Vive La France!

The girls had two weeks off for Easter so we headed to La Faute-sur-Mer on the south-western coast of France in the Vendee/Pays de la Loire region.  We drove in our own car via the Eurotunnel. We have never driven to France before. We have always flown or taken the Eurostar so this was an adventure. I was nervous about driving an English car (where the driver is on the right side) on the right side of the road. However, all my worrying was for nothing. It was almost natural and after a few hours I didn't even think about it the rest of the trip.  We were so impressed with the Eurotunnel. It could not have been easier. Only 30 minutes and you drive off into France! Only one little glitch as we waited to board the train, we had our radio and lights on and our car battery died just as we were supposed to drive onto the train. It was rather embarrassing since we had a whole huge line of cars after us waiting to board as well. Fortunately, they sent a truck out to give us a jump and we didn't even miss our train! Above is a picture of the dining area of the villa we rented.

This is the lounge of the villa.

Our villa was only 50 metres from the beach (about 10 minute walk). This is the forest area right before you hit the beach.

The girls could not get enough of the beach. Abby alone collected 400+ sea shells and that's not counting the hundreds that Sammy and Alex collected. We went everyday for a few hours before heading off for other activities. It was the perfect time of year because it was just before tourist season so the beaches were still relatively deserted. The weather was perfect around 80F degrees (25C).  

After our second day at the beach, we headed off to Green Venice (La Venise Verte) in the afternoon. It was absolutely gorgeous! I could not get enough of canoe-ing through these narrow canals under tunnels of green trees.

As you are paddling your way down the canals, off to the right, up on the shore is Maillezais Abbey and convent buildings, built in the beginning of the 11th century.  

This picture was taken while trying to paddle our boat in a somewhat straight-ish direction down the canals while trying to quickly snap photos only to realize the boat was going into a bunch of thorny bushes on the other side. EEEEeeek! Pretty tricky!

This picture gives you an idea of just how narrow the canals are and incredibly beautiful!!

Here is a shot of the tree tunnels! I could go on and on about how beautiful it was...

Another view of the abbey.

Here we are afterward having ice cream.

The third day of our trip we went to The Chateau Aventuriers or Chateau de la Guignardiere (after spending some time at the beach of course). It had a very fun pirate adventure treasure hunt as part of the ticket price. This was absolutely perfect for Abby and Sammy. They spent two hours of running from clue to clue all over the enormous grounds of the chateau. In the end, they solved the mystery and found the black medallion and earned pirate medals for their hard work. 



While the girls searched for clues, I "ooo-ed and aaah-ed" over the scenery and took lots of pictures!

This is the chateau which was built in 1555 for the breadmaster of King Henri II. After the treasure hunt, the girls went through the chateau with a special i-pad and did a Sherlock Holmes type detective game through all the rooms. They loved it!

 

More gorgeous scenery around the chateau

This Easter Island statue was part of the pirate treasure hunt. Alex decided to give it some love.

Alex stealing a kiss from a local pirate.

This is the cafeteria and ticket office but I thought it was a beautiful old building so I took a picture.

On the last day of our trip, we went to the city of La Rochelle which was located about an hour or so south of where we were staying. It is a lovely city on the water. We spent the morning at the aquarium and then walked through the streets.

The Towers are La Rochelle's most popular tourist attraction. They were built in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The Tour de la Lanterne was originally built as a beacon for shops but subsequently became a prison for pirates, enemy seamen including the British, then Huguenots and finally clergy during the revolution. The only surviving medieval lighthouse on the Atlantic coast, you can still see 600 or so bits of graffiti inscribed on the walls by captured English, Dutch and Spanish seamen and later, military prisoners. The view from the top of the 70m high tower is worth the climb.

Here is the view from part way up the tower as we began our climb up. I love the seaside shops and cafes.

The girls posing at the top of the tower

The view from the top

Through the towers out to the Atlantic ocean

Walking through the city

We enjoyed hot Belgian waffles near the gate of the city 



Another postcard picture around the grounds of the chateau. We drove back to England a week later and even missed our train for the Eurotunnel but without even blinking an eye, they put us on the next train. No problem! I would definitely do this again. Perhaps next time we can take the girls to Paris. We have been there before but they were too little to remember. The girls all had a lovely time and were able to practice their French. Even little Alex has been spouting off "merci beaucoup" and "ferme la bouche." I must admit, we all made Charles do most of the talking and ordering at restaurants and got a good laugh at his French/sign language. I felt very French one day when Charles took the girls to the beach and I set out for a walk to town to buy some baguettes. I walked back to our villa with two long sticks of bread just like all the Frenchies. It made me smile...