Sunday 20 October 2013

29-31st August Nemours to Cepoy (to pass the closures in time!)

You may notice a small figure in blue to the right of the steps?  Nik is there for scale, and to prove we were there.  This is the Chateau of Nemours, quite small actually, I think it's a library or somesuch, and just off a street from the town.  The other side is the canal.  As usual, the Tourist Office is in the nicest building:
Also, as we've found increasingly in France, they don't spare any effort or expense (plants are so dear over here!) in floral arrangements, either with automatic watering systems or men with buckets or more.
Our mooring too was very good and quiet:
but we can't hang around as we're told the canal defintely shuts on Sunday 2nd September by 6pm latest, and it's already 31st August so we're cutting it a bit fine!  Just in case they pack up a tad early...
So we leave at 10 am, after breakfast, the obligatory lunch stop at Souppes and arrive Cepoy 5pm.
Well of course we celebrate, this is a major achievement, after all the problems thrown at us!!  We find out there's a fete and fireworks tonight, and some of the displays arrive:
That's just where I was standing when I took that last picture!  There were more, but this is our favourite, like the one in that great film Duel.  We also celebrated at the local restaurant de l'ecluse (lock) which I recommend for price, taste  and appearance, look!
Anybody hungry?  Think we'll have to visit next time we have a car!  The fireworks don't look much on the camera, but it was as good a display as our village puts on, and that costs dear, this was all free!  The obligatory band was about as French as can be:
You had to be there, well, maybe best not...  Tell you what we've been so surprised about, the French are sooo patient, amazingly so, everywhere, so unlike UK.  I think that's what makes them healthier, less stress. Courteous on the roads, and everyone says hello, they also queue (I don't remember that before) and good civic amenities, don't get me started on that comparison with UK...

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