Our last full day in Agay dawned bright and sunny (we could get used to this – actually we already have!) We’d already decided that we were going to go down to the beach for a few hours, and we managed to get there by shortly after 11.30am. Instead of getting straight onto the beach we went into the Auberge de la Rade (which, to be fair, was immediately on the beach!) for a drink. I also thought it was about time I tried the local delicacy – the Tarte Tropezienne. This is a sweet treat (the best type of cookery we have experienced in France by far) which seems to be a cross between a cake, pastry & sweet bread with a sugary crust, and is filled with a cross between a custard and mousse. It’s really rather nice – although the portion was quite big! After I’d finished it Calv decided to have some lunch – a club sandwich – I honestly can’t remember what I had. I do know that the waiter tried to get me to have another dessert though!
Whilst sat eating we’d spotted these older men on the beach with their wives. They obviously took great pride in their budgie smugglers and we didn’t see them sit down once – they were most definitely posing. Gross.
So when we went onto the beach we settled a little behind and to the left of them. Honestly they didn’t sit down all afternoon! It was not a pretty sight at all. Turned out they were parked in front of us – I thought they sounded Russian, but their car had Italian plates. Not sure what to think now!
The water was lovely, but still a bit of a chore getting out as you sink into the sand and try to avoid the sharper stones! Bit controversial, but as far as beaches are concerned, I really think Cornwall has the edge… Maybe next year I’ll discover other places in the UK that I’ll say the same about?
In the evening our neighbours, Welsh but living and working in Southampton for over 20 years, invited us over to watch the football with them (the England v Iceland game….) To be honest there was more drinking, eating and chatting going on than watching (just as well really eh?!) Calv had bought a keg of beer that he and Layton made good inroads into; eventually I think they even got almost a whole glass of beer with very little head on it – although there had definitely been 1 glass that seemed to have no beer in it!
These 2 are a genuinely lovely couple who, it seemed to us, would do anything to help anybody. In fact in the morning before we left Layton took us down to the Castel site he’d told us about and we’d failed to find from his directions.
In the morning it was time to leave. Before we did we went to the other site with Layton (maybe we’ll stay there if and when we return) and found a massive toad in the toilet (that says TOAD…)
We’d already decided to stick pretty much to the motorways on our trip up to Bourg St Andeol (near Montelimar). We just came off to find somewhere slightly nicer than an Aire to have our lunch.
When we arrived in Bourg St Andeol (well across the bridge taking us in) my first comment was ‘LOOK where I’ve brought us! – it looked absolutely beautiful; shame we were only staying the 1 night…
It was still extremely hot, so we parked up, told the owner we might actually stay an extra night and explored the site. Then it was time for a dip in the pool, as it was 6.30pm and still over 30 degrees. It’s lovely when there are only a few people round the pool – at times we had it completely to ourselves!
Lovely little site with a number of cyclists staying overnight in little huts or tents. We’ve decided that we will definitely stay a 2nd night and go explore the Gorges of the Ardeche tomorrow. Here’s a little taster of what to expect….
turnrightoutofportsmouth 