Boulogne & Calais

Our trip to France ends with a visit to a couple of familiar ports to many cross-channel travellers, but unacquainted previously by us.
Whilst in Boulogne, we find the Old Town and wander the ancient city walls and through the castle. Outside the Town Hall there is a 'live' produce exhibition where various veg are being cultivated, including some oversized varieties. We enjoy some traditional fayre in terms of a galette and crepes and then find an entertaining bar called the Vole Hole, which confirms our decision to stay over.
And so to Calais and a blue sky arrival – sunbathing for couple hours as we find a sheltered spot on the beach. They're setting up a stage in the square near our hotel for an evening concert by Amel Bent (yes, you've guessed it a finalist in the a French version of Pop Idol), which we experience from the confines of a local bar..... ok so we do go outside (when it's stopped raining) to see the last track or two.
Sunday also sees a local arts event in a nearby park and we spend a cool, windy afternoon seeing some alternative acts.
We're glad we've managed to spend some time in Calais, as our record on a previous 'booze cruise' was being in France for less than 3 hours (although, in honesty, we think it might have been less than 2).

St Valory Sur Somme & Le Touquet

On our way through to Le Touquet we stop at St Valory Sur Somme. Unfortunately, just in time to miss the steam train which we had hoped to go on. Ever hopeful that the weather will improve, we consider a return visit in a day or two, with the possibility of camping again. Needless to say we didn't return to SVSS, which is a shame, but is definitely worth a visit in the future.
As we arrive in Le Touquet, there is a short respite from the rain – but as we wander around we are in a constant battle with slip, sliding on the shiny wet pavers. The next afternoon though, there is a small gap in the clouds and we manage to find a shelter from the wind in the sand dunes whilst the sun shines for quite literally a few minutes. We also visit the Thursday morning market and spend time in Etaples.
Interesting August weather, and certainly a lot worse than when we were here in October '08.

Dieppe & Puys

The camping is now well and truly over. It's actually rather pleasing when it rains every night - us secure in the knowledge that we have a roof over our heads that isn't made of (leaking) canvas! So we are in Dieppe, where there are a number of memorials dedicated to the Canadians, both here and in nearby Puy. The fair is in town (again), a huge affair with rides that look like they should be permanent, including a log-flume, but as we are already pretty damp to the core, we decide to give that a miss and instead walk to the top of the headland to look back on Dieppe and the surrounding area.
Puy seems to have been a very quaint little seaside town with hints of shops that have long closed down and a neighbourhood of lovely grand houses. We had hoped to have a bracing cliff top walk here, but there's no obvious access to the cliff tops. So we return to where the car is parked next to another, extremely well kept Canadian memorial (next to a very uninviting, angry, gale-force sea). It takes a few moments to think of those young men who came ashore - many to lose their lives very quickly or no doubt instantly, so we could freely meander around not just Puys but anywhere we choose.

Honfleur & Etretat

The forecast looks good for a few days so the tent makes a reappearance from it's recent home - the top box. The camp site in Honfleur is right next to the town centre, which is a picturesque harbour fronted by many bars and restaurants. This gives Helen her first experience of moules and frites– it won't be her last!

Another museum, another impressionist exhibition, we make a point of making this our last!

Etretat is another camping opportunity, but with the car on standby as the weather continues to be changeable. The bay is so picturesque here that it features in many impressionist paintings, and some of the pictures we saw above. Thankfully, the weather holds for what becomes our last night of camping for the trip.

The day we leave, we overhear other campers saying 'I think that's the best we've put up the tent' and smile rather awkwardly to ourselves as we seem to have uttered this expression ourselves on more than one occasion. We're sure however, that it will have been a truism at least once!

Rouen

As we left Vernon we followed the course of La Seine towards Rouen. Once there it's easy to wander around the narrow streets and admire the quaint old buildings, but there is a grim reminder of the history of the last century on some of the walls as they are pock-marked from artillery fire.
Inside the impressive cathedral there are photographs not only detailing the damage from the war, but from a tornado that created it's own havoc on Boxing Day 1999.
While in Rouen we visited an Impressionist exhibition at the museum which was a bit of a shuffle at times due to it's popularity, but well worth a feast of the eyes (and for some of the other exhibits within the building) - Monet, Carot, Boudin to name a few.
The main bridge across the river is currently closed to traffic as part of the Impressionist season: A huge wooden structure - basically some planks, some of which are painted bright orange, adorn the bridge apparently in honour of Madame Monet (so its called Camille) – we're sure she'd have appreciated it but wonder if Claude would've too?
As for the tent, it's taking a rest in the top box due to some 'technical' issues, that's waterproofing irregularities in other words...

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Vernon (Giverney)

The rain seems to have set in so we check into a hotel for the first time. The tent (and us) should get a dry out and an hour later its clear we made the right decision as it's tipping down outside.
You will all know from experience that sometimes places look and feel better depending upon the weather. We have set up camp, er hotel, in Vernon so that we can visit Claude Monet's house and garden in Giverney. Sadly the following morning when we visit it isn't the best day as it's drab and dreary weather wise. But the rain hold's off and it really doesn't disappoint. We really appreciate the house, it's large and accommodating like many of the properties in Giverney and Vernon. The garden is also large and full of colour despite the grey skies (sadly, not picked up too well in the photographs). The water garden is across the road accessed by a tunnel underneath it, and we see the bridges, the weeping willows and the lillies so masterfully captured by Monsieur Monet.
When back in Vernon, we have a relaxed wander around and cross the Seine to view some historic river-side houses and David mixes with the locals (see if you can spot him in one of the pictures), before venturing out in the evening to find a bar, just to grab last orders (9pm) before it closes.

Big Trip - Pakistan

As many of you will have seen and heard on the news, the situation in Pakistan is severe with the flooding and now the spread of disease. Therefore, you will not be surprised to hear that OzBus are looking at alternative plans for this part of the big trip.

More on this as and when we know the revised itinerary. In the meantime, we hope the situation is resolved as quickly and as practicably as possible for the local people.

Latest info from the BBC:-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11068259
Latest info from the DEC:-
http://www.dec.org.uk/

Pons

Our first municipal campsite after SJDL's shockingly poor site - and we find a well kept site, very clean and full of families in white transit vans and caravans. Lots of kids running around and it's a difficult to know whether the kids or us are the most amused by each other. Our french is challenged with basic questions from them such as 'do you have a dog or a cat at home?'

Pons is a charming little town, and whilst we are there, it's fun fair and 'Grande Fete' time. During the evening we wander into the centre where we are entertained by the local talent on an impressive sound stage. Some bloke also comes on towards the end of the evening warbling away. We then understand why several old men have been sitting on the front row of seats in front of the stage since early evening, as warbling man has several, semi dressed ladies prancing around him, a bit like Pans People, or of course that should be Pons People (sorry folks, no pictures).

Before we leave the campsite in the morning we take up quite a space and once again entertain our fellow campers, by 'walking' the tent into sun light and turning it around every so often to get the damp sides facing the sun, ready to try and pack it dry.

St Jean Du Luz

What a lovely place, the town centre has many lovely buildings and shops, which seem to be very Swiss. Not that we've ever been to Switzerland but it is very picture postcard as we sit in the centre in the evening and enjoy some refreshments, watching people, who are also watching us, in particular a small girl of maybe five years old who has a slightly malevolent eye on David. Despite the serene surroundings, our evening is slightly marred by perhaps being on the worst campsite in SJDL, or possibly the whole of France! When we return to camp in the evening we realise that, perhaps being the first port of call in SJDL, and cheap, the site has attracted a rather 'young' audience. There are empty boxes of beer and wine bottles (and people) strewn across the site, the toilet and shower blocks are, well for the sake of the blog, indescribable. There are western and eastern style toilets, good practice for the Oz Bus trip, but sadly no one has respected either and this is a real glimpse of French public toilet life of having no seats on the western toilets, so hovering over the porcelain seems to be the only choice of the evening. Overnight a rustle in the trees, then a few drops of pitter patter, to be followed closely by a downpour and the tent is soon soaked beyond recognition, particularly as we are again under a tree. Although the rain may have stopped, we still get endless drops to give us an early wake up call whether we are ready to get up and pack a damp tent or not.

Lourdes

Sadly, you will have noted recently that there was a bomb scare at Lourdes, but thankfully it was just that (and also not the case when we made our visit). Why people even still contemplate doing this, let alone put this thought into action is bizarre beyond belief.
We travelled to the site on some of the routes taken annually by the cyclists on the Tour de France – more on the Tour 'Down Under' hopefully in a few months time.
Getting back to France though and, perhaps more predictably, when we were approaching the entrance to the cathedral site, there were a plethora of vendors and beggars lining the streets and entrance and perhaps some of the oddest things on sale, as seen above, including containers to take your holy water home, and some interesting statuettes complete with fairy lights. Talking of the holy water, whilst we were there we were also a little thirsty, so took a few handfuls from one of the 'standard' taps. You can see the cathedral is very imposing and impressive from the outside, with the most colourful mosaics, stained glasses and decoration inside too.

Bagneres de Bigorre

We have realised what a punishing schedule we have set for ourselves in the last few days and have decided that we really should be in 'career break' mode and have settled in Bagneres de Bigorre for a few days. David managed to see a shooting star in the night sky and so we both point our chairs in the direction of the last one, and when Helen is just looking the wrong way, David sees the second and final one of the night (and indeed the few nights we've stayed in BdB). Bagneres is on the edge of the Pyranees still, and one afternoon we decide to ascent the lower heights of the range. Despite the looming black clouds, there's enough blue sky to make a pair of sailors trousers, so we think we'll be ok, and thankfully we were. We meet a woman on our way back down who looks at amazement at our flip flops while asking is it safe to continue the ascent?
On the way to the car we go past what David thinks is initially an art gallery, but is in fact a marble museum; not the kind some of us used to play at break and lunchtime at school, but the granite kind. We decide to give this a miss despite the fact that we actually love marble/granite surfaces, as in the kitchen we installed in Clarence Avenue, BUT there is a limit to wanting to look at interesting flecks and shapes of the stuff – in fact it reminds David of the pencil museum in England that Kev always mockingly suggests a visit may be worthwhile.

Andorra

Our third Country in three days.
We start our descent into the Pyranees withsome extremely windy roads and steep gradients and a few really remote, yet picturesque villages high up in the ranges. We also meet the odd cow on the road complete with bell and hit our highest point on the road at 1800 metres, before a gradual descent into Andorres. We head across the border and once again find no value in our passports as we are not checked at all. The first thing we notice is the price of diesel, then the shops, Andorres is a duty free country. We manage to find a campsite really easily, despite the strange guy in the information kiosk. He is devoid of any leafltets on hotels, bar one, that he doesn't let us take away, but we have to stand and view it, so long as we hand it back; viewing the leaflet is be better than a glimpse of his hairy bum-crack, which sadly he gave out free whilst bending over to confirm he was all out of accomodation leaflets.
Whilst having a look round Andorres, after setting up camp, we notice what apppears to be the setting up of fireworks. Approaching a policewoman, David has a 3 language conversation and it is confirmed that a festival display is happening at 11pm. We meander arond the city and (luckily) stumble upon a bar with a roof terrace and see a spectacular display - our 2nd in 2 weeks.
We also managed to take a gondola whilst in Andorres to the top of a mountain, and reached about 2200 metres, before being entertained by another stray animal on the road, this time a horse creating huge traffic tailbacks as we depart Andorres through a 3km tunnel rather than a 12 km treacherous route through the mountains, as we experienced on the way in.

Argeles Sur Mer & into Roses, Spain

We headed South to return to the camping experience and find ourselves in a resort by the sea. Our campsite is fine, and our route into town is littered with bars offering 'English Pub 'N' Grub', surprisingly however, the pictures seem to have been taken by the owner, rather than a professional photographer and we are more than happy to be vegetarian, when we see an image of a plate of chips and 2 large bangers sitting on top, at least we hope they were sausages. Having seen what's on offer on route to the beach, we decide to have a drink in the old town that evening.
The following day we decided that we'll stay another night, but this involves moving pitch. We entertain the (mainly) French and Dutch on site, by literally carrying our tent to the new site, rather than totally dismantle it.
We also stumble across an outdoor photographic exhibition, 'The Earth From Above' featuring some impressive shots of animals, various farming and extraction activities happening across the planet; some are of places we will visit on our overland trip to Oz.
The following day we take the coastal route out of France and into Spain. For the 2nd time, no one is around at customs to check our passports. The passports do get there first once over though at the Spanish campsite. We've stumbled upon another seaside resort, but the night life can be heard a mile or so away until the early hours of the morning....

Laure Minervois

From Duras, we headed to Laure Minervois to interrupt the Willison's family holiday, so respite from the tent for a couple of days and a very warm welcome from all.
Ben and Olivia do their best to tire us out completely and keep us well exercised throughout our stay. We visited nearby medieval Carcassone one evening and back home sample an 8 Euro per 5 litre box of wine - surprisingly good.
We were only planning on staying a couple of nights, but when offered a 3rd, it isn't hard to choose between a bed and a sleeping bag! This gives us the opportunity to visit Laucate, possibly the worlds windiest beach giving us the opportunity to have a free skin exfoliation treatment, courtesy of the sharp sand. Before we know it, we bid the Willison's a safe trip home and we are off again....

Calais to Duras

After an uneventful shuttle trip, we arrived in Calais and set off on the long drive down to the South of France via Tom Tom. This took us via Paris, which gave us a great view of the Eiffel Tower and the Sacre Cour, all looking very picturesque until the Tom Tom fell off the windscreen and the memory card popped out at a pretty crucial moment for getting across several lanes of traffic by the Seine. Thankfully, Helen also had the map and managed to navigate like an expert whilst rapidly turning the Tom Tom back on.
As we drove down, we met some heavy rain and it we both thought the car looked like a great option for our first night rather than the tent.
We finally arrived in Duras, our camping destination early evening and totally exhausted - it was a very long drive. Thankfully, despite there having been some downpours over lunchtime, the ground was dry enough for us to set up camp and after a short while we were having dinner in the restaurant and went off to sleep listening to local jazz musicians playing there music within the campsite.
However, we were rudely awoken to blinding lightning and then a crack of thunder and and a patter of tiny droplets on the tent followed by a rapid downpour. This continued for several hours during the night and even when we woke in the morning there was still a constant dripping on the tent from the tree we had sheltered under (was this a good idea in a thunderstorm?).
The following day, we met up with Brian & Doris in the centre of Duras for coffee and then were kindly invited back to their 'estate' later in the evening for a 4 course meal. Many thanks to you both, good to meet up, thank you for your hospitality and for booking our accommodation, I am just cross we didn't have the camera that evening.
Our second night in the tent was thankfully completely uneventful, and more importantly dry!

Maidstone photo update

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Maidstone photo update

Published with Blogger-droid v1.4.8