Thursday 23 June 2016

As I said in the previous post, we decided to visit an artist's studio in a village near Pornic.   We arrived to find a sign on her door saying she was open but there was no one present.   It was disappointing because we liked the paintings we saw in her window and would have liked to see more of her work.   I had parked the car across the road on the village car park.   As I wads loading Pauline's wheelchair into the car an elderly Frenchman spoke to me.   At first I couldn't understand what he was saying.   Then the penny dropped.   It was the day of the referendum and he was asking if I had voted!   We have postal votes so we had done this before coming to France.

We then drove north to see some places we thought might be interesting on the coast above Saint-Nazaire.   These were Croisic, which is on the end of a peninsular, and Batz-sur-Mer.   Both were lovely clean villages and Croisic was a small port.   We had lunch in Croisic, choosing crepes made to order.   We had not had fresh crepes since La Bocage in Newhey, Rochdale was open.   Robert, the owner, had the special crepe/gallette rings necessary to make the food from fresh batter.   We enjoyed our lunch.

Later we drifted down to the southern bank of the Loire estuary.   Here we discovered some of the unique fishing huts typical of the area.   They were sheds with lean-to roofs set up on stilts by the water's edge.   From them projected four arms like spokes in an umbrella.   When fully rigged these would have a net spread between the four arms and the fishermen would discover later what had visited their nets.   Later we discovered many more of these sheds on stilts.

One small resort we drove to was visited because of its unusual name - Saint Michel Chef Chef!   Like the others it was a pretty and well kept place.

That evening we sat down to a lovely meal at Villa Noe.   This time we chose to eat a wok dish which was basically brochettes (kebabs) of crevettes with scallops on a bed of typical wok fried vegetables.   Brother, it was tasty!

Wednesday 22 June 2016

Today’s report is having to be put first into Microsoft Word as we have no network  right now.   We returned from our favourite restaurant to find that there is no access to EE(Orange).   I imagine that some electrical storms this evening are responsible.   As we sat at table in Villa Noe we kept seeing flashes of lightning and thunder to follow.

It has been a very strange day with rapid changes between sunshine and heavy rain.   The temperature has shot up too.   We set off after an early rain shower to see if we could make our way to an island just off the coast south of Pornic.   There are two roads there, one of which can only be used when the tide is down.   You might know that our satnav chose to direct us along this low tide causeway.   When we reached the beginning of this road there were lots of cars parked..   It looked as if they were waiting for low tide.   I didn’t wait around to find out what the story was.   Pauline was feeling the effects of her water tablets so we needed to get back to the gite.

On the way back here she spotted a couple of signs saying that just off the road was a vineyard.   Later today we returned that way and located one of the vineyards.   The wine they were growing was vin de pays so we took interest in what they had.   We had great fun tasting wines we had not previously known.   Have you ever heard of Grolleau Gris?   Neither had we, but I can say it is a lovely clear, crisp white wine and worth drinking.   We tried other wines and they were excellent.   We bought a case of 12 bottles, of which four were typical Loire Valley Rosé wines.   They are almost not pink, so delicately coloured are they.   At home I would have to pay about £90.00 for them.   Direct from the vineyard they cost 44.60 euros!   I kid you not!!!   They are going back to Anglesey with us on Saturday along with odd ones I have got from Intermarché supermarket.

We are so pleased to have bought so cheaply direct from the vineyard.   We shall have lovely memories to share when we drink them.

Our visit to Villa Noë saw us sampling Coquilles Saint Jacques and rouget barbet (red mullet) plus a new take on lemon cheesecake and vanilla ice cream.   Once again it was a triumph and we are happy again.

Tomorrow Pauline wants to visit an art studio and then we shall travel up the coast instead of down.   The people and places here are lovely and the gite in which we are staying is excellent too.   I can see us returning here one day.   France, being a different country does so many things differently that it is a journey of wonder and interest.   Wait for the next instalment!

Saint-Nazaire

During the war there was a daring raid on what was called the "Normandie" Dock in the port of Saint-Nazaire.   This was a key port for the German occupying forces.   An operation was mounted whereby HMS Campbelltown was used to put the dock out of action.   Saint-Nazaire was where the Bismarck was heading when she was finally disabled and sunk.   The famous French transatlantic liner, "Normandie", was a huge vessel, and the dry dock was created for its maintenance and refit.   This was, therefore, the only dry dock capable of accepting the huge German battleships, Bismarck and Tirpitz if they were damaged whilst in the Atlantic Ocean.   Knowing this, the British operation was organised in order to restrict the activities of the Tirpitz which was then holed up in a Norwegian Fjord.

The plan was to sail the Campbelltown into the dock gates where she would be stuck.   A huge pile of explosives was also carried in her bow and would be exploded once she was wedged in the gates.   She did explode, albeit much later than planned, and the operation achieved its ends.   Many lives were lost in this raid and many servicemen were taken prisoner.   Some did get home safely.

Another feature of this great port was the block of fourteen U-boat pens constructed of concrete and able to withstand very heavy bombardment.   We decided to go along and see what remained of this massive building.   It was easy to find because of its size.   It remains complete.   It is an eerie experience to walk around this massive construction.   There is no charge and there is plenty of parking.   We were impressed when we visited.

There were facilities for visitors with a café, bar etc and there was also a number of  attractions added in recent years.   We opted to visit the museum about transatlantic sailing.   The whole place was a mock up of a typical liner.   There were corridors with various cabins we could visit.   We were able to see the difference between first class cabins and the rest.   Much original furniture was on view that we were asked not too touch.   At one point there was a video presentation on a huge screen depicting the growth of sea travel around the world from French ports.   It was viewed as if we were standing at the stern of the liner with the wake spreading out away from us.   The next video experience was a typical view through 24 hours from the promenade deck.   Other ships passed, dolphins came diving past the vessel, seals were there and even an iceberg.   The third presentation was set as a view from the bridge.   We experienced day and night, dense fog with the ship's whistle sounding, and a terrible storm with huge waves.  The accompanying sound really added atmosphere!  

All in all it was worth the visit.   We visited the souvenir shop and bought one or two things to remind us of our visit.   Then we went back to the car and headed for Pointe de St Gildas where we had gallettes for lunch.

The route to Saint-Nazaire took us over a huge bridge crossing the Loire estuary.   From here we could see the vast shipyards in which two cruise liners were under construction, one being the MSC Meraviglia which will be finished in 2017 for MSC in Italy .   Not far away is an Airbus factory too. Saint-Nazaire is certainly a place of employment!

We finished our day with another cracking meal at Villa Noe!

Wet all afternoon

We didn't expect hot sunny days here and we have not been disappointed!   Since lunch it has rained and we have rested in the house.   This morning we drove round the locality looking for a couple of places that looked interesting in our local guide book.   We found neither of them but did succeed in locating Pornic War Cemetery which is across the road from the municipal cemetery.   As war cemeteries go it is tiny but, as expected, it is completely weed free!   I noticed how the headstones were perfectly aligned.   It reminded me of the lines of guards at the Trooping the Colour last week, except that perfection reigns here.

Last night we ate at Villa Noe again and the food was excellent.   We actually got through it and the waiter, remembering our capitulation the previous night, congratulated us.   In a few minutes we are off there again!

This morning I pulled a leg muscle which has since given me some pain.   I tried a pharmacy to get some pain killing gel but they were closed for the day - marvellous!

Despite this weather we are enjoying a relaxed stay.   After all, if we were at home and it was raining we should be indoors.   The house is immaculate and we enjoy some excellent facilities.   Tomorrow, weather permitting, we hope to see the location of the famous St. Nazaire raid of World War 2 when HMS Campbelltown was sailed into the lock gates to blow up later and prevent the Tirpitz being able to use the dry dock if she were to venture out to sea and be disabled.

Near Pornic

Today, Sunday, we took a short journey to the petrol station at Intermarche where we filled our tank.   I hoped the card machine would be easy to use and it was even better than expected.   It recognised my card as UK and gave me the instructions in English.   This is useful as it is a very short distance from the gite.  

A short while ago the French petrol stations were going dry as the tanker drivers were on strike and other trade union people were blocking access to refineries all over France.   It threatened our holiday seriously.   It was part of an all-union response to new legislation passed to combat strikes.   France has had a history of workers striking and disrupting life.   This has been because successive governments have always given in.   Watching the disruption of Brittany Ferries' sailings recently, I have seen that the port workers didn't strike around the weekends.   Could this be because they earn more at weekends?   However, this week and last week the disruption has ceased completely.   They knew we were travelling!

Anyway, this morning we drove a short distance to a village called Prefailles where lots of people were eating in restaurants.   We continued as far as Point St Gildas which also had a number of restaurants active.   We sat overlooking the harbour with a huge ship's cannon for company.   The sun was out and it was very peaceful.   Through binoculars I could see the huge cruise liner they were building across the estuary at Saint-Nazaire shipyards.  After a while we moved on and drove to an unusual garden known as Le Fontaine des Bretons.   Most of the plant life here was of the vegetable variety.   There was a number of small animals to see and a lovely donkey.   She had the traditional cross markings so I asked her if she was related to the donkey that carried Jesus on Palm Sunday.   She did not reply.

We sauntered round the more formal veg garden where they had Gulliver size garden implements set up to suggest it was Lilliput.   Pauline suggested we returned to base for a Breton country pate lunch which we did and enjoyed it together with some biscuits our hosts had left us.

It is now 6.50pm and we are booked in at Villa Noe for dinner soon.   We need to avoid LARGE quantities this time!

Watch this space!

A week in Pornic, France

We travelled to Portsmouth on Friday afternoon and met the usual Friday traffic queues as well as a long section of road works on the M6.   Satnav sent us along the M6 as we approached the Midlands instead of suggesting M6 Toll.   We saved the toll charge and I think it would not have been any advantage as on the M42/M40 there was a huge queue of traffic because of merging from the right to get past a broken down car in lane 3 of 4.   We had made plenty of time allowance and arrived at Portsmouth Ferry terminal with loads of time to spare.

This time we were picked out for a brief security search for the first time.   3 minutes saw us joining the correct lane for loading.   We parked close to the lift on board the Mont St Michel and were helped with luggage by a friendly crew member.   We had booked a wheelchair accessible cabin and it was a very good one with plenty of space in the ensuite bathroom.   The sailing was at 22.45 so we grabbed a piece of gateau and some wine before retiring for a very short sleep.   We had to rise at 4.45 to be ready to leave the ship at 5.45!

Our journey to Pornic in the south of Brittany was tedious as a result and with rest stops we arrived at noon.   Firstly, we checked the location of our gite in the town.   Then we visited Intermarche supermarket for essential rations and had lunch.   Our next task, whilst waiting for the 4.00pm changeover time at the gite, was to find the restaurant Villa Noe that we had booked for dinner that night.   We could not find it using its address in Satnav but found it under Points of Interest.   So we drove off to the location given.   We drove to the point shown on Satnav and there was nothing but private residences.   We kept driving round in case we had missed a sign somewhere.   It became apparent that there was no such place as given by Satnav.

We parked up and I took a long walk around the area to see if I could find it but without success.   How would we find it?   Would we have to try another place that night?   We parked up by the river and sat on a bench.   As luck would have it we met three English people and asked them if they knew of the restaurant.   They were visitors too!   Fortunately one of them was half French and he phoned the restaurant for us.   The outcome was that we were not far from the Villa Noe but how to get there was unclear!   We decided to drive further along the road and take another turn.   No luck.   Round we went again and drove to a T junction and turned left down to the river.   We found it!   The problem was that it appeared not to be accessible by wheelchair.   I got out and did another walk and found the way to get the wheelchair in.

In the evening we drove to the Villa Noe for dinner and what an experience it was.   The staff were so helpful getting Pauline in her wheelchair to the table!   We consulted the menu which was chiefly seafood.   Our starter was fish soup and it tasted wonderful.   When the main course came we were amazed at how much we had and the variety too.   It was an assortment comprising oysters, crevettes, razor clam, tiny shrimps, langoustine, half a crab and other shellfish we could not identify.   We love seafood but were overwhelmed at the quantity.   They offered to make up a doggy bag but we declined.   We went back to the gite feeling our meal was excellent and we had booked a table for the next evening.

Back at the gite we got ready for bed.   As we lay there reading I heard a banging sound which seemed to be something hitting the gite wall.   I got up and went outside to discover there was a fireworks display in the port!   I settled down and fell asleep.   I slept like a log and felt ready to face the next day, Sunday.

There had been one event the previous day that required some attention.   On unloading the car I discovered the washing up liquid we had brought had leaked and covered the contents of the bag and the back seat of the car in Fairy Liquid!!!   We now have a very clean seat in the car!

The gite itself is a prefabricated design two bedrooms affair.   There is plenty of room and lots of storage space as well as everything we could need.   Monsieur and Madame Moinard were very welcoming and showed me how to find and use everything in the gite.   They even included what day the wheelie bin was emptied.   It was all done in French and, amazingly, I understood and could reply in a limited fashion.

A good start, I think.

Where to next?

It is now February 2016 and already our holiday travels are booked.   Our first reason for travelling by car is that Pauline would have problems if we were to go anywhere by air.   For any walking, be it in an airport or any other large place, she is quite unable to participate.   She has a condition called spinal stenosis which is extraordinarily painful when walking or standing for more than 30 seconds.   She can cope within our bungalow but outside she is a wheelchair user.   Not only this but I have to push her as she also has arthritis which makes self propulsion out of the question.   Within an airport I would be incapable of carrying a suitcase whilst pushing the wheelchair.   This the first reason why flying to a holiday destination is out of the question.   Additionally, the seats in an aircraft are too close for comfort and she would suffer much pain if flying for a number of hours without relief.

Our choice, therefore, is to drive (something she can participate in) and sail on a car ferry.   We use Brittany Ferries from Portsmouth.   They also sail from Poole and Plymouth but Portsmouth is the best port to head for in this congested country.   We live in Anglesey in North Wales.   This means taking the A55 to the M56 motorway and then joining the M6 South.   To avoid hold ups we use the M6 Toll in the Midlands and head for the M42 and M40.   Eventually we take the trunk road past Oxford until its junction with the M3 towards Southampton.   After a few miles we head for Portsmouth and, once there, we just roll in to the Portsmouth Ferry Terminal where we board the car ferry.   This Brittany Ferries' main departure point so the port serves Caen, Le Havre, Cherbourg, and St Malo in France.   Additionally there are sailings to Santander and Bilbao in Northern Spain.

In June we shall be sailing via Caen on the Mont St Michel car ferry overnight.   Then we shall begin to meander over to a small town called Pornic in South Brittany and part of the Loire Valley.   In Pornic we have booked a gite through the ferry company.   We shall stay there for a week and hope to be out visiting all sorts of places of interest.   Ever since our liking for Loire Valley wines we have wanted to visit the area which is understood to be beautiful.   After this week we shall return overnight on the same ship.

In September we are off to Spain again on the car ferry, Pont-Aven.   This is the Brittany Ferries flagship and offers much comfort and style for passengers taking the 24 hours voyage to Santander.   I am not a lover of cruising but 24 hours I can do without problem.   On board we shall book our table in La Flora Restaurant and dine in style.   Our wheelchair accessible cabin is booked so we know our needs will be met.   On arrival in Santander on the following day we simply disembark in the car and drive to Hotel Chateau La Roca in Sancibrian on the outskirts of Santander.   We always get a lovely welcome from Senora Reyes Linares, the manager, who books us into the same room each time we visit.   It is a big quiet room with lots of room to move a wheelchair.   Our evening meal is usually entertaining as we are served by the waiter, Manuel.   He is part of the hotel fittings!

The next day, after breakfast, we shall drive to our first overnight stop on the journey south to Andalucia.   This year it is to be the Parador La Granja, not too far from the famous monastery El Escorial that we wish to visit.   Then it is off to Parador Almagro before making our final trip to Finca Manolo in El Romo, a few miles from Colmenar in Axarquia.

After two weeks resting at Finca Manolo with occasional visits to other villages we return to Santander via Toledo.   Again we shall be staying in the local Parador which has an outstanding view of the medieval city of Toledo.   We started to stay at Paradores after trying to find new accommodation to improve on the hotel we had been using in Toledo.   We always got a welcome at Hotel Martin, but it is not well placed to assist wheelchair users.   When I enquired I found that the Parador would be more expensive but far more suitable for Pauline.   We stayed there for the first time in September 2015 and loved it.   The staff there were very helpful, showing us the best way to get about the establishment with a wheelchair.   The food and service in the restaurant was first class.   In order to get a better and longer look at Cordoba last year we also booked two nights in the Parador there.   Once again we were not disappointed with the Parador treatment.   The Paradores of Spain are owned the government and are all 4 star grade.   Some of them are modern buildings, but many are refurbished monasteries, convents, manor house or palaces.

Our final night in  Spain will be, of course, in the Hotel Chateau La Roca.   The following day we will be able to have a short drive before boarding the Pont-Aven for our voyage back to the UK.   We can recommend Brittany Ferries and their extremely friendly and helpful staff.   They work hard for their wages and are worth every penny!   We love travelling to Spain and France and would not use another means of getting there.   There is just one more benefit: we can buy and bring back loads of wine at excellent prices!