Oh The Glamour of Caravanning!

Last night's post was rather hastily put together due to a) eating out and b) packing for today's departure to Calais.  Tonight's post will be a little more considered but before reading on, have a look at the first photo below to appreciate the contrast between our home for the last three weeks and what we put up with on the journey home!  Glamorous or what?

We could of course have sought better in the form of a proper site but once our decision is made to call a halt to the holiday, it's heads down and a blast up the French autoroutes taking advantage of the numerous Aires for rest periods on the journey and for sleep when we feel enough distance has been covered for the day.

The journey to Calais from Camping les Ramiéres is exactly 604 miles and as I sit here composing, we have eliminated 454 of those leaving just 150 to run in the morning.  There is a slight problem in that we are booked on a 4pm ferry and are likely to arrive at the port around 11am!  Hopefully and I know it will cost, P&O will accommodate us on an earlier crossing and we can make home a few hours earlier than originally thought.

Back to the subject of our glamorous location for the night, we used to stay on Aires that were extremely quiet and had a hole in the ground for a toilet and a tap with eau potable - drinking water to you and me.  However, that all had to change when British caravanners found themselves targeted by gangs of Eastern Europeans who would wake and rob them in the middle of the night at these quiet locations, safe in the knowledge that the police were unlikely to catch them.  How I wish Jack Reacher had been a caravanner when all this blew up!  Anyway, it meant a change to modus operandi and so we now always stay on Aires that have services, including fuel but above all else, a constant flow of people coming and going.  Much safer but much noisier.

Saturday of course is the worst possible day to get rest because heavy haulage, to a very large degree, is banned from the autoroutes on sundays and therefore drivers congregate in every available rest area on Saturday evening to party, chew the fat and at the moment, watch the Euro 2016 finals on their portable TVs.  We stopped for rest earlier on this afternoon only to find a bunch of Polish drivers watching their team play Switzerland and then celebrate victory by unleashing air horns and chants of Polska, Polska!!  Very restful.

I have included another photo below showing a couple of wagons that we parked alongside in the same Aire as the Polish supporters club!  A mere 14 Maseratis destined for owners in the UK.  I believe that mine is on a shipment due next week!  I wish.  I reckoned the collective value of this cargo was in the region of £1.5 million.  Some responsibility for the wagon drivers.

As I write, most of the drivers are conjuring up cuisine from around Europe on their primus stoves, most of these fired up right alongside their fuel tanks!  I'd love to go and examine what's on the menu, perhaps even taste it, but having had a spat with a Belgian motorist earlier on this afternoon, I'll not go into detail, I'm not sure us Brits are too welcome at the moment!  I have pinched some French number plates mind you and will be adding them to car and caravan before we hit the road again in the morning.

I am going to write a reflection of the holiday whilst crossing the English Channel tomorrow, assuming the French stick to their promise of delivering free passage following DC's resignation yesterday!

Fingers crossed for a decent night's sleep in preparation for the final 430 miles tomorrow.

    Not Quite the Drôme!

    If Only One Was For Me!

    A Creative and Inspirational Backdrop 

A Day for Celebration

What?  Do you think I am crowing about the Referendum result?  No, absolutely not.  23rd June was Richard's birthday so happy birthday son.  I won't divulge your age.

We are happy to be away from the momentous events in the UK today although the downside is that we were taken hostage at 6am this morning and the French ransom demand was for the resignation of David Cameron!  Fortunately, an early agreement was reached - that's the reason David came out into Downing Street just after 8am this morning and we have now been guaranteed safe passage home.  We are leaving early in the morning.

No political comment from me in any way, shape or form but whatever happens going forwards, I am proud of our democracy and think myself lucky that I don't live in North Korea.  End of.

And so we reach our final full and happily, sun-filled day in the Drôme.  I'm writing this at 7pm prior to dining in the campsite restaurant and the temperature is still in excess of 30C.  

I had intended to post a full dispatch today but what, with dining out and then packing up, time has run out on me but I will post one final dispatch before our arrival home on Sunday night.

Hopefully, we will enjoy safe passage heading North tomorrow and not be met by marauding bands of French!

The funniest thing today was when I asked a French couple about the result and the husband said and I translate, "we should have beaten Switzerland by two clear goals!"  C'est la vie as they say in Rumania.

A couple of photos attached merely to highlight the continuing great weather.

Me, me, me ...!

I have to admit that trying to find something interesting to post on a Blog every other day, when you are staying in the same place, is a trifle difficult.  As a consequence, I do often feature myself only to then find I am accused of "me, me, me syndrome" by Linda!  Is that fair?  The point I would make for the defense is I am endlessly fascinating, nay, interesting as well but I also benefit from a very large tongue in an awfully big cheek!

Unfortunately, my first topic today is me!  Linda seems very impressed...not!

You see I am to fashion what Hugo Boss and Georgio Armani are to caravanning.  Linda has despaired for 42 years of marriage at my inability to dress smart casual.  I appear to always achieve scruffy casual in her eyes.  It's really not for the want of trying...sometimes.  It's just that I possess an inate ability to put the wrong top with the wrong bottom every time, a skill I appear to have fine tuned over our many years of togetherness.  It was easy when I was working because it's difficult to look too scruffy in a crisply ironed shirt with matching tie when set against a nicely tailored suit.  Easy.  But smart casual?

I did wonder for some time if colour blindness was the reason.  It wasn't and Linda is of the firm opinion it's because I am lazy and don't try.  I actually remember one of my teachers saying the same thing although French and fashion are poles apart!

Well today, I appear to have turned a corner as I prepared myself for our morning excursion to the weekly market at Buis-les-Baronnies, more of which later.  As I stepped out of the caravan, I was met with words I will never forget, "you look very nice today"!!  You could have knocked me down with a feather.  Receiving a compliment like that from Linda is akin to the Queen giving me a Knighthood.  The saying "proud as a peacock" comes to mind.

The outfit is shown in the first photo below and in fashion parlance, Alistair is dressed in a £2.50 polo shirt from a Turkish market, a pair of tailored Adidas golf shorts, some very comfortable Sketchers deck shoes and all topped off with a genuine Panama hat, accessorised with his new Oakley shades.

I am so proud of my achievement today that I will be wearing this outfit everyday now until our return home on Sunday!

And so moving onto the weekly market at Buis - I possibly mentioned it in a previous post?  A visit here is just one of the most delightful things to do in the whole world.  The run over there from Sahune is captivating and stunning and then to grab your first coffee of the day in the narrow, market stall and people filled streets, while listening to a talented French busker serenade you, is divine in the extreme.  Oh and I should mention all this against the backdrop of crystal clear blue skies and temperatures heading above 30C.  It does help.

I really, really love my country, particularly at this time of year when everything is so fresh and green and beautiful but if I were to complain about just one thing, it would be the weather.  Generally, it's dreadful and a great barometer is that perhaps once annually, we might have a BBQ where we don't have to put sweaters on into late evening!  I find that a touch sad and contrast it to our experience here where we have eaten every meal outdoors and can see no change in this habit before our return home.  If only we could get a bit more of this up North!

I finish today with a thank you to friends Ann and Paul for some advice received regarding the Cadac!  Apparently, I don't have to spend any more money accessorising my purchase and tonight will be producing food for my dearly beloved which will be something similar to that turned out by Chef Ramsay.  Hoorah!

Plenty of photos below which in no way illustrate the phenomenally stunning beauty of the Drôme. If only I could attach the scents of the area as well.

    Dressed by Versace!

    Fields of Lavender

    View from Col d'Ey

    First Cafe of the Day

    My New Fashion Admirer!

    Buis Market. Simply Fabulous

    Same Again

    Hidden Valley near St Jalle.  Stunning.

    Tiny St May Village

    Look Out Chef Gordon!  Roasted Vegetables to Accompany the Meat.  Yummy.

There's Life in the Old Dog Yet!

I hope that you aren't all thinking that I am referring to Linda in the heading for today's update!  Nope, it's me and at the ripe old age of 62 - yes I know it's hard to believe because my mental age is at least 50 years south of that figure - I quite surprised myself this afternoon.  Mind you, I expect to pay the price in the morning by waking up to pain in every muscle in my body and ready to consume vast amounts of Ibuprofen.

How did I surprise myself?  Well I was back on my bike in the sunshine and completed my first ever Col.  Impressive eh?  Most of you of course are probably now asking the question, "what's a Col?"  Well in simple terms, it's a hill or as I prefer to call it, a mountain and today, I rode up one using just my legs and lots of determination and willpower.

I set off with the intention of having a gentle 10 mile ride on the flat but the devil, somewhere on my shoulder, made me take a right turn to Eyroles!  By the time I reached this village, I had climbed no less than 1825 feet, not bad when the maximum climb I had actually planned for my ride was around 50 feet!  The result of my efforts was to be rewarded with fantastic views, divine aromas from the prolific broom and the tilleul trees and an incredibly fast descent which seemed to be over far too quickly, bearing in mind the efforts put in to get to the top!  If any of you out there are interested in my route, click on the following link.  https://www.strava.com/activities/615130310

We had planned a lazy day but the bright, beautiful morning led us on a mission to find coffee in an ancient Drôme village - we succeeded in Rémuzat - and then to explore parts of the area where we had never previously ventured.  Every twist and turn brings pure delight.  Quite simply, it's breathtaking and despite so many previous visits, we still revel in the stunning scenery that is on offer.  You could never get bored and we remain amazed that the sight of a UK registration plate in the Drôme is rare.  While ever we are returning to the area, long may that continue.

Finally tonight, I am heading off on a tangent to comment on a purchase I made prior to us departing for France in early June.  This was of a new BBQ to replace our trusty and now, rusty old thing that had given us years of service but had come to the end of its useful life.

Our friends Ann and Paul and my old mate Barry had all espoused the wonderful benefits of the Cadac Carri Chef 2.  This isn't product placement, honest, no money has changed hands.  I am minded however to send a copy of this post to the company!

With tales of the amazing food this BBQ could produce, thanks Ann, I didn't bother doing any more research and simply forked out the £169, unknown, to Linda!  A mistake really because unpacking it for the first time in France and learning of the price paid, she expected me to produce haute cuisine, similar to that offered by Gordon Ramsay.  What I produced unfortunately was sausages and burgers and very delicious they were I might add.  Since then, I have been trying to convince her of the Cadac's merits but I fear it is an uphill struggle albeit I was complimented on my pasta sauce, completed the other night in the chef's pan and pictured below.  Apparently, to cook like Gordon Ramsay, I need to spend another £100 on accessories so in the short term, I'm sticking to sausages and burgers with the odd mushroom thrown in!

We have had a lovely day here and appear to be guaranteed blue skies and elevating temperatures until our departure.

    Morning Coffee in Rémuzat

    The Beautiful Drôme

    And Again

    A Rare Selfie Spoiling the Scenery!

    A Typical Old Village

    Wow!  What a View

    The Cadac at Work

    At Least the Chef's Happy with his Cadac!

The Calm After the Storm!

And breath...  Desert Storm has ended.

It's Saturday afternoon and it's back to just the two of us after everyone left the campsite around 12 noon.  Rick and Jill heading North for a ferry home tomorrow morning and Richard, Charlotte, Annabel and Sam heading South to Marseilles for a British Airways flight home to London this evening.  It seems strange to be on our own but boy, if they were to have chosen any day to leave, then today would have been the one.  Why?  Because since 2pm, we have been subject to storm and tempest, the like that we have not seen for many a year.

After they departed, Linda and I headed off to Nyons to do some shopping but to have lunch first in the old market square.  It's hard to believe that we sat in the shade of the plane trees and on my part, enjoyed the most delicious Provençal stew, complete with olives from the region, washed down with a glass of light and very fragrant local rosé.  Yum, yum. 

However, very soon after completing our meal, having a brief walk around the town and then doing our shopping at the Super U (not a patch on the nearby Intermarché), the skies turned a particularly dark and eery colour and have been depositing vast amounts of rain, interspersed with a spectacular light and sound show, for the past three hours!  It's hard to believe the always accurate local forecast that promises from 6am in the morning, the skies will be back to that dazzling blue and temperatures during the forthcoming week will soar to a dizzying 30C.  Whoopee!

Before returning to Desert Storm, I wanted to comment on the general cost of living in France, specifically, eating out, but also the cost of other goods.  In The UK, we use either RPI (Retail Price Index) or CPI (Consumer Prices Index).  One of these is a bit of a fudge but one is more acceptable.  I have my own measure however - ICPI.  The Ice Cream Price Index which when utilised in any country we visit, generally provides an accurate reflection of the cost of most other goods.  ICPI is currently off the scale in France with a large ice cream costing nearly £5!  Zut alors!  Over $7 in American money (just keeping my new American family in the loop). It's not just ice cream.  A bowl of frites the other day in Vaison cost the same as a large ice cream.  One large potato to make those chips!  What is happening here?  It was never a low cost destination for a holiday but after this year, I do wonder if the country will be able to maintain the visitor levels achieved in recent years.

And so everyone has left us and peace and serenity has descended.  We feel like empty nesters!  They've only been gone a few hours but we keep waiting for our caravan door to open and a smiling two year old and her baby brother to come through the door and instantly put smiles on our faces.  I've tried to replicate Annabel's entrance but my smiling face appears to achieve the opposite reaction! Maybe if I repeat the exercise tomorrow when the sun is shining, Linda's reaction might be more welcoming?

I said in a previous post that family is everything to us and the past week has only cemented this view.  We have had a wonderful week with everyone and although Sarah wasn't here in person, she was in spirit.  Fortunately, we can look forward to enjoying time in South Africa with all our family early next year.  No doubt, a Blog will accompany that trip.

    The View From Our Pitch Today!

    The View From Our Pitch Yesterday!

    Leisurely Lunch in Nyons

    Waiting For My Provençal Stew

    Heading For Home

    Local Market 

Random Thoughts That Might Get Me Into Trouble!

Before I start tonight's dispatch, there is a necessity - at least that is what Linda has told me - to get my defence in first because I may be a touch derogatory about the French and their habits and customs,  even though they are our hosts for at least three weeks.  We have been visiting France on a regular basis for nearly forty years and perhaps that is defence enough?  Yep, we keep coming back despite their determined efforts to drive us and every other tourist away due to the militancy of their trade unions and work force!  So random thought number one is in respect of French trade unions and I call on President Hollande to get a grip or should I say, "ressaisis-toi!

Amazingly, only 8% of workers here are members of a union and yet they seem to wield so much power.  From petrol blockades to Air Traffic Controller strikes.  From ferry blockades to Air France pilot disputes.  Oh, and the occasional French farmer unleashing his full muck spreader outside the local town hall, everything is planned to bring as much disruption and unhappiness to as many people as possible and yet despite this, France continues to attract more visitors than any other country on the planet!  83 million at the last count!  I'm not against trade unions, honest but how can so few people cause such grand scale grief and heartache?

Random thought number two is about French toilettes.

How can they possibly call a three inch diameter hole in the ground with a Neil Armstrong moonprint either side, a toilet?  Actually, its common name is a squat toilet but for me, it remains a hole in the ground!  Can somebody please tell the French we are currently in the 21st century?  It has been a nigh on forty year nightmare for me that I would have to use one of these one day.  To date I have avoided it but the fear remains whenever we hit French soil. 

I am sorry to report that random thought number three remains on the subject of toilets, particularly those on French campsites.

Why is it that most of these sites which have acknowledged the arrival of modern times, now install proper pedestal toilets but fail to fit a bloody toilet seat!!  Never mind the hygiene issue, I am the beneficiary, as mentioned in previous Blogs, of the "Coy arse"!  It's generously proportioned but even with this particular attribute, I do sometimes consider the size of some of these toilet openings and fear the prospect of having to be rescued by the French pompiers!  To add insult to injury, the porcelain can be very chilly at 6 in the morning!

I know I am sounding like a very grumpy old man but random thought number four concerns the French and their abject devotion to our canine friends.

There are thought to be at least 10 million dogs in France - most of them seem to be currently visiting Camping les Ramieres!  Nobody seems to be worried about dog poo and by that I mean the owners. My dog can sh*t where it likes appears to be the general approach and this includes the children's play area!  I love dogs but this isn't funny and the owners should be ashamed of themselves.  Perhaps it's a reflection on the toilet habits of those very owners?  As Michael Caine would have said, "did you know that in 2015, the British bought 1.85 million poo bags and the French bought just 3,600?"  Says it all!

I am nearing the end and will do so with random thought number five.  It's also about dogs!

Whilst here, we have witnessed dogs being pushed around in prams, dogs being carried in baby back packs and dogs using dummies!  Aaaaagghhhhh...!  They have four wheel drive, not two like us, they have woolly coats and the last I heard, they love to chew on a juicy bone.  You really have to worry for the French.

Probably best to stop now as the hole I've dug is getting pretty deep.  I promise to return to more normal updates tomorrow but I do include one photo tonight of me and nine month old Sam watching the magnificent victory over Wales!  I had to agree with pundit Sam that it was nowhere near magnificent but I translated his "goo goo, gah gah" to mean, a win's a win grandad! 

Who Said Anything About a Rest!

Normally, France for us means endless days of warm sunshine, leisurely breakfasts comprising freshly baked baguettes and home made preserves and longer lunches where an odd beer or glass of something red or white might be involved.  Well that's the general idea but then the grandkids arrived!

Actually, more than Annabel and Sam arrived at Camping les Ramieres this weekend.  Fortunately, along with them came mum and dad but a bonus as well in the form of Rick and Jill, Charlotte's mum and dad.  On the Coy side of the family, we are only missing Sarah to complete a full hand but having just had a new conservatory installed, her priorities were in getting the new lighting functioning and the decorating completed.  She is here in spirit however.

Family is the most important thing in the world to Linda and me.  It always has been and always will be.  The joy of being with your kids and for us now, our grandkids, is unrivalled.  Mind you, it does come at something of a cost as you realise just how much time and attention they demand - I say that against a backdrop of Annabel being just two and Sam, only 9 months, having just started to crawl.  At those ages, it should be a doddle for us but where does Annabel generate so much energy?

Typical was this morning where she had woken her Grandma and her brother shortly after 6am, much to the distress of mum and dad.  To give Charlotte the opportunity to get Sam back to sleep, Richard drifted with the offending child, down to our caravan, seeking solace, comfort and a cup of tea.  Oh and an extra couple of pairs of hands to spread the load.  It's a heck of a nice way to start the day when you see this beautiful, smiling two year old come through the door (oh and Richard as well) but after the cuddles the pressure starts to build!  "Please can I have some cornflakes Grandad?".  "Please can I have an orange Nana?". Then the Coup de Grâce!  "Please can we go to the park Nana?". It's only 7am but how can you possibly resist??  There is a great play area for the kids here.  Bouncy castle, trampoline, swings and slide and two large swimming pools.  It's a kid's paradise but not necessarily for a grandparent at that early hour.

It's strange, but having brought up two children of your own, you look back through truly rose tinted spectacles and think it was a breeze.  It's hard to contrast your own parental experiences against those now being experienced by Richard and Charlotte because for me, it looks quite tough and above all else, bloody tiring!

Yet for us, the joy and the pleasure is unbounded and as Grandparents, you get away with things that if the parents did it, you would tut, tut, shake your head and wear a great disapproving frown!  It's so funny.

We had heard it said on many occasions that the love you have for your own children is very different from the love you have for your grandchildren.  I can't quantify that.  I can't explain it but whoever said it in the first place was pretty much on the mark.

I hope I haven't been too schmaltzy in this dispatch?  Normal service to be resumed in the next update when I aim to give a balanced view on the French!!

    Sam's Reaction to the First Sighting of his Grandad!

    Annabel's Third Ice Cream of the Day!

    A Real Water Baby. So's Annabel!

    Sam Loves his Grandad Really!

    So Does Annabel

    Early Morning Arrivals at Chateau Coy!

The Tour de France Effect!

I'm not sure if you had noticed from the pictures that I have posted to date that the old Land Rover has two flash bikes strapped to its roof.  One is mine and of course one is Linda's.  Both have been little used to date although mine had previously, with me on board I hasten to add, completed the Way of the Roses cycle way from Morecambe to Bridlington.  A mere 170 miles in four days.  

It is almost obligatory to bring the bikes to this fanatical cycling nation because at every turn of the road, you see Lycra clad Wiggins or Froome devotees, pedalling for all they are worth trying to replicate the style and speed of the professionals.  Certainly the bikes might be close to those used by the elite of the sport but I question whether the Lycra looks quite the same on these amateur wannabes!!  Personally I would love to try and squeeze into a stylish Team Sky top but without trying, I know that it would only serve to highlight the considerable middle aged spread that now seems to be a permanent feature of this elderly physique of mine.

Anyway, the intention was to bring the bikes purely for show.  After all, everyone cycles in France.  They were never going to leave the roof of the Freelander but anybody passing would look admiringly at the sleek Specialised bikes on top of the car and think to themselves, they must be a fit couple!!  Yeh, right!

Unfortunately however, today, I weakened.  I woke up in a Sir Bradley Wiggins mood.  Not good.  I decided to take to my bike on a glorious blue sky day and cycle into Nyons for a mid-morning coffee.  After all, it was only 10 miles.  Regrettably I didn't take into account that it was also 10 miles back!  Early stage dementia?

For my exploits in the UK, I had invested in a very fine pair of cycling shorts which made my bum look rather large but I reckoned this to be a price worth paying.  In our branch of the family we often refer to the "Coy arse"!  It's very self deprecating but add padded shorts to this phenomenon and wowser! Unfortunately, the bikes had come to France but not my shorts and so I was left with the choice of using Linda's - a very generous offer on her part - or stick to what I was wearing.  I did contemplate lady shorts for a moment but on inspection was a little worried that they weren't quite designed for a man's comfort!  Need I elaborate more?

I am happy to report that the trip passed with only two major incidents.  The first on arrival in Nyons when I couldn't get my open toed sandals out of the toe straps.  Fortunately I only fell against the wall and not on the floor!  Slightly more stupid, on the way back, I wedged a fresh baguette in my handlebar bag, eating pieces as I pedalled homewards only to nearly lose said bread on a downhill section which resulted in me riding into the ditch at the roadside.  I'm sure this is something Sir Bradley practices all the time!

Just over 20 miles later, I returned safely to Camping les Ramieres to be met by waving crowds truly appreciative of my momentous effort.  My bum is sore, my legs are wobbly and the bike is now fastened back on the car for the rest of the holiday.  I'm going for a walk tomorrow.

    Purely for Show

    The 10 Mile Effect!

    The Sight that Greeted me in Nyons

    Cooking up a Sauce to go with my Pasta.

The Delight of a Low News Day in the Drôme

Generally when I write an update to my Blog, it is to report specific issues like Linda making me wash in a pan or my disappointment at the Eurotunnel experience.  Well today is different and I find myself in reflective mood.  Yes I did say it's Alistair in reflective mood, something of a rarity I know but an event that is becoming more frequent as I creep ever closer to pensionable age.  State Pension that is!

Perhaps a contributory factor is the delicious BBQ we have just enjoyed?  Or is it the fragrant aroma of broom, lavender or olive groves drifting across the valley towards us?  Could it be the beautifully warm, late evening sunshine accompanied by a glass of the finest Cote du Rhône?  Or could it even be the company of my partner of 42 years?  Nah!!  

I don't know what it is in truth but a very short way into this holiday, we find ourselves at peace with and enjoying everything about our surroundings.  The Drôme is a truly wondrous place and actually somewhere that many tourists to this country have yet to discover.  A bit like Dalyan in Turkey, we try to keep it a secret even though it has drawn us back on numerous occasions.

Life appears to be lived at a slower pace.  Someone described it as an excellent place to enjoy a mellow lifestyle.  Whatever it is, it is quite addictive and Linda and I feel extremely relaxed which of course, we know will change with the arrival of the grandkids on Saturday!

So prior to "desert storm", we are occupying ourselves by wandering around the countryside and taking in the weekly markets at Vaison-la-Romaine and Buis-les-Baronnies.  Vaison lies close to the foot of Mont Ventoux (1912m) and is a charming Provençal type town albeit its roots go back to Roman times and beyond.  It's weekly market which dates from 1483 is a must for visitors and during high summer can attract 450 stall holders.  The Wednesday market in Buis is on a considerably smaller scale but for me wins the contest against the one in Vaison because it is so much more intimate as the stalls wind there way through the beautiful and very narrow streets.  The joy of sitting in a cafe on a sunny market day and watching the world and his dog go by is truly hard to beat.

I could wax lyrical about this place for hours but today, I have attached more photos than normal in the hope that they paint a better picture than my words.

    The Blog Title on a Plate!

    Vaison-la-Romaine Market

    Vaison Castle in the Background

    Smell the Fragrance

    One and Only Selfie!

    Buis Market

    I Just Love Olives

    Looking Towards Sahune

    Just Like Chez Coy!