Travel Day

The anticipation of travel adventures can be exciting. We are not feeling any stress, but most of that is due to the fact that this trip came together so easily. We are heading to France to housesit for a lovely couple and their sweet dalmation, Meeka. They, and our friend Anthony (whom we met on the TA trail) helped us acquire everything from the proper train tickets, une carte SIM locale’ (phone card), and all the extras that we might need or want, without going overboard.

Everything was planned according to when we’d land in Paris, which would give us plenty of time to get through customs, luggage and any other hiccups we may encounter. Since we’ve never flown here we have no idea what to expect, so we like to expect the worst and then we are never disappointed.

Unforutnately we encountered a delay at the airport which made our flight almost 2 hours late to depart. Thankfully the pilots said they could make up the time in the air so we’d only be an hour late to our arrival. Perhaps they build that into the flight plan? It was mostly smooth sailing, other than the first few hours where we were on a light mix speed making it difficult to eat. The food was decent enough (veggie pasta) and the plane overall was pretty nice; a newer 777 with all the extras.

We landed in Paris the following morning at 11AM, local time, though for us its actually 3AM. We were both pretty groggy as we swept toward the front of the plane to depart as fast as possible. I was concerned that we wouldn’t make our first (of 2) trains since we could be delayed in customs or have trouble finding our way through the maze that is the CDG airport.

But we had no issues and managed to get through the rigamarole in less than 30 minutes. It took us awhile to find the right path to the station and had to resort to the dreaded information desk. Thank goodness they speak English! 🙂

It was a 10 minute walk to the SNCF station with loads of hustle and bustle. The terminal screens didn’t have our train on it so we found a place to sit amongst the crowd and tried to keep ourselves awake. There are loads of little stores and shops surrounding the central terminal of the station where people were rushing about. Its fun to hear so many different languages, I caught some Japanese, French, of course, German, Mandarin (or some variety of), and English.

My stomach was feeling a little queasy as we made our way to the platform. I have no idea how this whole process will work, but we just got in the big group of people and loaded onto our carriage (lucky number 8). Jake had to haul our massive luggage up the narrow stairs of the train since we are top-deck. Fingers crossed that no one steals it.

Our journey to Rennes is 3 hours from Paris. The train supposedly can go 200+ MPH, but its hard to say how fast its moving. I could see the Eiffel Tower way out into the distance but vanished behind a hill in minutes. It was nothing but rolling fields of gold and green, bushy trees and scattered dots of animals; cows and sheep. The background faded into a blur and I couldn’t keep my eyes open another minute.

Once in awhile I’d come back to consciousness to an announcement for the next stop; all in French so I couldn’t understand a word. The train wasn’t very crowded until halfway through the journey when we picked up a large group, many of which were children and all sitting in the top deck with us. They were actually pretty cute speaking in French and really excited for wherever they were heading. I’m jealous. Maybe if I listen hard enough it will click in my brain and make sense too!

With only a few minutes until our scheduled arrival in Rennes, Jake grabbed our big bag and shuffled down the narrow stairs, along with everyone else. We all piled out unceremoniously onto the platform and into pouring rain. Ugh I didn’t have a proper rain jacket and didn’t want to get soaked, so we did our best to get onto the escalator up into the station.

The Rennes station is much smaller than the one in Paris but just as crowded. I wanted to go to the bathroom but they charge € 0,80 so I decided to hold it until the train. I didn’t have any cash on hand and thought they wouldn’t take a credit card for such a silly thing. Its only an hour wait. Jake found some seats near a window and watched a random bunch of people take turns playing the traveling piano in the lobby. Impressive.

Train no. 2 was not nearly as comfy as the first. There was no quiet compartment and the luggage had to squeeze in with us. But the journey is only an hour and we can deal. It was hard to see out the windows with rain and fog so I tried to doze off but found it more fun to eavesdrop on the people sitting in front of us, discussing something heatedly in French. I had no clue but it was still very entertaining.

Last stop: Guingamp (say it like GANG-GONE). There were a lot of travelers getting off with us and we didn’t know exactly where to go, we just followed the group.There were 3 different Sortie (exit) signs and we just picked the middle and up the stairs out onto the street. Our hosts’ Lynne and Ian were ready and waiting, waved us over. AHHH relief.

Its always a little bit scary to put yourselves at the whim of complete strangers that you have never met. But its kind of thrilling to, having complete faith in other people. We have never been disappointed and Lynne and Ian were no exception. They are adorable couple from England who have lived in France for the last decade.

I love this part where you can finally relax and let your mind turn off without a care, thought or worry. The drive to their home went by in a flash, even though it took over 30 minutes, but we just chatted with each other getting to know little tidbits here and there. I didn’t pay too much attention to where we were heading, but the scenery was lovely.

We got “home” at 1800 hours (or 6PM) local time and pulled down the long drive. Their home was absolutely breathtaking. Exactly how I imagined it! We also got to meet little Meeka who was so sweet.

We barely walked inside when we were offered some welcome hot English (proper) tea with milk. Lynne fixed the most fantastic homemade lasagna, bread (from the local boulangerie) with salty butter (channel Homer Simpson), homemade cabbage slaw and salad and a fantastic homemade apple tart. It was all so delicious my taste buds wouldn’t stop tingling. Oh an of course, red wine to boot!

We were pretty much zombies at this point, yet somehow we managed to stay awake for another 6 hours chatting with our hosts. The sun doesn’t set here until after 10PM, so it didn’t feel at all weird staying up so late.

We hadn’t even seen any other part of the house yet and figured we could do it in the morning. Lynne showed us to our wing of the house, which has a living room, and the upstairs bedrooms and bath. The bed looked like something out of a dream, it was gigantic (one of the largest I’ve ever seen) and had lovely luscious pillows that were calling my name. Forget unpacking or washing up, I was down for the count.

A home in the valley

12 hours later and I only bothered to wake up because I really had to pee. It took me a few seconds to get my bearings. I definitely felt strange, a little light headed and yet pretty well-rested too. Jake was already gone and I could hear his voice trailing faintly from downstairs. I needed something to wake me up so I jumped in the shower and washed the groggy off of me.

Everyone had already eaten but they left me some porridge and milk, fruit, juice and toast to enjoy for a very late breakfast / early lunch. It was so nice and relaxed and fun to get to know Lynne and Ian and their Meeka girl.

The only thing on our agenda for the day was to do a little impromptu drive around the neighborhood to nearby villages and shops that we will eventually know like the back of our hand. This particular area of France is a hidden gem because not many people travel this far inland unless they live here or have family nearby. That’s perfectly suited to our taste; we love the quiet, secluded areas of the world.

We ended up spending a good 3 hours in the car so it felt nice when we got back home and walked around the property. Ian gave us the grand tour through the massive forest. Their land spans 12 acres and is lined with a river, a rock quarry and loads of paths to explore through the trees and around the gardens.

The forest reminded me of our hike in New Zealand, specifically “the green hell”. We called it that because it was never-ending expanse of mud and trees and green that felt like a vortex into another dimension, and it was simply brutal to hike. This forest is not really a hell, its more of an enchanted land out of a fairy tale. Thick ferns line the ground and tall birch, maple, willow, pine and hazelnut trees tower overhead. There are piles of hydrangea flowers all over and the daylilies are in full bloom. There are no sounds but that of the wind, the birds and insects, all things nature.

Towards the back end of the lot, there is a very large trench and an old mill, or what used to be a mill and is now covered in green moss and foliage. The paths are dug out like a trench, which is perfect because it offers tons more ability to span the entire width of the property, even though its so heavily forested. It started to rain on our walk but the trees provided enough canopy to shelter us.

The original house was built in the 1500’s but has obviously been updated. Ian and Lynne built the kitchen and upper floor which is now their master bedroom themselves. The “original” layout of the home now feels much larger and includes a small office, washing space (which used to be the kitchen), living room and bathroom, and then the upstairs with 2 more bedrooms and a bathroom and separate toilet room. The layout is very unique but its so cozy and comfortable.

One thing I love is how our hosts talk about this place. They don’t feel like they own it, but that they are the stewards to keep it for the next generations to come. They simply maintain for the future. They even planted a willow forest for easy access to firewood in the winter months. So wise.

The best part is the land around the property and all of the other structures besides the main home. Each serve various purposes and are so reminiscent of the type of spaces that we eventually want. My absolute favorite is the koi pond and the art gazebo in the back.

After getting the grand tour, we are so thrilled that this the home we get to look after and sweet puppy to care for in the next month and change. It should be eye opening and hopefully we will come away with loads of knowledge, and maybe even some hope of speaking or understanding French (its a futile hope). I know there will be loads more in store for us.

That evening, we shared dinner with some neighbors and friends of our hosts, Kate and Tony who are also from England. We had a feast including chicken stew, mashed potatoes, bread, butter, wine, cheese, (and more wine) and fruit and merengue for dessert. We were having such a great time I think that my cheeks were sore from too much laughing, always a great problem to have.

Oh and here is a fun fact: did you know that much of the wine here can be purchased for under 3€/bottle?!

It was so fun we didn’t go to bed until after midnight yet again. I still haven’t unpacked anything but we’re just having too much fun.