A Weekend in France - Day 2

Montreuil-sur-Mer

We didn't have a bad night's sleep, but I did wake up and rush out onto the landing when I thought that Sophie had fallen down the stairs! She had to almost slam her door to close it after popping to the loo downstairs, and it sounded like she'd fallen down! The wooden stairs were a bit steep so it had been a worry for me, but apart from that, I think we all managed to get some sleep!

I made coffee (there was a Tassimo machine) and we breakfasted on pains au chocolat again and decided what to do with our day. Outside, it was grey and dreary but it wasn't raining, so after toying with the idea of going to a war museum in Wimereux, or visiting Nausicaa (an aquarium), we opted instead to visit the delightful nearby town of Montreuil-sur-Mer.

I had just finished a book by Janine Marsh who moved to this area of France from the UK, and she had mentioned the town, saying how lovely it was. It wasn't far to drive and twice on the way we tried to get some petrol for the car, but for some reason, every time we entered Keith's card, it said we couldn't use it! Neither of the two garages we tried were staffed so we had to leave it. We had half a tank so there was no immediate problem!

When we reached Montreuil-sur-Mer, the road wound steeply upwards, reminding me first of all of Compiègne as we had to drive through the old town walls and the roads became cobbled. We came out onto a beautiful square with flower beds and a war memorial with a couple of restaurants and shops. We found a street to park in and walked towards the Citadel, passing by some lovely buildings on the way.

The citadel of Montreuil-sur-Mer is built on a fifty-metre hill which overlooks the Canche valley, on the site of a 13th-century castle. Building began in 1567 and has been extended over the years, and it houses a chapel, an arsenal, ramparts and several towers.

As it was the first Sunday in May, entrance was free, and we passed through a small gift shop on the way in, with a lovely, friendly lady who gave us a leaflet in English.

Gift shop and entrance

Chapel

The White Tower

We had a look in the chapel first and this contained old relics and statuary. We learnt that several American artists moved to Étaples and Montreuil-sur-Mer, and one of the paintings was on display in the chapel.

It was a huge shame today was so grey and misty as I'm sure the views are outstanding. Sophie and I climbed up onto the ramparts and looked down on agricultural fields of sheep and cows. On a clear day, it's possible to see the lighthouse at Le Touquet, the coast and the River Canche.  The stone steps were a bit slippery but the limited views were still worth the climb.

Before leaving, we visited the gift shop and Sophie bought some biscuits for Vikesh. It had been a lovely visit and we hope to come back again when the weather is better!

We walked slowly back to the car, having a good look at the war memorial on the way. 

Sophie noted that several of the dead shared the same surnames...

Beautiful shuttered house

I've since learnt that Victor Hugo stayed briefly in the town and was inspired to write Les Miserables by a couple of events he witnessed. One of his characters, Fantine, was born in the town.

We got back into the car and programmed Trish to take us to Wimereux where we planned to have lunch. However, as we reached the end of the street and turned left, we came across two huge churches and a café open! There was parking so we decided to stop and have a hot drink before leaving the town.

The café was lovely and we ordered two hot chocolates "Viennois" and a Grimbergen beer for Keith, which came in a gorgeous etched glass.

Again, the staff were friendly and I think they do appreciate us talking a little French! It was lovely to sit and enjoy our drinks and watch the comings and goings outside.

Afterwards, we were going to have a look inside one of the churches, but we think Mass was taking place so we left. Driving out of the town, we saw yet another square with shops and restaurants! What a lovely town and we'll definitely be back, maybe even to stay!

The road to the autoroute took us through several beautiful villages and we saw a number of cyclists on the way who were splattered with thick mud! Obviously, in these parts, taking your bike onto muddy paths is de rigeur! We didn't see any large birds of prey, but some of the houses were gorgeous.

No room at the inn...

We turned onto the autoroute, went through a toll and drove the short distance to Wimereux, taking the same narrow road we took a couple of weeks ago. The town looked as busy as it had yesterday, and we had real difficulty finding a parking space, luckily taking the very last one in a car park some distance away from Les Oyats, where we planned to eat.

It was very grey and muggy, and the promenade was packed with people strolling along. We couldn't spot anything out at sea at all as there was a thick wall of mist. All of the restaurants looked full with potential diners waiting outside, and Les Oyats was no exception. We enquired about a table but were told they were full. Sophie was very disappointed as she'd wanted to eat there again, but wasn't going to have a Welsh!

We decided it was better to walk inland a bit so we headed towards the maze of streets behind the town and came across Au Comptoir, which had outside seating on the street. They were able to accommodate us inside so we took a seat by the window and had a look at the menu.

Sophie and I both chose the chicken "galettes" which turned out to be crispy pancakes containing an assortment of chicken, onions and potatoes. Keith had fish and chips again, accompanied by a beer. Sophie sipped a glass of white wine (a Sauvignon Blanc) and I chose a Chimay Bleue to accompany my meal.

Sophie's "galette"

My "galette" and beer

I'm glad I tried this new dish but I don't think I'll have it again! We both managed to find some room for pud - I chose tarte tatin, while Sophie opted for delicious profiteroles. Keith treated himself to an Irish whiskey liqueur coffee.

The restaurant had definitely filled up as we were eating but things were easing slightly when we paid the bill and left. We walked back to the car looking at the sweet houses on the way. Sophie and I talked about buying an apartment here and renting it out! If only!

Interesting door

This house would suit me!

Back at the car, we decided to head for Cité Europe as I wanted to go to Carrefour to buy some chocolates and beer. We headed back onto the A16, stopped to fill up with petrol (no trouble at all) and headed for Calais. Trish wouldn't accept Cité Europe or Coquelles so we had to follow signs. I took the slip road towards what I thought was the shopping centre, only to find it was just for the Eurotunnel check-in, so I started to panic. Sophie woke up from her food coma to calm me down and we managed to find an exit sign, but before getting back out onto the road, we did a lap of the pet check-in area...

Cité Europe looked suspiciously quiet and there were hardly any cars in the huge car park... we parked and walked towards one of the entrances, but it was all shut up. We soon realised that the shopping centre was mostly closed and Carrefour had shut at 12.30pm... oh well!

We managed to find our way without too much mishap to the car ferry check-in and were told we could take the 5.20pm boat back to Dover, which was another bonus as our original time was 6.50pm! We took our place in line, visited the conveniences and, on the way back, stopped to watch our ferry coming in to dock. It was a slow process but accomplished with much precision.

Once the doors were open and the ramps lowered, the lorries, coaches and buses started streaming off, making their way to France right below us. As soon as everything was off, we began to board! It was a very quick turnaround!

Our ferry, The Pride of Canterbury, was quiet and after a quick shop in the Duty-Free to buy a pack of cards and a notebook, Sophie and I played our version of Rummy for the entire voyage. Outside, the thick mist was still with us and just before we reached Dover we came to a complete standstill for about twenty minutes.

We eventually disembarked at 6pm and took the M2, M25 and M1 home. The sun was low in the sky the whole way so making driving quite difficult. I was very glad to reach home at about 9pm, have a drink and relax for an hour before bed!