After our visit to Oradour Sur Glane from Parc verger, the next day we just chilled. I don’t mean we got cold but just chilled out for the day. Some of you will understand others may not understand what to chill out means.  The other couple which were on site( French ) left, leaving us the only ones on site. Then another van turns up with UK plates. The next morning we are getting ready to head out on the highway, aiming to leave site about 10am as we have a target of Soustons which is our  favourite aire and only an hour from the Spanish border. By the way we got chatting to the other couple and they were from Tiverton about an hour away from our home, small world. 

We leave site and head for Soustons. Apart froma shower soon after leaving the sun shone like a good one and the miles ticked by or should I say kilometres ticked by. Now Soustons, like I have said is our faverite aire. You park in amongst the pine trees looking out over a salt water lakewhich takes an hour to walk around, and walk 5 minutes the other way to a great beach. The kilometres were counting down and after stopping for lunch and a fuel stop we arrived five hours later.

You pull up to a barrier and there’s a sign on the money machine in French. Nikki try’s to feed the info in, how long we are stayin, credit card etc, machine says NO. PANIC I want to stay here. I wander over to a van allready in the aire, a French couple and in my best English say Hi and explain our situation. She speaks a bit of English and comes over with her phone and calls a number, and then tells us what they said. They said machine has a problem and can only take French or Dutch cards, no English cards. The guy will be there in the morning to fix it. There is another aire down the road but I want to stay here. So I ask the lady if she can use her card and we give her the cash. Result, merci madam we are in. We find a nice sunny spot and get set up. By set up I mean we park up and get a beer and a glass of wine out. Again other peaple set up in different ways. 

Today, Friday morning we go for a walk round the lake to the bread and cake shop. The aire is quiet at the moment, a couple of big ol lorry conversions with travellers in, you know the sort dreadlocks, kids dogs, but really nice folk. They get some strange looks from others but I think peaple should just live and let live. I commented on the guys lorry camper and he smiled. After our walk we sit in the sun for lunch, then I decide to go off to the beach. Last time we were here the sea was huge and out of control, today its flat, just a tiny wave braking on the shore. As I stare out to sea I can’t believe my eyes as a pod of about thirty to forty dolphins swim by, jumping out the water etc. WOW, made my day. I return to the our van and tell Nikki and sit in the sun again saying how nice it is here. The travelling guy is sat outside his hippy wagon smoking some funny smelling stuff and then starts playing didgeridoo, and he is good. The hippy kids are running around playing, not sat indoors on computer games and are laughing and as happy as can be. Life’s good here at Soustons. Us well we are just chilling again, as in got a beer and wine.