![]() ![]() She believes that she will be well enough to go when the time comes to leave, indeed we both believe that this trip will prove to be beneficial to Julia’s eventual recovery, and our doctor agrees. Despite not feeling too good Julia is determined to go ahead with the trip in faith. Christmas is over, the family have gone home after the festivities, and we get down to serious planning for our proposed trip to France. January: We have settled in well in Rodden. We hope it will aid her recovery, and as it turns out two and a half months is just about the right length of time for us both! Our initial wild plan of going for five months, taking in Spain and Portugal as well as France, is eventually drastically cut to two and a half months just in France, but with the occasional day foray into Spain perhaps? The fact that Julia is still not well – the shock of having to leave church, job, home and friends – has set back her recovery significantly, is the primary reason for this extended trip to France. We have been camping in France before, so we know that we need to cater for every possible contingency, especially since we are planning an extended stay in the Dordogne. With the money the church has given us as a farewell gift we buy a new tent, additional camping gear, and some suitable all-weather camping clothing. So I ‘retire’ and Julia (who is fourteen years younger than me) takes a year’s leave of absence, and we move to Dorset to ‘house share’ with Julia’s elderly mother in her lovely large thatched cottage in the small hamlet of Rodden. Even though Julia is showing good signs of recovery, the church leadership has come to the conclusion that ‘it is in the best interests of both ourselves and the church’ that we leave. I am the Senior Minister, and Julia the Associate Minister, of a large and growing church on the edge of London, but I am two years beyond retirement age, and Julia has been ill with ME or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome as it is sometimes known, for the past few months. We have just been given notice to quit! I should explain that Julia and I are both ordained Baptist Ministers. ‘Let’s do that extended trip around France we’ve dreamed of!’ I reply. October (the previous year): ‘Well what shall we do now?’ Julia asks. What set out to be the holiday of a lifetime for us, two and half months camping in France in the summer, is nearly over before it has really started! We just sit there stunned as various people come rushing over to the scene of the accident. I don’t even have time to sound the horn, take off the hand brake, or reverse, before the Mercedes smashes into us and punches a hole right through our car radiator.ĭo you know any famous Belgians, apart from Hercules Poirot of course, and he’s not real, only a fictional character? Well here’s another one for you, Baldwyn Smit, the driver of the Mercedes van who, for some inexplicable reason, decided to change lanes at the Péage for the Millau Viaduct, in Southern France, even though there were only a handful of cars waiting at the Péage, and reverse at speed without looking to see if there was anything behind him, nearly writing our car off in the process! Julia and I are unhurt fortunately. Of course the shouting does no good whatsoever, the air conditioning in our car is on, and all the windows are shut, and our ancient Vauxhall Corsa doesn’t stand a chance. Monday 27 June: ‘What the hell are you doing!’ I shout, as the large Mercedes van with the prominent tow bar starts to reverse towards us at speed. IN WHICH WE MEET A FAMOUS BELGIAN, GET THE SACK FROM OUR CHURCH, MOVE TO DORSETSHIRE, PLAN A TRIP TO FRANCE ESPECIALLY DORDOGNESHIRE, AND JUST ABOUT AVOID TAKING A STOWAWAY WITH US. So enjoy the book, and go visit the places mentioned, especially the Dordogne for yourselves! I have tried to avoid specific names of people and campsites, but occasionally I have used correct names to celebrate the goodness and kindness of certain people who hopefully won’t mind 15 minutes of fame. ![]() I say ‘kind of diary’ because I have made some use of poetic licence, although all the incidents and characters in this narrative are based on true people and true events. What is recorded here is a kind of ‘diary’ of a two and half months camping holiday in France that my wife Julia and I went on in the summer of 2011. ![]()
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