My Anglo /French Farce of a trip !
Posted: Wed Jun 13, 2012 4:36 pm
Been looking forward to this , my first Bongo trip abroad[except Ireland]. Passport for dog done very easily.All prepared except for chiropodist visit; parked up , tripped on a dent in the tarmac and went hurtling into the side of a parked car and head butted it ! Very painful/eye watering/headachey etc, so made a coffee in the bongo and had a couple of fagarettes to calm me down. Still feeling bad went to have my feet done and was greeted with words of sympathy [I hadn't looked in a mirror] saw my face and just knew !! Yes...within a few hours I had 2 black eyes and a swollen nose 
Well, I couldn't cancel my trip to France ...it was only 2 days away !!
The journey south to Poole harbour/port was good, considering I was squinting all the way thro' half closed eyes; just glad it was a fine/clear day. A good crossing + dog doing well too, I just kept my super very large sun specs on to avoid curious/pitying glances ! Arrived at Cherbourg, Normandy to good weather, and found first camp site; Le grand large @ Le pieux. Great site right, on the beach....brilliant ! 2 nights here then set off for Brittany coastline. From here on in things went downhill ...overall. Discovered that dogs are mostly not allowed on French beaches, So poor Chip was on his lead both on sites and whenever/wherever we went...so not much fun for him. Decided to visit the town of Dinard, also on the coast. As I try to use local transport wherever i go, I went to catch a bus. I was a bit annoyed with myself as I knew I had only a 20 euro note to pay with. Anyway, bus arrived with the driver taking one look at me and Chip and saying 'non', I didn't understand why etc, so shrugged my shoulders, he then smacked himself on the forehead [like the french do in films] and said 'mon dieu'...or something like that, and said 'le bag'...more shrugs from me, then indicated the dog should be in my bag !!!!! I said no no no etc, he then smacked his knee and pointed to a seat; meaning I could sit with the dog on my knee. OK. I then produced the 20 euro note, and he began the 'mon dieu' routine again ! I'm still stood on the platform throughout this farce, with the bus going nowhere. A lovely lady sitting close by then offered to pay my fare. I was so very grateful to her and gave effusive thanks...in french of course ! The journey was only 5 stops long, and Dinard was/is a lovely place, but still no access to its beach for dogs. Up to now I'd not managed a meal out anywhere [don't ask], but in the main its due to France closing down each day for 3 hours; and in the low season, it is often not open at all. With this is mind I went to one of the street cafes with a liittle shade, for me and chip, then ordered an omelette[?]and salad. No chance...they were not cooking that day. They eventually agreed to a toasty
Who said France did lovely food ? II wanted to look in the shoe/clothes shops, but guess what....they were closed...for the day/week/month/year...who cares by now ?
One day I drove down a seafront promenade...until an elderly couple leapt in front of me waving there hands and shouting 'NON NON'....it was a one way promenade road...the otherway. It was not my fault, Chip was navigating. These little niggles became large ones, eventually after 10 days of this malarky , I decided that France and I were never going to be good friends. I then came up with a superb idea...I would go home....via Jersey !!!!! Having never been there, this sounded the perfect solution to my very constricting and frustrating holiday. I bought a ticket to Jersey and duly arrived at St Malo for the trip; but I was refused entry to Jersey as I had no fixed address to go to in my campervan......because it contained a bed !!!!! With 20 mins to go before the ferry left I and others were frantically trying to find a campsite that answered its telephone, and then would accept me on site AND send an official authoriseation to St Malo customs etc in time for the ferry. We ran out of time...so I had to turn round and return to the last campsite as the 'aires' that were said to be close by, were invisible ! I almost cried with frustration !!!!
The next day, after much wrangling and threats to complain to the British embassy, and anyone who would listen, I was given a full refund and then allowed to book a ticket back to Poole. Again I set off to St Malo[following day] for the ferry home, to be told I was a day early
!!!!! However, my face must have told its own story, and I was allowed to travel back to England. I had, by this time, got used to taking off my specs when I needed to make a point.....it seemed to work rather well ! On arriving in Poole/Dorset, all I wanted then was a campsite to refresh me for the journey oop north. After many refusals..sorry we're full...it was the Jubilee weekend , I did find a national trust site within the new forest ; no amenities tho'. No problem....peace and quiet and a good sleep were all I needed now. On needing a quick visit to my portaloo , which I had emptied/cleaned in France + put the blue stuff in the bowl for the journey, I yanked the handle back prior to taking a seat and was facially showered with said blue chemical stuff. It felt like I had imagined having acid thrown in your face would feel like.....very painful/stinging/burning in my eyes [again]. I did my best with the water I had etc, but knew I had to take action. Another long story, but eventually an emergency ambulance came, and washed out my eyes again and again etc, then I was taken with all bells going etc to Southampton General hospital, 20 miles away to their eye unit. I was dealt with straight away and staff were great with me. Further treatment, an eye test etc later I was allowed to go, with more stuff for me to use in my eyes. The taxi[ who didn't know where my campsite was, eventually got me back to my beloved Bongo home and my worried dog chip, at a cost of £30 ! Later, after having heard about an ambulance arriving on site etc, 2 wardens arrived very concerned, and paperwork needed to be done. By this stage I still had a pinky cloured right eye surround and a still bruised left eye, from the car park incident 2 weeks before, now on top of this was swollen eye lids, blotchy/red eyes that were still streaming. I slept that night....very well. Oh forgot to mention earlier, Chip stopped eating after 8/9 days and was losing weight daily.
It was sooooooooooooooooooo good to get home without any further hitches/accidents etc etc etc
Please don't ask me if I'd ever go back to France
Well, I couldn't cancel my trip to France ...it was only 2 days away !!The journey south to Poole harbour/port was good, considering I was squinting all the way thro' half closed eyes; just glad it was a fine/clear day. A good crossing + dog doing well too, I just kept my super very large sun specs on to avoid curious/pitying glances ! Arrived at Cherbourg, Normandy to good weather, and found first camp site; Le grand large @ Le pieux. Great site right, on the beach....brilliant ! 2 nights here then set off for Brittany coastline. From here on in things went downhill ...overall. Discovered that dogs are mostly not allowed on French beaches, So poor Chip was on his lead both on sites and whenever/wherever we went...so not much fun for him. Decided to visit the town of Dinard, also on the coast. As I try to use local transport wherever i go, I went to catch a bus. I was a bit annoyed with myself as I knew I had only a 20 euro note to pay with. Anyway, bus arrived with the driver taking one look at me and Chip and saying 'non', I didn't understand why etc, so shrugged my shoulders, he then smacked himself on the forehead [like the french do in films] and said 'mon dieu'...or something like that, and said 'le bag'...more shrugs from me, then indicated the dog should be in my bag !!!!! I said no no no etc, he then smacked his knee and pointed to a seat; meaning I could sit with the dog on my knee. OK. I then produced the 20 euro note, and he began the 'mon dieu' routine again ! I'm still stood on the platform throughout this farce, with the bus going nowhere. A lovely lady sitting close by then offered to pay my fare. I was so very grateful to her and gave effusive thanks...in french of course ! The journey was only 5 stops long, and Dinard was/is a lovely place, but still no access to its beach for dogs. Up to now I'd not managed a meal out anywhere [don't ask], but in the main its due to France closing down each day for 3 hours; and in the low season, it is often not open at all. With this is mind I went to one of the street cafes with a liittle shade, for me and chip, then ordered an omelette[?]and salad. No chance...they were not cooking that day. They eventually agreed to a toasty
Who said France did lovely food ? II wanted to look in the shoe/clothes shops, but guess what....they were closed...for the day/week/month/year...who cares by now ?One day I drove down a seafront promenade...until an elderly couple leapt in front of me waving there hands and shouting 'NON NON'....it was a one way promenade road...the otherway. It was not my fault, Chip was navigating. These little niggles became large ones, eventually after 10 days of this malarky , I decided that France and I were never going to be good friends. I then came up with a superb idea...I would go home....via Jersey !!!!! Having never been there, this sounded the perfect solution to my very constricting and frustrating holiday. I bought a ticket to Jersey and duly arrived at St Malo for the trip; but I was refused entry to Jersey as I had no fixed address to go to in my campervan......because it contained a bed !!!!! With 20 mins to go before the ferry left I and others were frantically trying to find a campsite that answered its telephone, and then would accept me on site AND send an official authoriseation to St Malo customs etc in time for the ferry. We ran out of time...so I had to turn round and return to the last campsite as the 'aires' that were said to be close by, were invisible ! I almost cried with frustration !!!!
The next day, after much wrangling and threats to complain to the British embassy, and anyone who would listen, I was given a full refund and then allowed to book a ticket back to Poole. Again I set off to St Malo[following day] for the ferry home, to be told I was a day early
!!!!! However, my face must have told its own story, and I was allowed to travel back to England. I had, by this time, got used to taking off my specs when I needed to make a point.....it seemed to work rather well ! On arriving in Poole/Dorset, all I wanted then was a campsite to refresh me for the journey oop north. After many refusals..sorry we're full...it was the Jubilee weekend , I did find a national trust site within the new forest ; no amenities tho'. No problem....peace and quiet and a good sleep were all I needed now. On needing a quick visit to my portaloo , which I had emptied/cleaned in France + put the blue stuff in the bowl for the journey, I yanked the handle back prior to taking a seat and was facially showered with said blue chemical stuff. It felt like I had imagined having acid thrown in your face would feel like.....very painful/stinging/burning in my eyes [again]. I did my best with the water I had etc, but knew I had to take action. Another long story, but eventually an emergency ambulance came, and washed out my eyes again and again etc, then I was taken with all bells going etc to Southampton General hospital, 20 miles away to their eye unit. I was dealt with straight away and staff were great with me. Further treatment, an eye test etc later I was allowed to go, with more stuff for me to use in my eyes. The taxi[ who didn't know where my campsite was, eventually got me back to my beloved Bongo home and my worried dog chip, at a cost of £30 ! Later, after having heard about an ambulance arriving on site etc, 2 wardens arrived very concerned, and paperwork needed to be done. By this stage I still had a pinky cloured right eye surround and a still bruised left eye, from the car park incident 2 weeks before, now on top of this was swollen eye lids, blotchy/red eyes that were still streaming. I slept that night....very well. Oh forgot to mention earlier, Chip stopped eating after 8/9 days and was losing weight daily.It was sooooooooooooooooooo good to get home without any further hitches/accidents etc etc etc
Please don't ask me if I'd ever go back to France
but you have my sympathy too.
Even commenting on it some of your luck has rubbed off on me. I had just finished typing, went to correct a spelling mistake and swirl, swirl, I watched all I had written disappear into outer space. 
. What I forgot to add was that on reaching home Chip ran straight to his 2 week old water bowl and had a good slurp, then sat in his usual place for feeding. I fed him the exact same food as I'd given him in France.............and he gobbled the whole lot up 
