Daphne's Drivel

It's day 7 of cycling and we're thoroughly enjoying ourselves, and the cycling is great, in spite of this weird nasty head wind. Here are some random thoughts and notes about the trip so far. La derriere seems to have accepted it's fate now, although it's still none too happy. Frank still has both panniers! A big green snake slithered across our path today and freaked me out. We Irish don't like those things - you know what St Patrick did to them. I discovered a new item in the bakery today called la palmier. It's kind of like a Danish pastry, lovely and crispy and buttery, rather sweet. Frank thinks he's died and gone to heaven with the fresh baguette sandwiches. There are a lot of frogs in France. They serenade us along the rivers and anywhere there's a pond, and it is quite loud. Camping in France is a pleasure, at least in this area. Nice grassy tent sites and clean with great facilities. The people we've met are really nice, and most...

 Tenting facilities in the town of Turquant campground

We woke up to a clear blue sky on Sunday morning and set off on our journey east. But first we had to do a hefty detour in Nantes to get to a Decathalon Sports store. I learned thanks to a Google search, that this chain of shops is about the only place in France where you can purchase the threaded kind of gas cartridges we need for our stove. Apparently in France and Spain, the blue Camping Gaz style is what everyone uses. Anyway, we were successful, so we bought three of them. Happy to find these Primus cartridges in a Decathlon shop. We are now in a small town called Gennes, camped on the banks of the Loire. Camping has been great so far. We pay between €6 and €12 per night, and we've had hot showers and immaculate amenities. One of our campsites. We've seen quite a few other cycle tourists. The ones we've spoken to have all been French. The pathway is so cyclist-friendly and well signed. Quite often it's a path shared with pedestrians or sometimes a qu...

Bikes being assembled at Nantes airport Downtown Nantes en route from airport to camping Yeah! We've made it to the Atlantic, a 65km bike ride from the city of Nantes yesterday. All went well with bike transportation on the flights. This time we assembled the velos at the airport and headed off to our campground where we had two very soggy nights. Yesterday was dry but it's raining again today. We camped last night on the coast near the Loire river estuary, in a little seaside town called St Brevin le Pins. and today start our quest to ride to the Alps from here, following the Loire initially. Looks like we'll be riding in the rain today. Nantes Castle (Ducs of Brittany) The Atlantic at St-Brevins-Les-Pins Tranquil pathway along one of the canals close to La Loire Rows of fishing shacks with nets on cables along the Loire estuary On the trail this morning. Luckily we have our rain gear. By the way, the wedge sandals made the cut!!...

Our beautiful May weather in Calgary today It's a winter wonderland in Calgary today, and it's raining on the Atlantic coast of France! That's where we're heading tomorrow to begin another cycle tour. We have a campground reservation in Nantes, just a short ride from the airport. The bikes are packed in their cardboard boxes and the fine details of luggage are being finalized. Route-planning is so much fun! The rough plan is to follow EuroVelo 6  from Nantes all the way east to the city of Basel (just across the border in Switzerland) via the Loire Valley, through central France, Burgundy, and with a detour up into Alsace and Strasbourg. That section is about 1500km. The various long-distance cycle routes in Europe. Note #6 in pink which we will follow across France After Basel, the route is subject to change, but it will most likely take in at least some part of Switzerland. The ultimate goal is to end up much further south in Provence by mid-J...

I've always wanted to spend more time exploring Vancouver Island and the area around Courtenay and Comox. Well I got my wish – kind of.  I have a little condo in Courtenay which I have been renting out for the past nine years. All good tenants up until the last one. Unfortunately for her, she passed away suddenly.  So I need to find a new tenant.  But first Frank and I have to fix up the trail of destruction and filth she left behind. Condo location on the river in Courtenay So here we are on Day 24 of this project with very little time off to play.  Turns out the place did need some TLC anyway. So we have not only cleaned up the mess and repaired the broken stuff – the place now has all new paint, new toilets and bathroom sinks and faucets, light fixtures, hood fan on the stove,  interior doors and one completely new frame (she had somehow smashed the door frame and the door was bashed in too), and new tiling around the wood-burning stove. The livi...

Three days after returning from Greece, I was back in my old job, working Monday to Friday, almost as if I'd never left! How did that happen, you ask? Well, when I retired in the summer, there was an agreement that I would be able to come back and work on a casual basis, if I wanted to. I was expecting to be offered a week here or there, to cover during vacation or sick time. There hasn't really been a history of providing relief staff in my office over the last few years, even during extra busy times, so I didn't expect to get that many hours. So when I was offered full-time hours for the next few months at least, it came as a bit of a surprise. It seems it has been extremely busy lately. This is a good thing for me! I'm actually quite enjoying being back. It's been great getting to see all my work friends again, and the extra money is a bonus. I see a new mountain bike in my future very soon - replacing my stolen one will hurt much less now! Working when you ...