Holiday Blog. Sunshine and Jane Austen.

Just back from a week’s holiday in Brittany with my family.

Our raincoats were packed but they never saw the light of day.  For once, our holiday week coincided with the arrival of blue skies and unbroken sunshine.  As we were only there for a week we decided to try to make the most of our time and enjoy being outdoors after months of rain in the UK.

We hit the beach every day (four different beaches in six days),

shopped for locally grown food in a daily market in the town square, bought fresh bread every morning, drank local wine and beer, went to Mass (Priests from Lebanon and Senegal – welcome reminder of how widespread the French-speaking world is), shopped in a market (kids shopped, I browsed), visited another church, and a port, walked, swam, surfed, canoed, played

rugby, football, cricket and more rugby on the beach, watched the Olympic Opening Ceremony on TF1 (French commentators seemed very complimentary, although they were a little baffled about Mr Bean), played Trivial Pursuit, ate crepes, croque monsieur, steak frites, (not forgetting the bread, the fromage, the tartes aux pommes; all the usual culprits…), drank cidre.

And, although I’d packed my netbook and promised myself I’d keep up 500 words a day….

I didn’t type a jot.  BUT I wrote quite a bit…..leafed through my notebook and reworked several poems, almost finished a specular poem I’ve been trying to get right all year and even started several new poems.

In addition, I started reading ‘Emma’.  I’ve never been able to read Jane Austen, finding the subject matter trivial and irritating but I’m persevering with this one.  And, finally, I understand some of the humour that people rave about.  Yes, I find the character of Emma snobbish, the detail of social etiquette in the story exasperating…. but I’m also intrigued as to what will happen and who will marry or snub who.  And to be perfectly honest, it was a wholesome feeling sitting on my beach mat on la plage and not reading……….. you know what (yes, you do).

I’ve enjoyed a relaxing but also productive week and, as I’d forgotten my phone charger, I had no internet access.

So no Facebook or Twitter.  I know there’s a lesson in there somewhere.