Heading for La Rochelle (July 6).

Once again we packed up our stuff and bid farewell to the beach part of our trip. The weather in Vaux-sur-Mer had been exactly what was called for. Our next stop was a 2 night stay in La Rochelle. Since it was only a one hour drive we decided we could do some sightseeing on the way and laid in a course up the coast for Ile d'Oléron.

Some smelly mudflats we stopped to look at on the way. They went a long way
out and made gentle popping noises as we stood there. Dunc and Clara wouldn't
get out of the car due to the smell!

Once on the island, we stopped in the first town we came to called Le Chateau d'Oléron. It is not actually a castle, just a commune (roughly the French version of township or municipality) and a town. There is a citadel there, built between 1630 and 1704, that we wandered around for a while. It doesn't seem to have a name other than La Citadelle du Chateau d'Oléron. And it's huge.

Le pont dormant de la porte Royale. (Ok I got that straight from a web page).

I often find it is difficult to get them all to turn and look at me at the same
time so sometimes I don't ask. 

After a good visit at the Citadelle, we walked back into town for some lunch and then got back en route for La Rochelle.

In La Rochelle we stayed at a lovely little hotel called Hotel de la Paix. It was at one time (1700's) a shipowner's home. They have 2 family rooms into which they can pack sleeping space for 5 people. We booked the "Chambre Familale Romantique" because it had a little balcony out front. It was cozy as you can see in the pictures, but lovely. The people running the hotel were wonderful.

Oh, and we had our own bathroom with shower and toilet (and with a toilet seat). We had this level of luxury everywhere we stayed. I say this because Alex had started warning us about French bathrooms long before we came here. She said they can be horrible. I was under the impression that we might even struggle to get places where we didn't have to share. When reading online reviews of places, she pointed out how the North Americans tended to comment on bathrooms while the French did not. That, she said, is because they are used to awful bathrooms. They do not need to comment because it's just a bathroom. Alex has decided that things are different now compared to when she was last here. Anyway, pretty decent bathrooms all around.

Hotel De La Paix on Rue Gargoulleau.

Duncan and Clara's beds included a secret tunnel underneath
and a secret fort against the wall.

Our intrepid navigator sorting out her maps.

C and D playing a game they call "Restaurant" on our little balcony

After we unpacked some stuff and lazed about a bit, we wandered down towards the water front in search of some dinner. There are lots of wonderful restaurants on the water front and in the streets just up from there, most with big patios. Things were early season busy but definitely not packed. The La Rochelle 45th annual film festival was in full swing, adding to the buzz. Lots of people out wandering and lounging on patios. Tough to choose, but we did and did it well. Another lovely dinner.

D and C resting up from all the menu perusing.

Les belle femmes in front of the Tour de la Chaîne.

Bonne Soirée.