We got back from
our now regular camping trip to South Brittany, on pitch 185, just over a week
ago, with nothing but the memories to hold on to - apart from fourteen bottles
of red wine, two dozen crepes and our leaking tent. It is an area of the world,
which must have the highest proportion of street names and places beginning
with the letter ‘K’. There was the gangster looking Dutch guy, prowling the
site like a poor man’s Dolph Lundgren. The far out tide was slowly dragged in
by a creamy, low hung, full moon, so that by the end of our stay, the mid
afternoon sea was right up the beach. My smattering of French got us by, with
the annual promise to myself that I would learn the language again, with future
visions of coherent conversations taking place over glasses of vin rouge. Camels loitered lazily around the grass verges of the supermarket, waiting for that evening's circus performance. The brittle
sound of doom, like auto sickness, rattled in the car bonnet, as a snapped
fanbelt and other illness was diagnosed in our 10-year plus Ford Focus. The
relative cost of an arm and a leg later and it was back in action, although it
will surely experience no more French adventures. The vicar in a Wolves shirt
and his family were again our near neighbours. We see them every year and it is
always nice to catch up for the crossover of our holidays, with reminiscence
over Steve Bull and Peter Withe. They told us of the couple without a tent, just
an estate car, who stayed on our pitch before we arrived and got changed behind
their car doors to maintain a modicum of decency. L’Igloo, the ice cream shop
in Carnac, with its 160 flavours, including curry, goats cheese and ketchup was
visited three times. On a clear night, the sky is amazing, with the moon,
Saturn and Mars aligned on one occasion, captured on my star gazing app. I
celebrate my birthday each summer, with a view of the sun setting over the bay
as we indulge in a seafood platter at the restaurant. The greatest display was
watching the sun disappear over a distant town, light reflecting on the ocean.
Cricket on the beach is an essential pastime, Howzat!! Bombing down the water
slide is a must for the kids and partaking in an Anglo German evening football
match, until it is too dark to continue, with our other regular next-door
neighbours, has become a tradition. Brittany is apparently, (according to
Wikipedia,) one of the six Celtic nations, which must be the case, as they love
a good blast on the bagpipes. Book reading is a vital holiday ingredient and
this year I got through The Tour De
France – To The Bitter End by William Fotheringham and a book of short
stories by Haruki Murakami. I may not read another book until next summer. Witnessing
a real life glowworm burrowed in the bottom of a tree trunk, a bright green
illumination, whilst the bats swooped overhead, was a unique sight to behold. Sea swimming, as I did on three occasions, with its sense of freedom, is forever
an invigorating experience. Finally, packing up the tent in a monsoon style downpour,
as we were caught by the tail end of hurricane Bertha, unleashing August’s
entire rainfall in one day, was another first and one that I am not keen on
repeating. The long drive to Calais, through the tunnel and home, is always
made easier by the thought of sleeping in your own bed. As Rinse FM's Josie
Rebelle might say (Sunday mornings 10 -1) – “Good times in life.” Until the
next time, pitch 185…
The life and times of a fully fledged South East Londoner, originally from Birmingham. Music in my soul Villa in my blood.
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Sunday, 17 August 2014
Head Space Daily Images...
Here are my five favourite holiday snaps!!
The sunset across the beach taken from the restaurant balcony...
Our campsite pitch number...
A camel with the travelling circus at the local Inter Marche...
Old tyres piled up at the mechanics where our car was repaired...
The freaky ice cream boy at L'Igloo in Carnac...
The sunset across the beach taken from the restaurant balcony...
Our campsite pitch number...
A camel with the travelling circus at the local Inter Marche...
Old tyres piled up at the mechanics where our car was repaired...
The freaky ice cream boy at L'Igloo in Carnac...
Head Space Daily Tunes...
From the CD, Summer Sun (& Rain ) Holiday 2014, (now on Spotify - link below) which I burned to take with us on holiday, here are my top 5 tunes...
Sunny - Marva Whitney & James Brown
Swim and Sleep (Like A Shark Does) - Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Sunny Afternoon - The Kinks
Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay - Otis Redding
Stormy - Flora Purim & Duke Pearson
Summer Sun (& Rain) Holiday 2014 Spotify Playlist
Summer Sun (& Rain) Holiday 2014 Spotify Playlist
Sunny - Marva Whitney & James Brown
Swim and Sleep (Like A Shark Does) - Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Sunny Afternoon - The Kinks
Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay - Otis Redding
Stormy - Flora Purim & Duke Pearson
Summer Sun (& Rain) Holiday 2014 Spotify Playlist
Summer Sun (& Rain) Holiday 2014 Spotify Playlist
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