A quick New Year trip to France

We decided to spend a few days in Northern France to see in 2019.  We left home around 7am and were fortunate to get the 9.50am Le Shuttle to France.

We stopped for a good lunch in Béthune and then drove on to Compiègne where we were booked into the Best Western Hotel for four nights.  It was good to see Christmas Markets and fairs were still operating.

We had a rest and then had dinner at a Chinese Restaurant just behind the hotel.  Not much else turned out to be open on New Year's eve but we had a nice walk into town and around the town centre streets.

The trip home

We left the hotel around 9.30am and started the drive to Calais with a short pause at a nearby supermarket for gifts and other things to bring back.  We got to Calais on time and after a delay that was fully the fault of UK border control we got on a ferry, getting back to Dover around 2pm.  Following a visit to Tony’s parents we got home about 7pm.  The andouillette in the picture may have been the cause of Tony's stomach disturbance!

Exporing Laon and bonus Son et lumière

We had a nice breakfast at the hotel then went out for an explore around Laon.  We visited the cathedral and, after lunch at let Peché Mignon, went up one of its towers.  We looked at the Templars Church and went to the City Museum. Then we had a guided tour of some underground tunnels then went to St Martin’s Abbey and visited the Soissons gate.  

We walked back into town and had a beer at the Coyote Club, followed by dinner at Le Palais Gourmand. We saw some amazing Son et lumière on the way back to the hotel.

We finished the evening with a digestif at the hotel.  Sadly, Tony was very sick in the night, probably from food poisoning.

Moving on to Laon

We got up a bit early today and breakfast at the tent.  The heavens then opened after we saw a storm cloud rushing down the valley towards us.  We thus had to pack up in lots of rain and put a wet tent in the car.  

After that the drive to Laon was fairly straightforward and we arrived around 5.30pm to check into Hotel de la Banniere.  We had a nice dinner in a nearby restaurant called Les Chezinelles and finished the evening with a digestif at the hotel.

Mining museum at La Machine

Our last full day in Burgundy.  We started as usual with breakfast and then went to La Machine to visit a mining museum.  We had a very quick snack at a local bakery then did a tour of the top of one of the mineshafts – which was very hot and cramped – and then enjoyed the mining museum.  

We picked up dinner on the way home and ate again at our tent ready for a fairly early night before the trip to Laon tomorrow for the last part of what has so far been an amazing holiday.  We finished the evening with a round of Rumikub in the campsite bar.

Chateau Chinon and Mitterand museum

 Another very hot day (well about 30C).  After a quite relaxing morning we drove to Chateau Chinon where, after a quick explore and a nice lunch in a bar, we saw an interesting museum of Francois Mitterand’s presidency and all the gifts he’d been given from nations around the world during it.  Mitterand was Mayor of Chateau Chinon from the 1950s to 1981.  

We also climbed up to see a Calvary (Calvaire) where there were three crosses and some more stunning views of the Burgundy area.  We bought a bit more food on the way back to the campsite.  We got back and had a rest and a swim, then a beer at the bar and steak haché for dinner which we cooked at our tent.  There was a lot of thunder and rain during the night but we stayed dry.

Vézelay and Avallon

Today we visited Vézelay, an old hill village, and saw the Basilica of Mary Magdalen and some very pretty streets and views in the area.  The Basilica has am amazing collection of capitals on its pillars.  We had a very good lunch in Vézelay and then drove on to Avallon. We saw another church and did a walk around the town’s ramparts, again with some beautiful views.  We bought some food on the way back to the campsite and had dinner there.

Campsite coffee concert

Today we had breakfast at the campsite then attended a coffee concert at the campsite bar, with some very good classical singers and a concert pianist.  We had a relaxing lunch and afternoon and then stayed at the campsite for dinner.  We shared our table with a lovely Dutch couple who were very gracious in speaking English to us all evening.

Autun, Tour des Ursulines, Musée Rolin

Today we had breakfast at the tent as usual with some nice merguez from the campsite shop then went to Autun for the rest of the day to visit.  We had another good lunch near the cathedral.  We visited the Cathedral (which was undergoing significant works so we didn’t see much), the old Library with some capitals from the buildings and then Tour des Ursulines where we had a rather long guided tour in French and some excellent sites.  Following this we visited the Musée Rolin and saw some interesting art.  We collected petrol and food on the way back to the campsite and then had another simple dinner back at the tent followed by some songs around the campfire at the bar area of the campsite.

Onwards to Luzy

Today we left Les Gaillards around noon and went for a delicious lunch at Bourbon-Lancy.  We got to the next campsite, Domaine de la Gagère about 3.30pm in plenty of time to get the tent up and things set up.  We had a simple dinner of soup, bread and cheese at the tent followed by some beer and Rummikub at the bar.

Resting and a reverse dinner

We had a relaxing day at Les Gaillards today resting in the sun by the pool and staying at the guest house for dinner.  It was served in reverse order, dessert first and starter last, which was a bit weird!

Moving on to Montcombroux les Mines

We left the campsite about 11am today after fighting with lots of resin from pine trees that was all over the tent.  We first went to a place near Monflanquin to have lunch with a work colleague of Tony’s then drove on to Les Gaillards, our location for the next two nights, in a PROPER BED!  We arrived about 10pm and had a couple of beers before a very good and long sleep. (picture from Les Gaillards website as I didn't take any today)

Soustons, Shopping, Sunset

Today we had a lazy morning then went to visit Soustons, which was preparing for a festival next week.  We visited a LeClerc for some provisions and petrol on the way back to the campsite then had dinner back at the campsite.  We walked down to the beach for the sunset at 9.30pm and had a fairly early night ready for a long drive tomorrow.

Beach and Plantarium

Today we spent the morning on the beach and got a little burned (nothing serious) and then to a Nursery & Botanical Plantarium at Gaujacq.  It was quite interesting but a long way to drive for not a huge number of plants.  There was a castle next door but we were too late to see it as it was guided your only.  We had dinner at the campsite.

Eco Musée des Landes

We visited the Eco Musée des Landes at Marqueze today.  It was about an hour’s drive then a short tourist train into the site of lots of old houses and farm sites that had been gathered from the region and reassembled.  It was a very interesting presentation and included a working water mill.  There was also a good exhibition about how the Landes area has changed over the years.  It was interesting to hear about the rise and decline of the resin-tappers, a vital part of the area’s economy in the first half of the 20th century.  We had dinner again at the campsite.

Restful anniversary

This was a restful day and also our 11th Civil Partnership Anniversary.  We spent some time on our pitch at the campsite in the morning and then spent some time at the campsite pool in the afternoon enjoying the sun and the pool.  We went to the pizzeria at the campsite where we enjoyed dinner and some beer to the background of a French “name that tune” evening of entertainment!

La Rhune and Espelette

We drove to La Rhune today and got the little electric train up to the 904m summit, on the border with Spain.  Unfortunately it was rather cloudy so the views were not as spectacular as they might have been.  We had a Spanish lunch there and then after a wander got the train back down the mountain.  

Following that we drove to Espelette, an old Basque town, and found it was in full final preparations for a visit of the Tour de France the next day.  We stopped at a supermarket on the way back to the campsite and picked up a few provisions. We had soup, cheese, bread, carrottes rapées and beetroot for dinner.

Market and Beach

We enjoyed our first campsite breakfast today of boudins blancs with fried tomatoes and fried eggs washed down with lots of tea. English tea is the only food we bring to France because it’s just not the same here!

We drove into Moliets et Maa and visited the market there, buying a few bits for lunch and having a general explore. After lunch on our pitch we went down to the beach, which is connected to the campsite. The beach was crowded but lovely with soft sand a
nd warm sea. After the beach we came back and had dinner at the fish restaurant on the campsite.

Onward to the Landes

We had breakfast a bit earlier today and set off at 10am for the long (550km) drive to the Landes region of France and to our next campsite, Arnaoutchot, a rather huge campsite but right on the beach and with great facilities.  

We stopped at  Saint-Jean-d'Angély for lunch then arrived at the campsite around 5.30pm after some rather slow driving on the Bordeaux ring road and got our tent put up and everything set up.  We got some provisions in the campsite épicerie. Later We had a pizza and some beer for dinner at the campsite and were in bed by 11pm after a tiring day and a long drive.

Angers, Castle, and Chateau de Serrant

Today we enjoyed another excellent continental breakfast and then drove for about half an hour into Angers. We parked at the Castle there and explored it, visiting a very famous tapestry called The Tapestry of the Apocalypse.  

We had a light lunch and then visited the cathedral and did some of the scenic walk around Angers.  Later that afternoon we went to Chateau de Serrant, which is very well preserved and has beautiful grounds.  

Following that we returned to Les Saulaies for a but more sun and another swim before dinner with our hosts.  They pride themselves on never repeating a dish for up to a 14 night stay!

A lazy day doing nothing

We didn’t actually leave Les Saulaies at all today. We had a good rest including plenty of sunbathing, time in the pool, and reading books. We enjoyed another delicious dinner with our hosts and other guests. 

Ferry from Portsmouth to Cherbourg

We left home at about 0645 and got to Portsmouth in plenty of time for the 0900 fast ferry to Cherbourg.  We got there at 1300 French time and drove to our first stop-over point, Les Saulaies, a beautiful guest house just outside Angers.  We arrived around 5.30pm pretty tired but after a rest had a delicious dinner with our hosts, Olivier and Bruno.