Started the day with a really nice ride with Colin – it was pretty chilly but beautiful blue sky and sunshine so the wind-breaker didn’t stay on long.  We rode over to Aunac and I don’t believe I’ve actually been through the whole town before, but just ridden past it a couple of times. It was larger than I expected and like Mansle is on the Charente.

After our usual coffee at the bar we headed home for a quick shower and to retrieve Mo then got in the car for a day-trip to Cognac.  We’d been there only just over a week ago to see the end of one of the race stages but I hadn’t really seen much of the city.

The whole centre of the city was closed to traffic as they’re getting ready for some sort of fete or festival so we parked on a side street only a couple of blocks away from the main square.  Almost right away we saw one of the big ‘Cognac Houses’ that are all over the place here.

First of all we walked to the cafe that we’d had a drink at last time we were here, and had lunch.  We both got the beef carpaccio and it was good – lots of flavour and very tender, and the fries that came with it were especially tasty.

After lunch we walked around, which was very nice due to the lack of cars.  First of all we went to a large park that was pretty crowded.

There are all sorts of games for kids, as well as a small area that has peacocks and other birds and 2 goats.  

There are beautiful flower gardens, and a playground made of wood that has lovely grape carvings on it.

We next walked to the river, where many more of the Cognac Houses are situated – they used to ship the product by boat on the Charente.

After leaving Cognac we stopped at the town of Jarnac which is where the Courvoisier Cognac House is located – it was the favourite of the emperor Napoleon and they use his image on their logo.

Back in Mansle we weren’t that hungry after our late lunch so just went down to the bar for a drink.  On the way we could see and hear an altercation between two groups of men – it was getting loud and physical with one guy going down and being hit and kicked.  By the time we got near them the fight had kind of broken up – one group had been dragged inside a house by some of the women, and the other group going further down the road to linger outside another door/window.

We quietly sipped our drinks while the fight went sporadically on and on – the ‘downhill group’ milled around and three of them started up towards the house the other group had been dragged into, with one of them holding a crowbar and another a pipe.  They went past the house, shouting out and taunting them, while two girls ran up and tried to calm them down and stop them. I told the kebab-guy he should call the police, but he and one of his customers asked ‘why?’. I said because they were drunk and had weapons but they didn’t seem to think it was that serious.

I shut up and sat back down, and not too much later the police did arrive – not the local gendarmes, but more like heavy-duty army-type police.  We walked past them as they were talking to one of the combatants who seemed to be saying ‘I didn’t do anything – it’s not my fault’.

 

Went for a really nice ride with Colin and Neil on Thursday – only got behind a couple of times, and stopped to take a few photos.  Ended up – guess where? Had a great cafe-creme.

In the afternoon Colin and Neil went to Angouleme to retrieve Colin’s campervan from the dealership – they still can’t seem to figure out what’s wrong with it and all they’ve done is replace the battery and then said it was fixed.  I stayed at the house with Mo and did yoga half-heartedly.

Had awesome BBQ mushroom-cheeseburgers for dinner.  Neil had a look at the campervan and traced where the wonky wiring was going.  It seems that the two solar panels that Colin had had installed – by the dealer – were wired to go directly to the main battery rather than the two leisure batteries so the main battery was effectively being cooked.

On Friday I went with Colin to Limoges to look at a car he’s interested in trading up for.  We arrived in the city just after 12 noon and, of course, all businesses were closed so we found a nice cafe and settled in for lunch.  We both got the salmon quiche, which was quite good.

After lunch we headed for the BMW dealer and Colin had a look at the car.  He went for a test drive with the saleslady while I walked Mo around the showroom and all over the outside lot.  Colin liked the car and spent a little time going over details with the saleslady while Mo and I did more walking around.  I noticed a fellow looking at Colin’s ‘old’ car – walking around and around it – and started talking with him. He’s looking for a car for his girlfriend and really liked Colin’s – I think he might ask to buy it – it’s a beautiful blue and most BMW’s are black or white.  Meantime the deal’s done for Colin – he comes back next Friday to drop off his old car and pick up the newer one.  

Back in Mansle we headed to the bar for a quick drink, then home for excellent bolognaise that Colin had put in the slow-cooker before we left for Limoges.

Went for a nice ride with Colin on Tuesday morning followed by our usual coffee stop at the bar.  Colin pointed out a sign on the outside that I’d never noticed before – it seems they were put on bars in France by the Vichy regime and are dated Sept 24, 1941.  They are still using the same system today, and the IV is a category that determines what kinds of alcohol you’re allowed to serve.

Went home and had a delicious salad with left-over roast chicken, then headed up to the Charity Shop to look for more books and have a cup of tea.  

As usual they had a couple of dogs for folks to view and maybe adopt – one of them was a large black female that was super friendly.

We took a different route home and stopped in a small town for a drink.  Just before leaving I visited the loo, and by the time I found it I wondered if I was going to be outside with the goats.  

You entered the restaurant, turned right and went thru a kind of store room, then out a door and turn left towards a weed-covered grassy area.  Just before getting to the grass there was a door on the side with ‘WC’ on it. The washroom itself was small but clean and didn’t smell like goat.

There was a great storm that started in the late evening with fierce winds, soon to be followed by sheet lightening and thunder.  Then the rain came – just poured and poured – the forecast was for hail, but I wasn’t outside so I’m not sure we got that.

Wednesday we didn’t go for a ride – Colin had some business to do in Angouleme so I stayed home with Mo.  I did a quick vacuuming of the upstairs, then did yoga for the first time in many days.

After Colin returned we waked down to the bar and had a drink, then continued onto the campground – passed a mama duck with a large batch of little ducklings – must be her second brood of the year.  

At the campground we had a nice walk around the outside of the whole place – Mo got to run around off the leash, which she doesn’t get to do very often.  Walked back up to the Penalty Bar for a second drink, then home for dinner.

Didn’t ride out on Saturday morning because Colin had a bunch of running around to do in Angouleme.  First stop in the city was a place he got a dog-tag for Mo – if she ever goes off on her own again she’s got her name and Colin’s cell number on her now.

Went to several other places then got home just after noon.  We thought we’d go down to the bar for a drink, thinking that the special meal we said we’d partake of was for dinner tonight, but when we saw the bar full of the Brits and others we realized that it wasn’t a dinner but rather lunch.

Colin had asked for mussels and I had requested the fish – and it was a very tasty feast.  Just before we left Edithe asked us to join her in having a Cognac – bit of a mistake on my part.  I drank water after every sip, but it didn’t sit well.

I felt like the snake that had swallowed a goat – all I could do when we got home was sit and try to digest – although that wasn’t until after I had barfed up the Cognac.

We did go for a nice ride on Sunday, and Neil joined us for the first part.  It started out very foggy, but as we climbed a hill and turned east the fog lifted and it was suddenly bright and sunny.  Neil left us to go on a more ambitious ride while we headed towards home.

As we approached Mouton we realized something was going on – first we thought ‘oh – there’s a really great turnout for church today’, but that wasn’t it.  The main street was blocked off to traffic and was lined the whole way with tables full of ‘things for sale’. It looked like every single person in the town was cleaning out their attics, garages and barns and seeing if they could sell it.

Back in Mansle at the bar for the usual coffee we chatted a bit with some of the Brits.  The church bells go especially crazy on Sunday – at about 10:05 they go mental for at least 5 or maybe 10 minutes.  They don’t even play a tune – just bong and bong and bong. Then same clammering again at noon – I would love to climb up and cut the cables just to get some peace and quiet.

Had a delicious roast chicken and potato dinner and a fairly early night.

Monday was another non-riding day as Colin had calls to make and I used that as an excuse to not go out.  Had a fairly lazy day followed by a really nice evening.

We had been invited to dinner at Michele and Florence’s house as thanks for Colin letting them stay in his house in Papiano in July along with their son.  We got there around 7:30 and the table was set outside on the terrace.

The dinner was just lovely – it was five (!) courses starting with olives, cheese and shrimp with dip.  It was accompanied by an aperitif that was based on cognac, but very diluted – it went down much better than what I had on Saturday.

The second course was cantaloupe with parma ham – not something I would have thought went together but turned out to be an absolutely wonderful flavour combination.

The main course was a layered baked dish of salmon, spinach and potatoes in a creamy sauce – very tasty, and we had a rose-type wine with it.  The next dish was a cheese plate – my favourite was a soft sheep cheese. For dessert was a pear tart with almonds – the pears came from their own trees, and with that we got a sparkling low-alcohol wine.

Michele and Florence are both teachers and they are planning to retire next year.  They said they loved being in Papiano and using Colin’s house was a wonderful base to make day trips from – and the air-conditioner he had installed was very appreciated.  Their son is currently living in Paris and is well educated and speaks English very well.

Back at home after 10:30 I once again felt like the snake/goat creature.  

Went for a ride with Colin – didn’t do too bad on the long climb out of Monpaple.  A few km later I stopped to take a photo and lost sight of Colin – I rode to where the road split and called out, but couldn’t see him.  I debated for a bit then chose the road on the right that goes back towards Mansle.

I realized fairly quickly that he wouldn’t have gone down the road I’d picked because it turned to gravel after a couple hundred metres – not too bad for my bike, and I’d been over it a couple of times before, but not good for the skinny tires on Colin’s bike.  I quickly turned around and climbed back up to the left-hand fork which I followed until I saw Colin up ahead. He had heard me when I’d called out but it had sounded to him like my voice was coming from another direction so he just stopped to wait for me.

Another good cafe-creme at the bar, then back to the house to get ready to head up to the final stage of the Tour de Poitou-Charentes.  It was a longer drive going all the way to and then just past Poitier to the suburb of Buxerolles, which has a big climb that the race will do three circuits of.

As we drove along the route to choose our spot we were already encountering traffic controls so were forced to park on a side road.  We found out why – there was a women’s race going through prior to the men arriving so they closed the roads earlier than usual.  We loaded out the chairs and walked a short distance back to the race road and settled in to wait.

A really pretty grey cat snuck past the back of us by going on the other side of the stone wall – it watched the action for a bit from the top of the wall before jumping down into the next yard.

The cavalcade came through as usual and we didn’t do too bad – I got a nice red hat and we got a couple of packets of biscuits/cookies for Mo.  I love the cow!! She looks a little startled and is slightly cross-eyed but I think she’s adorable.

It turned out that watching the traffic control efforts was almost as entertaining as the race itself – they kept letting cars thru from a side road to a diversion on the right where the race goes to the left up a hill.  They weren’t supposed to let anyone go if there were riders or team cars coming from the bend below us, but we began to wonder where they’d found the control folks – at one point a young lady in a white car was basically driving along with some racers with everyone yelling at her to get the hell off the road.

The first time the race passed there was a breakaway of about 6 around a minute ahead of the peloton, and one rider by himself a minute or two later had obviously had a bit of a tumble – he was wrapped in dressings on his right elbow and all down his right leg.

Just before the second circuit the cavalcade came around again as I was taking MoMo for a walk – I scored another red cap and several more packets of biscuits.  This time around the breakaway was one guy in front with 5 more close behind and the peloton still around a minute back. By the last circuit there were 3 riders each by themselves followed very closely by the main group – I don’t think they were going to make it without getting swallowed up.

We waited for the final rider to pass then headed back south through the city – Poitier was heavily bombed during WWII especially in June 1944 and was liberated on Sept 5, 1944.

Driving home along the highway Colin said to look at the speed camera we were coming up to and see if it had been vandalized – ever since they lowered the speed limit several weeks ago folks have been spray-painting over the cameras and sure enough the next one we saw was covered over in paint.

 

No ride for us today as it’s a ‘double day’ for the Tour of Poitou-Charentes – there’s a 97.9 km road race in the morning followed by a 22.9 km ITT in the afternoon.  We went first to the town of Couhe, which was hosting the final of both, with the road race coming through twice.

On the way to Couhe Colin saw a bunch of birds circling in the sky – they were cranes and he thought they were getting ready for formation to head south – do they know something we don’t?

We got a really good spot to watch from overlooking the finish line and had brought the camping chairs as it’s going to be a long day.

I was a bit disappointed by the shot I got of the winner of the stage coming in – Colin’s photo was awesome – rider sitting up with arms wide knowing he’d won – mine – well it’s not quite as good.

At the end of the road race stage we stayed for most of the podium presentations, which started with a nice tribute to Sylvain Chavanel for his career – he’s a local fellow and is retiring this year – a big crowd favourite.

Then it was on to the day’s winner, Arnaud Demare, who is currently the overall leader as well.  I’m not sure how many things he got in all – 3 bouquets of flowers, two bicycle sculptures, a bottle of champagne, a large round torte (looked like a pizza…), a stuffed rodent (looked like a large rat, but cute).  Every time he got a bouquet he removed one flower and gave it to the hostess.

We decided not to stay in our spot for the ITT – it was too hot and being in the sun for another 6 hours didn’t seem like a great idea.  We walked around the corner to a cafe and got a little table under the canopy where we sat and had a really nice lunch – quiche Lorraine with a large fresh salad.  I even had the dessert that came with it. The cafe was so busy they ran out of chairs so we gave a fellow one of ours and I sat in a camping chair.

We made it out of the town and drove partway along the time trial route to pick a spot – ended up in the village of Ceaux en Couhe where we setup the chairs again and proceeded to wait.  We think the stage started about ½ hour late, but eventually the riders started to appear.

Back in Mansle Neil met us at the bar for a drink or two, then we went home – it had been a fairly long outing.  Colin and I walked back down and ordered donair kebabs from the little place next to the bar – we were very surprised that we had to wait, but it was extremely busy.  They don’t serve felafel and the fries aren’t homemade but the meat in the donair was excellent.

 

Had a nice easy ride to Mouton and back, then as usual to the bar for coffee.  The bar itself was pretty full of ‘the Brits’ so we sat in the plaza across the road and under the trees.

The town kitty was there – she’s very small and extremely friendly.  At one point she saw some birds in one of the big trees and scampered up to try to get one – no luck, however.

Today we headed to just north of Aubigne to watch Stage 2 where the riders pass the feeding area.  We parked in one spot, but it was very hot so ended up moving to another spot so we could get in some shade.  I parked my chair right to the side of one of Astana’s cars and we watched as the fellow filled up the feed bags for his team.

 

We started talking with him – he’s from Italy but has been taking english lesson for 5 years and speaks it fairly well.  He’s actually a physiotherapist, and used to work for Manchester City FC but couldn’t stand living there. He comes from very near Genoa and we all agreed what a tragedy the bridge collapse was.  We had a good chat and he brought us each an Astana hat and bidon – without me even asking.  He also offered us a drink – I declined but Colin took one – the guy said it’s a new one and that lots of the riders love them. I looked at the ingredients and the first one is water, the second sugar, artificial colour and flavour and I’m not sure what else.  Colin gave me a taste and it was awful, although he seemed to like it all I could taste was the sugar and fake lemon or something.

When the racers came through I was a bit surprised by how relaxed many of them looked – smiling and chatting with each other, almost like they are at the beginning of a stage.

Since it was still early after they’d all passed we decided to scoot ahead to watch the finish at Melle.  As we left the feeding area we saw that one young boy that we’d met earlier had a huge collection of discarded bidons – there must have been 10 or 12.

When we arrived in Melle we had a drink in a nice bar then walked a bit further to pick our spot.  We settled ourselves on a rock wall and had a really great view – once again the riders went by twice.  

 

And also once again we saw the lady with the small chihuahua right across the road from us.  I also saw a couple of the official fellows from yesterday, and, of course, the cow.

 

It was another sprint finish…

Right near where we were standing on the wall there’s a memorial to a man that was killed in Dachau in 1944 – he was only 32 years old and the inscription reads that he was a victim of his patriotism.

 

Went for another nice bike ride with Colin – got separated at one point when I stopped to take a photo and then took a wrong turn.  Colin realized I wasn’t behind him anymore – he thought I might have wiped out on a bridge with gravel so came back for me.

Stopped at the bar for a cafe-creme, then home to have a quick bite before heading to Cognac to watch the first day of the Tour Poitou-Charentes.  We parked the car and walked to the main square, that has a carousel in the middle and is ringed by large hotels and nice cafes/bars.

We sat and had a couple of drinks, then walked down the street that the race is finishing on today (not the road shown below).

Along the way we passed a lady in a chair that had a little chihuahua in its own chair – Colin remembered them from some years ago at a couple of races so we stopped and they chatted for a minute.

We walked a bit further, crossed the road and chose a spot about 50 metres from the finish line.  I climbed up on a side-barrier so I’d have a better view – the ‘officials’ at that spot thought it was pretty funny, but mostly it was very uncomfortable – there were small metal things jutting out all along it and it wasn’t that easy to keep my balance.

There is a very small cavalcade and they throw out small packets of cookies and stuff – the cutest thing is the cow.

The race came by twice as they were doing a large circuit at the end – on the first pass there was a small breakaway.  

For the second/final pass I had moved from my uncomfortable perch down to the barricade and stood with one foot on the barricade and the other on the speaker stand that was right beside us.  It got me about a foot higher so I could see over at least some of the other folks. The breakaway had been caught and there was a mass sprint to the finish.

Had some of the left-over roast chicken in a salad for breakfast, then went for a nice coffee-creme with Colin at a different place – the Black Cat – since the Penalty Bar is closed today.  Otherwise a fairly quiet day, but that’s ok because – I’M RETIRED!!

I was reading in bed when around 11:00 I heard some loud booms – I remembered that there were fireworks tonight so ran out onto the deck.  They were happening down around the campground – I ran back in side and grabbed my camera, and this is it…..

Went for another nice little ride with Colin – north to St. Groux, then southwest to Villorioux and on to Cellettes.  On the way we passed a field of sunflowers – someone had made a heart shape in one of the larger ones – it looked pretty cool.

Stopped at the bar again for a coffee – it seemed especially tasty for some reason.  Church across the street got out and the plaza was getting crowded – the bar was busy as they set up tables and chairs in the plaza under the trees.  We figured that maybe there was a christening or something about to happen as more and more folks kept arriving – not just any old church service.

Back at the house Mo had shown her displeasure at being left alone for the 3rd day in a row by leaving a small protest pee.  She thinks she should always be included, so maybe Colin will have to get a basket for her to sit in when he rides.

We each had only a light snack instead of lunch since we planned to get the hot camembert with toast at the campground’s bar before we headed nextdoor to the racetrack.  We walked down and picked a table, only to be told it was reserved – although how we were supposed to know that is beyond me as there was no sign on it or anything. The waiter said it wasn’t a problem, though, and we could stay there.

We placed our order with an older lady and were very surprised when the waiter delivered our plates – we were each presented with a huge ‘hot camembert salad’, which wasn’t what we’d ordered.  He took the plates back to the kitchen and shortly returned them to us, saying we could have them at the same price as the much smaller dishes that we’d asked for.

The salad was pretty good – kind of potato salad on a bed of lettuce, with several slices of prosciutto (or something like it).  Neither of us could finish our salads, but the melted cheese and toast was just as good as we’d remembered from when we’d both gotten it several weeks ago.

We walked over to the track and I was a bit surprised when there was a charge to get in – I did remember though, that we were handed free tickets outside the one in Luxe last month, so I guess it’s not unusual.  Colin paid for me and we went in – the area to the east of the actual track is quite large and has many nice trees for shade. There’s a small grandstand, as well as a fairly large covered eating/drinking area, and of course, several lines for the betting.

On the other side of a creek is where the horses are – hundreds of them in various stages of getting ready for their races.  It’s lots of fun to just walk around and see what’s involved – some of them were getting hosed down, and others were drinking water from a ‘pool’.  

I thought that the different ways folks had of doing the horses tails was very interesting.

We found a place in the shade in the stands and watched several races.  They were all trotters pulling the carts except for one race that had riders.  I felt sorry for the horses that broke into a gallop as they were disqualified – they just want to run!  

There were several female drivers, as well as a few rather chubby ones that we figured would be a disadvantage to the poor horses that had to pull them.

It’s a good thing I wasn’t betting, as most of my picks either bolted into a gallop or were otherwise just slow – the only one I picked that didn’t completely suck came in second in its race.  In one race I picked the horse that had stylish red ear covers, but they came off during the race and ended up hanging on the back of its head.

We left just before the last race of the day – there was now a live band playing at the campground.  

Stopped off at the bar and Neil met us for a drink (or two).  Back at home Colin made roast chicken but we were both still stuffed from lunch so only Neil actually ate any.