Leaving Rennes for 'Home'.

It was not a good night! Jetlag has a habit of doing weird things to our heads. A migraine was doing a major 'job' on mine, and I was not in possession of the necessary Excedrin Migraine tablets. I had forgotten to pack any, so ordinary Tylenol were the go-to meds, and they did the job...only thing was...it was 5am! I had trouble getting to sleep, just after midnight, so I figure I had about 3 1/2 hrs sleep all up. Waz woke up and we watched the dawn together, sitting up in bed with our computers on our laps, reading the news and watching the progress of Hurricane Hermine, across the Florida Panhandle, hoping like crazy that Jacksonville wasn't in it's path! Phew! It wasn't and passed north. Brunswick, Georgia, our last summer's destination was hit rather badly, and they are now cleaning up. Friends in Tarpon Springs had about 10 inches of rain, during the day.

With that good news, and having heard from our boat-sitters that everything was fine...just 30mph winds and heavy rain...we stopped worrying!

Around 7am, we were dressed and ready to go back to the Rennes Train Station to our favorite Boulangerie. We had breakfast there yesterday too!

With a Café au Lait and two croissants of different varieties under out belts....no pianist this morning...too early, I think. 
Back at the hotel we packed up and sat on our beds waiting for 10am to roll around. This is when the car was booked for...we thought. Never mind that neither of us checked the reservation..aiee! Are we stupid or what?
It was jacket weather that early in the morning. So, with all our 'stuff'...and having now acquired another bag (supermarket cloth bag) with 'stuff' in that too, we made our way down the escalier and our the front door of the Station, around the corner to the Car rental place. WOW! They had the heat on in there, and it was stifling.
Something about the French....the car was actually booked for 11am (what were we thinking??)...so we were TOLD in no uncertain terms, to WAIT! Yep...we sat there for another hour to wait for the car. Crikey! After 45 mins I got up and pointedly (I thought) stood with the door wide open, fanning myself, and hopefully very red in the face! The Thrifty agent obviously got the message, because he turned heat into cool, on the heat pump in the office:) Well done!
So...the delivery fella arrived with the car keys. Thank goodness it wasn't the two door Fiat Bambina. I told them that hadn't been on the order form, and they nicely told me they had upgraded us to a Ford Fiesta four door...and...wait for it...Just what we ordered...Diesel! Yay!  Today it was 1.045 euros, per litre. at the local Bricomarche (hardware store).

As usual, I have to go backwards a little.

After our breakfast, we needed a walk. We do this! and what better way to explore our surroundings? it was chilly, so we had our jackets zippered right up. This is definitely fall weather. Cool mornings and evenings, and hot days! Love it!
A parking lot about 1km from where we started. Love the Hummingbird  graffiti.
We did a large loop, looking in shop windows, observing everyday people doing everyday things. Lots of folks start their days with a cigarette and espresso, and some even eat a croissant with that. We are appalled at the cigarette butts everywhere! We observed only one person making an attempt to clean the sidewalk and gutters.

 Another view of this artwork, just as the sun is rising, 7.30am-ish.

As I have already stated, we returned to our hotel room, checked out and made our way to the car rental place.
With a car now assigned to us, we put our bags et al in the car and set up the GPS. I like to take 5 to orient myself with what is going on in the car...well, what works and where, as it were.
I go to start the car. Foot on brake, nothing but red lights on the dashboard! Hmmmm...then I laugh my head off! DUH! it is a standard shift car! Heavens, Monica, where is your head, girl??? After so little sleep, I can forgive myself, but remind me to take things slowly, and be totally onto it on the road from hereonin! Good idea! there are no shoulders on the road, so I need to be alert.

With so much construction going on, and one way streets, we eventually find the right road, and yes, it all looks familiar:) We enjoy pointing out places we remember from last year!

The GPS lady made us take an unfamiliar exit off the highway. Hmm...now where? Not a bad choice as we were driving along country roads....large smiles on our faces as the countryside unfolded before us, and we began to sing...welcome home! Yes, it feels so wonderful to be back in Brittany, and wonderful to feel so at home here:)

The worms were biting again...with breakfast  a distant memory, and it being just after noon, we stopped at a small town Boulanger. Armed with two Americaine Sandwiches...Waz had ham, I had tuna...a 12-14inch baguette with egg, lettuce, tomato and our choice of meat/fish...fresh crusty bread that macerates the roof of my mouth! Waz reckons I eat it wrong, lol.

We also ordered an espresso each, and oh...those pastries look awfully good! Maybe we will take one for later:)...and we did!
We sat in the car and inhaled the sandwiches...baguette thing...and drank the coffee...thankful for the boost to our energy.
Back on the country roads, we eventually found ourselves in a familiar place on the outskirts of Guer...on the road that goes to the Bricomarche. We drove past a house that had been under construction this time last year, and marveled that though I was now finished, it also looked like it was still under construction. Nothing had been done to the grounds to beautify it.
Through Guer and out the other side, with a stop at our favorite small box supermarket, Lidl, a German brand. We like it for it's no fuss and the prices are great. I took these photos to give you an idea.
All the fruit and veg is just left in the boxes...nothing fussy, but it is very fresh. No frills at all, but great prices. Better than a regular supermarche.

 Our favorite tomatoes taste like candy! delicious. I have had these on my mind since we left last year! Pigeon Heart ...they are small and packed with flavor.

It is bed time, officially...I will continue this in the morning over breakfast. I am making French toast using some slightly stale croissants. will take a photo if they taste good:)  Night night!

Bonjour! Today is Sunday. I am getting a bit behind on all this blogging, but other things have had to take precedence.

It rained in the night. Not much, but a steady drizzle by the look of things. I was hoping for a downpour for the poor dry plants. Everywhere we have been to date, it is brown and dry. They have had searing temperatures in France in August, which most are happy about, and the farmers obviously got their hay made and other crops in. This time last year there were still crops in the field down the road, but this year it has been cleared and is fallow.

After purchasing all the necessary and some unnecessary goodies...mostly food, we packed them all into the little car, and drove the final 8kms to the Chateau.
The poor hydrangeas along the driveway were desperate for water, but they are low on the list of priorities.

We opened the kitchen window wide and let the cooling breeze blow through. This inspired us to pen all the other windows and doors, as much as possible, and air the house out.
I can see that we will spend a lot of time in this kitchen with it's generous table.

 We went off to do a recce, to see what had changed in the year since we were here last. Lots! I might tell you:) Someone has been very busy clearing the property and it looks wonderful. We will enjoy walking the land and keeping it.

 All the hotter than normal weather has taken it's toll on the Dahlias outside the Manoir.  They were glorious this time last year (to the day, almost), but not this time.

We knew we would have only the Pony and three sheep to look after this year. Pony came running, whickering as he came. I'm sure he knew our voices, and my high pitched "Pony,pony,pony!!!!" call from the gate. Being a Shetland pony, he is a bit naughty. He loves to nip and side on kick! hmmm...got to keep out of his way, especial hindquarters!

I managed to get some stinging nettles on my ankle when I went into the field to give pony some attention. Not fun! but I didn't rub it, and knew to leave well alone. It does sting, but went away the next day.
It doesn't get dark till well after 8pm, so we are having late dinners. This was our first dinner at the Chateau and the taste was fantastic. All those FRESH things...Chicken with courgette, mushroom, lardons (bacon bits) and some crème fraiche to top it off. I forgot the eschalots (shallots) that I had bought for just this purpose, but never mind.  We finished with some strawberries, for dessert.

 The pigeon Coeur tomatoes tasted fabulous, as did everything else!

 The front entry always makes me giggle. Fuzzy photo...low light..sorry!

After such a long day and not much sleep the night before, we turned in early, having made our bed and cleaned the bathroom. The owners left in a hurry a few days earlier, so that was one of our many jobs.

We slept like logs! Not much sound other than the fan we bought for airflow. You cant leave windows open at night because of the bats!