Île de Ré & Meursac
12-19 July 2019
After the excitement of driving our car onto a ferry and motoring across the English Channel to France, the following six-hour drive from Cherbourg down to Île de Ré eventually grew tiresome for the kids. But after a long day of travel all the way from the UK, we finally made it to the far end of the island and the commune of Loix. This pretty little village on the north coast of the island is located amongst the hollyhocks and salt marshes that the isle is famous for, and is only accessible by one road in and out. We could not have been further from our previous island home of Singapore.
After years of planning our escape to France and beyond, it seemed only fitting to start the first day of the rest of our lives with croissants! And later that morning Ben’s sister and family arrived from Newcastle to kick off our first week in Europe with a bang. From our picture-perfect AirBnB we explored the beaches, villages and salt marshes of Île de Ré by bicycle. And in the evenings we whiled away drawn-out twilight hours in the garden with games of boules and cards. How great it was to be in France with good weather and good company. We’d made it!
After four idyllic days soaking up the sun and fresh Atlantic air, we headed south-east to a farmhouse on the outskirts of the rural village of Meursac. Due to the change of dates on our boat collection, we have a spare six weeks on our hands to enjoy the summer landbound. And fortunately for us, our friends from Singapore have very kindly let us housesit their country home here in France. (Thank you Catherine and Merlin!) Set amongst the fields of sunflowers and sweetcorn, it is the antithesis to our recent corporate city life. Just 20 minutes from both the beach and the city of Saintes, and only an hour away from the boat in La Rochelle, it is also in the perfect location.
And so, we spent the rest of the week settling into our new home and enjoying the remainder of our family holiday. Together we got our bearings on the surrounding towns, parks and beaches, and the cousins spent wholesome afternoons playing games in the spacious and sunny garden. And as the house fell silent in the evenings, we would sit out on the grass and chat over blocks of chocolate and bottles of the local fortified wine, Pineau. Time spent with our family is always incredibly special, and trip was no exception. It was the perfect soft landing to the next transition phase of our adventure!
