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Today was a trial!
We went to bed in Loudun last night on a lovely balmy summer's evening. We woke up to torrential rain and squally winds. After loading up the bikes we reluctantly pulled out onto the quiet, Sunday morning, streets. It was 0830hrs and our target, Lussac-les-Chateaux, was a long, long way away. We were instantly drenched! It was one of those days where, if you were in a bus shelter, you would never venture out. There was no choice though. We pedalled for around four hours in those same atrocious conditions, all the while against a worsening headwind.
We hit the Vienne river by lunchtime at a place called Bonneuil Matours. It had stopped raining (at last!) so we ate our lunch of bread, cheese and nuts on a park bench.
The wind though was getting stronger and coming straight at us. We decided to forget the scenic route and to take the most direct route, straight down an A class road, and into the wind, just to get to our destination. It was a further two and a half hours of pain as we took it in turn to battle the cruel gale.
Knackered, we arrived at Lussac at just gone 5pm. We were just about to peruse the digs options when the weather took a further turn for the worst and torrential rain started. We were, however, outside an Hotel called Les Orangeries (it's featured in Alistair Sawday's Special Places To Stay) so we dived in before getting soaked again. A - Maze - Ing! And (for reasons I've not got time to explain) we got the executive suit for the price of a single room!
After such a punishing day, I think we deserved it. The restaurant looks a bit good....
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