Time to pack up for the start of our two day journey home. It was easer this time as the apartment is pretty compact and for once we are on ground level so no steps to walk back and forth to the car. Sylvia the puppy came to visit whilst we were packing and it was a swift goodbye to our host as we set off at precisely 10.00am. Our plan was to drive to Reims via the little French town of Colmar. We easily found the car park that I had earmarked and as I was driving this stretch, I recognised the road as I had studied it on Google maps before our departure.
Colmar - according to the guidebooks is ...'a photographer's dream, with its labyrinth of cobbled lanes, flower-lined canals, and timber-framed houses painted in a rainbow of pastel hues. It's the quintessential Alsatian town...'. Indeed it was all of these things but on a warm Sunday towards the end of May, many thousands of other people had obviously read the same book and the place was heaving with large tour groups and guides waving umbrellas and flags to keep everyone together. It really was one of the busiest - probably THE busiest place that we have visited during this trip. We managed to find a free table outside of a bakery and it was a mind change into French (slightly easier than German) to order two café au laits with two eclairs - very nice. It was becoming increasingly annoying trying to take photographs without hoards of people and after walking around the old part of the town which is surpassingly compact, we decided to give up and get lunch elsewhere. The most surprising thing we saw on our journey out (Colin driving this time) was a twelve meter high model of the Statue of Liberty on a round-about on our way out of the town! As Colin was driving this time, he took a double spin of the roundabout so I could grab photos on the phone!
It was quite a long drive to Reims - over four hours so around half way we stopped at a service station for lunch and we had failed to find anywhere in Colmar. Despite somehow ending up parked with the large lorries, this was considerably better than our very first service station on our drive through Belgium. I had half a roast chicken with beans and potatoes and Colin had a lasagne - very French - not! Onwards driving and I took over this time. It was another long drive through road works and long tunnels before we arrived on the outskirts of Reims. Only one wrong turn before we arrived at our very final stop of the tour. A well placed hotel on the outskirts of the city and a friendly welcome. I had booked parking in what turns out to be rather like a massive barn but is very secure and because the car is in the cool, we can leave most of the contents in the car, just taking valuables and overnight things in what has become known as the ‘grey transporter bag’. Our room is the smallest of the trip and unfortunately did not have access to fresh air, just the air-con.
After a cup of tea with some chilled milk we had bought from Freiburg, we headed out to explore the city or at least find a snack for dinner. It was a good twenty minute walk in and I had been sure there was a tram to take but apparently not. We walked on to look at the cathedral which (as it usually the case) was covered with scaffolding over the front door). I feel a little mean but to be honest, I was expecting something a little more impressive! Back to the Place Drouet D’Erlon packed with restaurants although we were not that hungry after a big lunch. We settled on a - not to be disclosed - meal at the KFC! Sadly, despite our culinary aberration, it was nowhere as good as expected and quite cold (even I complained this time) so we walked back to the hotel in a grumpy silence. One plus point is that my phone has 5G fully restored since we crossed the border from Germany into France so I was finally able to watch the finals of Masterchef on my laptop!
