Vacances end...Boo

Friday...One of the draw backs of living on the Rue de Cailletiere, it turns out, is how busy it is even early in the morning it is quite common for delivery lorries or vans to turn up between 4 and 6 am. This morning we counted 5 separate deliveries. The slamming of doors and trolleys reverberates around the otherwise empty street and through the house.
Out to La Flotte market and boutiques, by bike, for cadeaux and simple provisions for when we get home. Then back via Rive Doux to make a promenade out of it. Trade in the bikes for money... that is we hand in the bikes and pay the hire fee ...bye bye bikes! We take the car for the last errands. Over to Les vignerons de l'ile de Re, based at Bois Plage, to pick up some wine for home. We did our tasting during the week so no need to taste at the degustation point. Just as well as there is a rare old party atmosphere going down!. Its a slick operation; taste, order, pay, take order print out to collection point, trolleys are provided. There is no price avantage over the supermarkets, they all sell the range, except maybe case rates. It is however very convenient. Its not exceptional cru  but for the price its not bad. I have paid more and got alot less and there is a wide variety of choice  to suit the discerning palette or indeed no palette at all. Wine loaded over to Leclerc for stuff and fuel. Back to base to clean the house and then for some late Petanque. Ironically having been to the Vgnerons; I later bought a bottle of Merlot that we hadn't tasted previously and had not included in the wines we had bought. After a sip, we looked at each other we read each others minds, could it be...? potentially it was superior to the reds we had bought...Ho Hum!!.. After Petanque... 2-1 to me!...bye bye petanque pitches!.. we said farewell to the beach and the Atlantique; bye bye beach; bye bye Altantique. We trapsed back shoulders slumped; gallic shrug...cest la vie, and had Baquette Sarmentine and the last of our Chevre au herbes and Fleur de ile de Re and a cheeky little merlot. It will be 27 degrees to morrow across most of France, Shorts and T for the drive back I think!!.

La Baleine Bleue

Thursday; As we are sadly running out of holiday and the days of island life are numbered. We have decided to head for our favorite restaurant in Saint Martin, La Baleine Bleue, for lunch. Discovered several visits ago and eagerly revisited at least once each year since.

Situated on the Ilot du port; it commands an excellent aspect.... oops!! lapsed into estate agent speak....stop! However it is famed for having separate terraces facing South, West and North.
Simple food presented in a stylish way, excellent attentive staff. I could go on but I wont. Todays lunch was 'excellent' as ever. Repast over we wandered round waiting for the macaron shop to open. at 2pm. It's such a nice town; all corners have an interesting something about them. Very photogenic. Macarons in the bag we headed for the cycles and back to base. For some afternoon petanque. Tomorrow... list as long as your arm of stuff needed and to do before our return. Boo Hoo!!

chabechou ou cabecou?

Tuesday in the anecdote stakes was a pretty thin day. We went back to Bois market by car, looking for the tableware we earmarked on our previous visit. However no show; no crockery stall. Deemed an anything but cycle day we only cycled to the petanque pitches up the road, late on, to use the boules we bought earlier in the week. It was good fun; nice venue behind the sand dunes near the beach.  I one 2 - 1. Picture: L attempts a googly!
Wednesday back at Bois market, again. The quest for the elusive crockery continues. No stall; perhaps we dreamt it in the first place. We dumped the car and planned a circulary route for the cycles. Heading for St Martins but skirting the town to the west and using the coast path to head back to Loix - Courade. And perhaps Couarde for lunch.... Coast was a beast of a route the Sou Westerly was blowing a gale in our faces. I ran out of gears to compensate...We both knew we'd been for a ride by the time we made Couarde. We trapsed up and down...centre ville.. lunch or just a drink? Drink and gather our thoughts. PMU; we sat down outside and watched as who we took to be the owner bobbed in and out playing up to some builder buddies drinking coffee, totally ignoring us. Well after 10 - 15 minutes; we had had enough and walked. There is a nice looking Hotel up one end and we sat down there. Their lunch time treats were Assiette of charcuterie ou assiette de fromage fermier  or  bocaux de foie gras / terrines and pain. We'd have a drink and think about what to do next. A young guy took the order and disappeared; he reappeared with terrines for another table; we agreed it looked surprisingly appetising so we would ask for it when he bought our drinks. After another 5 minutes the same guy came back with no drinks he muttered something at us that we didn't understand, like.. vous cammander?... it transpired he had fogotten we had already ordered.....Is it us? it was starting to feel that way; we thought ordering anything else was too much like hard work. We cycled back to base via Leclerc in doing so we did a complete figure

of '8'...of the centre of the island. In the evening a brass band rocked up in the square round the corner and played a few tunes..I believe they were bused in to drive small children from the village center.

Vélo à Meli - Mélo

Lundi... Let us ride to Camelot....Ars sir!  ....Let us ride to Ars..
Another overcast morning. I can't believe the difference; how a year of sedentary lifestyle can takes its toll on cycling expectations.
I remember last year scooting off in front of L and continualy having to stop to allow her to catch up; this year I can barely stay ahead. Mind you traveling from the east of the island to west with a stiff sou westerly in yer face; dosen't help. It seemed a bit of a hike this year but Ars is such a nice village and the Meli Mélo at the unasuming 'K Ré d'ars' restaurant; a must not miss. I was determined that trop vent wouldn't put me off.  This year they are improving the cycle tracks which unfortunately meant closing them off.... Route Barree Piste cyclables Fermee.. not too bad going but it got worse.
Just out side Ars we had to deviate on to the road much to L's dismay.

Blind bends and all sizes of quick moving traffic. Still we made it. Parked the bikes in the centre and walked down to the port where the restaurant is. We quaffed and stuffed. And as we had set out late this morning decided to head slowly back. And now the fun started. Route was Barred for a lengthy section, where it had been open earlier, and no deviation signed. We took to narrow strips by the side of the road. Then on a particularly busy bit lorries of all sizes barely slowing down to pass.  A mad-emoiselle in a peugeot used the last microbe of her already tiny brain to go 'off on one' at us; gesticulating and sounding the horn.  The full thrust of the expletive yelled faltered at the quickly disappearing back of her car. She had an A sticker so was a novice driver smart...!

le rabais

Tuesday....a grey morning cloud looking decidedly full to bursting. L spent part of the morning with her nose in a phrase book...Perfecting the art of asking for the discount on bike rental due to us through our booking agency. I sported my new M&S outdoor trek shorts...they're breathable...quick dry...secure zips...and the all important 'active waistband....lovely!.

Off down to cyclosurf. During the transaction L felt confident that the cycle guy new enough english for her to mention the discount; but he was ahead of her had in fact noticed the holiday rental agreement that she had been waving in his face since we entered the shop.
Bikes including discount in the bag time to set off ..L wobbled a bit and I could feel tightening in my loathers calves...now to mount the bikes.
Having been for a test run to La Poste at St Marie and got slightly damp, as the clouds let go; we returned to the house for stuff.. We headed out of La Noue. We then spent 15 mins circum-navigating the same roundabout while we decieded that both agreeing on a destination would be a starting point.  Rivedoux was my suggestion and we headed there. Having exhausted the possibilities of Rivedoux we headed back to St Marie off piste; a secluded back road through the vinyards. This is the life. By the time we got to St Marie one leg would barely push the pedal round.....only another 10 cycling days left.

..and Ré-lax

Brocante and vide grenier at la Flotte today, Sunday. We decide on pulet roti and pomme risolees, from La Flotte market, for lunch. Its  not too far and both sets of legs are complaining about the weeks riding. La flotte is busy; which is how I remember it. Cycles chained up in every nook and cranny. We had a good mouch round made our purchases and decided to chill back at the house. On the way back L, as it was quiet, grasped the cycling around roundabouts nettle and for the first time this week; didn't get off her bike and walk across each junction.... After a partially cloudy morning this afternoon has been V hot in our little courtyard at the back of the house. Tomorrow men are coming to fit what we think is an electric awning. There is one in place already but it has never worked. Didier sent a text Friday to get our permission. We are going to make ourselves scarse by cycling to Ars. I don't believe I have mentioned hollyhocks. After salt, huitre and donkeys in trousers hollyhocks are right up there... If you don't have a couple standing outside your maison then there's obviously something wrong with you...! and you're likely to be run off the island in a cart being pulled by trouserless donkeys whilst being thrashed with lupins!

shaggy donkey story

psychologically scarred by our soaking yesterday we struggled to come up with a plan this morning. Also hindered by heavy showers earlier on. I got the piste cyclables map out and waved a finger in a vague circular route as if I was divining a rain free path. We stopped off at the car and grabbed our wet weathers; once bitten and all that... We skirted la Flotte and headed for St Martin de Re the capital.We found it as pristine as ever and steeped in sun as always, though quite windy and cooler than we have known it there. It remains a nice place to park your yacht. We had lunch and decided to return to house straight away. As we will go back when it is less cool. On the way back we came across two shaggy donkeys. ah!.. sans culottes!!
We stop off at Leclerc for some bits and pieces including celeriac clutching a nice piece I went to weigh it for the price tag label thing. But whats it called in French?.. no picture on the weighing machine and the labels on the faux stall seemed a bit out of sync. Nothing for it...,and to L's surprise, I button holed a fellow french shopper... I believe what I said was or in the region of.. "What is this in french?...the name?.."why Cellery Rave of course!! was I believe the reply...Cellery rave in the bag! To night on the menu is greedy italians sweet and sour bread salad...