We left home with plenty of time to travel to Poole, 24 hours in fact before the ferry time. With a Campingcar the holiday starts the minute you leave home, a nights stay in the UK before the ferry trip sees you fresh for the journey.
I had a final pay cheque that I needed to bank, I needed a branch of Nat West, the Far Cotton branch was on the way, when we got there it was gone. On to Towcester, no, Brackley, no, Abingdon couldn't find one, finally Newbury we parked, paid £1 and walked a short distance to the branch.
This must influence the choice for the traveler of a banker for travel funds. I had an Abbey National BS card, the monthly bill always seemed to need to be paid when we were away, and must be paid at a branch counter. A feature of our holidays became a search around what ever county we were in for a branch, no fun.
My final favorite that has seen me well is Nationwide BS there are branches everywhere and no fee for European withdrawals. Internet transfers of funds are possible also.
In the queue for the ferry I looked in the safe, a solid steel job bolted through the floor of the van and to the wall, in a concealed place, an essential item I believe.
Despite meticulous packing and checks. I found the passports in the safe, but no ferry tickets, imagine the panic. 'All' documents in the safe were removed by both of us and examined more than once. Then I found them stuck verticaly to the side hidden under the lip.
For many the ferry trip is merely a slow part of the journey to be suffered, to us it is a boat trip. After a time the sun got warm enough to sit out on deck and have our lunch, a mini cruise holiday.
If you turn right at Cherbourg you get to the Cap de Flamanville, we parked for lunch at a viewpoint near a power station the weather was variable but bright with sun and some showers. From here you could see Jersey, Alderney and Sark.
I thought it would be a good idea to look for somewhere to empty the cassette toilet. In Le Pieux in a car park was a toilet excellent for the purpose with a double size utility trough for rinsing.
Here was my first encouter of how different the French people are when you get away from the Ports and Cities. We had, our car broken into in Calais several years ago but we were always intrigued by the courtesy of car drivers there.
It was raining outside, I hesitate at the door of the toilet building. A lad 15 years old 'ish nipped in to shelter. He spoke to me, a sentence including rain. English I said. He spoke no English but persisted with my limited French to hold a conversation, his advice, Normandie is not the best vacation spot in France and this rain is typical.
"Camping Car "? he asked, yes I said round there. The rain stopped we said goobye and went our way. In England a lad would not strike up a conversation in a loo with an older stranger.
We headed in land to stay the night at Saint Germain Le Gaillard by lake with geese, ducks, a mare and foal in the next field very nice and much like England.
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