Day 4 - Saint Malo via Bayeux

It been a beautiful day in Brittany, starting with a trip to the supermarket to stock up on supplies before heading to Saint Malo. I love French supermarkets; they usually have a butcher, fish counter and deli, rather than everything being pre-packed. All the fruit and veg is loose - not a plastic bag in sight and nothing that's already on the turn. 

We stopped at Bayeux on the way down as we were only about 30 minutes from it. We went to see the tapestry; it's so detailed and intricate. And over 1,000 years old! You can't take photos of it, though, so here's an image from t'internet. Bayeux cathedral is also beautiful. 

Bayeux cathedral

From there we drove to our campsite for the next 3 days, the Domaine de la Ville Huchet. It's a bit more upmarket than the previous one, with an indoor pool and a little bar and shop. And...an old Château on the site, right behind our pitch! The pitch itself is huge so we've finally got the awning out. 
Château de la Ville Huchet

Info about the château

After setting up we had a drink in the bar (be rude not to) and went for a quick bike ride to explore the area. Google tried to take us somewhere completely inaccessible, so we had to follow our nose instead. This often doesn't end well either, but we came across a Decathlon shop - hurrah! 

I love Decathlon, so in we went, and out I came with purchases. Lee also had to buy some budgie smuggler swimming shorts as he didn't bring any with him and they don't allow "normal" swimming shorts in French pools. 

Tomorrow's plans include a bike ride into Saint Malo, and hopefully a dip I the pool. 

A few more pics from today:

It's never too early for a beer (11:30am)

Bayeux

Our pitch is massive!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 10 - Angers

Image
A late one tonight, folks, as we went to the campsite bar earlier, so everything got pushed back a bit.  The rain didn't materialise today, so we cycled into Angers. Lee had marked a few "points of interest" on his route, mostly churches (churches are to France what castles are to Wales) before we ended up at Château d'Angers.  Yes, another castle. In France "château" is used for anything grand, so it could be a genuinely old castle,  or a posh house from the 18th century. However, Château d'Angers is an actual old one, dating from the 12th century.  So, buckle up for some historical info.... Château d'Angers  The Château was the seat of the Plantaganet family; a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 to 1485, when Richard III died in battle.  Queen Elizabeth I was related to the Plantagenets. Her father, Henry VIII, was the son of Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward ...
Read more

Day 12 - International relations

Image
Question : how many people does it take to get a stuck motorhome off a muddy pitch?  Answer : three Welsh, two Germans and a French man.  Yes, we got stuck in the mud today. We arrived at Chartres campsite but Lee didn't think our electricity lead would reach the unit, so he drove onto another pitch. Then changed his mind, but when he tried to reverse off the pitch Beti, and the mud, had other ideas.  There was a German couple pitching up next to us, so the husband,  Manfred, came to try to help me push the van. No joy, so Lee found some branches to put under the wheels to try to get some traction. Manfred looked very skeptical about this idea, but we gave it a go, with no luck.  Enter a French chap who had just arrived, who found some wire sheeting (probably for the very purpose of getting stuck vans off pitches), and at the same time another lady (who was washing her dishes) said she had some grip mats.  The next thing you know we had an international tea...
Read more

Day 13 - Chartres

Image
Back on the bikes this morning. A big loop around the outskirts of Chartres,  then a snack and a coffee on the way back. It's got the point where I need a daily coffee fix now!  This evening we went "out out" in Chartres; it's been our first night out this whole trip. Campsites in France are usually quite out of the way. If you're lucky some will have a bistro on site, but most of them aren't really within walking distance of anything.   After a quick beer at Chez Olive we had a little wander and came across a Mexican style restaurant. "Not French?" I hear you ask. Non. Mostly because Lee's not actually a fan of most French food (mussels, fish, veal, "stinky" cheese). He will eat steak frites but that's quite a touristy dish, so a lot of places don't offer it.  So, Mexican it was. The French aren't  keen on very spicy food, so this could have been disappointing, but it wasn't. Homemade nachos to s...
Read more