August 12, 2017
Thank You Gordon: Day 5 - Angers to Saumur
We decided to make the next few days pretty easy until we hear back from Rohloff regarding Kirsten's cog.
We got a reasonably early start and the cycling today was more of the same. Very pleasant and some nice villages, but nothing spectacular. We were mostly in farm land, away from the river, and once again there were loads of other cyclists. We did have a 'Stop and Chat' session with two gents from New Zealand, Glen and Steve, who are nearing the end of a 6 month meander around Europe. They are heading to Budapest so we may run into them again.
We arrived in Saumur around 1 and had a big lunch. Probably too big. We both started to feel tired and sleepy and that's when we decided to camp here and make our way to Tours tomorrow.
Like Angers, this place is pretty busy with tourists (us included!) and the campground was chock-a-block with families with lots of kids running around. And the Wifi was crap, hence the days delay in the journal update. Other than that, the campground was fine, reasonably priced and central to town.
We've been to France enough to know that when you're going for dinner, you'd better have a booking or else show up at around 7 when most restaurants are starting to open. We tried to book a table at several places, but guess what ... it's August and just about every one we phoned was closed or they were not answering their phone. We decided to take a chance on a 'walk in' and left for town at 6:45 (way early by France standards).
We quickly found 'restaurant street' and started perusing the menus of various establishments. As we were standing in front of one, the owner/hostess asked if we wanted a table. It looked nice, the menu looked simple but inviting and the hostess seemed very pleasant. 'Sure - we'll take a table for 2 on the patio'. We were the first customers. About 15 minutes later we've had a palette cleansing blonde ale, the Savoyard salad that K and I were sharing had arrived as had our bottle of Chinon (Chenin Blanc). Half an hour after being seated, our mains arrive (big pot of Moules Frites for K and a poached Hake (think delicate Cod) with a buerre blanc sauce for me. By this time the restaurant is full and they are turning people away, as are all the other places on the street.
There are gormless couples and families wandering the street, looking increasingly famished, and K and I, with an incredibly smug feeling of schadenfreude, watch all this while finishing our wonderful bottle of wine.
We had been feeling a little down and grumpy when we set out for dinner, but the combination of the wine, the food, the conversation (and the plight of the other less well prepared punters!) had changed that. Then came the moment that really lifted our spirits, but it needs a bit of a back story.
The ineffable Gordon Ramsey had a TV program running several years ago where he would 'parachute' into a struggling restaurant and try to help turn them around. I think the particular episode I was thinking about was broadcast on the BBC and the restaurant was in Spain, owned by Brits. Gordon, in his 'helpful' way, was lambasting the owners over their choice of menu items, and he saved most of his vitriolic invective for one particular item.
A lamb kebab.
Served hanging vertically from a holder similar to those odd banana holders you used to see.
Gordon, red in the face and spewing spittle, was raging at them " YOU'RE SERVING F'ING DONKEY DONGS!!"
Well, wouldn't you know it. Just as we are finishing our dinner, the table behind us (a group of young Brits no less!) gets served a couple of Donkey Dongs! It might have been the wine, it might have been the last effects of jet lag, it might have been a lot of things, but both Kirsten and I immediately recalled the Ramsey episode and burst out laughing, probably much to the bewilderment of everyone else in the place.
We left feeling much better than when we had arrived.
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Before heading off for dinner, both Kirsten and I commented that we really hadn't got a flow going on this trip yet. We both said that today felt like just 'oozing' along.
That was a perfect setup for
song of the day:
I Am the Slime by Frank Zappa
- one of my all time favourites!
After dinner, we started to feel the flow.
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Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 299 km (186 miles)
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