Method to my madness....
(tuesday)
Yes there is honest – I was planning on an early start and into Annecy in the morning for breakfast – but – I had a restless nights sleep, mainly due to the pain in my legs – constantly waking and turning…so to this end I actually slept in till 10am….up and hungry I set out to refuel my poor legs with 2 coffees and 2 croissants at the local patisserie…. Then looked at getting into Annecy – I knew parking would be expensive, but noticed that a museum on the outskirts gave free parking – as it was closed from 12-2 – as per normal hours in france, I decided I would park there and walk into town and therefore not have to pay. Getting the last spot on the parking lot and the 3 mins walk into town made me feel rather pleased with myself.
Annecy itself on the outskirts was clearly a major town – lots of flats, shops and takeaway places – on the lake side was the ‘Venetian’ side to it, canals and shops , eateries, souvenirs etc, and some nice architecture from days gone by, but it did feel a tad manufactured … people did not now live here and use it to make a living, if you catch my drift, it was merely a tourist attraction, predominately lined with restaurants,. I took a few pics and headed to the area where the major town hall and courts were, a 4 scoop ice cream in hand (café, pistache, ferrero rocher, chocolate) via the lake side taking some pics as I went. It was nice, and as I made my way through the ‘normal’ city streets, it was as I thought, a city, same style of shops and places to eat as everywhere else…. Mc’y D’s anyone?
I headed out of the city and towards Talloires – a small village famed for its restaurants…. They certainly had the famed prices too…. You even had to pay to access the Lake side, but after a brief conversation with the American ‘doorman’ she let me through for free….
I tried to get some height next to get wider Lake pictures and capture the intense cyan blue that could only really be seen from above and overcast days (like today)….but the camera didn’t seem to capture it – or more accurately the operator couldn’t get the best from the camera J
I was back at the campsite and into my favourite Tour de France bar, where I had ½ litre of vin rouge and a vegetarian pizza (I’ve not been getting enough vegetables!) …and a coffee and saw Lance and Cancellera tied for top spot! I still was snack’y and so headed to the local corner shop where I spotted BN biscuits!!! I first came across these when on my first budget trip to Paris…with allocated spends per day, these were the only things we could afford, and what a find. Tasty, cereal like biscuits, similar to Farleys Rusks from the UK…. But square – about a little finger in thickness too…. Purchasing some milk, I had found my dessert….
Back in the room I cracked open the milk and biccies and watched the world go by from the window – as I munched through biscuit 11 , glass of milk number 2, tearing the packet further open, I noticed a picture, 4 biscuits = 1 bowl of cereal….i continued to 14.
So my thoughts now turn to the future plans as I have a bit of time on my hands this evening. I am off to Swiss side of the border in a campsite recommended by COOL CAMPING EUROPE – its near to the Eiger (actually at its base) and to some mountain bike places too. From then on I had intended to go through Swiss and into Austria and Germany then down into Italy. It was clear that France (and therefore Italy) would be getting busier and busier the more into august and school holidays we got…. I hope Switzerland, Austria and Germany would be quieter…. Saying that there was something really nice about this area…but I guess its good to be heading off soon, not to get too tied to somewhere with so many other places to explore….
Reading mt DK EYEWITNESS guide to France, southern France looks splendid, with so many cities, towns and places to visit , Monte Carlo, Montpellier, Nice, Cannes, Cote D’ Azure, coastal areas as well as abbeys, chateau’s and monuments….definitely September, when the crowds are gone and the prices a little cheaper!
(ps I am using a new way of uploading photos - its quicker for me, but it means you have an extra click at the bottom into a 'collection' of pics for the day. These collections also allow audio,video, books and other things, so i hope to extend it to more than just pics....)
