Our
home from home, Les Ecuries (“the stables”) is located in the
tiny hamlet of Mesnil Bénard, between Rouen and Dieppe, deep into
farming countryside in the département of Seine-Maritime. We drove
down by various routes and looked forward to a week of fun and
frolics, with a bewildering programme of activities organised
meticulously planned by our esteemed organisers. If the vigorous
schedule of sports and games was honoured more in theory than in
practice, this didn’t at all detract from a wonderfully mad and
hilarious time, with plenty to do in the surrounding area, and at
home the sort of culinary finesse and libationary excess to be
expected of our friends on such occasions. All despite one of the
worst Augusts, weather wise, on record.
The
accommodation: The
buildings were nicely restored, with a huge, well stocked kitchen in
the main house ideal for us, given that we cooked every night except
the last. The owner, a very friendly English lady, lives in the
farmhouse adjoining nearby and was very accommodating when we had the
odd problem. There was a range of comfortable spacious rooms, with a
huge dining table to accommodate all of us.
Just
a short drive away is Saint-Saens, a sleepy and picturesque town in a
steep valley, with enough decent shops to keep us supplied (and the
odd bar to entertain us while visiting).
There
were plenty of local walks and cycle rides on dry days in the local
Forêt d’Eawy, which includes the
remains of one of the many V1 rocket launch sites that terrorised
Britain towards the end of WWII. The
forest is huge and provided with long trails, a quirky local cider
museum and a neighbouring farm where they made and sold cheeses. We
also visited the eccentric Jardins de Bellevue nearby.
Some
of us took trips to the coast, dodging the rain showers and arctic
blasts. There are some pleasant little resort towns with traditional
houses from Edwardian times when this coast was popular with the
British and Parisian elite. An hour south is the city of Rouen. The
cathedral dominates the city and the 14th century astronomical clock
is a survivor from a prosperous age.
The remains of the abbey of
Jumièges beside the deeply
incised gorge of the Seine were also worth a visit.
Of
course a trip with our friends wouldn’t cut the mustard without some wonderful
meals and this week was no exception. Everyone took turns producing
ever more elaborate meals, including a birthday feast for Sarah and
Laura, making the most of local produce gathered on daytime trips. A fair few bottles of local wine
completed the convivial atmosphere. We were able to eat
outdoors on a few occasions, but the huge dining table fit us all
comfortably.
There
were some very splendid breakfasts, thanks to Tana's early rising to
cook mushrooms and tomatoes, and French black pudding,. Tony and
Rob’s ten course tasting menu was gobsmacking too.
For
the active among us, there were reflexology, yoga, water aerobics in
the pool, rounders, board games, a sixties quiz and an art
competition were among many activities that kept us all occupied.
But
most of all it was a joyful week with a great group of friends.
