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The Roads Less Traveled: Traversing France With Mai Tai Tom & Tracy

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The Roads Less Traveled: Traversing France With Mai Tai Tom & Tracy

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Old Dec 13th, 2016, 02:36 AM
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Great next chapter in your trip report.

That view of Gordes is iconic. We got some nice photos there too, we are hoping to visit the lavender fields at the abby during our visit. We will be there mid July. We also stopped off in Goult and wondered where everyone was. But we found them all down behind the town playing a very serious tournament of petanque. It seemed that the whole town was there.
We also ate at Le Fournil on our last night in the Luberon.

We are planning a visit to Avignon staying two nights before catching a train back to Paris.

Looking forward to the Uzes part too......no pressure though!
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Old Dec 13th, 2016, 12:48 PM
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Accordionly? Har. Glad you were OK.

We took a van tour through the Luberon. Our driver/guide, Yan, said there was a crackdown on speeders in the area. Unfortunately, many folks lost their licenses but continue to drive without them because they can't get to work otherwise. Big problems.
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Old Dec 14th, 2016, 01:38 AM
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Maitaitom, we live part-time in the village of Bonnieux (right across the tiny street from L'Arome) and we're here now. It's about 15 steps from our front door to the restaurant... I agree with you that it's #1.

I was interested to read how you enjoyed our area and your stay in our village. A fun report as always! (And I'm glad your medical story had a happy ending.)

Bonnes Fêtes from Bonnieux.

Kathy
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Old Dec 14th, 2016, 06:45 AM
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Kathy, we loved your town. Have a lamb chop for me at L’Arôme!

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Old Dec 14th, 2016, 08:45 AM
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Glad to read your latest installment. "Accordianly" was a great pun! Thanks for continuing!
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Old Dec 22nd, 2016, 02:43 AM
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Our drive from Provence to Uzés gave us the opportunity to see a town full of waterwheels and then a marvel of Roman engineering. That, and a chance encounter from a group out of Deliverance, made for a fun day, and we ended up loving Uzés (our lodging choice here moved into my Europe Top 10 of places we have stayed). For photos with verbiage, click the link.

<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-eight-waterwheels-gard-uzes/</B>

Day Eight – Brexit Chat, Big Wheels, On Gard, Paging Ned Beatty, Circling Uzés, Always Best To Check Your Emails, Castle Keep, Is That The Leaning Tower Of Pisa, Patio Perfect and The “Important American”

After chatting with some Brits about Brexit (they were the only Brits we met on the trip in favor of it), we were on our way to Uzés, but not without a couple of stops along the way.

About a half an hour from Bonnieux, we detoured to what some people call “The Antique Capital of Provence, Isle-sur-la-Sorgue.” Fortunately it was a Monday morning, and nearly all the stores were closed, plus Tracy was traveling with her own antique.

It must also be the Waterwheel Capital of Provence, because thanks to a once-thriving textile and paper-making trade, this town had me singing, “Big wheels keep on turning…”

We walked along the canals (where we met a new friend), and then made a turn into town, passing only a few people along the way. In front of us stood the Collégiale Notre-Dame-des-Anges.

According to what I read, there are “122 figures of angels.” We didn’t count them.

Picking up a map showing the various waterwheels at the TI, we walked through town to scope out a few. At one time, there were 70 waterwheels, most of them established by royal decree. Only 14 survive today.

We checked out La Basin (The Pond) and walked along the canal for a bit longer, and it was time to move on and get our UNESCO card stamped again.

t was a one-hour drive to perhaps the most incredible Roman monument, the Pont du Gard. We paid the €18 (up to five people with a vehicle can access the entire Pont du Gard site for that price) and parked on the Rive Gauche side and walked to the plaza.

It’s here where you will find information, the museum, bathrooms and a cafeteria. The three-tiered bridge and aqueduct (nearly 50 meters tall…the tallest one the Romans ever constructed) dates back to the 1st century AD. The three tiers gave the structure great lateral stability, something I am seriously lacking in my old age. It also helped supply nine million gallons of water per day to Nîmes, a town we would visit in a couple of days (don’t tell Tracy, but there are ruins in Nîmes).

As remarkable as the structure itself was the fact that although the parking lot was crowded, once on the trail to the bridge, there were very few people. Once again, it was a gorgeous blue sky day in France…

…giving us the opportunity to take some lovely photos while sweating to death. My lateral stability in doubt, I did make it down to the bottom of the trail along the riverbed.

We crossed to the Rive Droite side, ostensibly to grab a bite to eat…

…but we made what we hoped would not be a fateful decision and wait until we got to Uzés to eat, even knowing it would be after the 2 p.m. bewitching hour.

We stopped in to the Pont du Gard museum (included in the €18 fee), and looked at the various displays on how the bridge was built.

Stupidly relying solely on our GPS, we started on our short drive to Uzés, but it took just a little bit longer than we expected. First, as our GPS showed us very near town, the wily female voice told us to head down a narrow lane, which became increasingly narrower. Trying to outsmart this machine, we made a right turn and suddenly we had stumbled into a scene from Deliverance. In a forest with a couple of trailers and some guys with scraggly beards and who had their pants barely on (I didn’t check out their dental hygiene).

I made a snap decision. Before I could squeal like a pig, I made a 3-point turn and returned whence we came. Our GPS was silent, however our car was not.

In what was now a gravel lane with walls closing in on either side, the car began beeping because we were incredibly close to scraping the paint off this lovely BMW. Thankfully, we could see light posts ahead, so after driving (carefully) down the lane, once again civilization appeared and we were in a modern sub-division (I assume there might be a better route into Uzés).

Now in town, we followed our GPS, but every time we got to within one kilometer of our B&B, the mileage to destination would increase. We circled the town not once…not twice…but three times. It was here we realized that we were idiots (I know, it should have been sooner). We checked our email from L’Albiousse (our lodging for the next two nights) and they had provided us with the exact information of where to park. Moral: Read your emails! We parked in the cathedral lot…

…and walked the short distance to what the B&B said in their email was a “discreet” sign.

It was so discreet we walked right by it. Once inside, we were more than impressed. This castle-like home, built between the 16th and 18th centuries, has five rooms (with original Louis XIII doors), and our room also had a marvelous modern bathroom.

One of the owners, Guillam, gave us some useful Uzés info, showed us the beautiful patio area where would have breakfast…

...and soon we were walking the medieval streets…

…off to (hopefully) lunch…a really late lunch. We walked past a garden we planned to visit tomorrow, a structure that would force me to make a drastic decision.

At 3:30 we reached the medieval town square, Place aux Herbes. Plane trees and café tables were everywhere, and when we saw one of those cafés full of people in the distance, we knew we were in luck. Terroirs was indeed open. Sitting outside, this restaurant and gourmand store offered up a very good beef carpaccio with arugula and parmesan cheese, along with a bulgur salad with mint, dried raisins and pine nuts. We were saved.

We made our way back to where our car was parked to visit Cathédrale Saint-Théodorit et tour Fenestrelle, dedicated to Saint Théodoritus, who was beheaded in 322. He is also the patron saint of the town.

We paid our respects to the relics of St. Firminus (which I guess would make this the Firminus Terminus). His remains had been lost during the Reformation, but were found during the French Revolution. I could hear him singing, “What a long strange trip it’s been.”

With a press of a button, we illuminated the organ. There was a joke there somewhere, but, being in a house of worship, I decided to move on.

We wandered for a few more minutes.

I had wanted to climb the 11th-century tour Fenestrelle, the only campanile tower of Lombard-style to be found anywhere in France. When I first saw it I thought I was in Pisa, although it wasn’t leaning. Sadly, there would be no climbing allowed.

Near the cathedral was a view out toward the countryside, but it was getting later in the day, so we walked back home.

Back at L’Albiousse, we rested for a little while before heading off to a wonderful dinner.

I had tried to get a reservation at Le Bec à Vin before we left, but Greg at the restaurant said he did not know if they’d be open that night. He emailed he would keep in touch. And that he did.

He said to come in that night and we had 8 p.m. reservations. Not far from our B&B, on a lovely evening, we were seated in the stone-walled terrace at Le Bec à Vin that is shaded by a fig tree (well, had it been day it would have shaded it).

Seated next to us was a group of Americans who seemed to be on tour, because the woman sitting near us wouldn’t shut up about how brilliant she was. Speaking in a voice that I would call “affected,” she rattled on (rather loudly) about her extensive knowledge of the area. Fortunately her group tired of her rambling as soon as we did, and she was excluded from the conversation for most of the rest of the evening.

Le Bec à Vin provided us with one of the most memorable meals of all our memorable meals this trip. I started with a spicy Thai beef salad that was out of this world.

My main dish, slow cooked pork with risotto in a chorizo sauce, garnered a “Wow!” I tried not to think about Deliverance.

Tracy started with spinach and a creamy cauliflower sauce, and she enjoyed her duck with fig sauce & gratin potatoes.

The only dish that didn’t really knock it out of the park was the Brioche French toast…

…with fresh blueberries and ice cream. It sounded and looked better than it was.

It was a short walk back through the narrow lanes of Uzés.

We’d have to get an early start on the day as we would head north to a little known…

…but very colorful, cave, and later in the day I would face the moment I knew I would have to come to grips with sometime during our travels.

Next: Day Nine – Breakfast in Paradise, Are You Sure This Is The Right Place, Private Tour, It’s The Statue Liberty, Lit Up, Road Block, Nurses Aid/Pay Pal, Médiéval Jardin, Maitai’s Decision, Castle Keep Out and Never Ever Drink This Before Dinner
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Old Dec 22nd, 2016, 10:47 PM
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What a fabulous looking town.
Enjoying your entertaining narrative.
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Old Dec 23rd, 2016, 11:19 AM
  #108  
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I would have liked to have visited Isle-sur-la-Sorgue on a busier day. I might even have stepped inside one of those antique stores (and walked out just as quickly). Thanks to many suggestions on this board, we chose Uzés for a couple of days, which is a wonderful town and would make a great base to see lots of sights in the area.

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Old Dec 23rd, 2016, 03:29 PM
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Thanks for an early holiday present! Your writing style and pictures keep me going until my next trip. Glad to read that there will be another trip coming up before later next year. Agree about Uzes where I stayed for 3 days a few years ago.
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Old Dec 23rd, 2016, 07:06 PM
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Tom:

Knowing what you have experienced, do you feel that your time by town/area was appropriate? Would you spend more or less in each?

Trying to plan a 5 week trip to France,Italy and Switzerland for next Aug./Sept. You seem to pack a lot in each day.

Thanks.

H
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Old Dec 23rd, 2016, 07:58 PM
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I spent a week in ISLS this summer and liked it a lot, but my favorite little town in France is Uzès. Just love that place and glad you liked it, too!
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Old Dec 24th, 2016, 10:48 AM
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Darn it, more holidays! Hurry up time so we can read more about the mtt's!

Gorgeous photos, Tom.
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Old Dec 24th, 2016, 02:37 PM
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"Knowing what you have experienced, do you feel that your time by town/area was appropriate? Would you spend more or less in each?"

Huggy, I might be the wrong guy to ask. I'm kind of an ADHD traveler. I need to keep going. That said, I could probably be happy spending five or six days in Burgundy, and we really liked Beaune as a base..

There is no doubt Provence is gorgeous. We had visited Arles and Les Baux on a previous trip, so we concentrated on small towns (except Avignon) on this one. I am definitely in the minority, but after a few small towns with no one in them, I yearned to revisit places that had more to see.

Moving forward, we loved Uzés, and it would make a great base for four days to see different sites in the area.

Our final stop (before Paris) was Pézenas. It was also a grat, but we never got up to Gorges Tarn (long drive), so I would follow Stu Dudley's guide on that area. I would have loved to go down to the Cathar castles as well.

I still think our favorite area we have ever stayed outside of Paris is the Dordogne. Small owns, yes, but they all seemed to have a lot to offer.

Even though we "pack a lot in" per day, you can't see everything on one trip...but I try

Enough rambling...back to Christmas mai tais. Happy holidays!

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Old Dec 29th, 2016, 11:09 AM
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OK, back to the trip. We visited a very colorful cave north of Uzés on this day. After some gas problems (petrol and I don't get along well in Europe), we winged it back to Uzés where I ran into an age problem that precluded me from doing one of my favorite things. As always, click the link for photos with story. Someday this trip report will end.

<B>http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/chapter-nine-cave-exploration-gas-problems-uzes/</B>

<B>Day Nine – Breakfast in Paradise, Are You Sure This Is Right, Private Tour, It’s The Statue of Liberty, Lit Up, Road Block, Nurses Aid and Pay Pal, Médiéval Jardin, A Sad Day For MaiTai, Castle Keep…Out and Never Drink This Before Dinner</B>

Ah, the good life. We took our breakfast on the patio of L’Albiousse, where we gorged ourselves on fresh banana nut muffins, fresh fruit cocktail, yogurt and coffee. I was ready for a nap after that, but Tracy reminded me we had just woke up.

In order to circumvent the Deliverance area, Guillam provided a paper map as back up, and we were on our way to be cave dwellers. Located a little more than a 1/2 hour north of Uzés is the Grotte de la Salamandre, which we read opened at 10:30 a.m. We followed the signs until the signs mysteriously disappeared, but eventually we reached a parking lot, and surmised it must be for the cave. As we pulled into the wooded parking lot a little after 10 a.m., we were surprised to see no other cars. “Do you think it’s closed?,” asked Tracy.

The sign said it was open, so we started our 700 meter (7% grade) hike along a nicely maintained path, which included signs describing the local flora, fauna and cave.

The Aven de la Salamandre (the natural entrance of the Grotte) was explored for the first time in 1965 by a team of speleologists from Uzès and Nîmes. According to the literature, “After a 50 metres descent on a cable ladder, they were surprised to discover a vast area about the size of a football field, very richly adorned with titanic crystals of an incomparable aesthetic. The first expedition was organized for twelve cavers who spent eight days exploring the cavity under the eyes of French television and the lens of Jack Bercand. The press covered the event for the whole duration of the exploration.” The ticket office loomed head.

We arrived promptly at 10:30 and, lo and behold, they were open and we were the only people there. After only three seasons of opening to the public, the Grotte de la Salamandre has received 2 stars in the Guide vert Michelin. The cave is closed between November 1 to March 14 so the bats can hibernate during that time, unlike the bats of the San Diego Padres that hibernate all baseball season.

While admiring great views of the surrounding scenery, the very nice, English speaking staff chatted with us for a bit. Being the only guests on this beautiful morning, for the €11 admittance free we received a private tour. Pretty cool!

There was a tour where we could rappel down into the cave. Not knowing the ropes or wanting to make Tracy a widow at such a young age, we took the regular walking tour. The lighting inside the cave was magnificent, and the pathways easy to navigate. Our guide told us about 40,000 visitors per year come here.

Colored lights illuminated the “crystal giants.” Along the way, our guide showed us stalagmites and stalactites, two ice formations I have have often confused since my geometry class at San Diego State. These formed such entities as the Statue Of Liberty, a Pipe Organ, Sea Creatures, Stacked Plates, and Drapes among others. Unlike Font-de-Gaume and their fake cave wall bison (I’m sticking to that 2012 story), you really could see these forms clearly.

I started singing “I Only Have Ice For You,” but Tracy quickly reminded me we were the only ones on the tour.

The tour, usually about 90 minutes, but a little shorter this morning since the guide didn’t have tourists asking stupid questions, was very informative and beautiful. At the end of the tour, as we stood on the belvedere, our guide flicked a switch, and the entire cave was illuminated like a Christmas tree.

For those who’d like to know, there are 54 steps down and 86 steps up. Our France cave experience for this year was now in the books.

The walk back to the car was all uphill, but not difficult, and by now a total of four cars were in the lot. Leaving the parking area, we noticed our gas gauge was a tad low, so this was no time to make mistakes since we didn’t know where a gas station was located and our GPS would not work in this area. The paper map also did not show where I was.

In true MaiTaiTom European driving tradition, I immediately made a wrong turn out of the lot and within a few miles the road ended into a mountainside. My navigator was less than happy with my directional skills.

Our destination was to be La Roque-sur-Cèze, but we detoured to a town north of La Rique where our GPS said a gas station was located. The station was located next to a grocery store.

We put our credit card in the appropriate slot…it was rejected. We put another credit card in…it was rejected. Before the kind “Euro Tom” changed into angrier “College Tom,” Tracy suggested I inquire in the grocery store. The lady inside said she’d be out when she could.

Another car entered the gas station, and a young guy got out and we attempted to explain our problem. Speaking perfect English, he said he would use his credit card to pay for our gas, and we could give him cash. Damn French…they’re always so nice. He put his credit card in…it was rejected. Again…it was rejected.

Finally, he went inside the store and coerced the lady to come outside, and we both finally got our gas when he persuaded her (nicely) to accept cash. It turned out he was a nurses aid who traveled this area going to people’s homes. He probably didn’t expect to have to give aid at a gas station.

Back on the road with some lovely vistas…

…we stopped quickly at La Roque-sur-Cèze.

It was pretty hot, so we walked up, up, up and up, and found that nothing was open for lunch, and it wasn’t even 1 p.m. yet. This was another cute, yet empty town. We wandered the streets looking for humans.

We didn’t find any…

…however we did catch a small church on the walk back down that taunted us with a sign for a restaurant.

We did run into one four-legged friend who was horsing around near the parking lot. I asked him if there were any restaurants in the vicinity. He just shook his head and said, “Neigh.”

I had wanted to see the nearby waterfalls, but hunger pangs were pinging so we were back on our way to Uzés, where we grabbed a quick bite to eat at a café along the main drag that I had circled the previous day.

Le Jardin Médiéval was our first stop after lunch. Located in a little refuge within Uzés, it has a €4.50 entry fee. There are small trees, herbs and gardens throughout the grounds. All of the 400+ plants are “wild” and are the same plants used by the people of the Middle Ages. Since I am long past middle age, I moved on.

It was kind of a waste since by late September, nothing was in bloom. Perhaps, springtime would be a better, especially if you’re interested in the plants of the region. There’s a small art gallery at Le Jardin Médiéval that we ducked into. I believe all the paintings here are replicas.

This picture reminded me of why I am afraid of cranes.

Then came a moment that will live in ignominy. Inside the walls of Le Jardin Médiéval is the Tour du Roi Panorama, a 100-step tower with, what we’d been told, magnificent views over the city.

I had never met a tower I didn’t like and couldn’t climb…until today. I started up the narrow circular staircase holding the rope to help you climb to the top. The rope is very close to the rugged and uneven stone walls, meaning someone on blood thinners (that would be me) would have hands that looked like mince meat after the climb.

Reluctantly I deferred, and Tracy made the climb to the top, while I received my free libation you get here for visiting.

After her descent, Tracy said I could have really been Sir Bleed-A-Lot had I made the climb, but that the views were terrific. Depressed, I quickly made my way to the Place aux Herbes…

…where a couple of glasses of wine eased the pain.

Tracy stayed in the Place while I attempted to visit Le Duche, the castle in the middle of Uzés. Unfortunately, it had closed early for an event, which was on the one hand sad, but it did save me €18 I could use on more wine later.

We meandered through the streets of Uzés for about a half hour and still had time for a short siesta at the hotel. For dinner, Guillam recommended le comptoir du 7, which turned out to be a great choice.

We stopped at the church one more time to pay for our parking the following morning.

On a slightly chilly evening at le comptoir du 7, we were told that the outside courtyard was located in an ancient stable. I always enjoy a meal in a stable environment, so we made hay and hoofed it outside.

Our amuse bouche, a velouté butternut squash soup with whipped mousse, was delicious.

Always on the lookout for a new apéritif, I decided to try Pastis. A tall glass was offered with a small amount of liquid. As I put the glass to my lips, our very nice waiter said, “Oh, no, no, no. You must add water.” I quickly found out why. This was licorice to the 10th degree. One sip,and my taste buds suddenly went to another planet. I put it off to the side and decided I would try it after dinner. Thankfully, within a few minutes my taste buds returned to normal.

We ordered a bottle of 2014 Château de Cazeneuve Les Calcaires. It went much better with dinner than Pastis.

I started with an incredible tuna tartare, with mango, passion fruit, lemon pearl and wasabi cream. I followed that up with beef in a bacon purée of artichoke, black carrot and confit of tomatoes.

Tracy also dined happily with a beef carpaccio, pesto, parmesan cheese in a celery and confit of tomatoes purée. She loved her confit of beef cheek, eggplant, tender potatoes and rocket salad (aka arugula).

Our dessert of caramelized pineapple, almond crumble with vanilla sauce and lime capped off a wonderful dinner.

I don’t think I can overstate how much we enjoyed Uzés, L’Albiousse and our two dinners there. I would highly recommend this as a base, and it could be a place we return to in the future, as we did not see everything we wanted.

e packed our bags again, because tomorrow we would head to Pézenas, where we would spend the next five evenings. On the way, we’d check out Roman ruins in Nîmes (Yes, Tracy actually liked these ruins…no bull), stopped off in the walled city of Aigues-Mortes and finally got to Pézenas and another incredible lodging choice. We would find out driving in Pézenas can be something of an art, and it’s best to have a really skinny car.

<B>Next: Day Ten – Getting Agrippa on Nîmes, Historic Temple, A Walk Through A Vomitory, Canal Zone, Tour Of Death Heat March, Oh Diana, Tracy Aigues Me On, Stop! Stop! Stop!, You Could Burn Up Here, Ramparts Last Gleaming, Hop On In, Will the Car Fit, Church Bells Are Ringing and This Might Be A Little Too Quiet.</B>
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Old Dec 29th, 2016, 12:29 PM
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Another enjoyable read and tales told!
Always very happy to see another chapter in the travel stories of Maitaitomi and Tracy. My favourite read.

I fee like we will be travelling on you trails next July. Starting with Annecy, Beaune, Provence and Sommierres. Hoping to fit in a visit to Uzes somewhere there.
Thank you!
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Old Dec 29th, 2016, 01:13 PM
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Tom, your tale of the petrol station reminded me of a trip we did to France quite a long time ago, when we lingered too long in Saumur watching the World cup on one of the outside screens that they set up there. It was midnight by the time we got back to the car and realised that we probably didn't have enough petrol to get us back to our gite some distance away. Luckily there was a 24 hour petrol station on our way out of town and even more luckily it took the first c/card we tried in it. As it was "unpersoned" I dread to think what we would have done if it had resisted our attempts to extract fuel from it, especially as we had our kids with us.

The feeling of "anticipation" I had as I inserted my credit card into the machine stays with me still.
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Old Dec 29th, 2016, 04:52 PM
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I still approach our Intermarché petrol station with trepidation even after having lived in France for 2 years and having a Carte Bleue. There is something ominously negative about the whole experience. Take the keys out of the car, unlock the gas tank, read the long explanation on the screen of the tank about how you want to pay and what card you're going to use, put your card in the slot, wait to be told how much you can consume, wait for the OK to push the lever on the nozzle, then gas up! Then wait for the receipt and proceed to the cashier's station where you pay up. And if there's no-one there, as in between noon and 2 pm, bonne chance!
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Old Dec 29th, 2016, 10:55 PM
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Is this how you pay for petrol at most petrol stations in France now. Is it so people do not fill up and run off.
Are there instructions in English as well?
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Old Dec 30th, 2016, 03:20 AM
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aussie - I don't remember all our petrol buying experiences in France being that bad - which is why the one in Saumur sticks in my mind. When we were in Brittany recently we had no problems at all, so much so that I can't even remember what happened.
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Old Dec 30th, 2016, 04:31 AM
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No, there are no instructions in English.
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