The process of setting up camp for what will likely turn into a longer stay, seems to follow a familiar pattern for us. At first it’s just chairs and table, this time with our new smaller and durable mat we got for occasions when the pitch surface isn’t up for walking around barefoot.
This is the basic overnight pitch...
Then, as it becomes clear we are going to be staying, out comes the bigger mat, so Mr B has his own yoga one to move around wherever the shade can be found in the mornings; as well as the solar lights and flagpole, of course…
Next is usually the unloading of the bikes for shopping (Freddy and his very handy baguette carrier shown here)...
as well as the trolley and beach loungers, parasol for specific shade, the washing line…
Unusually, we haven’t put the awning out in any of these, as we have enjoyed the big open skies, and the pitch was providing enough shade from the trees. Except, by the time we had been on the pitch for over a week, the sun was getting higher, hotter (33c) and we cracked, grateful after all for that additional area of artificial shade…
Daily life revolves around very basic activities in places like this: and most days include going to the beach to read, swim and walk… And, as we reached a time when the southern German States were on school holidays, we became very grateful that we had chosen the site we had, as can be seen by the relative levels of beach activity on our site…
...and the one next door when we took our daily walk after the arrival of loads of younger German families…
The hotter weather also meant we had some unexpected guests – with an invasion of ‘les fourmis’ – teeny tiny little ants! Discovered by Mrs B when she reached for the daily baguette, safe, or so we thought, in its linen bag and hung up out of harms’ way, she pulled the bread out of its paper wrapper only to find it covered in 100s of petits fourmis – eek!
With Mr B on ant-hunting duties, we thought we had seen the last of them, until a few hours later we found them in most of the food related drawers, with confident convoys moving in all directions! After removing and cleaning all the drawers, and implementing Mrs B’s preferred natural approach to the deterrence of ants, using essential oils, all seemed to be well. But we had clearly been lulled into a false sense of security, when, the very next day it became clear that les fourmis had just been biding their time, returning in their thousands this time (or so it seemed!).
Abandoning all efforts to use a natural method, Mr B reached for his chemical/biological warfare pack (a recent purchase in France when we realised our trusty bottle of Spanish ‘stop-em-dead’ had run out). Untested until now, it seems almost as deadly, and after a couple of hours of death, destruction and copious post-war clean-ups, we now think we free of ants; save the odd straggler of course...
Most days sees Mr B doing his yoga entirely outside Evie. Whilst travelling on the road he does it inside, which is not ideal, for either of us! This view from his yoga mat shows why he enjoys the outdoor version so much more!
One of the reasons we have headed to the south is to enjoy the warmer evenings where it’s possible to sit outside well into the evening, eating, drinking, putting the world to rights, and sometimes continuing our long running Scrabble wars, which continue to see Mrs B triumph more often than not!
Staying for a little while in one place also means we get a chance to chat with locals in the shops and other visitors to the site, with German folk frequently being the most sociable. This is partly because Mr B has a habit of wishing all and sundry a good morning/evening/day or ‘Bon Appetit’ as he wanders around from one campsite job to the next, often disappearing for chunks of time; and partly as German visitors currently make up the vast majority of campers at Beauséjour.
So you can imagine our surprise one evening over dinner, when the occupants of the German motorhome recently arrived in the pitch opposite, seemed to be talking in Russian; a language Mr B has the unusual distinction of having studied at school, and Mrs B has an ear for, it seems! Not that Mr B’s Grade 9 (the lowest of three degrees of failure – those were the days!) was going to stand him in good stead though!
Unable to resist, it wasn’t long before Mr B and our new neighbour were chatting in German – and yes – we had indeed heard Russian being spoken, as the family had moved to Germany from Kazakhstan after the collapse of the Soviet Union. It is also somewhere we had been thinking about recently, as our fellow campervan travellers Sue and Steve are currently in Uzbekistan and recently travelled along the shared border! What a small world it is...
Admiring the very swish A class Hymer that Paul, Valentina and their kids Dani and Mischa were travelling in, it transpired that Paul works for Hymer (pronounced Heemer we now realise) and the family has the van on trial, which might also explains the unique number plate!
We also look forward where we can to eating out when we settle somewhere, and this site has a great restaurant (Chez Milou – still the same staff and basic but delicious menu) within easy walking distance, where Mr B always gains an extra level of ‘glow’ after doing his best to order in French…
And, after a delicious helping of sole, hake and awesome skinny fries, as we were walking back to Evie with the sun going down and a slight wobble in Mr B’s step, we could just make out the faint sound of that elusive owl in the distance…
S&J 03.06.26
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