrily made her way round the course with a tidy score.

Honey, lemon and tarragon chicken with roast potatoes, haricot vert and carrots for dinner and a glass wine and long conversations ended the day.

The holiday within the holiday - part one

Monday morning sees us setting of for the 75 minute drive to Royan to catch the ferry across the mouth of the Gironde estuary to the Medoc. This 25 minute passage offered the prospect of a meandering drive through the vineyards of this part of Bordeaux. There was a small problem of the ferry in that the "driver" thoughtlessly locked the doors with the push button on the ignition key. This set the alarm and once the ferry go into motion the alarm went off. As luck would have it we were close enough to be able to reset the alarm, over and over again for the rest of the trip.

The meander down the Medoc didn't work out quite like that as there is very little wine growing until you are quite a long way down the peninsula around St Estephe. Our first stop was at Paulliac to view the Lynch Bages vines - very nice too.

We had a picnic lunch over looking the Gironde in the company a camel! Here's an update on camel diets, they don't like celery.

We drove out of Paulliac on the Route of the Chateaux which was delightful although more in the style of fancy farmhouses of viniculture like in Burgundy and not like the royal Chateaux of the Loire. Arcachon was our destination for the day and in particular Hotel Le Dauphin. [At present we are a bit confused because in days of old the heir to the throne of France was known as Le Dauphin but then again the Dauphin also seems to be the french for a dolphin...hmmmm...] The hotel staff were very good and the location was excellent even if the facilities were fairly average.
Arcachon is basically on a lagoon which creates a bay like vista that has clearly become very popular with holidaymakers and even day-trippers. As we left the town we passed through a very stylish suburb that clearly showed that the idea that Arcachon was developed for the wealthy of Bordeaux had some real basis. The centre and seafront of Arcachon is a bit architecturally conflicted with some really horrible seventies geometric concrete with a Basque influenced vernacular. I am tempted to think that when the french planning process gets it wrong it really gets it wrong!

We had excellent dinner at the Cafe de la Plage - restaurant Chez Pierre. Anika had a very glum face when she looked at the wine list as it was very expensive - the best value being 94 euro for a 2001 Chat Lynch Bages. Fortunately we realised she was looking at the "fine wine" carte and we had a very serviceable white at a very affordable price.

Tuesday's departure from Arcachon was via Pyla Sur Mer to visit Europe's biggest sand dune, 340 feet high and two miles long. To encourage responsible tourism they have created a large car parking area and camper van overnight area and a whole bunch of other facilities including a fibreglass staircase to walk up to the top of the Dune. It actually is quite amazing and well worth the stop.

The journey to Biarritz was intentionally slow, taking all the "B" roads we could find - well really "D" roads here in France and for the most part they are pretty good. Which means that they, and the area, is tres populaire with camper vanners. Lots of caravans are still about but it seems that the camper vans are really dominating that style of holiday. I will look this up in the map book and update later - we paased by a large lake that has clearly been developed into a resort area and pretty pleasing it was. Offers the thought of an away day from Nantilly for a lakeside expereince.

We kept seeing that the Autoroute was very busy and so felt quite smug about our route choice or we were until we hit the outskirts of BAB. There are three towns on the coast, Bayonne, Anglet and Biarritz and they form one conurbation, BAB, and all three attract tourists. Anglet seems to be a development of resort facilities designed to fill the coast between the two Bs. As we approached the outskirts we hit traffic - a lot of it. we were able to get a good look at the urban space as we made our way from the Northern outskirts of Bayonne to the old centre of Biarritz, the southern most town of BAB.

As you would guess along with all the traffic came the horrendous problem of parking and yes our hotel did not offer any parking and were singularly unhelpful abut the best course of action. Fortunately a space in the square outside the hotel came free and we took advantage of it to unpack the car and check in. We realised later that the hotel staff were not being unhelpful so much as merely expressing the locals' view to parking. They do the Irish thing of pulling up outside where they want to go and ignore all restriction. Having been in the car for a couple of hours and clambering out into the sunshine of Biarritz is that you are reminded of one of the negative things about having air-con in the car. You lose the sense of the "real" temperature and boy was it hot.

It took us a little while to settle into the hotel and its surroundings and really it was only after we discovered the two level roof top terraces that we understood it value. The first terrace was a dining area and we took all of our breakfasts there as well as a lunch and a dinner. The second terrace was up a level and laid out as a relax with a drink area. Both gave brilliant views as well as great vantage points to observe the life of the Old Port area.
More in part two and picture to follow.

Last day in France for P&S

So where does the time go?
We seem to have only been back from the south for five days and here we are looking down our last day. (M&A are here until Monday and we are back at the end of the month so we don't have to run around "closing up" the house but still it feels like a day of getting things done.)
We have fitted in a couple of rounds of golf, two bbq meals at home and a trip to Viviers for moules.

Our ferry is from Caen at midnight tonight so we will doing odds and ends before setting off about 5.00pm. M&A are doing us a late lunch to send us on our way so it looks like it will be back on the diet once we are back in England.
Phot0's to follow.

La Tranche sur Mer

Key feature of today has been a trip out to the north to the seaside resort of LTsM in the Vendee(as above). We went there to meet up with four friends from Beckenham Tennis club who happen to be on holiday just north of there. Marie, one of the four is from the Vendee but has lived in England for the last 30 years or so. Lunch went on from 1.00pm to 4.00pm so very french style. I think it also means that our planned supper (Moule en cidre) is going to be served very late this evening.

Back from the "holiday in the holiday"

Yesterday about 3.00pm saw the two of us back in Nantilly after our road trip. Mon frere et belle soeur (M&A) were here to greet us. [More about the trip in a later posting]
We spent the rest of the day unpacking and catching up with M&A and cooked dinner on the new bbq. We sat on until late in the yard having a good old gossip.
M&A have gone off on trip to Il de Re and we are preparing for a 3.30 tee time down at the local golf club. "Preparing" mostly means doing the holiday washing but we did go off on our bikes for an hour long bike ride. Just as our energies were flagging on the final stretch before home we were cheered on by a group of young (6 or 7 years)kids with cries of Allez, allez, tour de france!

Sunday, Sunday

Another brilliant start to the day with perfect weather for doing pretty much nothing. Well not altogether nothing as today is our last day in the house before we set off on our "holiday" in the south. Tomorrow will see us driving south through the Medoc and on to Arcachon. After an overnight stay we move on to Biarritz for four nights to sample the charm of the resort and the nearby golf courses.

We continue south to our end point of St Jean Pied de Port. St Jean dates to well before 778 when its military inflicted a defeat on the army of Charlemagne which became immortalised in the Chanson de Roland . St Jean is also the last town in France on the pilgrim road to Santiago del Compostela. To finish the holiday we travel north for an overnight stop in Bordeaux and then back to Nantilly.

So this means that today needs to include preparing the house for the arrival of Michael and Ann and packing ourselves up for the trip. And of course (no pun intended) a game of golf.

Our tee time was 14.10 - and though it was very warm (26 degrees) a cooling breeze from the shore made for pleasant playing conditions. However the course was very crowed as we were going off just after the last of a competition had started. We were sent to start on the 10th tee which was a great chance to see if Peter's poor scores on the back nine had to do with fatigue of poor skills. What can we say? - he lost seven balls! The pace of play was very slow and so we only played nine and then sat on the terrace overlooking the 18th green. All very nice.

We sat long into the evening in the backyard reading and never once turned on the TV.

Well Anika arrived on Wednesday lunchtime with a car laden with yet more (seemingly vital) supplies from Chez Knoll. Key among these was a sun-lounger, a chest of drawers for one of the bedrooms, a golf bag, and - oh yes - a barbecue. As Anika settled down to the domestic realities of opening up the house and readying it for a two week holiday, Peter jetted off to Berlin for a vital business meeting (honest) that involved a visit to Checkpoint Charlie, the Holocaust Memorial and a long languorous drink and meal on the terrace of the Hotel Adlon right by the Brandenburg Gate.

After a stint of working at home on Friday morning Peter was able to catch the 15.20 Ryanair flight from Stansted, being collected by Anika at La Rochelle around 6.00pm (local time). This was when Peter discovered that Anika had not be alone all the time.
It seems that after a long hot day on Wednesday, when the back door had been open all day, a frog came a courting and seemed very interested in what was on TV since it settle in under the armchair by the telly. We believe it finally returned from whence it came or else we will be discovering a desiccated frog sometime soon, somewhere in the house.

One characteristic of the immediate area of Nantilly is the strange way that one or other of the two nearest boulangerie seems to take a holiday when we are here. Last time it was Festival de Gout in Marsilly and now it is (our much preferred) one in Esnandes. Must be good money in that business to be able to shut up shop for two weeks at a go.

After such a long and hectic week for both of us we decided that the best prospect for the evening was to see if Viviers could fit us in. It was about 8.30 when we got there and with a warning of a long wait, they fitted us in. Nice start to the holiday Moules a la creme (et oui - avec frites).

Saturday morning was all go, a trip to the decheterie to dispose of the accumulated recyclables, a pop in to the local co-op and boulangerie in Marsilly and an all important visit to the Tabac at the end of our Rue to get the gas bottle for the barbecue (well yes it is a bit of a cheat but come on now we are on holiday).

This may prove to be a turning point in our time in Nantilly. The extraordinary transaction was conducted in our very bad French, his none existent English and a lot of sign language. It seemed that out barbecue, purchased in Angleterre, could not possibly conform to the French regulations and therefore a French regulator must be provided (gratuit). Much sign language ensued to explain that the regulator he was offering had a screw connection for the outlet when our barbecue had a push on - pas problem - he had an adaptor. As the papier work was completed Le Patron realised we lived behind his shop and immediately offered (we think) to come round and fix any further problems we encountered. Nice man - either that or else he just invited himself and all his family for a barbecue!!!!

During the trip to the recycle centre we were once again amazed by the high level of staffing. It is hard to tell whether this is a manifestation of the "state" making it easy for everyone or, an example of "state" control making sure everyone "does it properly". One member of the team today was a youngish and good-lookingish woman with a bit of a stare and a Union Jack wrist band. She surely was determined that no one would mix wood with metal and cardboard with garden refuse nor to confuse the "small electrical items" location with that of the huile disposal point. They have also installed a "hazardous material" point, this seems to be for paint rather than nuclear waste. Hmm thinks, since about 80% of France's electricity is generated by nuclear powered stations - just where do they put that waste.

The weather has been glorious and perfect for a round of golf which we had booked for 1.00pm. Anika played her usual brilliant self and Peter was pleased to have got around (no pun intended) with only four lost balls.

Anika has discovered a new passion - the detailed recording of every scheduled flight that lands at La Rochelle. She can now identity the livery of every ex-UK and Ireland airline that uses the airport.

So now to test drive the barbecue.

Two reminders of Nantilly

This morning I went online and paid the EDF bill for electricity for the house and Sheila checked me in for my Ryanair flight on Friday next. Sheila is taking the car over on the Tuesday night sailing and I follow on three days later. I aim to work at home on the Friday morning and go from here but it is a busy week with a trip to Berlin squeezed in - out Wednesday evening and back Thursday evening - so I will have to see how it goes.

The lavender is attracting loads of action

including this thing - about the size of a little finger end - much bigger than any of the regular bee and wasp visitors. It has a long delicate thing at the front that dips into the flowers and also has two attenna. Pictures probably not a lot of help unless you are very good at insects.

It could be England....

The Murray semi final at Wimbledon is on the telly, O'Reilly is glued to the set, a beer is by my elbow and the sun is shining. But all this is happening in Nantilly. We are here for our final weekend before our summer holiday.
Flying in you can see how beige the landscape looks and at ground level you see the cereal fields are ripening and the harvest has begun. Far less than last year, there are fields of sunflowers that should be heavy with seed when we are back at the end of July.
The backyard is almost over run with the two lavendar bushes that have gone huge - harvesting them last year must have driven extra growth and we will have to figure out what to do with them.
On arrival we threw all the windows open to let the spledid evening sun and gentle breeze air the house and once O'Reilly realised that the tennis would go on for a bit, we popped up to Esnandes for supplies. Tonight will be home cooked Pave de Julienne (fish of some sort) with bechamel sauce, leeks and some other vegetable.
Tomorrow we have a mid day tee time and a reservation at Viviers for moules et frites in the evening.
It is a fourth set tie break and O'Rielly is giving me a running commentary - well by the time you read this you will know the outcome.