La Rochelle

On Sunday afternoon I got the bus to the station, and caught the train to La Rochelle, which is an hour and a half away on the TGV. It's in the Charente Maritime region of Poitou Charente, and on the Atlantic Coast. I had been there once before - during the first month I was here, with Jean and Therese. This time I went to visit my friend Annick who had called in out of the blue last week and invited me. She is 'summering over' in La Rochelle. I was quite surprised as I hadn't heard from her for quite a while and she hadn't replied to any emails so I just left things. She actually wanted me to stay all this week! I couldn't do that but we worked out that I could go on Sunday afternoon and come back on Monday night. Which is what I did! Annick was at the station to meet me and we walked to her place - a studio in a big complex which she is renting for July, August and September.

She would like to live in La Rochelle, but house prices are considerably higher than in Poitiers. Anyway, she had some relatives visiting - a young couple and their wee daughter. So we chatted for a while. I found the young man really easy to talk to - perhaps because he spoke so clearly.
After they left Annick and I went for a walk alongside a canal and then back along the other bank. I thought I had seen some beavers - I was sure that's what Annick was saying. But in hindsight I can see they were water rats. Which fits in nicely with my Wind in the Willows theme!
After a bite of tea we walked into Centre Ville. Well! Talk about humming Trev! It was packed! There were stalls, street musicians, comedians, the usual 'statues', food stands..... and zillions of people. In fact you really couldn't see the good acts because of the crowds. It was like... um.... well, a big tourist spot in the middle of summer. Which is just what it was! So we wandered round for quite a while and then wandered back home.

The next morning we walked again - round a path which is part of a park that edges the waterfront. There was some prime real estate there and it was a little bit like some parts of New Zealand. We got to a beach, saw the marina, and generally had a good look round. Back to the studio for a quick feet-up then back into Centre Ville. We had lunch then walked round some more.
The only touristy thing we went to was the Art Gallery which was staffed by a really nice man, but was somewhat surprising in its size. It was very small! 4 euros and it took us about 20 minutes max to see the lot. But never mind. And we wandered back home via another route. So lots and lots of walking. C'est bien pour la sante, but wouldn't you think it would make my bulgy bits disappear??
Back home on the train at 6.30 and that was that. I feel as if I know La Rochelle a lot better then I did before. It's quite a pretty place. But of course I prefer my home town Poitiers!
Today I finished packing up the boxes. 3 of the smaller pre-paid kind, and two large cartons. The two large cartons are not in the photo, which doesn't really give too much idea of things. But it adds a bit of colour! And Hilary likes piccies - the more the merrier! She is going to get on to reading big words next year.
It was a really stressful job, as it was hot and sticky and not an easy job at the best of times. I have to say that the women who dealt with us at La Poste were extraordinarily kind and we were quite the centre of attention with all these boxes! Me, Marie-Helene and Chloe. We worked out that I could send the cartons more economically which involved a lot more form filling, and one of the women and Marie-Helene re-taped them too! All in all we were there for 45 minutes! It cost a fortune. Converted to NZ dollars we are talking well into 4 figures but I had no choice and I just have to accept it and get over it. No, I do not know how I came to have so much extra stuff. Stop asking. Well, I have an inkling. ;-) Oh, and of course my credit card wouldn't work. It cheeses me off that retail people here have absolutely no idea how to work a card that swipes, rather then just pokes in the end of the machine and sits there. It happens to me all the time and I feel like a country bumpkin. But it works every time if they let me swipe it! Anyway, I was very tired and stressed by then and M-H kindly used her card and I will pay her back tomorrow. Sigh.

So now my wee studio has nothing on the walls and looks very spartan. I just hope I haven't sent off anything that I am going to need! Lol.
Tonight we - M-H and co and I - are going into Centre Ville to see a 'spectacle' and the famous illuminations at the Notre Dame Cathedral. Looking forward to it. But I need a wee zizz first.