TOURS to LA ROCHELLE

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TOURS to LA ROCHELLE - 4th May 2007 (Friday 20º Sunny in Tours and Sunny and 27º in La Rochelle)

Arrive late for breakfast and it is a terrible mistake. There had been a tour bus or two staying in the Hotel overnight and they had hit the breakfast room before we did. The devastation is locust like and complete.

There were empty little butter containers strewn hither and tither. The coffee pot was empty and the croissant basket was bare. Seats had been pushed back as though someone had yelled 'abandon ship' whereas I guess it was probably just the bus driver who had said “nous allons” (we go).

Pay up at the Best Western and fire up the Ford Focus Ferrari. Deb guides us unerringly through Chatellerault, Poiters, Noitre and into La Rochelle.

It was on this leg of the drive that I remembered a very valuable lesson learnt on the Auto Stradas in Italy. When you go out in the left hand lane to overtake you must check your mirrors well before you intend to move into the fast lane. You see the BMW’s, Mercedes and Porches travel at such incredible speeds that a cursory glance three or fours seconds before you change lanes would result in someone (who is doing twice your speed) driving straight over the top of you. So my advice? Spend just a much time looking in your rear view mirror as you do looking through the front windscreen!

We are overtaken by a BMW that I reckon to be doing 220 kilometres per hour. He is travelling so fast that when he passes us our car is buffeted by his passage, not only that but when this rocket goes over a small rise in the road, the chassis and the car body, part company momentarily, and the car twitches across the asphalt and threatens to take out the inside guard rail. Not more than a nanosecond behind him are two super bikes chasing at the same speed.

I expect to top the rise to see a smouldering twisted heap of cars and bikes but they cannot be seen and are well out of sight (but not out of mind). Insane speeds on public roads, but they say that the French never die of lung cancer or in car accidents.

La merde de la taureau (bullshit) I say.

We make it safely to La Rochelle and park the FFF in an underground parking station near the centre of the old town. We walk around and check some Hotels and settle on a lovely Hotel overlooking the Vieux Port (Old Port). Our room has a balcony and so we grab some goodies (local olives, Saint Nectaire cheese from Central France, some strawberries that taste like strawberries used to taste, a baguette and a bottle Cote Tariquest (Chardonnay Sauvignon) and settle in with the best view in town (see photo).

A late walk around the Harbour at 9:30pm and it is still daylight.

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Photos

View from our room in La Rochelle
Not too shabby eh?