Blogs from Poitou-Charentes, France, Europe - page 9

Saturday – Angouleme, stuck in car parks and new gite for the week. Woke early Saturday morning and did our last packing and said our goodbyes to our Dutch hosts before heading on our journey to Angouleme. The countryside changed dramatically with less trees, more rolling countryside and vineyards as far as the eye could see. A very different landscape to the rest of the Dordogne. Noticed loads of motorhomes en route but no British so the plan of speaking to British motorhomers had gone out the window. Most motorhomers seemed to be French with the odd Dutch mingled in between. Stopped at Angouleme to break the journey as back aching sitting in the car seat. We were not too impressed with the city – first of all had an interesting conversation in the Post Office ... read more

Had planned today as a beach day, being the last day we are to spend on the coast, tomorrow we go inland. Change of plan, far too wet for beach today, in fact it was grey and drizzly nearly all day and all attempts to dry the washing under the awning have failed. We sneaked out, between showers, to the lovely big pool and had a good swim in water which was far warmer than the temperature of the air. A little later, taking a break from reading, we were tempted by the beautiful endless sandy beach. We took a walk along it and spotted a few hardy souls swimming but think our swim in the pool was probably far nicer than theirs. Tomorrow we head for Bordeaux. Weather from Saturday looks better and hopefully even ... read more

Good early start again today so we could get to the morning market while it was still open. Bob unloaded the scooter and off we went to La Flotte as we had been advised that this is the best market to visit. Quite right too. A traditional market place, outdoor, where one could imagine markets just like this had been held for centuries. Ok, maybe some of the produce was a bit too modern for that and maybe rather more tourists around nowadays. We bought some lovely sea bass and Ile de Re scrapable new potatoes which later made a lovely dinner. Also bought a couple of things for my ‘Xmas present’ drawer as unable to resist them even if it is rather early for that. Would have kicked myself later if I hadn’t. La Flotte ... read more

Scooter out of the Tandy garage and time to explore this interesting part of France – Le Pays du Marais Poitevin de Deux-Sèvres. It is a very green area, criss-crossed with canals and the river Sèvre Niortaise which comes out in the bay of L’anse de l’Aiguillion just above La Rochelle. We decided against a visit to the main town of Niort a few miles to the East and instead visited the smaller towns on the river which are specifically in the Venise Verte area. Our departure was delayed for an hour when the heavens opened and threw all that they had at us but after that the skies cleared and it was a remarkably lovely day. First stop, Coulon, 2 miles down the road from our Venise Verte campsite, along the river. There was a ... read more

Monday 11th July 2011 Up and off early to make the most of our day out at Parc du Futuroscope located 10km north of Poitiers. This is a theme park with a difference based upon multimedia, cinematographic and audio-visual techniques. It has several 3D cinemas, a few 4D cinemas and numerous other attractions and shows, some of which are the only examples in the world. The pavilions of Futuroscope are mainly made of metal and glass: modern materials which give the buildings form and texture and themselves qualify as works of art that make the observer stand and stare. We have visited the park on several occasions before and always have a great day out mixing old favourites ( usually the ones based on motion simulators ) and new exhibits. Today's exhausting itinerary includes amongst others ... read more