Skip to main content

French national sport - Boules!

Day 16  Tue 30.7.19
We left our hosts, Brian & Marianne with a tinge of sadness.  They had been such good hosts.  A steady, gentle drive through miles and miles of unspoilt countryside.  It one good thing about France, - they have back roads that run for miles without much traffic.  Drove to Plaisance in the Tarn valley and camped in the municipal site there.  Cheap as chips, but very welcoming, and easy going. 
When I asked which pitch we should use, the gracious manageress (about my age) said, "ou vous voulez" - wherever you want.
When I asked when she wanted paying, she wasn't worried so long as I paid before I left.You could be forgiven for believing that the Tour de France is the French national sport.  Or even rugby.  But I need to tell you that throughout France a more popular sport has poll position.
It's the game of boules!  And while I waited patiently for dinner to be served, I was treated to the thrill of the locals thrashing it out on the dusty tracks of the campsite.
Always some debate about who is nearest

Tape measure to prove who won


For those unfamiliar with the sport, it is a great game, and I do have a degree of skill myself.  But skill is not the only requirement.
A good dose of luck is required too.
At one point, the best player out of the two teams managed to throw his boule perfectly accurately, only to have it hit a tiny pebble and ricochet off in a completely different direction.  This caused a great deal of hilarity from the other players.
Great game.  I watched for about 30 minutes, trying hard to remember the rules when playing in teams.
Pre-dinner snack!

In the evening we walked up to the church on top of the hill to catch the view from on high.
From the church at the top of the village.  Our van R of centre.

Nice place.  
Cost us about 12 Euros for the night.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gorges du Tarn

Day 18  1.8.19 Gorges du Tarn!  Wow! After leaving our van step-up behind on the campsite, we drove from Les Vignes up the Gorges du Tarn to St Enimie. Gorges du Tarn What a splendidly spectacular ride it was!  At one point the road went under an overhanging rock which had a viewing platform jutting out even further into the gorge!  Marvellous! We stopped at St Enimie for lunch. Tried to park in the area reserved for “BUS”, but immediately got moved on by the local gendarme.  The other campers who were there before also got the wrath of the gendarmerie! We parked slightly out of town, and went in search of lunch.  The main cafes were on the street overlooking the gorge, so we looked behind at smaller places.  A good idea, because we got the most amazing lunch at a very reasonable price.  It was more than ample, and we tucked in. Waddling back to the van was a bit of a struggle but we made it, and then headed for Ispanac before ...
Post a Comment
Read more

le Puy de Dome volcanic area

Day 19    Fri 2.8.19 Left our and its over crowded wash block.   We were up and out early to catch the mountain rack-driven train to le Puy de Dome, an extinct volcano!  We tried booking on line to save 10%, but it was such a palaver that in the end we just turned up early and caught the train up to the top.   15 Bucks each.  Well, 14 for me, as I’m old now.   A spectacular 20 minute ride to the top.  A glorious day so the scenery was superb.  It was worth every penny.   Le Puy de Dome (1500 metres) It was possible to walk up, but it would have taken about 2 hours.  The train was the clear winner!   "Life is like a mountain railway" At the top there was a temple to Mercury, which had been re-sited from somewhere else.  Also a telecoms setup that took my attention (obviously).   And there were scores of people queueing up to do paragliding, from the top.  It was great up there. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Getting to Gorges du Tarn

Day 17   Wed 31.7.19 On our way to the slow return home.  Our target destination was the Gorges du Tarn. Not a long drive, just over an hour and we were at the southern end of Gorges du Tarn.  The approach was over big, rolling hills.   We passed under the Millau bridge.  A superb bit of engineering. I stopped the van to take a picture of the suspension bridge, and as I walked into a nearby field locusts started jumping all over the place as I walked!    Locust Then the scenery turned more rugged, and we found ourselves on a winding road next to the river Tarn.   Stopped off for lunch at an unknown place right next to the Tarn, before finally stopping at Camping Terrados, Les Vignes on a 3 star campsite, for 20 Euros.   Not posh, but adequate.   Our pitch was right next to the river.  By that I mean 20 metres away.  A short slide down the bank and one could be in the river, -...
1 comment
Read more