Nemours Thursday

We’re just back from the Blue Elephant.

Today was a day of driving, taking back roads and taking time. A big disadvantage of relying on the GPS is that, when there are roadworks and the roads “she” directs us along are closed, we have to take a guess as to which road(s) might get us past. One of the roads was closed for 15 kilometres, there were some diversion signs, but they seemed to run out. Of course, for a while “she” tried to get us to back track to the closed road, but eventually “she” gave up and between us, we found our way.  We needed diesel to make it to Paris tomorrow, so we went looking for a supermarket outlet (can be up to 15c per litre cheaper) in one of the bigger towns we passed through. We had to get fuel before noon, because the kiosk payment operators go to lunch and it is payment at the pump. As our money/credit cards won’t work at the pumps, we needed a person to pay. Eventually found one and off we went again. Round the corner and the road was closed for the weekly market. Took a guess as to an alternative road and that worked. Then another road closed for roadworks and found our way around. No thanks to “her”, trying to send us down one way streets the wrong way.

Finally arrived at the Ibis hotel in Nemours and unloaded all of the contents of the car. We need to get rid of all the brochures and other stuff we don’t need and repack everything into our 2 cases and 2 carry bags, ready to drop the car off in Paris early tomorrow afternoon and catch the Metro to our apartment in Le Marais.

Anyway, we’re back from the Blue Elephant, a chain of car washes (we have to return the car reasonably clean and as we haven’t washed it or vacuumed it out in the almost 3 months we’ve had it, it needed a good clean), with a cleaner car and a bottle of wine. The car wash is in the supermarket car park.