France Sep 2011, The Drive Home

Day Eighteen, 14th Sep

Back in Hull on the morning, we had that boring time when the ferry has to negotiate the lock gates to enter the Queen Elizabeth dock. The ferry from Rotterdam was already offloading, as it doesn't have to enter the dock.

  

Off the ferry, the traffic in Hull was as bad as usual but we didn't head for the cafe at the bridge for breakfast as usual. I wanted to stop off at the marina, to look at the Lightship that is berthed there. We had passed it many times and always said we would stop someday, well today we did.

We Parked near the sea life centre (The Deep), but I did not like the look of the car park, so we moved round the corner an parked outside a little cafe. I popped into the cafe to ask if it was ok to park there, it was, for two hours, I also asked where the nearest toilets where and they were not far away on the sea front. The girl asked where we were from and as we lived close to her home town, she let me use the toilets in the shop. We bought bacon butties, as a thank you, it pays to be nice and we needed breakfast anyway.

Instead of going straight to the Lightship (we could see it from the cafe), we walked round to the sea front and along to The Deep. We didn't go in, we only went for the walk to the river Hull and over the bridge there, then back to the marina.

  

We walked round the old Humber Dock and over the lock gates, as far as the Lightship then crossed over the main road to the new shopping centre (not my idea).

  

I was not up for shopping, so I had a sit and waited for dot to look in some of the shops. I was quite impressed by Hull town centre, next time we go this way, we will have to spend more time there.

  

Then it was back to the car but before we set off for home, we bought a cup of tea each from the nice friendly cafe. Tasty, at 5 Humber Place, we will use it again, if we pass this way again.

France Sep 2011, Last Day in France

Day Seventeen, 13th Sep

Even though we had a long drive, the ferry wasn't until late afternoon, so we didn't leave the campsite until about nine. As it was a long drive, we did plan on using toll roads though.

Pretty straightforward route to Belgium, we made for the A84 to Caen ring-road the N814, then onto the A13. The Sat-Nav wanted us to go through Rouen but I didn't, so we turned off onto the A29 and over the scary bridge (Pont de Normandie (Bridge of Normandy)), or as our family know it, the scary bridge. We did stop there for photos (and toilets) but I do not think any of the photos were as good as those I already had, anyway here they are.

We continued on the A29 to the A28 then A16 all the way to Belgium where the road name changed to the A18. We did stop for lunch in an Aire on the A28 where we were entertained by three old ladies collecting apples from the trees there. One of them was on crutches and they were all using them, to knock the apples from the branches.

As we arrived in Belgium in plenty of time, instead of staying on the motorway, we turned off for Ostend and had a nice slow drive along the coast road to Zeebrugge. Called in at the supermarket we usually use to buy lots of beer when we are in he van but we didn't have much room in the car and I couldn't be bothered. So we just drove from there to the port, checked in and joined the queue for an hour.

Once aboard, first we upgraded to an outside cabin, then had supper and wandered up on deck for photos. Later we had a couple of beers as a nightcap.

  

France Sep 2011, Day Sixteen

Day Sixteen, 12th Sep

Last full day in France and after packing what we could we set off back to Torigni-sur-Vire, It was nice there and there was a lake to walk round. There was also a Lidl there, for last minuet beer shopping. The entrance to the Lidl was a bit hard to find, but we got in eventually. We bought a few thing but not much and then parked by the lake, where we were yesterday and set off for a walk.

  

We had a short walk around the lake and checked out the town's campsite, as we had to pass it on the way round. It was only up for a short walk so we were soon back in town, this time we looked into the shops (none open yesterday) and then had a beer but in a different place. I had a senior moment in the bar, one of the pumps said EAU on it, and I almost ordered one.

  

Dot had wanted to visit a place we had seen advertised, an abbey with nice reflection in a lake and we knew round about where to find it. Cerisy-la-Forêt, where we had had a beer a few days previously. We drove straight there and followed the signs for the last couple of hundred yards. We parked next to an Aire and walked over for a look at the Abbaye de Cerisy-la-Forêt.

You would have to be very lucky to get the shot with the reflection we have seen of the Abbey, also I do not know where the photo was taken from.

Next to the Aire was a sculpture park, in the middle of nowhere, was a small field full of marble sculptures. Some of them were not finished and most where by different artists. It is the "symposium international de sculpture sur pierre" an annual international symposium of stone carving, is held there.

  

We had a final night sat outside the van, eating supper and drinking beers in the sun, before an early night, long drive to the ferry tomorrow.

  

France Sep 2011, Day Fifteen

Day Fifteen, 11th Sep

The campsite is between Bayeux and St-Lo, we have been to Bayeux four times now but only ever driven through St-Lo, it was about time for a visit. I did not remember anything of St-Lo and there was very little in the several France tourist guide books we had. So we made we obligatory picnic, I set a route to a car park by the river and off we went.

Driving trough St-Lo we came to very high Castle (or town) walls, I pulled over and parked beneath them to investigate (take photos). There were quite a few large photographs alongside the walls and on the walls themselves, they seemed to relate to France's colonial times in north Africa, some were very good and all colourful. We followed the walls (and photos) down hill, to the river and the car park I had planned to use, a car park with toilets, result, relieved, I walked back for the car. Before lunch we had short a walk long the river, latter we would climb the steps to explore the walls and whatever was up there.

  

There were plenty of bridges along the walk, eventually we crossed over via footbridges and a small island and walked back along the opposite bank. Back at the car park we sat by the river and had the picnic lunch, in the warm sun. There were a couple of motorhomes parked up and having a picnic, I do not think it is an official Aire but I do think they were staying there.

  

Now it was time to climb to the top of the walls and see it we could walk all the way round. The path up was fairly steep and some in poor state of repair but we made it to the top (after a few rests), we really need to get fit. The view though, makes the effort well worth while.

  

We set off in an anticlockwise direction, not sure why but I think the sun must have been shining on the path that side. The walls are pretty impressive but I am not sure how much was rebuilt after World War Two.

  

We took a detour inside the walls to look at Notre-Dame church, a rather odd shaped church with some strange brickwork on the façade. Inside the church we found the reason, the church had been badly damaged during the fight for St-Lo and was partially restored after the war. The facade was rebuilt as a plain green wall and one of its two towers was not restored at all.

  

From the church we crossed over one of the wall gates and on to the end of the south section of the wall. I do not think there is any of the east wall left, maybe there never was but the north wall just ends.

  

We crossed a car park surrounded by shops, next to the municipal buildings to the start of the south wall. There were a lot of teenagers in the square and I felt more intimidated by them than usual, so we didn't look at the war memorial there, maybe next time. And there will be a next time, as its Sunday most places were closed, so we will be back someday when its open.

This part of the wall starts with La Tour de la Poudrière (The Tower of the Explosives magazine), the only remaining part of the citadel still standing. Strange that the gunpowder store survived, or is it, it was probably the strongest building in the citadel.

  

As we walk this part of the wall, the sky darkened and we got the umbrella out just as there was a downpore we also tok shelter under a gateway. It was one of those rain storms that goes and quick as it came and the sun was back out within minuets.

We were back to the west wall by now and after admiring the view for a while we came down from the walls to the car. As it was still early we drove to a small town we had passed through on the way to the area, a few days earlier. Torigni-sur-Vire, a nice quiet place, although there were a few people out having a Sunday walk. We didn't walk far, as we had already done quite a bit on the walls but we did have a beer outside an nice little cafe and the sun was shining again.

  

France Sep 2011, Day Fourteen

Day Fourteen, 10th Sep

Rugby match to watch on the morning, England v Argentina, probably England's hardest group game and it was close with England wining 13 - 9. England will have to play a lot better than that to progress further after the group stages.

Done with the D Day beaches for this year, today is a day for visiting a town and Bayeux is the one, we have been twice before but we both like it. The first car park we chose was full but we found a very small one just off the ring road, that was practically empty and we parked there. If it had been out first visit, I would not have considered parking there but because we had been before, we knew it was only a short walk into the centre.

  

Because Bayeux centre isn't very big we did know our way round, well pretty much so but we still picked up a map from the tourist information. Also because we knew Bayeux centre, we looked for somewhere different to walk and from the tourist information, we followed the river, the way we hadn't been before. We took the path down the side of the tourist information, took photos of the waterwheel behind the building and followed the course of the river Aure.

  

A couple of times on the walk, the path crossed over the rive, we just continued along the path taking photos, until we came to the ring road. We found somewhere to sit for a drink and a rest, then set off back into town, the way we came.

  

We made for the aere where the tapestry museum is, thought we might have a drink in a bar by the river there but we just ended up walking by. Took photos of the waterwheel there, we have done this twice before but I have never seen the river level so low and I do not think it was from lack of rain.

  

Last time we were in Bayeux we had a Hoegaarden in a nice pub, as we have done in the past, we though we knew exactly where to find it and as usual we were wrong. Although I was on the same street we though it was, this time Dot had a Leffe and I had a Loburg.

  

On the way in, I spotted an Irish shop selling beers (mainly French beers though) but instead of buying them and carrying them around all day, I took the chance that we would find it again on the way out. Luckily I did and bought more than I should have, the bag was very heavy on the walk back to the car.

Started the night back at the site, sat out drinking the beers we bought in Houlgate yesterday (the beers from today were for taking home), but after a nice warm day, it cooled down early and we had to move inside.