I have a cold - very minor but a nuisance having a runny nose.
At breakfast there was a deaf German who had cycled from Dusseldorf, down the Rhine to Amsterdam, and then was following the coast all the way to Finistere in Spain. He will get to Santiago de Compestella in about 4 weeks - another day to Finistere and then cycle back to Biarritz to take a train home - he thinks - his plans are very vague other than being home before it gets to hot in July.
Didn't have internet last night so I finished up not having sorted out the places I wanted to go into geographic order that resulted in a lot of waste time. First order of the day after breakfast was talking to Kate. the person in the next room thumped on the wall - a bit unreasonable I thought at 9am. Also spoke to Fiona while walking to the car but stopped when I got to the pharmacy just before the car to buy some paracetemol for the cold.
I decided to walk across town to the Tourist Office and check out a couple of places I was interested in. First surprise was discovering that when I threw all the rubbish out of the car into a bin I threw my wallet in as well. Fortunately I realised about 2 minte later I didn't have it and it was nicely on the top of the rubbish in the bin. There was a market just down the road so I went and had a look - and bought some fruit. Looking at the variety in the market I could see why French food is so good. There was asparagus there that was totally white - I wonder if they grow it in the dark somehow. And the smell of fish was very strong.
It was about 25 minutes walk along the beach - no swimmers but a few paddlers and lots of surfers - the waves weren't brilliant perhaps 1m. There are lots of bars along the beach and the owners were out raking the sand in front of them. And by along the beach I mean just that - there is a seawall and the bars are at the bottom of the wall - all in tents - but fairly sturdy structures that would take a while to disassemble when a storm comes along. It started to rain gently just as I got to the tourist office. On the way back it was amusing watching all the shopkeepers who had put stock out on the street hastily erecting umbellas over it.
There were 2 museums mentioned on Trip Advisor. One got average reviews the other good reviews. When I started to drive there I discovered it was just around the corner from the tourist office. Had to find a parking building - luckily free for the first hour then I discovered the 2 museums where actually only 1. I didn't bother to go in as it looked to me that it was mostly a souvenir shop with a little museum to attract custom.
By this time it was after 11am. The car museum closed 12 till 2 - this is rural France. So I decided on a coast drive and find some crepes for lunch. Alas the coast road was closed in 2 places for road works that diverted me several kilomteres inland. Actually I am amazed at how the French seem to prefer to close a road rather than just have one way traffic flows through the work. But eventually I got to Port Bourgenay where I had galette complete (ham, cheese and egg) and crepe avec citron et sucre - and half a bottle of Anjou.
The afternoon was spent looking at the car museum and wandering slowly to Lucon. I had originally planned to get there early afternoon and hire a bike. Just as well I was late and not feeling energetic as one of the bike hire places had stopped doing it and I couldn't find the other - the GPS refused to believe the address existed. It also did the same with the hotel de chambre (french for B&B) that I am staying at. Will be an interesting stay as the host has no English.
Went to dinner at a restaurant recommended by my host typing the name into google maps Au Fil des Saisons. Nearly finished up in La Rochelle as there is a restaurant there with the same name. However the one in Lucon has a better rating in the Michelin Guide. I sent a text to Ngaire while I was eating since she and Alistair are so interested in the cuisine. I had
Ok I got on my high horse yesterday about bombing St Nazaire and now I have sacraficed my principles by eating Fois Gros. Yes call me a hypocrit but this meal would be one of the top 10 of my life.At breakfast there was a deaf German who had cycled from Dusseldorf, down the Rhine to Amsterdam, and then was following the coast all the way to Finistere in Spain. He will get to Santiago de Compestella in about 4 weeks - another day to Finistere and then cycle back to Biarritz to take a train home - he thinks - his plans are very vague other than being home before it gets to hot in July.
Didn't have internet last night so I finished up not having sorted out the places I wanted to go into geographic order that resulted in a lot of waste time. First order of the day after breakfast was talking to Kate. the person in the next room thumped on the wall - a bit unreasonable I thought at 9am. Also spoke to Fiona while walking to the car but stopped when I got to the pharmacy just before the car to buy some paracetemol for the cold.
I decided to walk across town to the Tourist Office and check out a couple of places I was interested in. First surprise was discovering that when I threw all the rubbish out of the car into a bin I threw my wallet in as well. Fortunately I realised about 2 minte later I didn't have it and it was nicely on the top of the rubbish in the bin. There was a market just down the road so I went and had a look - and bought some fruit. Looking at the variety in the market I could see why French food is so good. There was asparagus there that was totally white - I wonder if they grow it in the dark somehow. And the smell of fish was very strong.
It was about 25 minutes walk along the beach - no swimmers but a few paddlers and lots of surfers - the waves weren't brilliant perhaps 1m. There are lots of bars along the beach and the owners were out raking the sand in front of them. And by along the beach I mean just that - there is a seawall and the bars are at the bottom of the wall - all in tents - but fairly sturdy structures that would take a while to disassemble when a storm comes along. It started to rain gently just as I got to the tourist office. On the way back it was amusing watching all the shopkeepers who had put stock out on the street hastily erecting umbellas over it.
There were 2 museums mentioned on Trip Advisor. One got average reviews the other good reviews. When I started to drive there I discovered it was just around the corner from the tourist office. Had to find a parking building - luckily free for the first hour then I discovered the 2 museums where actually only 1. I didn't bother to go in as it looked to me that it was mostly a souvenir shop with a little museum to attract custom.
By this time it was after 11am. The car museum closed 12 till 2 - this is rural France. So I decided on a coast drive and find some crepes for lunch. Alas the coast road was closed in 2 places for road works that diverted me several kilomteres inland. Actually I am amazed at how the French seem to prefer to close a road rather than just have one way traffic flows through the work. But eventually I got to Port Bourgenay where I had galette complete (ham, cheese and egg) and crepe avec citron et sucre - and half a bottle of Anjou.
The afternoon was spent looking at the car museum and wandering slowly to Lucon. I had originally planned to get there early afternoon and hire a bike. Just as well I was late and not feeling energetic as one of the bike hire places had stopped doing it and I couldn't find the other - the GPS refused to believe the address existed. It also did the same with the hotel de chambre (french for B&B) that I am staying at. Will be an interesting stay as the host has no English.
Went to dinner at a restaurant recommended by my host typing the name into google maps Au Fil des Saisons. Nearly finished up in La Rochelle as there is a restaurant there with the same name. However the one in Lucon has a better rating in the Michelin Guide. I sent a text to Ngaire while I was eating since she and Alistair are so interested in the cuisine. I had
- Duck Fois Gros with pear and sweet potato
- Trou Normand. This is a sorbet of some sort. Maybe somene can tell me what is in it. I know the real McCoy is alcoholic but they said they had a non-alcoholic one as well which I had since I was driving
- Half a lobster baked in the shell - with white aspargus and mushrooms (don't know what sort but not the sort I eat in NZ). Only about 18cm long so I think it would be under size in NZ
- Pear in filo pastry with licorice ice cream. The pear was cored and filled with a blackcurrant and beetroot sauce.
I ordered a half bottle of Sauvignon Blanc but only drank 1 glass. And the cappuccino to follow was not up to Wellington standards. The French can't be best at everything.
No comments:
Post a Comment