Off to Avignon, well yes, but we didn't actually get there!

Wednesday 18th September

Précis:- still very windy so off to Avignon but too much traffic so back to coast near Agde. The end.

Oh boy, woke up to sun but more storm force winds so decided enough was enough and left for Avignon. I have always wanted to be sur la Pont etc and Joan thought it might be fun. As we approached Aix-en-Provence the traffic started to build just as it had when we approached Besancon and I said right that's it, head south, so we set off for Agde on the Mediterranean just past Marseilles.

Lunch and major shopping for heavy things like potatoes, water and booze then off again.

My trusty navigator looked up a campsite at a place called Marseille-Plage we had heard of from Thor and his wife, a couple of Norwegians  who had the biggest camper van we have ever seen. They took us in for a look around and it was just pure luxury but how he drives it is beyond me, it's the size of a huge luxury coach but he swears it does 20 mpg.

Anyway, this campsite has 5 stars, a heated pool, close to the beach and 4 hours free wifi daily, ideal. It had been red hot all day and the winds had dropped so by the time we got here we definitely needed a Radler ie shandy. We found a lovely spot with full sun most of the day and amazingly the couple next door, Allan & Lorraine were the people that Thor and his wife had been telling us about at Frejus, it's a small world.

We lay about in the sun for the rest of the day then ate half the £10 chicken we bought, then went on line, gosh 43 emails, 3 of importance!

One from Pam & Colin in Ibiza enjoying the sun, and one from Joe & Ingrid down in Croatia, hope your weather has improved and your having a good time, were so glad all went well at the wedding. Then Kathleen & Ken are in Germany with iffy weather but hopefully that will improve soon.

Watched a few episodes of "Modern Family" and to bed.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

There's wind and then there's WIND!!!

Tuesday 17th September

Précis:- terrible high winds as we went to the market, found easy cycle path for last bit. Exhausted and scared we got home safe. The end.

Wow, the winds are really strong but as we have been looking forward to going to a proper market we decided to chance it. This sounds a bit dramatic but I assure you we were lucky that there is a cycle track all the way, as twice when we got to a place where there were no trees or bushes to shelter us, we were blown almost onto the road! There was a lot of traffic as the road runs right through the market and there are several zebra crossings

There are a lot of Bamboo bushes along the side and they were whipping around in the wind making it even more difficult. Then we suddenly came to a tree that had been ripped out and thrown across the route with just enough room to squeeze through. At this point a little voice said,"do you think we should go back?" No way I said we are nearly there!

Then I looked at Joan and she was as white as a sheet and totally out of breath. I assured her we were almost there and just then we came to a cycle track sign which we had wondered about in the past and decided to try it. It was perfect and sheltered, plus it took us straight to the start of the market and had somewhere to lock the bikes, brilliant.

The wind had obviously depleted the number of traders who'd come but it was still pretty good and we bought a couple of things, olives & fruit. Then braced ourselves for the journey back. I foolishly assured Joan that the wind would be with us now, but of course it wasn't and when we did finally arrive back we were exhausted.

At times like this you have to admit perhaps we are not as young and fit as we were and actually spent the rest of the day just resting, eating and drinking. Time for dinner and Sister act.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Same old same old really

Monday 16th September

Précis:- it was sunny again, went to beach and swam in sea, the end.

The female of the species is very strange as all chaps know. When do they get the chip inserted that means Monday is washing day? Well it is, apparently and as the sun is shining and I stupidly put a line up for our towels we're doing washing today. However we did spend the rest of the day on the beach plus the sea was actually quite warm so we swam in it, great.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

That will teach us to talk about the weather!

Sunday 15th September

Précis:- it rained, the sun came out again so we went to the beach, the end.

Blimey! Well that will teach us to talk about the weather lasting. It started to rain about 4am and of course we had forgotten to bring the towels in so somebody had to nip out and get them in quickly.

When I got back...... ( well you didn't really think Joan would go did you? ), the trees that provide the much needed shade during the day had also kept the rain off the towels so they were only a little damp, unlike me!

This morning it was still raining and a lot cooler, but about midday the sun broke through and it was nice and hot again. So we missed the big market we were looking forward to but did get to spend a bit of time in the pool. The evening is again really warm but windy and the Norwegian couple we've been talking to say it's going to be hot again Monday so fingers crossed.

Lots of love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

I said it was near the post office!

Saturday 14th September

Précis:- finally found Lidl, went to beach, ate Pizza the end.

As there is a market in Frejus today Joan wants to go so we determine to get an early start and also catch the tourist office in one of it's rare open phases and locate Lidl for supplies. The market like the previous one was a disappointment, I think Harrod's are cheaper! We were in hysterics when Joan said can you imagine the crowds and mass hysteria if Primani opened over here.

Anyway having spent a while wandering around and managing to get the map from the tourist office we located Lidl and realised how close we had been the day before. It was actually the next blooming street We then proceeded to overload our bikes and stagger home (still no brandy! How can you buy 30 kinds of whisky in France but not brandy).

After lunch we relaxed for a while and at about 4.30 went to the beach for an hour. As we walked back to the van an English bloke engaged us in conversation. This came as a great surprise as we had on a couple of occasions wished him good day and been ignored so naturally we thought he was just a miserable bugger.

It turns out he's 86 years old and has been coming here for 20 years, the last few on his own since his wife died. he's a bit of a card and had us standing there for sometime while he regaled us with stories of 2010 when this place was flooded and he had to rescue himself in the middle of the night as no-one had alerted him when the site was evacuated.

When he woke up at 3am, he battled through a raging torrent of water and mud which was chest deep to find the Police and Fire Brigade at the site entrance who on seeing him were now concerned as to whether anyone else was still in their vans. Last year he burned his bungalow down with a chip pan fire.   He drives to Frejus from Calais with only one overnight stop!

Finally as it was now too late to cook we had an enormous Pizza from the on-site restaurant, opened a box of Cotes du Rhone and finished with brandy, lovely.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx

A fruitless search for Lidl works out alright in the end

Friday 13th September

Précis:- cycled to find shop, didn't, had really good meal cycled home. The end.

We awoke to another lovely sunny morning and after breakfast met the lovely little girl who is only 21 months old and nips around here in a little wheelchair. She has Spina Bifida  and is as bright as a button and appears to able to say good morning in at least 3 languages already, Dutch, English & French and probably German but we haven't heard her. Her father told us that here is the only place in Europe with wall to wall sunshine and like us he was getting ready to move on, but we all agreed we will stay here if the weather stays nice.

Having run out of beer and wine and getting low on brandy plus a few other food items, we decided to try and track down Lidl as they don't seem to sell brandy at the other supermarkets. As we had already been unsuccessful our aim was to go to the tourist info and ask. As we'd been doing a bit of tidying etc we didn't get there until 12.32, they close for lunch for 2 hours at 12.30! So we tried on our own but after cycling around a bit we ended up in St. Raphael sea front and as it was nearly 2pm we decided to eat in a restaurant.

I don't know what really makes us choose between one place and another. I know we all look at the menu but it's more than that, is it full of locals? Perhaps we should get a government or uni grant to do a paper on it, about £50,000 should do. Anyway as we stopped outside "Les 2 Filles" something made us stop and look at their menu. Moules Provençal, leapt out at Joan and grabbed her attention, plus a very cheery owner sort of pulled us in, while a lady just leaving said, "you won't regret eating here." We promptly locked the bikes up and sat down.

About an hour later a very happy Joan hiding behind a huge pan of moule shells refused a desert. As for me I was supposed to get one but could not manage it so they knocked a bit off the bill, very nice. Then we went down onto the beach and promptly fell asleep! By the time we got started again and cycled home it was too late to go to the pool even.

Lots of Love
Bryan & Joan xxxx

Well it looked like a short cut!

Thursday 12th September

Précis:- found they had other bread, went on long bike ride by mistake. The end.

Well at last we managed to get a really nice baguette from the shop, they obviously sell the rubbish first. But sadly the Carole & Joseph's Oxfordshire artisan deluxe gooseberry conserve ran out, and unlike Harrod's they don't deliver. Quell disaste!

We then headed for St Aygulf, the next village, on our bikes as they said there was a market on. As it turned out it was a flea market and not very big either so a bit disappointing really.  The journey there had been a bit hairy over the last bit as there was no cycle path, but when we were ready to go back we saw a road which looked as though it cut the difficult bend off and went where we wanted to go so we decided to take it on the way back. BIG mistake!

We cycled for mile after mile and finally arrived on the other side of Frejus at the point where we had come in off the motorway the day we arrived. I knew where we were immediately and just had to convince Joan. We had managed to convert a simple 2 mile trip into a very long ride plus I had NOT put my little bike computer on so I was definitely not flavour of the month. As I've said, my fitness is not great but I did it without a problem and after a spot of lunch I slept for ages, so we did very little today but relax, ho hum.

Lots of love
Joan & Bryan xxxx