Ummmmm........
With travel fatigue starting to get a real grip, it was slowly dawning upon us that we should have perhaps done things the other way around and got the camping bit out of the way up front when we weren't yet missing our comfortable beds at home. So the first adjustment we made was to limit our motorhome trip to just the Acquitane region and we spent a small fortune investing in travel guides and maps for the region which Marion got to work on whilst still at the Wackwitz'.
To cut a longish story short, we bravely checked in to the Avis branch just outside Toulouse, to collect our motorhome on the Tuesday morning but only after having decided the day before to significantly scale down our ambitions, ditch the idea of focusing on the Dordogne (we'd save this for another trip when we could do it justice) and restrict our camping efforts to just the SW Atlantic coastline between Arcachon and the mouth of the Gironde. We all felt the need for the smell of the sea and a walk on the beach. Bets were still on as to whether we'd last the full 18 days or not!
Well, it took us the best part of the day to get organised, pack out our clothes and things into the spacious (not!) cupboards in the motorhome and shop for the various items we realised we'd need for our motorhome stay. Other than some bedding, the motorhome came with nothing other than fixtures and fittings which meant that we had to buy everything else from kitchen utensils to deck chairs to ..... you name it! Anyway, too many euros later we left Toulouse and headed up the A62 for Arcachon some three and half hours away with a fully equipped motorhome, ready to take on the camping world!After an hour and a bit on the road we all hit the wall and decided that as we'd had enough for one day we'd find ourselves a spot for the night at one of France's aires and finish off the journey to Arcachon early the next morning. We found ourselves a great spot alongside a lovely sunflower field and set about trying to convince ourselves that this was they way to travel.....and then we went to bed and we realised what we had in store for the next few weeks......beds to rival Hotel Wilson in Dijon or perhaps a prison cell, ie: we could all look forward to little or no sleep for the next few weeks!!
The next morning we rolled into Arcachon and checked into the campsite there, a three star resort, for two nights and set up camp between a wall and hedge with a view overlooking another motorhome! The next morning, Marion and I didn't say a word to each other when we woke up but simlpy looked at each other and then checked out one day earlier than expected. The whole campsite thing is clearly not for us!
We headed up the coast towards L'Herbe which we'd read was a nice spot and with all good intentions of setting up camp there for the night. But not before we had done the dirty deed and emptied the motorhome of its dirty water and sewage....the picture says it all!
L'Herbe was indeed everything that the guide books said it would be and will be remembered as the place in which Sean and Kyle tried their first oyster. Sean's reaction was 'Yuck' but Kyle decided he quite liked them and helped himself to 3. L'Herbe is a really small village entirely devoted to oyster culture with a few rows of small clapboard houses set right up against the water's edge. Unfortunately, we found out once we there that motorhomes were not allowed to stop there overnight, something that would become a feature of the next few days. We did however manage to find somewhere to "hide" the motorhome in Cap Ferret at the northern most tip of the Arcachon basin and settled down for the night next to another oyster farm in what we thought was a lovely peaceful spot....until 4 am in the morning when firstly a huge truck arrived to collect the garbage followed by an even bigger truck that arrived to collect the previous days oyster haul to be shipped off to far corners of the continent.
We were really fortunate the next day to find a very pleasant spot in a pine forest alongside the coast at a place called La Porge where we spent two nights. For some reason, despite the signs saying that motorhome stays were regulated in the area and that there was a 700 space motorhome campsite just a few km's down the road - a motorised refugee camp lookalike place - we were one of only a handful of motorhomes in the park that stayed overnight and managed to escape any kind of interference from the very obvious Gendarmerie patrols.
By Sunday afternoon and with the prospects of nowhere to set down for the night we decided it was time to call a family meeting to discuss where to from here......the conclusion was unanimous......"we want to go home"! And so with the decision taken, we headed back to La Porge Beach to the spot that we'd camped in the previous two nights.....only to leave a few hours later with the boys tucked up in bed the idea being that if we left La Porge then, ie: Sunday evening, we could get the motorhome back to Avis early on Monday morning and perhaps even get back to Brussels that same night.
8am monday morning and we were on the road again towards Toulouse after a late night stop over for a few hours sleep at the same aire that we'd stopped off at on the way out of Toulouse - boys still asleep - full of excitement that we'd get the motorhome back and unpacked and be on the road to Brussels by 11 am. As we drew near to the Avis branch, we suddenly realised that the place wasn't open on a Monday and that it would only reopen at 9 am the next morning and that all the rush back had been for nothing.
So, we headed back into Toulouse to the nearest Sofitel (remember, the hotel chain with the great beds!) and checked in for the night to pig out on all the things we'd been missing for the last few days....soft beds, CNN, WiFi, bath, etc, etc and only briefly left our room for dinner at a little Chinese place around the corner.
After a great nights sleep we all bundled ourselves back into the motorhome and headed back for Avis where we handed the motorhome back at 9 am sharp to a very disbelieving rep.........packed our car and were on the road by 10am and were back at home in Brussels by 8pm. Opening the front door and walking into the entrance hall never felt so good. The boys made a beeline for their playroom and Marion and I just lapped up all the space and the familiarity of everything.
Despite the realities of motorhome living that we encountered, the days spent in Arcachon, Cape Ferrat and La Porge were fantastic with some of the nicest beaches that we've seen anywhere in the world providing us with a wonderful opportunity to take in the sea and the sand. We always thought that Cape Town's Atlantic beaches were unique but I'm glad to report that this area of France has everything beach wise to rival the best that Cape Town has to offer and that we will definitely be back for future summer holidays.....just not in a motorhome.
But now its all over...............
It has been a great experience all around for all of us. As you can imagine, there's a lot that happens in three months, good and bad, whether your at home or on the road as we were. Despite the fact that we are all so pleased to be home and feel somewhat tired physically, we feel energised mentally and ready to get stuck back into things once again. This in itself, after all we'd been through as a family in the preceeding 9 months, made it all worthwhile.
We've got loads of pictures to remember it all by which we look forwardto sharing with those of you that are brave enough to indulge us when we next see you. As well as the pictures there are loads of stories and insights, learnings, frustrations and "how we'd do it next time" discussions that haven't been written about in these pages that we'll be ready to share with you if you care to indulge us.
August will no doubt be a month of getting back into the routine of urban living before the boys start at their new school, Marion gets back to her yoga and demanding schedule as a full time mum and as I put the planning in place for the start of my new business.
It seems appropriate that a good way to end off this blog would be by taking a look at the best and worst of the last few months.............
The Best......
Marion's Best - 1. Venice; 2. Beaches around Arcachon and Cap Ferret; 3. Bastille Day Festival at Cordes-sur-Ciel in the Tarn
Kyle's Best - 1. MarineLand 2.ParcAsterix, 3. Charlie and Justin Wackwitz in Tarn, 4. Grand Tournament at Carcassonne; 5. Andrew Thompson in Bonnieux
Sean's Best - 1. Grand Hotel at Lake Garda; 2. Parc Asterix; 3. Andrew Thompson in Bonnieux
Neill's Best - 1.Being in Venice; 2. Swimming at La Porge Beach; 3. Relaxing at House in Chiusi
The Worst...........
Marion's Worst - 1. Bert being attacked by dog and dealing with the results; 2.Boat's toilets (Yes, Mom, I actually cleaned out toilets numerous times a day after swearing I would never ever do toilets); 3. Hotel Wilson in Dijon; 4.Beds in the motorhome
Kyle's Worst - 1. Boat and the locks on the Midi
Sean's Worst - 1. Nothing (now that's a positive guy for you!)
Neill's Worst - 1. Motorhome; 2. Hotel Wilson in Dijon; 3. Boat toliets and bathroom
Best Meal...........
Marion's Best Meal - 1. Lunch at L'Auberge de L'Aiguebrun and lots of others that I can't remember now including gelato in Italy
Kyle's Best Meal- 1. Gelatto in Italy, 2.All the other food
Sean's Best Meal - 1. Take Away Pizza at little town between Lausanne and Lake Garda; 2. Spaghetti Bolognaise at Osteria Meati in Lucca 3. Fish in a little village between Dijon and Lausanne (and everywhere else too)
Neill's Best Meal - 1. Tuscan Beef Steak at Osteria Mieti in Lucca; 2. Lunch at Auberge de l'Aiguebrun in Provence
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