Noirmoutier - back to Angers

Noirmoutier to Angers

 

So today was the  day to drive back to Angers, and I have to admit a little part of me was a bit apprehensive after the drive from hell on Tuesday. And when I got up in the morning there it was again - the rain! But hey, I'm not going to be in France for 2 weeks without any rain. Anyway, by the time I had tidied up the house and done a weeny bit of cleaning, the rain was starting to clear.There is a God out there!

So I said my last goodbye to  this very special place. To me, it is a place where I could feel the very presence of Rose Pelletier. Especially when I sat in the sitting room out the back around the fireplace where she would have sat. It was there I prayed especially for the St Clare's girls and staff. There is a beautiful wooden statue there of Sr Marie Euphrasie and it spoke volumes to me.

The town itself is charming and unique and it was lovely just to go for a walk along the port. It was also good for me to be there in the off season, even though many of the shops  were closed and I'm sure it lacked a lttle atmosphere compared with the summer crowds. But it was a great way to view French life as it is and I really enjoyed my few days there - once I actually got there.

Anyway, I girded my loins and prepared myself for the drive back to Angers. This time I was more prepared though and had Gaby Garmin at full volume before I started and in a place where I could see the way she was pointing. And apart from still hitting the curb a few times (by really trying to stay right) my trip back was verging on OK

Once I left Noirmoutier and got on the main drag, it became a freeway and that was easy driving. I got a bit confident and decided to leave the main road because I needed a loo stop and some lunch.
SoI pulled off at a town called St Philbert de Grande Lieu. This time I  found nice little pub where I could have a coffee and a boulangerie where I was back to the baguette with ham and cheese- lovely and fresh though. ( we also had croque monsieur for dinner tonight, so I am experiencing the cheeses of France!)

I also found another Church, and lit another candle at the Church of St Philbert and St Jacques. If you have reading carefully you would have noted that I have visited Churches by those names in the past few days!!!!! Anyway, today's candle was a tall thin one and cost 1 Euro!

Fortunately today's drive was not very eventful, but there was one little drama -  wouldn't be a day in the life of wattle wandering without some sort of drama.

I came to the toll way and I was all prepared with my credit card and put it in the slot but it didn't work... I tried it upside down and inside out and still it wouldn't let me through... And I know it works because I have used it here in France already. So I have multiple cars lined up behind me, but what could I do. Anyway, there is a call for help button so I pushed that and after a while, the lady came over and took my cash.... That's another lesson learned in the life of Moira's travels!

Actually driving along the freeway, when it was double lanes was quite OK. It's those roundabouts that are a bt tricky, and there are millions of them in France. I'm getting better at them but still not totally confident. Especially when Gaby Garmin is telling which number exit to take and sometimes it's not very clear. But there you go... I got here eventually, safe and sound -thank you Jesus!

So  tomorrow, I start the tourist route. Hopefully I am going to Mont St Michel, then staying 2 nights in Bayeux. I hope to be able to connect with a tour of the D-Day beaches. I think quite a few run from Bayeux, so it will be nice to sit back and relax and hear all the guided commentary - that's the plan anyway!

So, the washng is done again - tonight I begin the repack, and hit the road tomorrow. Please keep those prayers up as I navigate these lovely  French Roads.

A bientot...