When Titch came to stay.

My friend Titch came over for a week in early June. We are good friends having known each other for 20 years or so, so it is always good to spend time with her. She has a very busy life and I always like to try and make her relax whilst she is here, not easy! Sadly this year the weather wasn't very good so she didn't have much chance to lie in the garden and "sosk up some rays" However, I think that she found the calm and comfort of our spare room quite relaxing particularly in the afternoon around siesta time.
The plan was that I would meet her, off the airport shuttle bus, in the centre of Bordeaux as we were spending the night in Bordeaux. However, my friend Helene, had to go into Bordeaux in the morning so I got a lift in from her. We had lunch together and she dropped me off at the airport. Titch was quite surprised to find me lurking in arrivals! We csught the shuttle into the town centre and checked into our hotel. I had booked us a room at the hotel de l'opera which is right in the centre. It was not expensive but, thankfully, clean and adequate with a rather shabby charm!
We went out and had a drink at one of the many cafes in the square and then had a look around the nearby restaurants to see where we would eat later in the evening. I had done a search on the web so we were off to a good start as there are so many restaurants in the area. We decided to eat at the Mabley which was not too far from our hotel and I popped in to make a reservation. Back at our hotel we showered and changed in readiness for our night on the town!! Titch wore a dress and high heels, I hate the fact that she can still spend most of her day in heels, not something that I can do anymore.
A short stroll and we were soon seated at our table. The restaurant was empty when we arrived but it soon filled up and our waiter was very jolly and helpful. Four courses and a bottle of wine later we went back to the square and had coffee whilst watching the world go by before returning to our hotel.

Titch by the Garonne

Next morning we bought ourselves some patisserie and decided to walk down to the banks of the Garonne and find a place to have a coffee. Whilst we were walking down there a young woman was walking the other way and when she was almost in front of us she appeared to bend down and pick something up off the floor. She approached us and showed us what she had picked up which seemed to be a man's wedding ring. She asked us if it was gold and I took it off her and had a look, it appeared to be hall marked and I said so and handed it back to her. She then said that she hadnt time to do anything about it and started to walk off. We looked at each other and thought that we ought to hand it in somewhere and she then came back and asked us for money for food. What a scam!! I was so angry that I just threw it at her and it rolled off down the pavement. We carried on our way without a backward glance. After a welcome cup of coffee at a small cafe we went and sat by the banks of the river to eat our pain aux raisins and croissant.

We then strolled along for a while before crossing a wooden bridge over the busy main road and into the Place de Qinconces with its magnificient fountain and statue.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_des_Quinconces
We spent quite some time there marvelling at the wonderful sight before walking on to the tourist office and buying cards and souvenirs before going for another coffee and watching the world go by and then back to the hotel to check out and leave our luggage to collect later
Then it was time to hit the shops in the rue Ste Catherine which is the longest pedestrianised street in Europe. We had a very pleasant break for lunch in a small restaurant situated in a small square where we were seranaded by three men of a certain age who were very entertaining. Another look around the shops on our way back to pick up our luggage and leave for the station to catch the train to Mont de Marsan.
I thought that I had left plenty of time and knew where to catch the tram but the best laid plans and all that!! The tram line that goes to the station was not running due to an accident, something which is almost an everyday occurence apparently. We were told to get the tram to the Place de la Victoire and then catch the bus from there to the station. The tram was crowded but we did manage to do the journey and arrived at the station with only 10 minutes to spare before our train left. We didn't have time to buy tickets and rushed to the platform where we had to find the station manager who would sort out the lack of tickets for us. One of his lackeys told us that he would be there shortly and that the train next to where we were standing was the one going to Mpnt de Marsan. What an idiot!! It was actually on the next platform and we saw it leave at that moment! Ah well, that's life. The next train was in an hour and half so we bought ourselves some sandwiches, rang Nigel to tell him of the delay, bought the tickets and went across to the cafe for a drink and to wait until the train was due.
I had a very daunting experience the next day when we played bridge together at the club in Mont de Marsan. Daunting because Titch teaches bridg and is a very good player. It was not helped by the fact that it wasn't just a normal afternoons friendly bridge but a nationwide competition. Not surprisingly we came last although Titch was kind enough to say that it wasn't all completely down to me but I didn't believe her!
On Friday Titch and I went to Dax for the day. Of course the first thing that we did was find a terrace on which to have a restorative coffee and watch the world go by. After a good look round the town we had a lazy lunch before another stroll around the town and a visit to the post office to buy stamps. Titch could not believe how long one has to wait in a French post office! A salutary experience for her. As we finally came out of the post office the heavens opened and the thunder cracked and of course our umbrellas were in the car. Luckily the downpour didn't last long and we made it to a cafe where I had a fruity, non-alcoholic cocktail and Titch had a disgustingly large ice cream confection before going back home.
On the Saturday Titch's son, Doug, wife Lucy and their 2 children called in. It was quite by coincidence that they were holidaying not far from here and I was so pleased to see them as I had not seen Doug for many years and had never met his family. After a chat and a look around the garden we all went out for lunch at a ferme auberge not far away, http://la.ferme.aux.cerfs.pagesperso-orange.fr/ where we had a very substantial meal before saying goodbye to them and returning home.
Sunday morning saw us visiting a car boot sale at Fargues and then another one on the way back home. On Monday I took Titch into Grenade to visit the museum of Rugby Titch had then hoped to have lunch at the hotel in Grenade where we had had such a memorable lunch during her last visit but sadly it was closed.
All too soon it was time for her to leave and I took her into Mont de Marsan to catch the train back to Bordeaux and thence to the airport. Thankfully we were well in time for the train this time and she already had her ticket! I was sure that she could have caught the later train but she was adamant that she wanted to get to the airport in good time. In the end it didn't matter as when she got to the airport she learned that her flight was cancelled due to a strike by air traffic control! I offered to go and get her as the next flight was 2 days later but, surprisingly, Easyjet paid for her to stay at the nearby Holiday Inn until the next flight.
There is a slideshow of our day in Bordeaux at the bottom of this page.