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.