Travel

The beautiful animal park in Cléres

| Mairead

(The pink Flamingos and some random ducks)

I mentioned yesterday that there is a zoo here in Cléres and today we went on a visit. As it’s France, of course this would not be an ordinary zoo, this is a beautiful compact bird and animal park in the grounds of a château with it’s own Gothic castle and the remains of a medieval keep. And one more thing to thank France for – there was no entry charge today! Don’t know why. The zoo was set up over 100 years ago by Monsieur Jean Delacour. Seemingly he was a famous ornithologist (had to look it up: interested in birds) who worked for zoos around Europe and the US. His family was rich so… he got a château and started taking care of birds and animals.

(Even without the animals this is a beautiful park)

The majority of the birds and animals run (or waddle or bounce) free in the unfenced paddocks and seem unafraid of the humans who are very well-behaved walking along the paths and staying off the grass. Well they were mostly unafraid but I got in the way of three young antelopes, called black bucks, who were trying to cross a bridge and they looked very worried. I stayed very still and eventually they bounced off on their way. It really looked like they bounced, you know like when sheep jump over fences in cartoons?

(I have no idea what this guy is called, but he was munching away at bugs on his tree trunk when I took this. He’s about the size of a hamster with a long tail)

My favourite animal was the Red Panda, which looks like a cross between a fox and a teddy bear. Like the black and white Panda the red one has an extra bone in it’s wrist that helps it grab bamboo shoots making it adorable… A close second favourite was the Emu, his feathers look like hair with a parting running down the center of his back while his feet are very prehistoric looking.

(Here’s the Red Panda, can you see how he holds the bamboo branch? Awww!)

Up at the château there’s a pretty garden filled with flowers that I love. As I was taking picture after picture of blooms, one nicer than the next a butterfly caught my eye. He was perched on a big flower head and didn’t notice me walk round and round getting shots of him. I must have been there for 10 minutes and he was still there when we left.

(This is a terrible shot but I wanted you to see how strange it looks… it’s part of the Emu’s foot – two of his three toes to be precise. His entire foot is about the size of my hand)

I’ll send you the flower and butterfly pictures tomorrow,  Mairead.

A Leisure Battery for Time…

| Mairead

(Brighter in the afternoon at Veulette sur Mer)

The rain went away yesterday afternoon and the sun came out but when we woke up this morning we were freezing (not actually freezing…) it was 7 degrees outside. Time to rethink northern France. So we’re on our way south. We’ve never been down the eastern side of France so we thought we’d give that a go and head in the general direction of Nancy.

(Old church in Cléres)

We didn’t get very far, about an hour of travel and we are in the pretty little town of Cléres. You never know what you’re going to get when you pick an aire and today is a big surprise. It’s about an hour’s drive from Veulettes sur Mer. As it’s on the outskirts we didn’t see the town before we parked but I went for a walk while Denis went to work and it’s gorgeous. Another vibrant town with lots of little shops, a small supermarket, an old church, a train station and even a zoo! I’ll have a look at that tomorrow. There’s a stream running the length of the main street (not on the street…) and each little footbridge is covered in foliage and flowers.

(Conkers were falling off the tree in the churchyard)

The aire itself is free and you buy tokens (called jetons in France) for water and electricity at the little supermarket. We don’t need either at the moment because we loaded water on route yesterday and the solar panels are topping up in the sun as I write providing us with enough power for the day. I didn’t realise I would be so excited about the solar energy but I am constantly checking how much electricity we are making. I have discovered that the sun doesn’t have to be shining directly on the panels to make solar power, light makes power. Also, we have a battery (called a leisure battery) to store the power generated because the solar panels generate the power but they don’t save it and if you don’t use in that moment it’s gone! It’s a bit like time really… maybe we need a Time battery?

(The old covered market in Cléres)

So, a Time Battery would store up all the minutes in the day when we’re not using them the way we want to. Like when we’re having anxious thoughts or we’re complaining or we’re making a mountain out of a molehill or we’re irritated by someone or we’re in a mood. The Time Battery would automatically power up and grab all the wasted minutes for when we remember how we really want to spend time. For those who mostly used time the way they wanted to, enjoying nature, smiling at children, being wonderful (!) they could get a little pocket Time Battery. But there would also be a roll-along-suitcase sized Time Battery…

…for the rest of us and our anxious thoughts. Mairead.

Grey Day by the Seaside

| Mairead

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(Misty rain between here and the chalk cliff)

It’s kinda grey here in Normandy today. We’ve moved along and are by the sea at a place called Veulettes Sur Mer and it started raining. It didn’t stop me from making my way across the road to the beach to get some pictures but even they are a bit grey. It’s a day for taking out the crafts and turning on the heater.

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(Here’s the sea front and on the right across the road you can see the parking area for camper vans. the red brick building on the extreme right is the toilet block)

Also took a picture of our aire for today, it isn’t as pretty as the last one but it does have toilets. No freebies though because of the location (see photo) the cost is €7 per night and on a sunny day it would be ideal. The rain is due to stop in the afternoon so maybe ideal is on the way.

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(That’s the town under the cliff)

To be fair the weather has been mainly warm and completely dry, I just checked in my pockets and found a receipt from Juno Beach so that’s the last time I wore heavy jeans – six days ago. I will stop noticing the grey and begin noticing the historic value of jeans pockets.

Oh brilliant I found a euro! Mairead.

The Secret to Life…

| Mairead

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(Here’s our spot today, can you see the orange cable running to a box on the left? That’s the free electricity)

Good Morning! Good Morning! Ok, so I asked about sharing the details from our new friend from Ireland…you’ll have to wait for the book, his book, I mean. That could take a while though because he’s going slowly. Denis shared with him the Andy Weir (writer of The Martian) story of getting writing done – send chapters out to readers weekly/monthly/at regular intervals, it puts a bit of pressure on you because you can’t let your readers down! In the meantime I want to share our new friend’s secret to life… enjoy every minute. Every tree, every place to park or sit or stand, every beautiful building, every nice person you meet, enjoy it all. You’ll understand when you read his book why this man might be worth listening to. For now, trust me, he knows what he’s talking about.

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(Here’s the rules and regulations. One I didn’t mention… we can stay three days maximum)

We’ve moved on today, just a few kilometres north of Honfleur. We’re at a very pretty aire with free water and electricity. It’s a popular place but our timing was just right and we got the last spot, campers keep coming in and have to reverse back out again. We feel a little sad for them but also happy for us. I’ve explained aires before but I think there’s no harm in repeating and I’ll take some pictures today to make it clearer.

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(Here’s where you empty the toilet cassette – on the left and on the right the drinking water. Not sure if you can make out the writing on the right panel in white? People sometimes get mixed up and use the drinking water to clean out the toilet cassette – yuck! Here someone has written instructions to make it clearer. We like it best when the drinking water tap is far, far, far away from the toilet cassette disposal!)

In France an aire is a rest area, you see them on the motorways, at home we might call them lay-bys but here they are much bigger, where cars and trucks can stop for a break. They usually have toilets and picnic tables. There are also aires at the motorway services where you get petrol and diesel (and sometimes cafes and restaurants). All that is similar to what we have in Ireland. Camping Car Aires are something new, they are specifically for motorhomes or camper vans and when I say we are staying in an aire for the night I mean a Camping Car Aire. At their simplest there will be spaces long enough for motorhomes to park in a section of a normal car park. More elaborate ones will have a pedestal thingy where you plug your hose in to get drinking water, empty your toilet cassette and dispose of grey water and get an hour of electricity all for a small charge (€2 to €5 typically.).

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(Forgot to mention, rubbish and recycle bins are always free. Thank you again France! Tip: Yellow lid = plastic and tins. Blue lid = paper and card)

The one we are in today has everything, space to park, space to put out a deck chair, drinking water, toilet cassette empty station, grey water disposal drain, electricity and even little hedges between the motorhomes! Sometimes you will have to pay to stay, sometimes you will have to pay for water and usually you will have to pay for electricity. Today, here, everything is free. Thank you, France.

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(Home for tonight looks nicer than some campsites we’ve been in)

Last month we added a couple of solar panels to the top of the camper. I say we because yes I did get up the ladder and help Denis with the installation. As I am generally very afraid of dangerous things (like falling from the top of a camper van) I surprised myself and a few of the passing neighbours. Having the panels means we can survive longer without having to stay in a campsite where electricity is always available. The cost of a night in a campsite can range from €20 which we would rather spend on delicious French food. Also as we travel in off-season, it’s unlikely the campsite cafe or restaurant or swimming pool will be open plus the locations are often far from villages, towns or cities. So all in all being able to use aires most of the time works very well for us.

Again, thank you, France! Mairead.

Cycling to Honfleur

| Mairead

(Lots of boats, tall houses and restaurants in Honfleur)

And now we’re in Honfleur, a very pretty big-ish French town with a port. Well to be precise… we are 40 minutes walk from Honfleur, under the motorway that bypasses Honfleur and beside a small French town called La Riviere-Saint-Sauveur. If that’s a mouthful for you, you’ll understand why I fell asleep when we got here. I think I was tired. By 8pm I was drinking tea, reading a book with my favourite quilt around me and I was ready to go back to bed.

(Nice!)

Then Ian from Ireland arrived. He was telling us he’s been here for a few weeks or maybe it was months and then he started to tell us stories about his life. Like, amazing stories, stuff you might make up but you wouldn’t put in the same book because no one would believe it was real. He’s coming to visit us tonight again so I’ll ask him if I can share with you. As it happens he is writing a book and he has a blog. I’ll find out the details tonight for you.

(Love French windows and balconies)

In between the telling of the stories he told us Honfleur was a beautiful place and just a 15 minute cycle. He must have spotted our bikes on the back and not realised they are just for decoration. (No of course they work.) So this morning we took down the bikes and followed his directions to Honfleur and wouldn’t you know we’d hardly gone two minutes and there he was on the other side of the road cycling towards us. We asked where the bicycle lane was (he’d mentioned one last night) and he said, “no you’ll be grand on the dual carriageway the cars in France are used to bikes!” Well it was ego alone that kept me going forward but when he was out of sight I searched and searched for a bicycle path and there was bits and pieces of a quiet road along the route. So I was on and off the bike climbing over fences and losing Denis. He, Denis, by the way has become very good at the  French mannerism of a loud sigh while tilting the head back, lifting the shoulders and turning his palms to the sky. He uses it to complain when I lose him. Luckily he can’t do it while holding the handlebars, so we’re still talking.

(No we didn’t)

Needless to say it took longer than the promised 15 minute cycle but we did eventually arrive in Honfleur and it is very beautiful.  I forgot my camera but I took pictures with my phone until the battery died. The journey back was a lot quicker as I came to realise the French do seem to be used to bikes and gave us a wide berth, especially as I wobble a little.

I’m off for another little lie down to get ready for tonight’s stories, Mairead.

Juno Beach

| Mairead

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(Nell’s Bread Shop)

We’re still here at the beach just beside the Canadian War Museum. The town has two names, first, it’s called Courseulles Sur Mer. It had that name before D-Day in 1944 but it got a code name when the Canadian army were planning to land here during the war. Its code name was Juno Beach. We went to visit the museum this afternoon and of course I was tearing up again. Especially when I saw the list of names scrolling past on the ceiling:

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(Thirteen and a half hours…)

Canada was sparsely populated in 1939 so that’s a big portion of their young people. Then we saw a movie and it’s just as well it was dark. There was a bit at the end with a present day Canadian family walking along the Juno Beach talking about the soldiers who had died here. As they walked along into the distance they were being followed by ghostly images of soldiers walking in their footsteps. With the title rolling up the screen, They walk behind you… severely tear inducing.

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(From the brick factory)

I thought a walk in the town might cheer me up and it did, but wouldn’t you know it I found another museum. Fortunately, it was all in French so I was spared any sadness. It seems they made bricks here with the name of the town on them. There was more lace and a couple of spinning wheels. Afterwards I visited a very sweet looking cafe nearby where I sampled some coffee and met some Frenchmen. I even asked if I could take their picture:

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(They were chatting away and the man on the left picked up the dog so he could be in the shot too)

There seems to be a theme already on this trip… Museums and Frenchmen. Mairead.

Sea Day

| Mairead

(I don’t know where I am…)

We’re on the high seas somewhere between Rosslare in Ireland and Cherbourg in France. Possibly already in the English Channel but can’t be sure. So we’re between places, in transition, not there yet, not started and yet begun.

(Blue is my favorite color, lots on this ship)

It is my joy to know lots of people who are waaay younger than me. I think I like younger people because I never wanted to grow up, to be an adult, to have that haggard oppressed air all adults seemed to have when I was a child. Or it could be that I know how difficult it was for me to make the transition across the space between before-adult and acting-adult, actually I might still be in that space. Or… maybe it’s possibility.

Really young children know possibility. They usually get it knocked out of them when they’ve been in school a couple of years though. But you can re-learn possibility and when you re-learn it you can see it in yourself and in others. It’s a yummy feeling, kinda of sparkly with little pops of joy!

(It’s a bit scary down there…)

I know two waaay younger people who are about to start third level education and I am awash with sparkle and poppy for them! I know their journey might be rocky and messy and scary but it’s also exciting and wonderful and interesting but mainly it’s incredibly beautiful. Because they are incredibly beautiful…

It’s something I learned from standing on the path cheering bus loads of women who had been in Magdalene Laundries… no matter what people say about you, or what you think about yourself, or what you’ve done that seems like a mistake, or what you can’t do that seems like a failure or what you’re afraid you can’t do because you’re not capable, there is at the center of you, an essence, that is pure and white and beautiful and it touches everything you do and all of your journeys.

I wasn’t so sparkly, poppy when it was me… noooo, I was more scared shirtless. I’m sure you’re sick of me telling you I failed third level education, didn’t get the marks, had to leave, no piece of paper, no graduation day. If I had known that failing was just part of my incredibly beautiful journey I might have been kinder, less angry, more patient, less ashamed of myself. It’s very, very difficult to feel sparkly poppy and shame, simultaneously. One kinda pushes the other away and shame is better at pushing.

(The coffee on board may not be great but the cups are an inspiration!)

For today, for me and for you and for those starting new journeys I’m going to give lots of attention to sparkly poppy… because I want it to push stronger.

How about you? Mairead.

On the Road Again!

| Mairead

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(Today I’m at a luxurious secret location having an adventure… Translation: I’m sitting on the bed at the motorway services writing to you)

It has taken us weeks but we finally packed everything into Ruby (the motorhome) and we are on the road to Rosslare and the ferry to France. It depends completely on the weather where we will go after that… warm = stay north, cool = head south. It’s one of the things we like about this way of travelling, no planning required and we can change as we go.

My intention is to blog every day but I have some other things I want to do also. One thing I want to play around with is the idea of publishing a creative workbook – possibly digital so that it can be downloaded. Anyway, all that’s for the future, for now we are parked at the motorway services just twenty minutes from home – you can be having an adventure anywhere! Denis is working and I’m talking to you.

Since the last time I blogged while travelling there’s a new law (GDPR) and I had to be sure to be sure you really, really wanted to get these emails. So if you are getting this by email then you said yes! Thank you! If you’re reading this on Facebook (or someone sent it to you) and you want to get the emails then go to mairead hennessy.com and click (or tap on) the subscribe button. Speaking of Facebook, I used to be able to post automatically there but now it’s a bit more complicated and requires a different page (The Blog) not sure how it will work… If you’re reading this on Facebook, thank you! And could you let me know how you did that! Also, please feel free to share this with anyone you think might be interested.

I know it’s confusing or maybe I’m making it more confusing, apologies! We’ll be moving on soon, the ferry will be leaving at 9pm. This post is scheduled to arrive by email tomorrow morning and in Facebook an hour earlier…

…fingers crossed. Mairead.

Gentle Guide to taking a Journey: Mont Saint Michel

| Mairead

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(Sunset near Mont Saint Michel)

I love Mont Saint Michel, I think you would too. Yes, it’s touristy. Yes, it’s a religious monument. Yes, coffee and a croissant costs more here. But there’s something… something deeply attractive about this place, something worth going out of your way to visit in a gentle way. I once heard a tour guide say the rock part had been there for thousands of years, maybe even a hundred thousand years. That’s an old rock.

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(Mont Saint Michel from 3km away on the bike path near Beauvoir)

We had a long drive from Saint Palais sur Mer on Tuesday morning and we weren’t entirely sure we’d get all the way to Mont Saint Michel. It was hot and we hadn’t started very early and there were road works. But in spite of all that Denis knew I really, really wanted to see it so we kept going. We arrived about five and although we were only 3km away I took off my shoes pulled out a deck chair and had cool drink. Denis stayed in the van and to work. Three hours later we went to get some food, forgetting we were in France. We eventually found a place open and willing to feed us. On the way back we saw the sun set and got a distant glimpse of the Mont.

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(View from the free bus stop at the end of the cycle path)

I thought that was going to be it, we were leaving early next morning and there wouldn’t be time to visit. Next morning came and it turned out we didn’t need to leave early, we really didn’t. We could just about do the drive to Cherbourg, get the work that needed to be done, done and fit everything else in before we sat in a queue for the ferry… if we left at midday. So I set off at nine to walk the 3km. From the moment I saw the little speck of it in the distance I felt it’s draw. There was a mist and I was a long way off but it was unmistakable and I didn’t want to stop until I got there.

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(View on getting off the bus)

Where the land meets the sea, they have built a road and free busses drive along this road all day (and all night if you contact them.) I wanted to try the bus, so I stopped and waited. I had to wait for three busses to pass, they were all full. Each time I wondered if it might be better to walk that last bit but I didn’t, I held out and finally a bus with just enough space stopped and I crushed in with some Canadians.

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(View from just outside the walls)

I was first off and so perfectly placed to take pictures without other people in my shot – the bonus of squashing into a bus. Then I walked through the gates and up the path passed the shops and restaurants. I retraced my steps as I knew I had less than an hour and choose three things to do. I would have loved to write for hours looking out towards the sea or in towards the monuments. I would have loved to sit with a coffee and a croissant feeling the sea breezes.

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(The narrow street)

I would have loved to take pictures from every step and every wall and of every front door. I would have loved to have sent postcards to everyone I know telling them to come visit the Mont Saint Michel. I would have loved to have taken a video of the narrow paths and lanes. I would have loved to have asked the Canadians why they choose to come here. I was free I had one hour and I could do anything but I couldn’t do everything. I choose three things: Coffee. Croissant. Postcard.

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(My view)

First I purchased the postcard. I had stamps from last year. Then I found a cafe that would sell me coffee and croissant. It took three attempts. One was finished breakfast, one had no croissants, one would be open at noon. The fourth had an upstairs with a view out to the sea but there were no seats so I went up to the next floor. My view was of the stone buildings a very long arm’s length away and little birds flying in and out of the window. (With a sign saying: don’t feed the birds, it’s not hygienic.) I wrote some postcards and ate my croissant and drank my coffee.

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(View from inside the walls)

Then it was 11am, time to leave. I walked quickly back down the stairs, along the narrow streets, past the post office, posted the cards, through the gates, along the path to the bus. I was first on the bus this time. I got off at the bike path and turned around to take one final look at the Mont. It was hazy again and small. Then I walked back to the motorhome aire.

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(There’s an angel on top of the cathedral spire)

I would love to tell you: Go visit Mont Saint Michel! If you have a motorhome it’s easy, stay at the motorhome aire in Beauvoir for €12.50 a night. If you don’t… maybe it’s possible to get a cheap Ryanair flight to Beauvais, not take the bus to Paris, but find a bus or train to take you here instead? Maybe you could stay somewhere close by so you can walk each day along by the river to the free bus?

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(Goodbye Mont Saint Michel)

Unfortunately, not everyone can go so instead maybe you would permit me to tell you: Go visit some place lovely! Your favourite forest, cafe, river, park? Walk there or park at the furthest spot and walk from there. Consider what you would love to do. Choose what you could do with the time and resources you have. Then… Do it. Stay in that lovely place until you have to come home… but before you leave take a little look back.

Thank you for joining me on the daily blog, it’s been lovely writing to you xxx Mairead.