A little trip

For the past week (well, since Monday), Ken and Tasha and I spent some time at a gîte (vacation rental) down near the southwestern city of Angoulême in the Charente. The trip has been in the planning for a couple of months. It seemed to be a good way to get back into travelling since covid. We had a good time and couldn't have had better weather. Clear skies, summer-like temperatures every day.

The entrance to our home away from home.

There were, however, several bumps along the way. First off, about an hour after we left home on Monday, we realized that we had left Ken's camera bag on the living room floor. It was too late to turn back. Ken had to resign himself to not taking pictures all week. Bummer.

We stopped in a picturesque town along the way for lunch. But, as it was Monday, most places were closed. There was one restaurant open and we could sit outside with Tasha. The food was delicious and soon we were on our way again. Little did we know that we'd both be sick over night, probably from some mayonnaise that had sat out a little too long. I'll refrain from sharing the gory details, except that it was not at all pleasant. But it passed and we were both fine the next morning.

The long driveway, with two gates. Although closed in this shot, both were open waiting for our arrival.

Finally, when we got close to our destination, we couldn't find it. The driving directions we had left a lot to be desired. We stopped several times during the next hour for directions and seemed to be going in circles. The third time was the charm. We were able to glean enough information from the confusing, and rather lengthy, set of directions we got from two very nice gentlemen to get close, and then, voilà, there it was.

The owners are lovely people who welcomed us warmly and, after a tour of the house and some sightseeing advice, we settled in, sipping one of the local specialties, pineau des Charentes, that the landlady offered us when we arrived.

I had my camera, so I'll share some of the photos from the trip over the next few (or more) days.