Day Eight

France:L'argentierre

Saturday 12th July

A terrific thunderstorm through the night had us watching the streaks of lightning through Priscilla’s moon roof (other wise known as a massive sun roof) the rain came pelting down and it was reassuring to be in the warmth and dry of Priscilla. We where surprised to wake up in the morning to blue skies and we headed over to the wellness centre again for a swim, sauna, steam and Jacuzzi. After breakfast we decided to take a trip into Aubenas about 20K from Largentiere to see the market.

Our sat nav took us on some serious donkey tracks but we were rewarded with some stunning vistas of the hills and valleys. On arrival at Aubenas I managed a sneaky park just as a van had pulled out of a space really close to the market and we were dazzled by the sights and sounds of a traditional French market, complete with ducklings’ squeaking (is that what they do? – they don’t quack at that age!), rabbits twitching their noses and all manner of goods for sale. We bought some jewellery and clothes and where tempted to by much of the food we saw, but with a fridge full we were just happy wandering the streets browsing the stalls. Aubenas is a lovely town with some beautiful architecture. Soon the market was packing up and we headed back to the campsite via the supermarket for some essentials and arrived back to the campsite just as the heavens opened. And boy did they open!

It didn’t stop raining for the rest of the day but we were happy, having cracked open a bottle of champagne with some lunch safe inside Priscilla. The champers had been chilling since we left the UK (thank you very much Michelle, Jenny, Katie, Mary and Jill it was fabulous!). Then I gave Priscilla a present; I’d spied some Chinese style lanterns in the supermarket for a few euros and proceeded to string them up around the interior of Priscilla whilst we listened to music. The lights have really ‘gayed’ her up, a totally camp twist that’s made the interior so cosy at night.

In the evening we bottled out of cooking in the damp environs of the awning and headed off to the restaurant again for a goodbye splurge. I demolished some great foie gras washed down with complimentary a sweet local Viognier followed by the best beef steak I think I’ve ever had, it simply melted in my mouth. Due to the rain instead of dining alfresco on the terrace, as we had on previous nights, we ate in the cavern of the Auberge, an arching stone cellar room complete with feature lighting (I was at home!) and completely a buzz with that restaurant vibe.