October holiday, 13 October

Chamery, France. 

So yesterday we had a Circuit training event in Bellingham, near Lewisham, which is very close to the A20 and cut a good hour off our journey time. The event has been scheduled to finish at 3:00, so I assumed that we would not be leaving until about 3:30 and booked us in for a last check in time of 6:05 pm. As it was, the event finished early and we arrived at Folkestone only to be told that there was high demand for the single decker section and they were sorry but we couldn't go before our booked crossing. So that was 2 hours we had to sit in the car park! Still, we could have a cup of tea and flake out with a book, and when we were finally crossing we ate our cold supper and then we had an hour to drive in the pouring rain to Watten, near Eperleques. The aire was surprisingly full and we just got the last space.

It appeared we were just on the edge of the band of rain, and when I woke up in the night there was clear skies and a full moon, but it was cloudy again when I woke a second time.

So near the edge of the time zone, it was never going to get light much before 8, but the Swan Whisperer wanted a run so we set the alarm for 07:15 and he went off once he had had his tea. 

After breakfast I had a look round the aire, which was on the banks of the canal, very nice 

and was childishly amused by the thought of dejected dogs needing to be picked up 

(yes of course I know it means to pick up dog poo).

We set off at about 10, I think, and asked the satnav to take us non-toll. First stop was a Netto, which didn't have bread but did have those globe-shaped courgettes ee like. I meant to buy some frozen beans, too, but they sort of transformed into nougat ice cream. Oops! 

Quite a long, but not unpleasant, drive, made longer by the fact that we had never visited Laon and decided it was not too far out of our way to do that. The SW walked up to the Cathedral, but I looked at the gradient and thought not! So we had a cup of tea and then it was only an hour's run to here, where we have been several times before. Chamery is just outside Reims, in the heart of champagne country and very quiet. The weather has been lovely all day!