Day 11: Going home

We had a long last day, not helped by the weather.   Rain all day and some of it heavy. 

We packed up and left Angers early and headed in the direction of Rouen.   We stopped in Alençon for coffee.   We parked in what looked like a reasonable part of town and couldn't see any cafés so popped into an open Charcuterie for advice.   After some pondering, they directed us further into the town and so we left the car and hoofed it through the rain.  The centre of Alençon was being dug up, all the paving had gone and 'pavements' were improvised from rolls of green plastic grass which were spongy with rain!   At last we found an open café, which of course was buzzing!   Even the tables outside were taken but we found a table in the back and were amazed at the efficiency of the staff.  We got served our coffee quickly and settled down to watch the inhabitants.   Clearly a popular Sunday place to meet and talk.

Back in the car we drove to Rouen where we salivated in anticipation of a lunch at the Art Museum.  We parked in an underground carpark of mysterious layout and emerged in a side street.  Art museums, in our experience, offer nice surroundings and interesting food.   We were wrong!  The 'restaurant' in this case was a snack bar and it was empty of food at 2.00pm.   We set off again through the rain and found a café open which had many menu items unavailable.  We opted for the fish dish, without much enthusiasm, and it turned out to be delicious - fillet of bream with vegetables and creamed potato in a light cream sauce.

Back then to the art museum which also had a mysterious layout.  We really wanted to skip the pietas and the agony and the ecstacy and go straight to the impressionists and the modern stuff.   It took a lot of floors and rooms but at last we began to enjoy ourselves!

It took a few attempts to get out of the car park and then we were on our way to Calais and the tunnel.  At the terminal the signs told us that there were delays on crossings.  There must have been earlier cancellations of trains because there was hardly a parking place to be had and the terminal building with it's loos and food outlets was heaving.   We bought coffee, used the loos and then gave up on finding somewhere to sit and eat our 'picnic' and retreated to the car where we showered the seats with baguette crumbs!   Good homemade sandwiches though of cheese, tomato and lettuce.

Then it was into the tunnel to Folkestone and a drive back to Norwich where we arrived at about midnight and emptied all the dirty washing on to the floor of the scullery - a depressing sight - and had a cup of tea!  

A very good holiday though.   A nice balance of time on our own and time with friends.