The Toad Road: Travelling South through France

One of the challenges we've faced on this adventure is sometimes having to sacrifice budget for convenience. When deciding between an extra hour (or more) in the car to save the cost of a toll road between France and Spain, we always opted for the toll option. There are only so many squabbles parents can survive, and then there's the fighting amongst the kids.

On our second day of travel, Master A asked if we were going on the Toad Road. It's become one of those 'family things' that happen on a trip. A bit like the 'zunda mochi' pose you see the kids striking in many of our photographs. Zunda Mochi is a Sendai delicacy of green bean paste and sticky rice cakes. Sendai has adopted this phrase as the new 'cheese' for when you take a photograph, and our children, fascinated with the ninja pose they learnt at the same time, have incorporated it into pretty much every photo... but I digress...

The road from Paris to Barcelona can be driven in around nine hours (according to Google Maps and if you are able to whizz along toad roads without a dozen toilet stops). We decided to break up the trip, travelling on average two hours a day and stopping at little villages along the way. The Man of the House (MOTH) was in charge of sleeping sites, which he arranged via booking.com, with varying outcomes.

Day one - we departed Paris and visited Versailles on what had to be the wettest and windiest day we'd encountered in France. Having started out a bit later than intended (packing for five who have spread out over an apartment is time consuming), we opted to visit only the gardens of the Palace of Versailles. The queue for the palace was LONG. Usually, visits to the garden are free (except for Sundays and Tuesdays) and as it was Tuesday we had to pay (kids 5 and under are free) and we were also treated to displays of the water fountains.

Weathering the wind and fountain in Versailles

The gardens are massive and excellent for small people to run around and let of steam. We'd packed a picnic lunch (must be eaten in designated areas) and admired the beauty of the site. Miss K enjoyed the history of the palace, particularly a diluted account of the French Revolution, being in Versailles made history come to life. If doing Versailles without small people, I imagine taking the two day passport to see garden, palace and other buildings option would be well worth it. Miss K suggested in 10 years she and I come back and do so - here's hoping!

From Versailles, via the toad road, we headed to Jargeau. A small quaint town near Orleans, where we stayed in a small, quaint, but clean hotel (Cheval Blanc), ate ok Pizza at a local restaurant and discovered that Joan of Arc had a historical moment here.

Statue of Joan of Arc in Jargeau

Day two -We missed breakfast at the hotel (overslept) and wandered hungrily around the village, searching for a wee café. Found a boulangerie and it was croissants for breakfast. Having embarked on discussions about St Joan we decided to visit the city of Orleans.

Miss K and I on a fountain in the plaza near the Cathedral of Orleans

This township is beautiful. Its cathedral inspired questions about different biblical stories, we saw a peaceful protest march and lunched at a local creperie. There is also a Louis Pasteur Park here, which Master A was thrilled about: "I know him," he announced (we'd read about him last year), although it was too wet to go to the park. A short stop here and we pressed onto a little hotel on the outskirts of Bourges. Our hotel (ACE) was new and clean. A family friendly restaurant was located nearby and breakfast was relatively cheap and plentiful.

Travelling France reminded me to be grateful for my (and my children's) love of history and stories, my high-school French and the MOTH's fearless driving skills.

Day three- We pressed onto Clermont-Ferraund where I suggested that our two star hotel room reminded me of a hospital. The MOTH's response was that that was an insult to hospitals! Inspired to escape our dreary accommodation, we headed out to explore the volcanic region, taking a train from the base of Puy de Dome to its gusty top, buffering ourselves against the wind and cold. It was thrilling.

A Zunda Mochi pose in front of the train for the Puy de Dome

It's cold up here Dad!

Day four - Most hotels have a stand with brochures enticing you to local visitor attractions and Vulcania in Clermont looked amazing. Touting itself almost as a  volcanic Disneyland, we joined throngs of locals to visit this attraction that draws on the natural landscape for its theme. We 'rode' two rides, queued for lunch and watched an ecological film. Unfortunately Vulcania didn't live up to our expectations with very long queues, inefficiency and too many people for two few attractions. Over priced, while we mostly enjoyed ourselves, we wouldn't recommend a special visit.

Zunda Mochi at Volcania

Leaving Vulcania around 3pm meant we arrived at our next destination of Le Caylar (a remote village in the mountains) a little late for our tired and hungry children. The hotel proprietor was a warm and welcoming lady and directed us to a nearby quirky restaurant for a home-cooked meal. This was probably the best meal we had paid for in France, aside from the reasonably priced breakfasts we'd enjoyed at the hotels (this one included).





Day five - Across the border on the Toad Road to Bascara (Hotel de Les Roques) where the food rocked and the host rocked and the price was pretty rock bottom too for two rooms, plus a playground for the children! The sun was shining - bliss!

Amazingly good food - 'pica pica' in Catalyuna

Tama discovers 'planking' in a play ground in Bascara.

Day six - Before heading to Barcelona for the week, we stopped at Figueres to fulfil the MOTH's dream of seeing Dali's Museum. While not overly recommended for children (particularly on a Sunday and the place is full of people), our small people enjoyed looking at the various installations and creations for a few hours before becoming tired. Wee Master T (nearly 2yrs) points out his favourite display in his Dali book he chose from the gift store and talk continues about Dali's art and life.

Dali would have loved the eclectic Zunda Mochi in his Museum!

 Plans for Barcelona include visiting Gaudi's famous works, but today, we supermarket shop and rest in our lovely casa. Buenos noches amigos!