Weather continues to improve as we go north-west and we had another lovely drive to our next port of call. We stopped at Mamers for breakfast and to see if we could stay there. However there were no hotels in the town which was a shame because it was a nice place.
Arrived at Alençon at 11.00 and had our usual reconnaissance of the town until we found the Tourist Info. They reserved a room for us at the Hotel des Ducs (73€) near the railway station - really nice room with a balcony. We shopped at Carrefour for wine and lunch where we bought roast gammon and potatoes. A more leisurely walk in the afternoon took us around the city centre and we took in some of the attractions of the place, including a marble rolling competition on a large sandcastle (I kid you not).
Extremely hot this afternoon - about time too! After a shower and a rest we repaired to the town in search of victuals and eventually came across the "Haut Ministiere" advertised by a lifesize statue of a French waiter with a "hauteur" that has become ingrained in English attitudes towards the French. Decorated like a pub, we had a fine meal in a friendly ambience, although another English family walked out and another English couple failed to leave a tip. It seems to me the English are the rude people nowadays.
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| Auxerre centre. |
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| Oxford v Cambridge bird race. |
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| Beady - eyed stallholder spots surrepticious photographer. |
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