Digging about in my gear, I had ordinary lycra cycling tights (not water proof or resistant), wool socks to go with my Keen sandals, excellent Burley rain jacket, and a shower cap that fits over my bike helmet. At the end of the day, some simple nylon rain pants would have been better, and I changed from regular to full-fingered gloves. The rain largely stopped after 2 pm, and we arrived at our lodging a bit after 4 pm. More on that later.
Lola Explains the House Rules and French Customs. Our starter was fresh tomatoes from Lola's garden, dressed with olive oil and fresh basil, bread, and and a baked filo-type dough with cheese, sort of like pie crust. The main course was shredded pork cooked in white wine for 8 hours, rice, and lentils. Dessert was flan followed by the three-cheese assortment.
No cheese before the meal, you heathen!
Ready for Rain
John's 16th Century Conquistador Rain Outfit. Hardly a French fashion statement, even for geezer American cyclists.
Au Reviour. Lola was extremely busy and possibly a little over extended. She purchased and remodeled this house (the 3rd floor renovation is in progress), makes wine, vinegars, jams and jellies, gardens, and keeps the B & B going. So, perhaps she was happy to see us go, despite the rain.
Robin: What the ****? Dressed for rain.
Michael Pleads with the Rain Gods — To no avail, at least not immediately. Rain alternated from a drizzle to downpour until about 1300.
Windmills on the Ridge separating us from the coast. We climbed over the ridge, fortunately not a very steep grade on an excellent road surface. Much of it was a national or regional park or reserve.
Waiting for the Others to Descend. John's maps.me app was directing him to a more inland route on smaller roads. I was following my paper map route which also matched the maps.me preferred auto route. However, silt-laden water was running off road banks and across the road, so I advocated the more direct route, as traffic was extremely light. Few people were out, perhaps because the rain delayed the grape harvest.
Our First View of the Mediterranean.
Numerous Bike Trails and Lanes.
Dry Again. Well, the road surface was dry, we were still wet.
Lodging Issues
Booking lodging on-line can pose special issues when using booking.com, hotels.com, airbnb, or any other web approach. The first issue, finding the place by bicycle, was simplified with our maps.me app. We download detailed area maps in advance and then can use our phones without cell access.
We reserved Le Hameau du Rivage 224 3 stars, Rue du Danemark Residence le Hameau du Rivage Ndeg 224, 66750 Saint-Cyprien, France, via booking.com. Our confirming email said to contact them by phone or email. I confirmed by email, noting that we were traveling by bike and expected to arrive between 1400 and 1600. The email said the apartment was available after 1500. We arrived about 1600, had some difficulty identifying the apartment, and found the gate and apartment locked. The booking.com call center (located where?) responded that they would contact the owner. To make a long story short, we arrived at 1615, and Peter finally arrived at 1900. Peter blamed us for not phoning our confirmation, until we showed him our bookign.com email stating our arrival time and need to store bikes securely. John forced open the gate to the back yard and we all huddled under the overhang, mostly out of the rain, for nearly 3 hours. Unhappy campers all around.
While waiting, we did manage to get the wifi password directly from the owner. After Peter left, someone discovered about 10 squares left on the bathroom roll of toilet paper. We called Peter, and he returned about 45 minutes later, handing us a single roll. Must be a local shortage.
While waiting, we did manage to get the wifi password directly from the owner. After Peter left, someone discovered about 10 squares left on the bathroom roll of toilet paper. We called Peter, and he returned about 45 minutes later, handing us a single roll. Must be a local shortage.
The apartment is part of a holiday complex. The private pool advertised in the listing turned out to be the closed for winter pool for the entire complex. With few options around, John and Robin rode to a small local market and bought food to cook dinner. I cooked, pasta in an olive, tomato, and ham sauce with local red wine, and fresh baguettes.
We were treated to overnight lightning and thunder storms. Morning was overcast, but the weather app showed the rain probability at 60%+ all morning, ending about 5 pm, so we reserved another night. Our first night was 86 euros, the owner asked just 40 euros for the second night, so this is another rest day.
Our Saint Cyprien Apartment. The overhang and awning were essential. We decided to stay a second night due to the forecast of heavy rain overnight and all day Wednesday.
Small but Workable Kitchen. I volunteered to take the sofa bed at right.
Ladder/Stairs. Michael, the former contractor, was amazed a builder could get safety inspectors' approvals with a stair this steep. John and Michael had the two loft beds, Peter had the downstairs bedroom.
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