Vive la France!
Sunday, August 16, 2009 
Just back from France where we were staying in the house above. It was in La Foy, a quiet rural hamlet one hour north of Bordeaux and five hours south of St Malo where we caught the ferry back to Portsmouth. (We set off at 2.00am on Saturday morning to avoid the holiday traffic. Despite this, the roads were still busy.)
We shared our holiday with a cast of characters that included Gary Ling, my larger-than-life friend from university, his wife Helen and their two children. The star turn however was our generous and loquacious host Simon, a semi-retired barrister who lives in another house nearby. Supporting roles were played by Bob, a former RAF engineer who sportingly gave up flying three years ago when he turned 80; Nanny Di; and the Admiral (don't ask). Last but not least there were Alex and Sanghita, two charming young lawyers who could have walked out of the pages of a novel by Evelyn Waugh or F Scott Fitzgerald.
I won't bore you with all the details but here are a few salient points:
- During the week the temperature reached 35oC
- Mosquitos bite (I currently look like I've got mumps)
- La Foy boasts the biggest, nastiest-looking wasps I have ever seen
- Thanks to the exchange rate, euro zone holidays currently cost a small fortune - we should have gone to America!
Apart from that, we had a great time.
Below: a cafe restaurant overlooking the beach at St George de Didonne near Royan on the west coast. The building in the picture is an extension of the main restaurant. To all intents and purposes it is fully enclosed although, this being summer, most of the windows were open. Customers can eat, drink - and smoke - inside and in comfort. Although very few people were smoking, every table had an ashtray, just in case.
Simon Clark
We travelled over a thousand miles in France. We didn't see a single speed camera. Not one. Nor did we see a speed detection van. Or a police car. Despite this the overwhelming majority of drivers adhered to the speed limits. Only when overtaking - and never in built-up areas - did drivers exceed the limits: 130kph (80mph) on toll motorways, 110kph (68mph) on duel-carriageways and non-toll motorways, and 50kph (30mph), sometimes less, in towns and villages. To be honest, it was a bit dull at times, but the lesson was clear: trust adults to behave responsibly and most of us will respond accordingly.
Reader Comments (6)
trust adults to behave responsibly and most of us will respond accordingly
Amen
Yes, I remember the wasps in rural France, the same in parts of Belgium. Monsters with coats big enough to break the fur ban and stings like dicarded hypodermics.
I wonder how long it will be before these wasps are over-sexed and over here as a result of global warming?
We already have a venomous spider 'False Black Widow' on the South Coast (sorry if you are an arachnaphobic Southerner). http://iberianature.com/britainnature/the-most-venomous-spider-in-britain/
Only Gordon Brown has the courage to lead the world away from the decadent practises that cause global climate warming! The wicked Tories will Do Nothing! Vote Tory! Vote killer-wasp!
I'd sooner take my chances with the killer wasps than the current dictatorship we have, at least I would feel I had a fighting chance! Not only that, once again everyone would be pulling together to fight the common enemy. We already have a common enemy in Gordon Brown and his cronies along with all the fake charities that prey on the innocent, it is just unfortunate that the country has not realised the extent of the threat in order to galvanise the whole country into fighting this common enemy that will do far more harm and kill far more people than swarms of killer wasps!