The last dregs of summer, 3 October 2022

This evening finds us still at Nant. We had been going to move on, but it didn't happen!

This morning, the SW and the others went for a walk up to Le Roc de Nant.

Sooner them than me, is all I will say about that! I, meanwhile, had a glorious morning doing absolutely nothing!

When the others got home, it was lunch time and past, so we had our lunch and then sat around chatting and putting the world to rights. It was a lovely summer afternoon - I do wish I'd packed shorts - and by about 16:00, we all decided it was too late, and we were too comfortable, to move! 

I had had no exercise, so the SW kindly accompanied me into the town for a brief wander round the Old Town and then a beer in the old market halls. Tomorrow is market day here and the men were putting up barriers to do people parking in the Square. 

Then back to the WoMo and eventually I cooked a cauliflower cheese which was lovely.  And we will have to move on tomorrow! 

The last dregs of summer, 2 October 2022

It was much milder this morning, and I don't think the heating needed to come on at all. The SW went into the village to buy bread, and after breakfast we used the services before heading on. 

Today's drive was down the A75, such a lovely road, as far as Millau.

We listened to our church service en route which was a bit surreal! At Millau, we came off the motorway and drove cross country through the Gorges de la Tarn and past La Cavalerie - there was a French Foreign Legion barracks and also a military firing range, and like Salisbury Plain - to this little village called Nant, where we met up with the SW's brother and his wife. 

We had lunch sitting outside, because it was so lovely. The SW changed into shorts, but I haven't packed any. After lunch, the others all went for some long, healthy uphill walk to some chapel or other - local beauty spot, anyway - and I went for a potter around the mediaeval old town centre, complete with resident ginger monster! I wonder whether all mediaeval French towns have ginger cats.... 

Back at the WoMo, I read until it was time to get supper, and then fed everybody on chicken and vegetable stew with couscous and Moroccan seasonings. And very good it was, too - a pleasant evening in good company. 

The last dregs of summer, 1 October 2022

It was exactly 7 years ago that we set off in our then motor home on our first ever motorhome adventure, the Eleanor of Aquitaine tour. We have learnt a lot since then!

Meanwhile, it was not so cold this morning, although the heating still came on. There was an artisan bakery just around the corner from the campsite, and the SW popped up there for a baguette and croissants for breakfast. I had had another bad night, although my cold is very definitely almost over, and fell fast asleep after breakfast, but when I woke up, we went back to the bakery for some patisseries for lunch pudding!

Then we went into Nevers; we had hoped to park up by the Loire and have a quick look at the Cathedral but the parking was a bit full and not really suitable for motor homes, so we came away and I did a massive shop at an Intermarché and now won't need to get anything other than bread, and possibly milk, before Tuesday!

Then a very pleasant drive down the N7, A71, A79 and A75 to this Camping-car park at a place called Brassac-les-Mines. I did book, but it wasn't necessary

as I think there is only one other motor home there. The Swan Whisperer went out for a leg-stretch, and I watched videos, and now he is cooking our Saturday night sausages! 

The last dregs of summer, 30 September 2022

Stupid, stupid, stupid me! I forgot that the "nighttime" decongestant tablets really don't suit me, and took them. The net result was that I lay awake most of the night with a mouth so dry it merited its own hosepipe ban, and very restless. Dozed a bit, but woke every hour on the hour, so felt like chewed string this morning. No walks for me today, although I did pop into a supermarket for some necessities.

We had a very pleasant drive once we got away from the Paris area, mostly down the A77 (we decided it was worth paying tolls) to Nevers, where we have parked up in a small, free aire in a suburb called Marzy. Nice view, but I really didn't feel up to a walk, so read and dozed while the SW explored.  I did cook supper, which was mushroom omelettes. No photos today, so here is one from yestetday. 

The last dregs of summer, 29 September 2022

I slept really well last night, the first good night's sleep I have had since starting this cold! But we awoke to the sound of rain on the roof, and it was cold enough that we needed to turn the heating on while we dressed. The rain was away before we were, though, and we only met one brief, although sharp, shower en route. 

We told the Satnav that we didn't want to pay tolls as far as Abbéville, where I visited a Super U, but forgot to buy tea, which must be remedied tomorrow. By which time, the Swan Whisperer decided he liked the look of the non-toll route and it was, he said, only half an hour longer, so we went via Rouen and Evreux here to Sceaux. We are parked in the free car park for the Chateau de Sceaux (which the Satnav amused us by pronouncing it "Skucks"), and after a cup of tea we went for a rather slow walk around the Parc de Sceaux, which was absolutely gorgeous! More photos on Facebook, of course.

By the way, if you want a map of our travels and stops, do follow me on Polarsteps. Link on Facebook. 

The last dregs of summer, 28 September 2022

Back at the end of February, we went off down to the South of France to try to find the spring. This time we are going to try to salvage the last dregs of summer.. Although we don't know exactly where we are going after the first few days as we plan to meet up with the Swan Whisperer brother and his wife, who are touring in their motor home. 

My mother and sister have been on a cruise to the Norwegian fjords, and they returned today, so we all met up at no 6, we arrived about 5 minutes before they did. They unpacked their stuff while we loaded the van, and then they went to pick up the dog, who was staying with my sister's partner, and we headed off. 

Uneventful drive and crossing, and then a further hour to this Camping-Car park where we are spending the night. Supper was a German ready-meal that was edible, although not as nice as it looks on the packet!

 

Summer Holiday, 30 August 2022

 And so we came home.  First of all, though, we woke up in Bray-Dunes, and after breakfast took ourselves on a leg-stretch to the beach and back.

  Then we used the services for the final time, and set off down the A16 towards Calais.  We had hoped to stop at the big Auchan in the Grande Synthe commercial centre, but there was a traffic jam and we missed our exit, so went straight to Cité Europe and I did a Last Shop in France there.  We had a slightly early lunch, and eventually headed to the Eurotunnel terminus.

We had booked on the 15:20 crossing, and I had hoped we'd get on an earlier one, but even though the traffic wasn't as horrendous as it would have been the previous day, it was still pretty busy, so we had to be on our booked crossing, which was slightly late.  This meant we arrived at No 6 at about 17:15 local time, and then, of course, there was a busy half an hour or so packing up stuff that hadn't already been packed - we had done the bedroom and bathroom stuff earlier.

We had arranged to have supper with my mother - I provided the stew and potatoes, and she provided plum crumble.  And very good it was, too.  But of course we didn't get back to London until nearly 10, which is one reason I didn't blog yesterday.  We only did a bare minimum of unpacking - the stuff to go in the fridge and overnight stuff, basically - and I, for one, was glad to seek my bed.

However, this morning after breakfast I reached for my computer - and there it wasn't! We had totally forgotten that just before leaving for this holiday I'd led a Zoom service from No 6, and had left my computer there.  The Swan Whisperer went totally above and beyond and drove me down to pick it up, and while we were there, we looked in the motor home for a dozen eggs that had unaccountably gone missing.  The supermarket in Belgium had, improbably, had eggs on a BOGOF, so I had bought two dozen, but could find only one of them.  Anyway, no joy - and we did take the opportunity to open the sink cover, which we had forgotten to do.  We did find the eggs when we got back to London - they were hiding in plain sight!

Because the SW had been so kind, I took him out to lunch at the Chalk Restaurant at the Wiston Estate Winery.  This was delicious, if rather expensive - but probably cost less than a return train fare with taxis each way! 

I should explain that normally my mother would have given us lunch, or we would have taken her out to lunch, but it was the one day she had guests, so we literally just grabbed my computer (tidily in a briefcase) and ran!  So it was near on 17:00 when we got back to London, and of course we had missed a whole day of catching up.  Oh well.... I then had to go to the dentist and then there was a flat owners' meeting, but I have left the Swan Whisperer to deal with all that while I catch up.